Sowore Calls For Nationwide Protest On #RevolutionNow’s Fifth Anniversary
Honours Slain OAU Student Activist Afrika, Killed By Cultists In 1999
The former African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate took to his X handle to honour the memory of the late activist, called on Nigerians to organise for the fifth anniversary of the #RevolutionNow protest on August 5, 2024, and not agonise.
Omoyele Sowore, the convener of the #RevolutionNow movement, has honoured the memory of George Akinyemi Iwilade, also known as Afrika, who tragically lost his life on July 10, 1999.
Afrika was allegedly killed by cultists supported by Obafemi Awolowo University authorities in Ile Ife, Osun State, during a tumultuous period marked by struggles with cultism on campus.
He dedicated a message he posted X calling for a mobilisation to commence for ‘August days of rage’ to the late student activist
Afrika, then the General Secretary of the Students’ Union Government, was brutally murdered by members of the Black Axe Confraternity and allied cult groups, who attacked him and his roommates in their residence.
The victims included Eviano Ekelemu, a graduating student, Yemi Ajiteru, a first-year Philosophy student, Babatunde Oke, and Godfrey Ekpede, all of whom were killed in their sleep. The assailants had also targeted the SUG President, Lanre Adeleke, known as Legacy, who miraculously escaped death. This heinous incident occurred on July 10, 1999, leaving a dark stain on the university’s history.
A group of dozens of members from the Black Axe Confraternity’s university chapter, joined by affiliates from other schools, carried out the brutal attack.
On the fateful day, they stormed Awolowo Hall around 4:30 a.m., clad in black attire and masked faces, and unleashed violence on unsuspecting students with firearms and machetes, leaving a trail of devastation and loss of life.
The former African Action Congress (AAC) presidential candidate took to his X handle to honour the memory of the late activist, called on Nigerians to organise for the fifth anniversary of the #RevolutionNow protest on August 5, 2024, and not agonise.
Sowore, who was also a student activist in his university days, wrote: “Let the mobilization commence for August days of rage; Nigerians are not angry enough. Organize; stop agonizing!
“August 5 2024 is the 5th anniversary of #RevolutionNow.
“Emancipate yourself from SLAVERY; NONE but ourselves can free our own country!
Have no fear for the @PoliceNG, @HQNigerianArmy or @OfficialDSSNG because NONE of them can stop the time. #RevolutionNow!
“*(This post is dedicated to our great comrade, George Iwilade, who was murdered by state-sponsored cult gangs at @OAUniversity on July 10 1999.)”
Today, July 10, 2024, marks a poignant milestone – the 25th anniversary of the tragic loss of those vibrant and energetic Nigerian students who were brutally killed. Yet, their legacy endures, as friends and well-wishers continue to honour their memory and celebrate their courageous activism, ensuring that their impact lives on.
