Osamuyia Aikpitanhi

I try to imagine the day he was born and the joy of his mother holding him in her arms. I try to imagine him growing up and hoping for the best. I think he may have been reaching out for greater heights and perhaps was more than a little disillusioned that his dreams could not be fulfilled in his homeland. This is perhaps what led him to leave his home, his family, his life in search of something that he felt would give him a sense of purpose.

The news reports about his death leave little to be imagined and give a graphic account of the final hours of his life. One word shines out to me as if neon lights were circling it and it keeps taunting me endlessly – illegal. I wonder whose idea it was to label human beings illegal. As long as you are inhabiting the Earth created by our Lord, no one has the right to put the label illegal on you. No human being is illegal. A piece of paper does not give one person the privilege of being called legal while not bestowing the same honor on another.

There is a letter being signed on the internet as part of the outcry against the inhumane treatment that led to the death of Osamuyia Aikpitanhi. A worthy gesture, but sadly a million signatures will not bring him back. We read about how he was allegedly a wanted criminal in his home country. True or False. It does not matter now.

He was labelled illegal and now that he is gone what label are they going to give him

May you find peace sleeping in the arms of your Maker who does not need words on a piece of paper to acknowledge that you are His.

Rest in Peace Osamuyia Aikpitanhi

• Osamuyia Aikpitanhi