Diepreye Alamieyeseigha may be dead, but he is certainly not without honour. Unlike the mythical clan of unfortunate, homeless souls living contemptibly in the bush and forests and morphing into evil spirits, to plague the living, the late former governor of Bayelsa state cuts no ghoulish picture. His ghost won’t attack his people, make them ill, or take their lives rather his story is recounted honourably in the history and politics of Bayelsa and the Ijaw nation.
It would be recalled that Alamieyeseigha made an untimely exit from the world few months ago. Being an elder statesman, many Nigerians expected that he would be given a befitting state burial by the incumbent administration of Governor Seriake Dickson of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) few weeks after his death but his burial has been astonishingly delayed till date, to the consternation of friends, associates and loyalists of the late Bayelsa politician, that are not of Ijaw extraction.
His delayed burial was construed by many to have been caused by Dickson’s busy campaign schedules as he vied for re-election against a strong opposition in person of another former governor of the state, Timipre Sylva of the All Progress Congress (APC). But election has come and gone, and Dickson has been declared winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Since his victory however, Dickson has not given any hint about when he intends to give Alamieyeseigha a state burial, according to the expectations in political circles. While many have attributed this to a presumed plot by Dickson and the PDP to blame Alamieyeseigha’s death on the APC, findings revealed that Alamieyeseigha has not been buried in consonance with the culture of his Ijaw nation.
According to the culture, a corpse that is buried in haste has no honour attached to it. Therefore, the corpse of a wealthy, honourable person who was loved and respected by his or her people is never quickly lowered to the ground. The Ijaws believe that the corpse of such a person should still dwell among the living long after his death, and the longer it dwells, the greater honour he attains in the eyes of his people. However, Diepreye’s last days on earth easily triggers rumination on the futility of transience of life and the futility of human existence. After amassing wealth for himself as a governor, he was impeached, jailed and was issued a state pardon by his political godson and former President Goodluck Jonathan. Since, Diepreye dwelt like a recluse, living far away from public spectacle, while he struggled to deal with the shame of his past.