The untold story of Chief S.T Oredein: his political fame, criminal exploits, judicial trial and verdict of history.
There was no one in Western Nigeria who did not know S. T. Oredein. If there was such a person, he must have just arrived from Planet Jupiter. Chief Samuel Taiwo Oredein was not just a politician. He was politics personified. He was a kingmaker. He was a godfather. In fact, he was the Political Big Boss.
Oredein belonged to the exclusive club of the seven people who partnered with Chief Obafemi Awolowo to establish the Action Group which became the party that produced the first premier of the region.
The other founders were:
- Abiodun Akerele
- Ade Akinsanya
- J. O. Adigun
- S. O. Shonibare
- Ayo Akinsanya
- Olatunji Dosunmu
Chief ST Oredein did not hold a cabinet position. He was however more powerful than some Ministers of Government. He was the Principal Organising Secretary of the Action Group in the First Republic. It is on record that ST had legal authority to issue query to Ministers and Chairmen of government’s statutory corporations. It was Chief Oredein – as claimed, that broke the news of Segun’s death to Chief Awolowo.
As an acclaimed authority on political mobilisation, he also wrote a book. He was the author of A Manual on Action Group Party Organisation, that was published in 1955.
When the news broke in 1971 of his involvement in a case of armed robbery, it was greeted with shock and unbelief. It must have been a mistake, people thought. Or could it have been a political frame up, others asked.
On April 13, 1971, Nigerians woke up to hear the news of an armed robbery attack on Bacita Road. Bacita, a small industrious and popular town, very close to Ilorin, in Kwara State, was where the Nigerian Sugar Company was in established 1964, with compliments of an airstrip then.
The armed robbery attack was as daring as it was audacious. It was carried out with military precision. Two officers of Barclays Bank and two policemen who were in the vehicles that were attacked by the armed robbers were seriously wounded. One of the wounded persons later died of injuries at the hospital.
At the end of the ‘operation’, the armed robbers went away with a box containing thirteen thousand pounds. That was a lot of money in 1971. Chief Awolowo was then the finance minister and with his prudent management of Nigerian economy, our pound was almost at par with the British Pound.
Mr. Kam Salem was the Inspector General of the Nigeria Police Force at the time. He directed all police formations across the country to fish out those behind the robbery attack. The police spread its dragnet and within days of the robbery, Felix Dumeh, the leader of the gang was arrested. Nigerians jubilated when they heard the news.
Felix did not make any attempt to deny being the ringleader. He promised to cooperate with the police. He told his interrogators that although he was the leader of the gang, he was not the real brain behind the daring raid. Felix must have at some point in his life aspired to be a musician. He began to sing like a canary. He started to mention names.
The investigators listened in shock as Felix began to mention one name after another. He was not mentioning names of common criminals that the police officers were familiar with. The names of people he mentioned as his backers, protectors and shareholders were names of people you only read about in newspapers.
The first person he mentioned was a Chief Superintendent of Police at the State Criminal Investigation Department in Ibadan, Patrick Njovens. The interrogators opened their mouth in wonder. Felix threw another bomb when he mentioned Mr. Yesufu Bello, an Assistant Superintendent of Police also of CID, Ibadan. The third person he listed as his backer was Amusa Abidogun, a Chief Inspector of Police, stationed also in Ibadan.
The investigators thought they had heard everything. They didn’t know that egun nla ni o n kehin igbale [the biggest masquerade comes last in out of the grove]. Then Felix spoke again. The name came out in a whisper. It was the name they were all familiar with.
I have already told you that there was no one in the Western Region that did not know High Chief Oredein.
There is a traditional proverb that says when a child’s net catches a tilapia, the child eats it alone. But when the net catches a shark, the child must run to his father.
The investigators knew immediately that this was not a tilapia. The fish they were looking at was nothing but a shark. They went to brief their superior.
The Kwara State Commissioner of Police was Mr. Sunday Adewusi. He was later to serve as the Inspector General of Police, between 1981 and 1983.
Mr. Adewusi sent his officers to Ibadan Command to investigate the matter. On getting to Ibadan, Adewusi’s officers were arrested by the three senior police officers they were sent to arrest! You are saying “Haba!” The hunters became the hunted. The Ilorin officers were later thrown out of the station! They were warned never to come to Ibadan again.
The three senior officers however didn’t reckon with Adewusi’s tenacity. He came back and got the three of them arrested. He took them to Ilorin. He also invited Chief Oredein for a ‘chat’.
Chief Oredein arrived at the Police Command in a grand style. He came to Ilorin in his Mercedes car with its unique plate number: WR 6666. He expected it to be a brief meeting. He had engagements later that day in Ibadan and he had promised to be back at his base before nightfall.
Unknown to him – Oredein, the police had done their homework thoroughly. They had painstakingly investigated the case and gathered relevant evidence and related materials before inviting the political godfather. One of the people that the police met during their investigation was Mustapha Adigun who was popularly called Balewa. He got the nickname from the abbreviation of his first name, Tafa! But he was never a Prime Minister. He was also called Tafa Igiripa by some people.
Adigun claimed that Oredein was his boss during the days of politics when he (Adigun) was the head of ST’s political boys. He informed the police that in the evening of the day of the armed robbery attack, he went with his boss to the house of Felix Dumeh. In addition to his boss, the three police officers mentioned by Felix were also present.
Felix was said to have brought out a bottle of schnapps and some pieces of alligator pepper. He opened the bottle and poured a little quantity on the floor and threw some alligator pepper on the floor. Like a Chief Priest, Felix then raised the bottle of the alcoholic drink and said: “this thing wey tin we dey do, God make it no let it prove.” They all chorused amen to the solemn prayers. Felix then drank out of the bottle and chewed one alligator pepper. The four of them also drank out of the bottle and chewed alligator pepper.
Oath taking and prayers completed, Felix went to bring a brown paper bag. It was the size of a carton. He gave it to Oredein. ST was about to open the carton when Amusa Abidogun, the Chief Inspector of Police snatched it from him. Abidogun passed the carton to his superior officer Njovens, with a smart police salute. You know seniority is important in the Force. It was the Chief Superintendent of Police who finally opened the paper bag. It was full of currency.
Njovens looked suspiciously at the carton, his eyes made a mental calculation of the total sum. “How much?” He asked. Felix raised his spread left palm before saying “Five.” The senior police officer shook his head. “Is that the arrangement? Before, the arrangement was seven” Felix began to fidget. “The boys are too many on it.” Well, half a loaf of bread was still bread. Five or Seven, Njovens was not one to reject money. Akosapo la n ko owo, meaning the proper way to reject money is to put it in your pocket, as the elders would say.
Oredein was stunned when he arrived at the police headquarters to meet both Adigun and Felix. Commissioner Adewusi asked them to repeat what they told the police. They did. In the presence of Oredein, Felix confirmed Adigun’s statement that it was Oredein that first received the carton of money from him before Abidogun snatched it from him.
Part Two, and the conclusion of this historical throwback to memory shall be coming in a jiffy, by the grace of God.
Wait for it because it shall surely come!
Godwin Etakibuebu; a Veteran Journalist, wrote from Lagos.
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