curator
Administrator
The body of Mr Simeon Obodo, the 35-year-old Nigerian killed in Goa, India, on Oct. 31, arrived Nigeria on Saturday and has been deposited in a mortuary in Port Harcourt.
A representative of the family, Mr Ejike Esinkonye, confirmed the arrival of the corpse in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Abuja.
He said the corpse arrived the Port Harcourt International Airport at 7p.m on Saturday, via an Air France commercial flight.
Esinkoye said that some family members travelled to India to accompany the corpse home.
The family representative said that about N6.5 million was spent to fly the body to Nigeria, including funeral home and mortuary costs in India.
He said the family and the community members felt abandoned by the Indian and Nigerian government, claiming they had received no financial assistance till date.
Esinkoye was part of a delegation of the Ohaji Egbema community in Imo that met with the Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs, Prof. Viola Onwuliri after Obodo was killed.
He appealed to the Federal Government to impress on the Indian government to respond to the family’s demands.
``Our brother is survived by an aged mother, wife and kids; who will take care of these responsibilities?’’ he queried.
He said the burial of Obodo had tentatively been fixed for Dec. 28, in his community in Imo.
NAN recalls that on Nov. 25, Onwuliri had announced that the Federal Government would dispatch a high-level delegation to India to sign three agreements with the Indian government on the safety of all Nigerians in that country.
The agreements include the Mutual Legal Assistance, Extradition Treaty and Transfer of convicted persons.
However, NAN learnt that both governments were still negotiating different clauses in the agreements.
Onwuliri, who had earlier described the death of the Nigerian as reprehensible, said the Indian government had tendered an apology to Nigeria on the incident.
She appealed for calm and restraint after youths of Ohaji Egbema community in Imo threatened reprisals against Indians working in oil companies in the community.
Obodo was murdered during a violent clash in Goa village, India.
Following his death, around 200 Nigerians protested by blocking a national highway and clashing with Goa Police and locals.
Fifty-three of the protesting Nigerians were arrested and later released, after paying fees to secure their release.
A representative of the family, Mr Ejike Esinkonye, confirmed the arrival of the corpse in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Abuja.
He said the corpse arrived the Port Harcourt International Airport at 7p.m on Saturday, via an Air France commercial flight.
Esinkoye said that some family members travelled to India to accompany the corpse home.
The family representative said that about N6.5 million was spent to fly the body to Nigeria, including funeral home and mortuary costs in India.
He said the family and the community members felt abandoned by the Indian and Nigerian government, claiming they had received no financial assistance till date.
Esinkoye was part of a delegation of the Ohaji Egbema community in Imo that met with the Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs, Prof. Viola Onwuliri after Obodo was killed.
He appealed to the Federal Government to impress on the Indian government to respond to the family’s demands.
``Our brother is survived by an aged mother, wife and kids; who will take care of these responsibilities?’’ he queried.
He said the burial of Obodo had tentatively been fixed for Dec. 28, in his community in Imo.
NAN recalls that on Nov. 25, Onwuliri had announced that the Federal Government would dispatch a high-level delegation to India to sign three agreements with the Indian government on the safety of all Nigerians in that country.
The agreements include the Mutual Legal Assistance, Extradition Treaty and Transfer of convicted persons.
However, NAN learnt that both governments were still negotiating different clauses in the agreements.
Onwuliri, who had earlier described the death of the Nigerian as reprehensible, said the Indian government had tendered an apology to Nigeria on the incident.
She appealed for calm and restraint after youths of Ohaji Egbema community in Imo threatened reprisals against Indians working in oil companies in the community.
Obodo was murdered during a violent clash in Goa village, India.
Following his death, around 200 Nigerians protested by blocking a national highway and clashing with Goa Police and locals.
Fifty-three of the protesting Nigerians were arrested and later released, after paying fees to secure their release.