‘I felt like I was
being strangled
when my husband
was executed’ By SHOLA OSHUNKEYE Sunday, July 24, 2011 The journey to this page and
stage started one-and-a-half
years ago. Or put more
succinctly, we began the
search for her and the family
about 20 months ago. And after a string of failures,
occasioned by blunt leads, we
managed to get her two
months later. Even the
meeting had a predetermined
condition: no interview, no photographs. We accepted, but wondered
why such a moving book like
the widow of Major Gideon
Orkar, the brilliant and brave
Benue man that led an
insurrection against the military administration of
General Ibrahim Babangida on
Sunday, April 22, 1990, would
want to remain anonymous.
Perpetually ‘underground’. Since that revolt was quelled,
and her man was executed
alongside 67 others, neither
her nor the children had
granted any media interview.
Very few Nigerians either knew them or could link
them with the famous Major.
Such things, it would seem,
were the least of their
worries. For a long time, “You know
I’m still in the service” was
the automatic answer that
Mrs. Bunmi Orkar, the Chief
Nursing Officer of the Nigerian
Army Intelligence School, Apapa, Lagos, gave each time
I renewed my request for an
interview. She never shifted
ground until March, last year,
when she suddenly agreed to
give this reporter an exclusive interview to commemorate
the 20th anniversary of her
husband’s death. But I
bungled it. I suddenly
disappeared from the radar.
As if that was not enough, and quite uncharacteristically,
I failed to call her to apologise
for the disappointment, and
explain why I missed the
opportunity. You can then imagine her
indignation when, sometime
in April, this year, I phoned
her to say ‘Hello ma; long
time, no see’. She wasted no
time in giving me a piece of her mind. And I had to beg
and beg until she told me that
my sins had been forgiven
and I should go and sin no
more. Then, late this May, I got an
SMS message from Mrs. Orkar,
announcing the impending
wedding of Tavershima
Olayinka Orkar, her second
son, to Adebola Rachael Agboola, his heartthrob, on
Saturday, July 9, 2011, at The
Glad Tidings Baptist Church,
Ogbomosho, Oyo State. I
quickly replied that I would
attend the epoch-making event. I fulfilled that promise
alongside Biodun Adeyewa,
our ace photojournalist. It was really a glorious day
for the Orkar Family as
Nigerians from all walks of
life trooped to the ancient
town to witness the glorious
occasion. After the solemnization of the
matrimony, guests were
feted to a feast at the Federal
Government College. After the event, I sat down
with Mrs. Bunmi Orkar for the
long-awaited interview. She
grudgingly agreed, but with a
caveat: “You must let me see
what you are publishing because I do not want to be
embarrassed or embarrass
anybody. You know I’m still
in service.” With that, I set my tape
rolling. And for the next one
hour, twenty minutes, the
woman would answer
virtually all the questions that
I posted to her. She was close to tears as she
recalled those sorrowful days
when Major Orkar, the love of
her life was held in captivity,
prior to his trial and eventual
execution. Despite the overwhelming joy she had
felt prior to the interview, the
mother of six seemed grief-
stricken as she recalled how
she converted her only car, a
Peugeot 504 saloon car, to a taxi cab, ferrying passengers
from virtually every part of
Lagos. Even so, that could hardly
meet her needs, especially her
children’s school fees. So, she
decided to sell half of
everything that came in pairs
in her household. Still, she was forced to withdraw her
children from school at some
point. But she never gave up.
She stepped up the struggle
and persevered until God
wiped away all her tears, and all her children turned out
well. Even, Ayilla, her last son,
who was just six months old
when their father died, is now
a graduate. “It’s God,” Mrs. Bunmi Orkar,
56, says for the umpteenth
time, pointing to the sky as
she reminisces over those
days of sorrow. She now
brims with joy, and ethereal peace. Please read on: Excerpts. I can see that you are very
excited. Oh yes, I feel great. Since my
husband’s death (21 years
ago), this is the first major
party I will hold; and thank
God for His grace, I don’t think
that it could be better if he were alive. Thank God for the
support of the members of
the family, my family, his
family, my friends, his friends,
everybody. They really
supported us. odili.net/news/source/2011/jul/24/524.html unfortunately it seems one has to get a copy of the sun to read the whole thing. |
