Over two decades after the brutal assassination of Nigeria’s former Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Chief Bola Ige, fresh questions are emerging about what really happened on that fateful night of December 23, 2001.
In an interview with journalist Edmund Obilo, Chief Bisi Akande, a former governor of Osun State and longtime ally of Ige, suggested that former Oyo State Governor, Rashidi Ladoja may have crucial information about the case.
“There are many things that die with people,” Akande said, his voice heavy with resignation. “Lam Adesina (former Oyo governor) took the case to court, but when Ladoja succeeded him, he withdrew it. Ask Ladoja—he would know more.”
Bola Ige’s murder remains one of the most shocking political assassinations in Nigeria’s history. He was a man of conviction—an intellectual, a statesman, and a fierce advocate for democracy. But he was also a man caught in the treacherous web of power politics.
Akande did not mince words when he accused the Obasanjo administration of lacking the political will to solve the murder.
“He was killed in anticipation of what he might become in the future. It was a state murder. The government killed him. The government can kill anybody.”
Ige’s decision to join President Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration in 1999 was met with skepticism. A chieftain of the opposition Alliance for Democracy (AD), he was one of the most vocal critics of Obasanjo’s Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Yet, in a surprising turn, AD leaders—including Akande—urged him to accept a ministerial appointment.
“It wasn’t a mistake—it was a collective decision. We all asked him to join, believing it was best for the Yoruba political movement.”
However, Akande revealed that Ige later regretted the move, describing it as a “kiss of death.”
One evening, Akande recalled, Ige confided in him that he was ready to walk away.
“He called me and said, ‘I’m going to resign from this government.’ I told him to hold on. I called his friend, Oluwole Rotimi, who warned that if Ige resigned, he might not survive.”
Ige was adamant. He had already discussed it with Wole Soyinka and Bola Tinubu, and both had advised him to step down. But Akande and others urged him to reconsider.
In a last-ditch effort, Ige personally handed a resignation letter to Obasanjo. The president, perhaps sensing the political implications, convinced him to stay—only to transfer him from the Ministry of Power to Justice shortly after.
Days later, he was murdered.
Before his assassination, Ige had been publicly humiliated. At a political rally, thugs snatched his cap from his head—a brazen display of disrespect.
Many saw it as a warning. Days later, he was gone.
Akande admitted he never found out who orchestrated the attack but advised Ige to focus on writing his memoir instead of attending social events. He never got the chance.
If there’s one question that lingers, it is this: Why did Rashidi Ladoja withdraw the case after becoming governor?
Akande did not provide definitive answers, but his message was clear:
“Ladoja might know more than I do. He should be asked.”
For now, the murder of Bola Ige remains a wound that refuses to heal—a story without an ending. But as fresh voices demand answers, perhaps the truth is closer than we think.
