Don’t be fooled by the flood of condolence messages coming from the high and mighty, the late immediate past chairman of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Chuks Ehirim, actually lived in what is derogatorily referred to as ‘beggars’ kingdom’.
The estate was officially named Abuja @30 Village in 2007 when Malam Nasir El-Rufai was minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Abuja.
It was a place of refuge for those whose houses were demolished in the FCT during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
A trip to the estate in Pegi, in the Kuje area, an outskirt of Abuja, is like a journey through the valley of the shadow of death.
The roads are as deplorable as many of the structures which pass for houses.
Some of those who have been to the place since the death of the former NUJ chief have vowed never to go there again.
With several months of unpaid salary, it is little wonder that the late Ehirim could only afford to build a home there.
He was treated for typhoid shortly before his death and was practically seeking good Samaritans before his death.
No meaningful help came until his death on June 16, the day he clocked 50.
The likes of President Muhammadu Buhari, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, and APC Chairman, John Odigie-Oyegun, have since reached out to him through condolence messages to his family.
