Mystery over law student’s death

How did Oladipupo Maranantha Ige die? This is the puzzle students of the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) in Ile-Ife, Osun State, could not unravel last week when news of the rumoured suicide of the 400-Level Law student broke. OLUWAFEMI OGUNJOBI (400-Level Language Arts) reports. “By the time you read this, I would have been dead.” That was the text the late Oladipupo Ige allegedly sent to his mother’s mobile phone on that fateful day. His mother, it was learnt, did not get the text in time because her phone was off. Several minutes later, Oladipupo was found dead in his room. He allegedly committed suicide. The incident happened last week in Asherifa Hostel, opposite the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) in Ile-Ife, Osun State. The late Oladipupo was a 400-Level Law student. But the police disagreed with the suicide theory. The Osun State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Folashade Odoro, a Deputy Superintendent (DSP), said the student died of “stomach ache”. Students besieged the hostel, following the news of Oladipupo’s death. The late student reportedly left a written statement detailing how his properties should be shared. His books should be buried with him, he was said to have written. The late Oladipupo, who was in his early 20s, reportedly left for his hostel on Friday without telling his neighbours where he was going. He returned in the evening of the following day, after which he composed the text he sent to his parents. CAMPUSLIFE learnt that when his mother got the text around 10pm, she called Bola Okiji, the late Oladipupo’s close friend and classmate. Okiji was said not to have been around at the time. Mrs Ige then sent a woman living around the school to check on her son. On getting to the late Oladipupo’s hostel, the door was found locked from behind. When the woman peeped through the door, she reportedly saw the late Ige’s body dangling. She alerted other occupants and they broke into the deceased’s room. When our correspondent visited the house, the neighbours declined to speak. One of them, who did not want her name in print, said: “Lately, Oladipupo had been doing weird things; at times, he would wake up in the midnight and start washing the toilet. Sometimes, he would be banging his door at midnight.” Emmanuella Odum, the deceased’s friend, described his death as unimaginable. “We still played together on Friday after lectures, before he left the campus. Why he contemplated suicide is what I cannot explain,” she said. Okiji described the late Oladipupo as a brilliant student, who could have graduated with a Second Class (Upper Division). Okiji said his friend could not have committed suicide for academic reason. Last Sunday, the late Oladipupo’s parents conveyed his remains to their Iree, Osun State hometown. When our correspondent visited the Law Faculty, his classmates were seen discussing in hushed tones. “He was a recluse and kept to himself; he never talked to anyone. When I go to read at the faculty, he would be seen at dark spots, staring into space. At times, he would question the existence of God. I think he had a weird personality,” a classmate said. Ayotola Tehingbola, in an article published on the faculty’s notice board, described Oladipupo’s death as shocking. She wondered why the deceased would contemplate suicide, noting: “Oladipupo, I don’t know what went through your head in the last few hours of your life, but I am sorry that you saw life as not being worth it. I cannot begin to imagine the fear and hopelessness you felt in the last hour of your life. “I met Oladipupo on my matriculation day. His dad and my dad worked in the same company at that time; so it was sensible for us to meet. I vividly remember the last time I spoke to him, just before the Nigeria University Games (NUGA) began. We stood, laughed, argued and scribbled in front of Auditorium II.” The Vice-Chancellor, Prof Bamitale Omole, has condoled with the bereaved family, saying the institution shared in its grief. There are insinuations that the late Oladipupo may have died of bipolar disorder – acute depression. But the police said the deceased called a friend, identified as Olajuwon, moments before his death. He was said to have complained of stomach ache. According to the police, Oladipupo died before Olajuwon reached him.