Jonathan Nwokpor
The late Dr. Joseph Wayas’ family members were paid £6,710, or N13,366,320, by the morgue in London, where his body was housed before they were allowed access to the body.
The Chairman of Joe Wayas’ Burial Fact Finding Committee, Justice Maurice Odey Eneji, revealed this in a report.
The date on the report is February 27, 2024.
According to the report, the morgue managers had insisted on the amount, which represented general expenses and the cost of maintaining the body during the body’s more than two-year storage.
The elders on the committee from the northern area of Cross River had to confirm that the body existed and in what condition.
Mrs. Echiko Julie Odey and Ms. Donna Wayas, Wayas’ daughter, who resides in Nottingham, UK, were the only ones able to see and determine the body’s condition.
Born on May 21, 1941, Wayas passed away in a London hospital on November 30, 2021, following a protracted illness.
From 1979 to 1983, he presided over the Senate.
Ben Ayade, the former governor of Cross River State, initially cared for his health issues. After he passed away, the state government gave N200 million for the body’s return home and burial.
But a family conflict struck shortly after, delaying the funeral.
According to Justice Eneji’s report from February 27, the committee has been very aggressive, has met frequently, and is dedicated to making sure the body is sent home for burial.
He did, however, state that they still required an additional £60,478—that is, N120,934,992—and that they had begun a sincere app campaign to raise the sum.
“In line with the burial committee’s agreement with Ms Donna Wayas, we need to raise and remit/transfer to Donna the sum of £60,478 to offset all outstanding indebtedness, inclusive of the cost of repatriation of the corpse to Nigeria for burial.
“We also need to raise and refund the sum of £7,210 paid on our behalf to the morgue managers in London,” Justice Eneji added.
The Fact-Finding Committee’s members have concluded that they must allow the National Assembly and state governments to fulfill their respective roles.
“Both the state and federal governments may have committed funds for this purpose in the past but he (late Wayas) has not yet been buried.
“He is not in any way responsible for the circumstances leading to the delay of his burial, neither does the delay detract from what he was in, and for, Nigeria.
“I think that now that the complexities surrounding his death and burial have been unravelled, our statesman is entitled to, and should be given, the burial that befits his status by both the federal and state governments.
“I think that we should communicate officially to them that all the knots have been loosened and all is now set for the burial as soon as it is convenient for government,” key member of the committee, who did not wish to be named, said.
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