The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, whose security aide shot at a newspaper vendor in Abuja has set up a trust fund for the children of the deceased.
The speaker has offered scholarship up to university level to the children of the slain vendor, the late Mr. Ifeanyi Okereke, the speaker made this known when he paid a condolence visit to the family of the slain vendor, Ifeanyi Okereke.
In the speaker’s entourage were the spokesperson of the house, Benjamin Kalu, and some aides, the Speaker also said the House would upon its resumption of plenary on Tuesday honour the late Ifeanyi and invited the leaders of the two associations to be part of the event to be held on the floor of the House.
He said, ‘Let me address you not as the Speaker but as Femi Gbajabiamila a citizen of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, who has been caught unawares in the middle of this unfortunate incident. Many of you that have been following me from the beginning know that championing the cause of the masses has been my life work as a legislator. I have been a champion of the common man and therefore the irony of this is not lost on me and many of us. However, I will continue to do this as long as I live.
“This is a very difficult time for me. Like many have said, you guys have been my friends for years. I have no idea and I don’t know why you guys have always taken to me over the years including campaigning for me in the streets of Abuja during the speakership election. You’ve always been there for me. As you were selling your papers, you were also selling me.
“That’s why each time I pass you guys , I stop to say hi. Some people said why did I stop in the middle of the road? But as we were moving, the lights changed to red which meant to stop. We could have moved on, but I have always instructed my convoy to be law- abiding. So, we stopped and my friends, as usual, besieged the vehicle, shouting and were jubilant.”