THE Nigeria Police Force and son of Registrar of the National Examination Council (NECO) Godswill Obioma have disputed reports that he was assassinated.
A spokesperson for the Niger State Police Command Wasiu Abiodun, in a statement, said contrary to reports of assassination, Obioma died after a brief illness.
“The attention of Niger State Police Command has been drawn to a publication circulating in some section of social media and national dailies that NECO Registrar Prof. Godswill Obioma was murdered by unknown gunmen in Minna. This story is totally false, untrue and a pure piece of fake news,” the statement read.
Abiodun noted that the families of the late registrar had ‘formally’ announced that he passed to eternal glory after a brief illness at National Hospital Abuja.
NECO Head of Information and Public Relations Azeez Sani also confirmed the death of the registrar, saying the family of the deceased had reported that he died due to an illness.
Premium Times reported that the late registrar’s son Godswill Obioma Jnr said his father died after a brief illness.
Obioma was appointed registrar of NECO on 14th May, 2020, by President Muhammadu Buhari after serving as executive secretary of the Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC).
The late registrar was born on 12th December 1953 and hailed from Bende Local Government Area of Abia State. He was until his appointment as NECO registrar, Ebonyi State resident electoral commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Several news outlets had reported that Godswill Obioma was assassinated in his residence in Minna, Niger State, on Monday night.
Sources at the examination body and relations of the late Mr Obioma revealed that the deceased travelled from Abuja to Minna on Monday morning.
“But when he reached the city gate in Minna, he told his entourage that he would not be able to go to the office and went home with his security aides. The others, including his personal assistant, Otumdi, left for the office,” one of the sources, who does not want to be mentioned, told PREMIUM TIMES.
This newspaper learnt that by 3 p.m., the NECO registrar called his personal assistant to say he was too tired and that he would not be able to be in the office.
“But by around 4 p.m., the police officials who were downstairs in his house called the PA to complain that their boss was yet to return downstairs. But the PA told them he already spoke to him and that he was fine. But around 5 p.m. when the PA returned home and went upstairs, he saw his lifeless body,” the source added.
