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Ex-govs Akande, Ladoja Differ Over Bola Ige’s Death

Former governors of Osun and Oyo states have differed over the death of the former Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Chief Bola Ige.
Ige was assassinated on December 23, 2001, at his Ibadan, Oyo State residence.
Speaking in an interview with ace broadcaster Edmund Obilo, Akande lamented that key figures who might have shed more light on the case, including former Oyo State Governor Lam Adesina, had died.
He said, “There are many things that die with people. I know Lam Adesina went to court over the matter, and I also know his successor, (Rashidi) Ladoja, withdrew the case. Ask Ladoja; he would know more about Bola Ige’s death.
“I was the Chief Security Officer of Osun State at the time, not Oyo State. Lam Adesina was the Chief Security Officer of Oyo State, and he went to court, and the governor who took over from him, Ladoja, withdrew the case from court. He might be able to tell you more. I believe he has more information on Bola Ige’s death.”
Akande also expressed regret that Adesina had confided in him about certain details he could no longer disclose.
“Because there are many things you don’t want to tell the public. I don’t want to tell anybody. Now Bola Ige is dead, and Lam Adesina too is dead, so who will be my witness? Nobody,” he said.
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“I know Lam Adesina went to court on the matter, and Ladoja withdrew the case from court. Ask Ladoja; he would know more about Bola Ige’s death.”
Despite being a chieftain of the opposition Alliance for Democracy (AD), former President Olusegun Obasanjo, who led a PDP-led government, appointed Bola Ige as Minister of Mines and Power (1999–2000).
However, after failing to significantly improve the National Electric Power Authority (NEPA), he was reassigned as Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation (2000–2001).
Akande claimed that Bola Ige regretted joining Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration, calling it a “kiss of death,” but maintained that the decision was a collective one made by Afenifere and the Alliance for Democracy (AD), adding that Obasanjo had sought to form a Government of National Unity and consulted Ige to be part of it.
He said, “I wouldn’t say it’s a mistake. We supported him in joining the government, I mean the Afenifere and the Alliance for Democracy.
“We met under the leadership of (Ayo) Fasanmi in AD. We met under the leadership of Abraham Adesanya in Afenifere, and we asked Bola Ige to join the government. Abraham Adesanya asked that we discuss the matter in the AD, and we met under Fasanmi, the chairman of AD in the South-West, and by acclamation, we asked Bola Ige to join the government.
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“We supported him in joining the government. We met under the leadership of Ayo Fasanmi in AD and Abraham Adesanya in Afenifere, and we asked Bola Ige to join. It was a unanimous decision.”
“Obasanjo met Bola Ige and asked him to join his government. Ige asked Obasanjo to tell his party. Before Obasanjo would inform the party, Ige himself had told the party and we debated it and asked him to go and join.
“If anything so happens, we are all responsible. It was a joint decision. We held a meeting at Ijebu-Igbo, and we were unanimous, asking him to go. We held another meeting at AD and by acclamation, we asked him to go and join.
“So if asking Bola Ige to join Obasanjo was a mistake, it’s a mistake of the Yoruba AD and Afenifere.”
Akande recounted a conversation he had with Bola Ige when Ige considered resigning from Obasanjo’s administration, warning him against the decision.
“One evening, he just called me and said, ‘I’m going to resign from this government.’ I said, ‘Please, sir, I will come back to you.’. I called his friend, Oluwole Rotimi. He asked me to advise him (Ige) not to resign because if he does, he’s likely going to die,” Akande said.
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“I called Uncle (Ige) back and begged him not to resign. He said he had talked to Wole Soyinka and Bola Tinubu, and both of them had asked him to resign. I asked him not to resign. I then said, ‘You can go to Obasanjo, tell him what you are angry about, and tell him that if he doesn’t want you again, this is your letter.’
“He actually did so. Obasanjo asked what he wanted him to do, and they both agreed. When he was leaving, Obasanjo said, ‘Don’t give that letter to the press; give it to me,’ and he dropped the letter. Ige told me himself. It was later after that he was moved to the Ministry of Justice.
Akande emphasized that Bola Ige’s murder was politically motivated and accused the Obasanjo administration of showing little interest in bringing Ige’s killers to justice.
“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.
“Obasanjo wasn’t keen on investigating who killed Bola Ige but was interested in the stability of himself in power and possible continuance.”
But the ex-governor denied Akande’s allegation, saying old age has probably affected the memory of the former Osun Governor to remember what happened during the period.
Ladoja wondered why Akande, who said he knew many things about the assassination that he would not disclose, did not tell the public what exactly surrounded the killing of the former AGF on December 23, 2001.
Ladoja, next in the hierarchy to the Olubadan of Ibadan, said this when speaking with reporters in his Bodija residence in Ibadan.
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JUST IN: Ooni Visits Olubadan-designate Ladoja In Ibadan

The Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Ogunwusi, on Sunday, paid a visit to the Olubadan designate, Rashidi Ladoja, at his Bodija private residence in Ibadan, Oyo State.
The PUNCH reports that Oba Ladoja will be installed as the 44th Olubadan on Friday, September 26, 2025, following the demise of the 43rd Olubadan, Oba Owolabi Olakulehin, who joined his ancestors on Monday, July 7, 2025, at the age of 90 years.
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The two paramount rulers are currently exchanging pleasantries.
Details later…
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JUST IN: FG Revokes 1,263 Mineral Licenses Over Unpaid Fees

The Federal Government through the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development has announced a fresh revocation of not less than 1,263 mineral licenses.
These licenses, which will now be deleted from the Electronic Mining Cadastral System portal of the Nigerian Mining Cadastral Office, include 584 exploration licenses, 65 mining leases, 144 quarry licenses, and 470 small-scale mining leases.
The minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, gave the revocation announcement in a statement issued by his special assistant on Media, Segun Tomori, on Sunday in Abuja.
The minister explained that the directive was issued due to the companies’ failure to comply with the requirement of paying their annual service fees.
The latest revocation brings the total mineral titles revoked under the current administration to 3, 794 including,619 mineral titles revoked for defaulting in paying annual service fees and 912 for dormancy last year.
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By opening up the areas formerly covered by these licenses, the revocation is expected to spur fresh applications by investors looking for fresh opportunities.
The statement read, “Not less than 1,263 mineral licenses will be deleted from the portal of the Electronic Mining Cadastral system of the Nigerian Mining Cadastral Office, MCO, following their revocation by the Federal Government.
“These include 584 exploration licenses, 65 mining leases, 144 quarry licenses, and 470 small-scale mining leases.”
Approving the revocation following the recommendation of the MCO, the Minister said applying the law to keep speculators and unserious investors away from the mining sector would make way for diligent investors and grow the sector.
“The era of obtaining licences and keeping them in drawers for the highest bidder, while financially capable and industrious businessmen are complaining of access to good sites, is over.
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“The annual service fee is the minimum evidence that you are interested in mining. You don’t have to wait for us to revoke the license because the law allows you to return the license if you change your mind,” the minister said.
He warned that the revocation does not mean the Federal Government has pardoned the annual service debt owed by licensees, adding that the list will be forwarded to the Economic & Financial Crimes Commission to ensure that debtors pay or face the wrath of the law.
“This is to encourage due diligence and emphasise the consequences of inundating the license application processes with speculative activities.”
In the recommendation to the minister, the Director-General of the MCO, Simon Nkom, disclosed that there were 1,957 initial defaulters when the MCO published the intention to revoke licences in the Federal Government Gazette on June 19, 2025.
He informed the minister that the gazette was distributed to MCO offices nationwide to sensitise licencees and encourage them to comply within 30 days in compliance with the Minerals and Mining Act 2007 and relevant regulations.
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He observed that the delay in the final recommendation was due to complaints of several licensees who claimed to have paid to the Federal Government through Remita and had to be reconciled.
Earlier this month, the DG MCO had hinted that more mining licences would be revoked as part of ongoing efforts to sanitise the solid minerals sector and protect investors from fraudsters.
According to Nkom, the clean-up exercise, which covers expired, speculative, and inactive titles, is necessary to make room for genuine investors and ensure compliance with the law.
This is part of ongoing efforts at sanitising the sector since the inception of the Tinubu administration, and the salutary effects of the reforms are massive and manifest despite the attempts to push back by defaulters and their agents.
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