Prosper Igboke

By Nehru Odeh

The relatives of Mr Prosper Igboke, the clergyman, who was reported to have died by suicide because he was jilted by his girlfriend who he had trained in the university, has come out to debunk the news making the rounds.

Recall that it was reported that Igboke died by suicide after he jumped down from a two-story building in Nnewi, Anambra State.

The report, which has gone viral, has it that a relative of the deceased who spoke to journalists on Saturday, said the 30-year-old man from Leru community in Umunneochi Local Government Area, Abia State, had trained his lover in the university, after which she declined his marriage proposal.

He said, “The incident happened last month. The man (Igboke) was 30 years old at the time of his death. His girlfriend, whom he intended to marry disappointed him after seeing her through the university.

However a maternal cousin of the decease, Promise Ikpe on Saturday took to his Facebook page to debunk the report, while revealing what led to his death. According to Ikpe, the clergyman did not die by suicide and wasn’t jilted by his girlfriend.

Ikoe said though he jumped down from a two-story building, it wasn’t a conscious attempt to kill himself because he was battling with some mental health issues, which he suddenly developed: and so cannot be held liable for his death. Ikpe also said the girfried spoke with his mum, telling her that she never betrayed him.

Ikpe, whose mother’s maiden name is Cecilia Igboke and is a younger sibling to Prosper’s father, Bestman Igboke, said: “I did this post to correct some of the false narratives flying around.”

He wrote: “This is the report of what happened prior to his death.

“Prosper went for a ministration in Nnewi, and when he came back, he had lost his senses, he wasn’t mentally co-ordinated.

“No one knew why. His pastor locked him up and asked some people to watch over him while he went to a meeting instead of taking him to a hospital to find out why he wasn’t mentally co-ordinated

“Prosper jumped from the window of the room he was locked in

“His pastor refused to give us his phone for we to investigate what happened to date. Pastor said Prosper had gifted him the phone.”

Chikwendu Anugba, a writer and another cousin of the decease, also took to his Facebook page to debunk the report.

Anugba wrote: “Blogs went to market with the story that Obum committed suicide because he was jilted by his girlfriend who he trained in the university.

“I was wondering when he became rich and we didn’t know. Because the story did fit into certain narratives, the agendaists picked it up and ran without looking back.They said he committed suicided because of heartbreak. Meanwhile, the poor girl they maligned stood with the family in the time of grief.

“He was buried in our farmlands not because he committed suicide. But because in our tradition, it’s seen as an abomination for parents to bury their children.

“It is the duty of children to bury their parents. When a single man or woman dies, the corpse is buried far from the village so the grave won’t be a source of grief for his parents.”