Increasing concerns as travellers got missing in transit

AKINWALE ABOLUWADE writes about the travails of the family and church members of Mr Bolarinwa Ajayi who reportedly got missing in transit between Ibadan and Ilesa with reference to other cases of missing persons and what the police say.

The Ajayi family of Bolorunduro Street in Ilesa, Osun State and the entire members a church, Olomilagbala Group, Irewole District, Ilesa Region, Ilesa are in discomfiture over the plight and whereabouts of Mr Bolarinwa Ajayi. The embattled family members of the missing man as well as the concerned church members have been praying and combing everywhere in search of their beloved brother for eight days.

Apart from reporting the matter to the police, friends and associates in towns and villages across Osun and Oyo states, his family members have also taken the search for him to the social media platforms. They also signpost his photograph, personal data and telephone contacts at strategic points for members of the public who may have vital information on him to reach out to them.  However, their efforts, so far, have not yielded the desired result.

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Mr Ajayi, a Lagos-based contractor, was declared missing since Friday, September 13, 2018. The 52-year-old-man was said to have got missing in transit on his way for the weekend at Ilesa from a project site in Mowe, a community along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Ogun State.

According to his wife, Mrs Rebecca Ajayi, the man is also a contract staff with a Chinese company (name not given) at Mowe. Since one year ago when he got the job, she said he always travelled to Ilesa, his hometown, to see his family, especially for weekend. As usual, the man was said to have told his wife that he was already on his way to Ilesa after the day’s work on the faithful day. But little did Mr Ajayi and his wife know that their hope of meeting that day would be dashed.

Mrs Ajayi said: “My husband called to inform me around 4:00pm that day that he was already in Ibadan. This is the usual way he updates me about his movement whenever he travels. We were all happy to hear from him at home and we were expectant that he would join us in Ilesa in the next two hours after his call came through.”

But the expectation had failed ever since. His wife lamented: “Far from my expectation, we did not see him at the projected time. By the time it was getting late I became worried. I decided to call his number but I was surprised when I discovered that his line was dead. I called the other number but it didn’t go through. I kept trying and started praying but I could not get any clue to what went wrong.

At the time of filing this report, family, church members and friends of Mr Ajayi said they do not have any useful information that could lead to his whereabouts and condition. When contacted, his blood brother, Mr Olujenyo Ajayi, said the family had explored all known possibilities but were not sure of what had become of him, whether he is dead or alive.

Asked if he suspected a case of kidnap or his brother›s involvement in a road mishap, Olujenyo said: “I can›t be sure yet of whether it is the case of kidnap, ritual killing or auto crash because we have not heard any cogent news from the police, road safety officers, kidnappers or from the mortuary. The family has gone round to many places in Osun and Oyo states but we don›t have any concrete information that can be helpful.

“The experience that we are having at the moment is harrowing, so harrowing because we are not even sure of what has become of him. I refuse to think that the worse had happened to him but I doubt that it is a case of kidnap because kidnappers would have tried to call the family for ransom if he is in their net.

Mr Ajayi has only one wife, four children and a 90-year-old mother who live in his house. As the breadwinner of the family, Rebecca said they were worried about what had become of him, adding: “We are confused of what next to do to unravel the mystery behind his condition and whereabouts. We appeal to the police to come to our aid by stepping up investigation that could lead us to what has happened to him”.

In a telephone conversation with her on Thursday, his mother, Mrs Abiodun Ajayi, was grieving helplessly. She continued to wonder about what could have happened to her son in captivity. The 90-year-old-woman pleaded that the security operatives should wade into the issue to assuage her grieves and the panic which his wife and children continue to experience.

Speaking on behalf of the church members, Pastor Joseph Aro, said: “Since Saturday evening when the wife called me, we have been running round to find out what had happened. Specifically on Tuesday, we went to Ibadan to make some findings. We went to the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) at the Ibadan end of the Ile-Ife/Ibadan expressway. They told us they did not have him on the accident list for that week. They advised us to go to Gbagi Police Station in Ibadan for confirmation. At the police station they said they didn’t come across anybody bearing the name Ajayi during the week.

“From there, we went to the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, but we were told at the mortuary that they didn’t have anybody like that there. We were directed to Adeoyo State Hospital at Yemetu and Ring Road. We were told that such a name is not in their record. We are praying for him. We even discussed his matter at the pastors’ meeting on Wednesday and we have continued to pray. Mr Ajayi is a very quiet and easy-going man who does not hurt anyone and having given his life to Jesus Christ since the early 80s, he is no longer a baby in the faith.

The police in Osun and Oyo state commands told Saturday Tribune that investigations were ongoing to unravel the mystery behind Mr Ajayi›s disappearance. The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Oyo State Command, Mr Adekunle Ajisebutu, said in a telephone interview that checks showed that the case was not documented. He said: “We are on the case but as of now, we cannot say much on it. Cases relating to missing persons are not so common in the state. Of course, we receive complaints about missing people but those who come with such complaints usually come back to tell us that they have found the missing persons”.

The PPRO, Osun State Command, Mrs Folashade Odoro, said: “Usually in events when complaints about missing people are brought, we do have the feedback that such people are later found. It is rare to find people who get missing and they are not found again ever after. We don’t have common cases of missing people in Osun State. Maybe such is prevalent in other states. The information made available shows that he was missing around Ibadan. My advice to the family of Ajayi is that they should go and report at the nearest place where the incidence happened”.

Findings from security agents show that majority of those declared missing, especially in the southern part of the country are children and the elderly. The police said, for instance, that most of those who are reported missing in the southern states are children who missed their ways and the elderlies who got missing as a result of memory loss. Usually however, many of them are reportedly found soon after being declared missing.

An 80-year-old-woman, Adenike Fafila, from Igoba area of Akure, Ondo State, was reported to have been missing few months ago. Report had it that she left her home in Igoba with a message that she was going to plait hair for one of her daughters at Oyemekun area of Akure, but neither was she seen at her destination  nor did she return home ever since.

In another development, a 45-year-old timber trader, Mr Yemi Kehinde, got missing in a mysterious circumstance after returning from a business trip. The businessman was believed to have been kidnapped while his goods worth N1.6million were concealed by the man he allegedly hired to drive him home. No clue has emerged regarding his whereabouts as the commercial driver that held him hostage is still at large. His victim, who is the vice chairman of Ogun State Branch of Planks Sellers Association, Alafia Unit, Lafenwa, Abeokuta, was said to have travelled to Owa-Oni town in Ondo State to buy timber. He employed the service of a haulage company to convey the products to Abeokuta but was held captive and whisked away to an unknown destination. A search party was raised but efforts at locating him were abortive. The goods and the truck were later found but Mr Kehinde was nowhere to be found.

According to Mr Adejobi Olumuyiwa, a Superintendent of Police, rising cases of missing persons is as a result of ignorance and lukewarm attitude by the people to security issues. Adejobi while speaking at the annual ‘Police and You’ forum organised by the Junior Chamber’s International, Asero Motor Park, Abeokuta, Ogun State, maintained that there were increased cases of missing persons. He said: “People go missing than being kidnapped because of our attitude towards security. Kidnappers kidnap for ransom but the case of missing persons is very wide and broad.

“Some go missing due to the activities of ritualists; such people never returned. Kidnappers, however, release their victims after ransom has been paid. The problem is we don’t care about what is happening around us because we believe that security business is meant for the law enforcement agencies alone. We don’t care about security watch because we don’t love one another”.

Olumuyiwa said more than 10,462 people get missing annually and about two percent of them get back to their people with injuries, adding: “God gave us the 10 commandments to protect us. There are some things we do that we don’t see as crime but are very offensive”.

Despite the grieve being experienced by families and friends of the missing people, some members of the society have expressed worries that there were dearth of statistics as well as lack of effective measures to tackle kidnapping in the land. Mr Olujenyo said considering the sanctity of life of the citizens, governments at all levels must be proactive in tackling insecurity generally.