Let me put it on record for the benefit of the reader that during his life time, I never set my eyes on the person of the late High Chief of Kalabari Kingdom, Chief (Dr) Olu Benson Lulu-Briggs. I still remain a committed friend to several Kalabaris I met in my life and I admire. Through my interactions with the Kalabaris, I came to know of the late High Chief and his struggles for the improvement of humanity. I learnt of his closeness to his loyal and dedicated wife, Mrs (Dr) Seinye Olu Benson Lulu-Briggs and her commendable efforts to unite the family despite several challenges during the life and demise of her husband.
From available records, Chief (Dr) Olu Benson Lulu-Briggs was generous to a fault and a successful businessman with emphasis on the oil and gas business until the cold hands of death snatched him in far away Ghana.
He had no slightest inkling of death was trailing him all the way to Ghana, if he had known that death was trailing him and after snatching him, controversy would trail his burial through some unruly behaviors by some of his siblings, High Chief Olu Benson Lulu Briggs could have pleaded with death to extend his tenure on earth to assist his wife put the house in order.
After his un-ceremonial exist from this sinful world in December 2018, his dead body is still lying in the morgue in Ghana. But does the body deserve the long wait for decent burial in view of his high status on earth and his unquantifiable contributions to humanity? He had invested so much in humanitarian cause during his life time. It is expected that his legacies will at least be upheld even after death which his disciplined and highly principled wife, Dame Seinye is battling to uphold and keep the Briggs family as a united entity under her motherly protection.
As a typical Hausa/Fulani, Muslim from Bauchi State in Northern Nigeria, many may opine that what business have I, got to do with High Chief Olu Benson Lulu-Briggs’s family let alone writing of this nature on his burial and the execution of his Will. But let the truth be told no matter what, High Chief Olu Benson Lulu Briggs touched several lives including those I happen to know. He knew no bounds and supported all across the divide. I was never a beneficiary of his generosity neither that of his widow. But many benefitted from his/her largesse to my knowledge and which I admire and cherish. I have never set my eyes on any member of the late High Chief’s nuclear family member but his generosity and that of his wife have endeared them to me.
Those monitoring the controversy rocking the very foundation of the family of the late High Chief are wondering aloud on why close to one year after the death of the Chairman/CEO of Moni Pulo Limited, his dead body is yet to be buried by his family chaired by Dame Seinye Olu Benson Lulu-Briggs.
It has been in the public domain since his demise that the reason behind the long delay in burial is fueled by the lingering feud between the High Chief’s eldest sons, Mr. Dumo, Senibo and Sofiri and the deceased’s only wife, Dame Seinye over the cause of the High Chief’s death and the content of his Will.
After the death of the bread winner, as a decent and responsible mother, Dame Seinye thought of uniting the family to forge ahead through thick and thin while protecting the legacies of the deceased. As the Vice Chairman of Moni Pulo, she mobilized support in kind and cash to the 2019 Rivers State gubernatorial aspiration of Dumo in her sincere obligation to the unity of the family.
But interestingly, the said Will in question was supposed to be read in April 2019, but Dumo, suddenly from the blues secured an ex-parte order from a Rivers State High Court barring his late father’s lawyer from reading that Will. Months later, the order was set aside by the Court and the Will was read to the entire family members on July 26, 2019.
It was the content of the Will that further escalated the feud as the eldest son doubted its authenticity, claiming that it was doctored in favor of his late father’s only wife, Dame Seinye Briggs. In the Will, Dame Seinye was allocated a substantial amount of wealth due perhaps to her loyalty, obedience, sincere love, concern and respect she exhibited to her late throb that encouraged him to allocate a substantial part of his wealth to her while the rest of the asset was left in trust to be managed on behalf of the whole children and their off springs.
From the content of the Will, the late High Chief Briggs refused to accommodate Dumo, Senibo and Safiri but stated clearly that they should be taken care of probably from the rest of the asset in trust.
In the Will, it was stated unequivocally that if any of the sons instigates trouble against the written wish of the High Chief, he should be automatically cut-off from the estate. That portion of the Will has to be applied to save the situation as it was the wish of the bedrock of the family that should not be abused or twisted for any selfish reason.
In the Will, the late oil and gas magnet expressed his wish for a befitting Christian burial with his wife, Dame Seinye fully involved.
In a perused autopsy report carried out by the Military Hospital in Ghana, it stated clearly that the oil magnet died of cardiac arrest after living and managing Parkinson disease for close to 20 years.
Despite the elderly interventions of several prominent sons and daughters of Rivers State and Nigeria in the family feud of the late Kalabari High Chief, including the Amanayabo of Kalabari Kingdom, HRM King J.T Princewill Amachree and former Rivers State Governor, Dr. Peter Odili and serving governor of Rivers State, Barr. Nyeson Wike, the warring sons have refused to see reason to sheath their swords against their step mother, Dame Seinye who is determined to give her late husband a befitting Christian burial as he stated in his Will with her active involvement.
The cold relationship suddenly developed within the family and was pushed to the public domain few weeks after the death of the respected High Chief in December 2018 in Accra, Ghana. It all started when the trio, Dumo, Senibo and Safiri joined evil forces to accuse the innocent widow, Mrs (Dr) Seinye Olu Benson Lulu-Briggs of killing their father without stating convincing reasons of why they suspected her for such a heinous crime against her loving and caring husband who stood by her and shared love with her throughout his life time.
They alleged that the late High Chief was ‘murdered’ in Port Harcourt before his dead body was hurriedly smuggled out to Accra, Ghana as a cover to the crime which is far from reality that cannot be proved even by African juju. It remains a blatant lie, a mischief and an evil intention from the bottom pit of hell that should not disturb a sleep.
The truth of the matter is that the High Chief departed Port Harcourt airport on December 27, 2018 via a chartered aircraft and arrived Accra, Ghana alive although sick that necessitated a nurse at the airport to arrange for an emergency ambulance to convey him to the airport clinic for immediate medical attention. The doctor on duty at the airport clinic on December 27, 2018 attended to the deteriorating health of the High Chief including administering CPR after which, the doctor announced the sad story of the inevitable that later threw the once respected family into confusion of trust.
Ideally, Dumo, Senibo and Safiri could have confirmed from the doctor that last attended to the health of their father the cause of his death rather than trading blackmail spiced with hatred against an innocent widow who is yet to come to terms with the reality of missing a father to her children and a loved husband that she so much cared for and attended with all sincerity for decades.
During the life time of the High Chief, his wife and most trusted companion, Mrs (Dr) Seinye lacked nothing worldly to warrant any suspicion of murdering the late High Chief for anything. She was already the vice chairperson of Moni Pulo Oil and Gas Company and had all the comfort she needed from her late husband and was committed to the success and protection of the credibility of the family including that of Dumo, Senibo and Sofiri. Having said that, does she then deserve the blackmail and ridicule peddled against her by the children born for her late High Chief husband that she has not denied despite several unruly episodes of threats and ridicule during the life time of the late High Chief? Why then the blackmail, threats and intimidation from the trio? Why should Dumo hide under the Kalabari rich tradition to deny his father a befitting Christian burial as is in his Will? Is the wealth left behind by the late High Chief more enticing to Dumo than a befitting burial to the owner of the left behind wealth which he placed the largest chunk through his Will into the trust of his widow who labored along with him to source and manage with caution?
Fortunately, the responsible, pleasant and tolerant lady has not relented on her oars until her children see reason to retrieve their steps from further ridiculing the respected family of High Chief Olu Benson Lulu- Briggs. Since the feud surfaced after the demise of her husband, she burns the midnight oil daily in prayers not minding what she is to inherit from the Will but for return of the love and unity in the Lulu Briggs family that has been punctured by seen and unforeseen reasons fueled by greed and dishonesty from internal and external influence of detractors of the respected family. Let there be peace in the High Chief’s once peaceful and loving family than baseless litigations, threats and primitive blackmail of the dark days of human history. Let Dumo, Senibo and Sofiri join their step mother Dame Seinye to give peace a chance for a befitting Christian burial of their late backbone with the fullest involvement of his most cherished life partner as contained in his Will.
The eldest sons should be reminded of the fact that their step mother means well and has no intention from her body language to deny them access to what their late father allocated to them in his Will to warrant the continuation of the feud against the wish of the majority Nigerians and well wishers of the esteemed family.
Let the aggrieved children see reason in the actions of their step mother immediately after their father’s death was announced by the airport doctor.
It was she who immediately gathered courage on the spot despite the pain to inform the whole children including Dumo through one of his brothers of her departed husband’s demise at least to register a point of innocence and concern as a mother that means well.
Dumo arrived Accra Ghana the following day as records show. The immediate family proceeded to the funeral home where the body of the late High Chief Olu Benson Lulu-Briggs was for final respect. On January 1, 2019, it was Dumo who formally announced the death of the High Chief on his social media handle. Burial plans were discussed earlier in Accra Ghana and January 26, 2019 was scheduled for the befitting Christian burial. It was Dumo and Senibo that paid for the casket for use to ferry the dead body to Nigeria for other burial rights befitting a High Kalabari Chief of the late Olu Benson Lulu-Briggs traditional and societal status.
Why then the sudden u-turn and the traded blackmail and hatred? Why the naked dance in the market square? Why the threats and intimidation targeted against an innocent widow? Was she instrumental to the writing of the Will in contention? Was she the brain box of the late High Chief to have created suspicion of dictating what to be in the Will? Was she dictating to him what to be done with his enormous wealth and in his family? Was he not in control of his mind despite his ripe age? Oh No! Let the respected High Chief be given a befitting Christian burial and his wish respected as stated in his Will. Let there be peace in the late High Chief Olu Benson Lulu- Briggs’s family with Mrs (Dr) Seinye in control in partnership with the rest of the children. The High Chief never labored to have wealth to be a source of destroying his family after his death. He labored to have wealth for what wealth could provide him and to humanity. Dumo, Senibo and Safiri should return their swords to the sheath and embrace their step mother for the good of the family and humanity. After all, the world is a vanity. Where is the patriarch of the family today? Let them see reason and respect the wish of the Kalabari tradition and stop sowing seeds of discord within the family of their late respected and adorned father.
Muhammad is a commentator on national issues
