Toyin Ijiyemi, a 38-year-old widow, has been allegedly killed by officials of Akure south local government in Ondo state over non-payment of radio and television levies.
The deceased was said to have fallen down while struggling with the tax officials who were trying to seize her television because of her failure to pay the levies.
The local government workers reportedly took the television into thier vehicle and left the scene of the incident without attending to the deceased.
It was learnt that the hairdresser, who was the only child of her aged mother, later gave up the ghost.
Sources said her corpse had been deposited at the morgue of the State Specialists Hospital, Akure, the state capital, and two of the council staff arrested by the police.
Mojisola Otitilowo, aunt of the deceased, who narrated how the incident happened, said: “Toyin was at her shop at Bolajoko Street, Oke-Aro area, around 2pm when the council officials invaded the shop. They were four in number. Three of them disembarked from the vehicle they brought.
“The council officials ask her to pay the rate for her shop. All efforts made by Toyin to appeal to them not to seize her television failed. She did not have money and that was why she begged them that she would come and pay the money the second day.
“They did not accept her plea. One of them removed the television from where it was but Toyin started dragging it with them. She fell down. Despite that she fell down, the council officials went away with the television.
“A woman, who came to buy sachet water, discovered that Toyin was unconscious where she laid on the floor of the shop and raised an alarm which attracted neighbors who rushed in and started pouring water on Toyin to revive her.
“When it was realized that Toyin had given up the ghost, the matter was reported at the police station, B Division, Oke-Aro.”
Abike Ijiyemi, the 80-year-old mother of the deceased, was crying when newsmen visited her Alade-Idanre residence in Idanre Local Government Area of the state.
“In the morning of the day she was killed, she called me and said that she had bought some foodstuffs for me. She promised to bring them to me in Idanre the second day.
“Instead of her coming to fulfill her promise, it was the announcement of her death they brought to me. My daughter was a widow. Her husband died for years ago.
“She has been singlehandedly taking care of their only child since then. She was the one who sponsored the education of their 24-year-old son up to the Gateway Polytechnic in Ogun state before her death. She was the person taking care of me and paying my debts for me.”
Ayodele Adelanke, Toyin’s only child, called on the state government to bring the killers of his mother to book, saying she must not die in vain.
All efforts to speak with the caretaker chairman of the council, Margret Atere, failed as newsmen waited for more than two hours in her office to get her reaction on the issue.
sources said those arrested concerning the case were not original staff of the local government but politicians engaged by the council chairman to collect taxes.
“The political heads of the council are fond of bringing people outside to collect taxes. I am sure if they had allowed the staff to do their job, things such as this would not happen. This is because the original staff are well-trained about how to relate with members of the public,” a source said.
Femi Joseph, Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in the state, confirmed the incident and described it as unfortunate.
Joseph, who said some persons had been arrested over the matter, added that the suspects would be arraigned in court after the conclusion of investigation.
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