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Struggle For Justice Continues – Falana As 12-year-old Oromoni Jr. Is Laid To Rest

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Femi Falana addressing journalists at the funeral of Sylvester Oromoni Jnr at Ogbe-Ijoh town, on Saturday





Firebrand human right lawyer, Femi Falana, on Saturday, said that the struggle for justice over the reported murder case of Sylvester Oromoni Jr would be sustain and continue despite his being lay to rest.

BIGPEN NIGERIA (https://bigpenngr.com) reports that Falana stated this when he joined numerous Nigerians at Ogbe-Ijoh, Warri South West local government area of Delta State to give Sylvester Oromoni Jr., a 12-year-old student of Dowen College in Lagos State, a farewell burial rite.

Femi Falana speaking at the funeral

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Sylvester Jr., was laid to rest solemnly at his family’s compound in Ogbe-Ijoh after two years probe into the remote cause of his death.

The corpse which was taken from Central Hospital Warri went through a motorcade to Ogbe-Ijoh waterside Warri where it was ferry through boat ride to Ogbe-Ijoh town where a solemn church service was held in his honour before he was laid to rest in his father’s edifice.

Sylvester was reported to have developed health complications after he was allegedly tortured by some senior students and had died tragically on November 30, 2021.

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In a sermon preached at the burial ceremony, taken from the book of Isaiah 57:1-2, titled ‘Forever With The Lord’ Ven. Revd Goodluck Bayagbon of the God’s Grace Ministry, Warri, charged christians to live a life worthy of emulation and strive to be heavenly candidates.

While describing the deceased as a true believer in Christ, the cleric noted that “Sylvester Oromoni Jnr has gone to rest with the Lord and free from all evil and calamity of the world.

“We are not here to weep and mourn over Sylvester but to celebrate a great man, a young man that God almighty loves so much. Sylvester left an indelible mark in the hearts of all men that must be emulated.

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“The most important thing about life is that everyone on earth must strive to make heaven because that is a great achievement for everyone, where there is no pain, sorrow, sadness, calamity, worries.


“Sylvester should be emulated according to his brief biography read to us all. He was a good young boy, who cared so much about his fellow students, friends, sisters, brothers and all those who crossed his path.

“He was diligent and was a devout christian. At his young age he cared for the needs of his fellow students, he was so good both at school and home. Though he left very young but he has achieved the purpose of God who created him. We are here to celebrate him not to mourn. At his age, look at the mammoth crowd that came to bid him farewell to heavens.”, the cleric said.

During the funeral, human rights lawyer Femi Falana paid tribute to Sylvester Oromoni Jr., describing the deceased as a great Nigerian whose life was tragically cut short.

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Falana emphasized the significance of Sylvester’s impactful life, which touched the lives of his teachers, friends, and fellow students.

He urged everyone to reflect on their own legacies and questioned what they would be remembered for after their time on earth.

“From what we have all heard about the young boy, he lived a fulfilled life. He impacted on his friends and society and colleagues in school. I think for all of us here certain lessons have been learned today. One of which is that we must try and live a life that must be useful to our society. So we’re not here to mourn but to honour the deceased in solidarity with the parents who are bereaved”.

Falana commended the parents of Sylvester for their unwavering pursuit of justice for their son, maintaining that it was uncommon for elders to attend the burial of young ones in their culture but expressed gratitude for being invited by Sylvester’s family to honor his memory.

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“One thing we have learnt from the family is that, is not just for you to declare the loss of your son but also insist on knowing the cause of the death of your son, not to bring back your son but to ensure that it doesn’t happen to the children of other people which for us is a huge sacrifice. So we’re delighted to be here though for us it’s with mixed feelings”.

He assured them that the quest for justice would continue, as the coroner’s findings were expected to be released in April.

The legal luminary urged all parents not to accept the unfortunate deaths of their children as God’s will, but instead to investigate the causes to prevent similar tragedies from occurring in the future, affirming that justice may be slow, but it would ultimately prevail.

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“The struggle for justice continue. Between now and April the coroner that conducted the inquest will come out with its findings and we’re very sure that justice will be done. And it’s also a lesson for all parents not to regard unfortunate death of children as God made but take the opportunity to investigate the cause of death of young ones so that such event doesn’t continue or occur in the society again. Justice grind slowly but eventually justice will be done”, Falana said

Speaking at the funeral, the President of National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Mr. Lucky Emonefe, expressed deep sorrow and anger over the tragic death of the student.

He emphasized that NANS stands united in condemning the irresponsibility of the school management and those entrusted with the welfare of students.

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Mr. Emonefe made it clear that NANS will not tolerate any form of negligence or disregard for the safety and well-being of students.

“The loss of a student’s life is not something that can be taken lightly, and NANS is determined to hold those responsible accountable for their actions”, he said.

Emonefe stressed the need for justice to be served, saying that “NANS will continue to demand answers and push for a thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding the student’s death”.

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“The association is committed to ensuring that the truth is uncovered and that those responsible face the consequences of their actions”, Emonefe eaid.

In his brief interview with newsmen, Sylvester Oromoni snr, said that his family, is still determined to seek justice for their son, maintaining that even if it takes him decades he will wait for justice to be done for his brutal death of his son.

He said that he chosen to proceed with the burial at this time because he had received the court’s record of proceeding, saying that regardless of the outcome of the coroner inquest, “I will continue from there. After reviewing the evidence presented, I am satisfied that there was no foul play involved”.

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Admitting that there has been delay in burying the young boy, he said that he was not bothered because he have already committed to fighting for justice for his son for 30 years, saying, “It has only been two year and two months, so I do not consider it a delay as long as the authorities are doing the right thing”.

He stressed that his decision to proceed with the quest for justice is not only for his son but also to inspire others to fight for justice in similar incidents and to serve as a deterrent.

“I am not doing this because of my son only because even if I cry from now till tomorrow he will not come back but I am taking this sacrifice path for others that they must fight for justice when such ugly incident happens and it serve as a deterrent also”.

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The management of Dowen College, Lagos were conspicuously absent from the burial but a few number of students of the school, probably friends of the deceased were seen at the burial which attracted a large crowd of people from far and near.

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