Personal steward of Governor Kashim Shettima was, on Monday, discovered hanging from a tree on the premises of the Borno State Government House in Maiduguri.
The sight of the body of the steward, John Achagwa, dangling on a Neem tree at the back of the Presidential Lodge at the centre of Government House attracted many sympathisers.
The crowd was unprecedented as many had gathered to get parting gifts from Shettima as he vacated the Government House after eight years in office.
The cause of the suicide remains a mystery as nobody could put a finger to what might have made Achagwa to end his life.
Many people, who commented on the development, said it was difficult to know the reason behind the decision.
Some colleagues of the deceased, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the late Achagwa had maintained an unusual quietness since he resumed work on Monday.
One of them said, “He didn’t utter a word since morning. He just kept to himself. We were together till about 2pm until he suddenly disappeared.”
Men of the state Fire Service and security personnel were immediately mobilised to the scene of the incident to bring down the corpse from the tree. It was the first time such an incident would occur in the Government House
Speaking later to journalists on the incident, the state Commissioner of Police, Mohammed Aliyu, said investigation had commenced to determine the possible reason(s) for the suicide.
He said an autopsy would be conducted on the corpse as part of investigation to unravel the mystery.
The CP stated that Achagwa’s family and friends would be asked questions in order to get to the root of the incident.
He, however, revealed that preliminary investigation showed that the man was financially comfortable.
Aliyu said the corpse had been deposited in a morgue.
Achagwa was said to have retired from the Borno State civil service about eight years ago but was hire by Shettima as his personal steward.
In his reaction to the death of the steward, the governor said he made the working condition comfortable for the deceased.
Shettima, in a statement by his spokesman, Mallam Isa Gusau, said Achagwa was supported by him to build a seven-bedroom apartment and that he was also given a car, which he had been driving to the office.
Gusau stated, “Shettima was shocked and has been wondering what kind of depression could push John, who was generally known to live comfortably, to resort to taking his own life.
“Governor Kashim Shettima is deeply shocked by the unfortunate incident, especially given the fact that John, who was in his mid 60s, was publicly known to be one of the governor’s favourites, as he served important guests at the Presidential Lodge for more than 30 years.
“When John retired from the civil service, governor Shettima requested that he be retained as a casual worker because of his good services and the confidence the governor reposed in him. The governor even supported John with personal funds with which he used to complete his beautiful house at a good location like Polo in Maiduguri. John also had a car to himself and he lived very comfortably.
He was known to be friendly.
“The governor has directed the Commissioner of Police to ensure thorough investigation, including carrying out a post-mortem on his corpse and asking questions everywhere to establish what pushed him to take his own life.”