Dr. Temi Metseagharun, is one of the children of the Late Samuel A.K. Metseaghanrun who was murdered in broad daylight by characters suspected to be Ugborodo indigenes on September 23, 1998. Nine years later, precisely on October 19, 2007, the presiding Judge in the criminal suit pressed against the accused persons, discharged and acquitted all of them in a judgement that was greeted with condemnation by the Metseagharuns and most members of the society.
            Consequently, Dr. Metseagharun fielded questions from Warri Mirror as to the next step for him and his siblings on the matter. He spoke with Alex Eyengho, live in London barely 24 hours after the judgement. Excerpt:
What's your immediate reaction to the court judgement in Asaba, Delta State, Nigeria, discharging and acquitting all the remaining 12 accused standing trial for the murder of your father in 1998?
It was quite difficult for me overnight. I didn't sleep very well. I woke up very early this morning and just started meditating.
What was the outcome of your meditation?
The first thought that came to my mind was that Nigeria is a very hard place. I am just realising how very, very hard that country is; and obviously, Nigerians are very hard people. First of all, looking at what happened, justice delayed is justice denied. So, nine years of delay was already injustice of its own. And then to cap it all, the “judgement,” the standard set out by Justice Ehiwario implied that the man just fell down and died. And that the community (Ugborodo) dispute was just a coincidence. I am not a lawyer but it is a common knowledge that it is a principle of law not just to do justice but also to ensure that when justice is done, it should be seen to have been done.
What were your expectations?
The question to Justice Ehiwario is simple. Does he believe in his heart that justice has been seen to be done? To cut the long story short, we the children of the Late S.A.K. Metseagharun were probably naïve about the Nigerian justice system. People told us not to bother because they were sure the Nigerian judicial system is always in the hands of those in power. Whoever is in power manipulates the judiciary. However, we continued because, as a matter of principle, we believed in the rule of law; hoping against hope that justice will be done, since we have no other means of seeking justice.
Now, do you; I mean the children have any regret pursuing the case this far?
We have no regret whatsoever. I, personally will never give up; and that is a big 'NEVER.'
Does your siblings share this same view? Have you consulted them within the last 24 hours?
Perhaps some of them will not be happy that I have said it but maybe some of them have had enough. This is understandable. Nigeria is such a difficult place. I mean I understand their position. How I perceive the whole situation is that the inmate have taken over the asylum. This is a very serious situation. The question then is: What would you do in this unfortunate situation? This is not just a metaphor. Maybe you are the Governor of the asylum, what would you do when the ill people have become the manager?
I'll call-in the police
Yes, you may do that, but in Nigeria, the police are the thieves and the thieves are the police. It is a sad story we have in Nigeria where the accused is the judge and the judge is the accused. It turns every kind of civilised norms totally upside down. In Nigeria, heaven is hell, hell is heaven. It is just incredible. Let's come back to the judgement itself…
I feel that basically, the judgement is not a surprise because we knew the kind of country Nigeria was and still is, but we hoped against hope that things will be different. Right now, I am obviously grieving. It just feels like exactly nine years ago. I just feel like I am back to Warri, preparing for funeral and all that. I will sum up my worries in three statements or questions.  First, what did Samuel Metseaghanrun die for in the way he was publicly humiliated before he was killed? That is a question I throw to anybody interested in this matter. Second, I remember having a father-son, Frank chat with my dad when he was Chairman of the Board of Internal Revenue in Delta State. I said to him: “Daddy, why are you not helping yourself with some of the Government moneys you are sitting on? He said to me: “Don't you know that for those people who steal Government money, it will affect their children?” “Don't you now?” I said to him: “I don't know.” And he said to me with conviction all over him “En en, you see, you don't know.” He said to me that Itsekiri man is too proud to steal, no matter the amount of money involved. So, obviously, my second question is around this statement made by my dad and it is to the Itsekiri people which is: your son (Samuel Metseaghanrun) was wrong about Itsekiri values; or wasn't he? He died around the time when the Ijaws were killing us just as he was killed by fellow Itsekiri over money; something he never dreamt of, he never thought was possible because of the Itsekiri values. Now, if he wasn't wrong about Itsekiri values, then, why have prominent Itsekiri people not spoken out against the action of the bad eggs among them? By not speaking, there is implicit support for the actions of these people. I will like anyone who believes he speaks on behalf of the Itsekiri to speak out now or forever keep silent and accept that the killers of S.A.K. Metseaghanrun are more valuable Itsekiri sons who need to be protected by the wider Itsekiri community, despite their evil deeds. A fellow Itsekiri here in the UK told me that my dad was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. My clear interpretation of that statement is that the fellow simply told me to accept my father's death as an unfortunate incident and that the killers had good intention. This is because I cannot imagine you blaming the victim of an evil deed, and exonerating the gang. To me, the thought of this fellow may reflect what a lot of Itsekiris think as regards my dad's killing. Is this our value? I was brought up to believe that Itsekiris are different from other Nigerians and I still believe this till today. But I am seeing among Itsekiri right now that the thieves have become bankers; the accused have become the judge, and the jury is silent. The jury is the wider Itsekiri community. Now, the third question I have, which obviously is encapsulating my grief, is addressed to two people that I believe are probably the most prominent Itsekiri people. The first one is obviously Ogiame (His Majesty, Atuwatse II, the Olu of Warri) because he is our king and with all due respect, I ask (because I know that as an Itsekiri, I cannot question the Olu) if it is allowed by the Itsekiri culture for the Olu to give guidance in this matter; to speak out on this matter. This is because there is one King for the tribe. If this kind of matter had happened 200 years ago, I am sure that the King would say something. The second one is the fact that we have an Itsekiri-born Governor in Delta State today. Obviously, nobody knows what he thinks about the matter but he is an Itsekiri and this is happening in Itsekiriland. Is he giving his tacit support to Itsekiris killing Itsekiri? Itsekiris shielding the bad eggs among them? And Itsekiri throwing away the values that we were brought up with? He is the Governor; he needs to speak out as well. I say this because this is for history . In the next eight years, there will be no Itsekiri Governor again, and people will ask questions about his tenure. Therefore, prominent people need to speak out now so as to be on the good side of history. I think it is very important to answer the question: Who killed Samuel Metseaghanrun? It is a simple question. Let's establish that for record purposes. Why was he killed? What did the Itsekiri do about this evil act? Personally, for those who don't speak out, I'll interpret that to mean implicit support for the action. If you don't speak out and condemn the action, including the action of the Judge, I see it as implicit support for evil. The accused has become the judge. I totally reject that judgement. This is the standard of judgement in the Niger Delta. Little wonder there is problem in that area. If this is the kind of justice we have, will there ever be peace in that area? If this Judge is a reflection of the kind of justice in the Niger Delta, then you cannot expect peace. Everybody is crying for peace but nobody is crying for justice. If the elders don't speak out, there will be no guidance for the youths. If the elders speak and don't speak justice and fairness, that is simply an indication for the youths not to listen. What has happened when people do this sort of evil, the result is actually spiritual; people have consequences. So, good luck to all those who are supporting evil. Our victory will not be any form of material gain or to have the killers languish in jail. I have never wished for them in my heart to die or languish in jail. At a point when I heard that they were coming to beg and all that stuff, I said, okay, this is perhaps an opportunity for reconciliation. At least, let them set their own spirit free spiritually regarding what they have done and genuine sense of forgiveness and reconciliation will follow. To an extent, I did support that but I can never, absolutely never support injustice. I will support reconciliation, but not injustice; and this is a clear injustice. Even if there is reconciliation, what happened need to be clarified and there has to be justice. I am not sure how that justice would be but it has to be seen that justice has been done. We haven't seen that yet. Our (Metseaghanruns) genuine victory will be to see virtues reign in Itsekiriland once again.
What was really your mindset in terms of your expectations for the judgement?