NEWS HEADLINE

Tunde Oyedoyin
TUMO6566@aol.com
London, UK

One year on,
a family still mourns the death of their son

espite being a year since the death of their son, the family of the murdered Nigerian teenager, Jude Akapa are still trying to come to terms with the death of the promising boy. Speaking during his first year memorial service at St John's Community Church in North Woolwich, East London on thursday, Jude's mother, Antoniette said: "honestly, like I said in the letter of invitation, words are not enough to describe what the family has gone through. The negative effects of this on everybody, particularly my younger son, John and I and even my daughter, who is the eldest and in her final year at the University of Lagos. She said to me that she's been dreaming of jude in the past two weeks.

'She's been having sleepless nights and even we, psychologically, emotionally and mentally, it has not been easy at all. Everyday, we remember who Jude was and the kind of boy he was while alive. His absence among us is a big void that can never be filled". The same feeling was expressed by Jude's uncle, Austin Fashanu. He said: "it's been really terrible, we've had to cope with a terrible loss, and basically, something that wasn't expected. There are things you'll never, never think can happen to you."

Fashanu, a legal practitioner, picked holes with the justice system which he described as being ridiculous."I'm involved in the legal profession myself and it made it really embarrassing. I was embarrased, even though I know that the boy (Tristan) is young and it would have an effect on the justice system, I was flagabastted by the sentence he got, it was terrible. It won't deter anyone, and the victim's family wouldn't be able to cope with the death of their son."

Jude's elder brother, Seun sums it up like this:"losing Jude has been a great loss, if I could, I wouldn't mind exchanging my life for his, i'm really telling the truth. It was a great loss to the family and it really upsets me, i'm just praying God gives me strength to deal with it."

It would be recalled that Jude and his younger brother, John had only come to London from Nigeria for less than two years before the boy was bullied to death by an ex pupil, Tristan Gordon, who got a 12 month custodial sentence.

Speaking to a family friend on the eve of the memorial service, Mrs Antoinette Akapa recalls how she had gone to his sons room on the night of July 3rd last year and told them (Jude, Seun and John) that any one of them that wakes up quite early the following morning should iron her clothe. Despite being late in the evening and their mother's insistence that the assignment was for the next day, it was stated that Jude got up and returned a few minutes later with the clothes already ironed. Such, she said, was his attitude and it was also the last time she saw him alive.

The memorial service was attended by the Consular General at the Nigerian High Commission, Mr Ajoje, the Nigerian Ambassador of Sports, John Fashanu, the Co-ordinator of Africans Unite Against Child Abuse, Modupe Debbie Ariyo and many other family members and well wishers.