“I Wish I Could Return My Father’s OON Award To Govt” – Donu Kogbara Protests National Honours On Ogoni Nine

By Gideon Njoku

International Journalist and Vanguard Newspapers Columnist, Donu Kogbara, has protested the National Honours conferred on Writer and Environmentalist, Ken Saro Wiwa and eight other Ogoni Sons.

Saro Wiwa, 54, and his eight co-travellors,  were hanged on 10, November, 1995, over their alleged role in the most gruesome murder of four prominent Ogoni Chiefs – Albert Badey, a former Secretary to the State Government, Edward Kobani, Theophilus Orage and Sam Orage – by a mob instigated, allegedly, by Wiwa. The bodies of the four, till date, have not been seen for a decent funeral by their families.

However, in an action that has shot the anger of not a few people to high heavens, President Bola Tinubu, on the occasion of his address to the joint session of the National Assembly on June 12,  to mark the 2025 Democracy Day, not only granted full pardon to the Ogoni Nine, but conferred them with National Honours. While Ken Saro Wiwa, their leader,  was conferred with the Commander of the Order of the Niger, CON,  his co- travellers, Saturday Dobee, Nordu Eawo, Daniel Gbooko, Paul Levara, Felix Nuate, Baribor Bera, Barnem Kiobel and John Kpuine were awarded the National Honour of the Officer of the Order of the Niger, OON.

Ms Kogbara, a proud Ogoni daughter is incensed by this unmerited Honours conferred on them, and in her column in the Vanguard of Friday June 13, insisted the President was misadvised. Like a number of people,  she thinks the Honours were given with an eye on Ogoni oil so that its lifting/exploration, suspended for years, would resume.

By conferring the Honours on them, Ms Kogbara said the President has wrought great injustice on the Ogoni Four who were murdered for no just cause. She said she could cope with the pardon for Saro Wiwa since he was not directly involved with the  murder of the Ogoni Four, but she insisted the others  were directly involved.

“The Ogoni Nine should never be forgiven for this heinous crime, never mind describing them as heroes”, Kogbara said.

What irks most, she posited, is to totally ignore their victims. By this act, Kogbara said the President has totally humiliated the Ogoni Four.

She said:

“Whatever the motivation, the bottom line is that a great injustice has been inflicted on the loved ones of Badey, Orage and Kobani families”

To show how disgusted she is over the President’s action, she said she wonders whether  she could protest the OON also conferred on her late distinguished father, Ignatius Kogbara, by rejecting the award on his behalf.

Ms Kogbara: “My late father, Ignatius Suage Kogbara, also got a National Award; and I am wondering whether I have a right to protest on his behalf and return his OON to the Government in disgust…. because I can assure you that Daddy is turning in his grave and would not want to belong to the same club as Ogoni Nine psychos.”