I-N-C-R-E-D-I-B-L-E! Another Edo PDP chief dies in hotel room

Uchechukwu Olisah, Benin City - 09.05.2008

A high ranking member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Edo State and former General Manager of the state-owned Ethiope Publishing Company, Mr. Justice Idubor, was on Thursday, found dead in a room at Bins Hotel in Benin City, the state capital.

This came about a month after the body of the state Commissioner for Information, Mr. Calus Enoma, was found in a room at the Precious Palm Royal Hotel also in Benin City. Meanwhile, the remains of Mr. Enoma would be buried this weekend at his residence in Benin City .

Nigerian Tribune gathered that Idubor checked in with a female friend at about 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday, however, the lady was said to have left the hotel premises after spending some hours with the deceased.

It was said that when there was no sign of the presence of the PDP chieftain on Thursday morning, the room in which he lodged was forced open by the staff members of the hotel and his lifeless body was found on the bed.

Nigerian Tribune further gathered that empty cans of popular energy drink/stimulant which he might have taken together with the lady littered the hotel room.

Following the finding of the body of the deceased, the police in the state were reportedly contacted. The body, it was learnt, was removed and deposited in a mortuary by the police authorities with an ambulance provided by the state Ministry of Health.

Meanwhile, the whereabouts of the lady who checked in with him were still unknown as at late Thursday afternoon. Besides, the lady, who is purported to be a student of one of the universities in the state, was yet to be identified.

The cause of his death was also yet to be known. The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Mr. Peter Ogboi, who confirmed the incident, said the state police pathologists had commenced investigation to ascertain the cause of the death of the PDP chief.

“We have the report of the death of the man in a hotel room in the city. We quickly dispatched experts there and his lifeless body was seen lying on the bed. We cannot begin to disclose further details on him because his family has not been informed.
“Our men are still investigating the cause of his death. We do not know whether he slumped or something else happened, but we are investigating the matter seriously,” Ogboi said.