My daughter disdains police after cop shot her dad dead during Shi’ites protest – Widow of late Abuja journalist
Alex Ogbu, an Abuja- based journalist, was allegedly shot dead by men of the Federal Capital Territory Police in 2020 while he was covering a protest by members of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria. His widow, Francesca, tells SOLOMON ODENIYI that life has been difficult and vows never to back down in her quest for justice
It has been two years since the death of your husband, how has life been without him?
Life has been challenging and difficult because there is nobody that can fill the gap created by his death. I have been in and out of depression. At a point I was also confused. I just thank God. I haven’t worked for two years. To pay my daughter’s school fees, rent without help has not been easy. I sometimes get help from friends and families and if not for them things would have been much harder. All the promises made after the incident, have turned out to be empty promises.
What are your recollections of the day of his death?
When he was going to cover that protest, I told him to let me follow him but he said, “We can’t have two radical people from the same house at the protest; it will not work.” It was as if he knew something was going to happen. As he was about stepping out, he told his daughter, “Be a good girl at school today.”
Why did you suggest to follow him to his assignment on that day? Did you have any premonition?
Usually, I followed him to some of his assignments. If he was organising a press conference or handling other tasks, I usually acted as his secretary because I read administration and we tried to keep things as professional as possible.
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