OPC leader storms school with six men, brutalises owner for punishing son

The expansive premises of Meteorite Standard College at Ayetoro area of Itele, Ado-Odo/Ota Local Government Area, Ogun State was a spectacle of violence penultimate Thursday.

The usual assembly of students ended around 9 am and the students were dispersed to their various classes. At about 9.15 am, the proprietor of the college, Mr. Joseph Omokunle Afolayan, had just started his routine inspection of the school compound when he sighted from afar a Junior Secondary School (JSS 1) pupil, Sodiq Aremu Lawal, resuming for class around 9.30am and improperly dressed.

Afolayan wasted no time in stopping the 10-year-old pupil, asking him to come over to explain why he came to school late. The boy, however, refused to comply.

Shocked at the pupil’s reaction, the 70-year-old proprietor moved closer to him and told him to go down on his knees. The boy however ran out of the school premises.

Less than 20 minutes later, he returned with his father, Taiwo Lawal a.k.a. Eniba and six men. The father is said to be a transport unionist and the leader of the Odua People’s Congress (OPC) in the neighboring Alimosho Local Government.

In a fit of fury, Eniba and his men confronted Afolayan for allegedly sending his son away from school. An altercation ensued and before anyone knew what was happening, Eniba and his men launched a barrage of punches on Afolayan, who bled and suffered wounds from the brutal assault.

The scene became rowdy as senior students of the college trooped out to rescue Afolayan from the men, who boasted that no one could hold them for assaulting the Ondo-born school proprietor, as Eniba rejected all pleas by teachers in the school to stop attacking Afolayan.

The matter was reported to the Ayetoro-Budo Division, but sensing that policemen from the station were on their way to the scene, Eniba and his men fled the school premises, while Afolayan was taken to the hospital.

Speaking to our reporter a few hours later, Afolayan, a Librarian turned school proprietor, described the incident as horrible and irritating. He said he never knew that Eniba could humiliate him in the manner he did in the presence of his students and his recalcitrant son.

“I am a graduate of Library Science from the University of Ado-Ekiti (UNAD). I set up this school in 2000.

“Since the establishment of this college, I have always been a stickler for discipline especially when it comes to enforcing the resumption time of students and their appearance in uniform,

“This incident happened shortly after the morning assembly on October 23. I was moving round the premises and classrooms in my usual habit of ensuring that there is orderliness and idyllic academic environment.

“Moments later, around 9.30 am, I spotted from a distance a 10-year-old JSS 1 student, Sodiq Aremu Lawal, sneaking into the premises, knowing full well that our resumption time is 8 am. He also violated our dress code by not tucking in his shirt.

“I called him out and asked him to stop and that he must not proceed to his class since he came to school late, but he refused to obey me. ‘I then asked him to go on his knees.

“As I moved towards where he stood, he ran away from the school premises through the pedestrian gate. Thereafter, he returned with his father and six men and they descended on me while I was explaining to his father called Taiwo Lawal aka Eniba what his son did.

“The father told me that he is the OPC chairman in Alimosho Local Government Area and that nobody can talk to him or reprimand his son.

“He threatened to beat me up, and before I knew it, he and his boys started beating me mercilessly and dealt blows on me until blood gushed out of the wound they inflicted on my head, nose and ears as they dragged me on the floor while my teachers and others watched.

“He was armed with a jack knife which fell from his pocket while he and his men were assaulting me. He boasted that there was no police that could rescue me from him and his boys and they dragged me on the floor for about 20 minutes.

“I was later rescued by my students who trooped out and engaged Eniba and his thugs.”

In spite of the attack, Afolayan said he did not send Eniba’s son away when he came to school the next day.

“Eniba’s son showed up in school a day after his father brutalised me. I did not send him away because he wasn’t the one that beat me up, albeit, his bad behavior was the trigger.

“I reported the incident to the Ayetoro-Budo Divisional Police headquarters and Eniba has shunned police invitation.

“He (Eniba) once came to school to confront me after I sent his son home for defaulting school fee payment.

“However, this attack on me was the height of humiliation that I have suffered as a result of trying to instill discipline in a student.”

Afolayan said the police could not arrest Eniba after he refused to show up at the station because his residence falls under the Lagos territory; a stone’s throw from the station.

“The Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in charge of the station told me that it was not possible to arrest Eniba at his nearby residence under Lagos territory.

“I have spent thousands of naira on my treatment at the State General Hospital, Ota, Ogun State. The wounds are there on my face for anyone to see.

“I was given a note by the DPO to present at the hospital and I underwent series of tests. Since then, the DPO has been calling Eniba but he has refused to respond as I speak.

“I could not believe the way Eniba and his boys stormed my school to brutalise me even when I did not beat his son.”

Afolayan also recalled a similar episode a few years ago when a female student who played truancy.

“The first time Eniba had issues with me was when a female JSS student played truancy during school hours.

“The girl in question was found roaming around the adjoining streets. I reprimanded the girl but she ran out of the school premises and returned with her mother and Eniba.

“He (Eniba) said I was playing with fire for reprimanding the girl over her truancy.

“The second time was when Eniba’s son was sent home because he was owing school fees. He was sent home to collect money from his father, and he protested that I sent his son home.

“The third time was this latest encounter where he brutalised me with his men.”

A medical report on Afolayan reads: “He (Afolayan) was said to have been assaulted by one of his students coupled with (the) assistance of some set of thugs. He sustained multiple bruises…”

Afolayan added: “My eyes are reddish now because of the blows dealt on them, Doctors have advised me to seek urgent treatment to prevent cataract infection.

“As I speak, my eyes still hurt and my vision is badly affected.”

Calls made by our correspondent to Eniba’s (Lawal) mobile phone were not answered. He also only responded to a text message sent to his phone for his side of the story, with the exclamatory “Aah!”.

The spokesperson of Ogun State Police Command, SP Omolola Odutola, referred our correspondent to the DPO of Ayetoro-Budo Police Station, Mr Akindele Okunoye. When contacted on Thursday, Okunoye, in a telephone conversation, told our correspondent that the matter had been settled amicably.

“It is true that we could not arrest the suspect (Eniba) because his residence falls under Lagos territory close to the school.

“We explained to Pa Afolayan that there are operational protocols guiding arrest of suspects outside a station’s jurisdiction that we would have to follow strictly if we must arrest Eniba, but Pa Afolayan did not seem to understand.

“However, the case was settled yesterday (Wednesday). Eniba (Lawal) sent some men to the victim pleading for amicable settlement, and all of them later came to my office.

“The proprietor of the school (Afolayan) demanded that the suspect bear the cost of his medical bill and a rapprochement was reached by the two parties, leading to settlement of the matter.”

Source: The Nation