79-year-old mum of dead naval officer asks to touch son’s corpse

There are two things Madam Tity Kalio, the 79-year-old mother of the Naval officer, Commodore Datoru Abi-Kalio, who died in the Dana plane crash, in a Lagos suburb would want the Federal Government to do for her.

The first is to hand over her son’s dead body to her. According to her, that would afford her the opportunity to “touch the body, pamper it as a mother and glorify the Almighty God.” At least, that, according to her, would help to mend her broken heart. Another thing the grieving great-grandmother would want the Goodluck Jonathan-led Federal Government to do for her is to take over the responsibility of burying her any time she dies. Reason? Her beloved son who was supposed to give her a befitting burial is no more.

“I want to see the body of my son. That’s what is disturbing me now. I would like to see his body. I will touch and pamper it as his mother and glorify the Almighty God. By so doing, my mind will be at rest because I know he will be resting in the bosom of the Lord,” she said as tears coursed down her cheeks.

Madam Kalio, who collapsed upon hearing the news of her son’s death, said since that fateful Sunday, she had lost weight because of the implications of the tragic loss on her and the entire family. “He was the one taking care of me. When he was alive, I was sure of three square meals and my feeding money. But now he is gone.

“He really took me as his mother and took care of his brothers and sisters, including the ones that are married. Oh! I want the government to bury me when I die, because the person I relied on for a decent burial has died before me,” she lamented as she broke down in tears.

Daily Sun gathered that it was not easy breaking the news of the death of her second son to her. One of her sons was said to have contacted some pastors to come to the family to assist them in conveying the “deadly” message to the mother of nine children (four females, five males).  The pastors were said to have preached the gospel to her, hinging their message on Ecclesiastes chapter 3 which talks about ‘time and season for everything under the sun,’ before they broke the sad news to her. “My children got the news and refused to tell me. One of my sons invited some pastors who prayed and preached a message to me. But I was suspicious, because I had not seen the pastors in my house before and the way they started preaching and praying made me smell a rat. After that, the pastor broke the news to me and I lost consciousness,” she said.

Meanwhile, another tragedy was averted in the family when one of Kalio’s children in the boarding house was tricked back home to be informed of his father’s death.  The boy, Belema, was taken inside the room where their mother broke the news. The boy fainted. He was, however, revived. The late Commodore Datoru Abi-Kalio’s elder brother, Ase Kalio, who also spoke to Daily Sun, described his late brother as the unifying factor in the family. He recalled how the late Naval officer called him on phone on Saturday, the day before the crash and wanted him to give his handset to their mother to enable him speak with her.

He explained that since he was not at home when his brother called, he promised to link him up with her when he got home. He said he forgot to keep that promise. But that fateful Sunday morning, Ase said he called the deceased on phone to have what would have been a last discussion with his mum but said he couldn’t reach the late officer.  According to him, his late brother who was a member of Jehovah’s Witness was in the church. “I left for church and at about 2pm, he called and asked if I was at home so that he could speak to our mother.

“He told me he was at the airport and that if it was not possible to speak to her then, he would call back when he got to Lagos. I was in a club meeting when someone called Navy Captain Alabere and broke the news to him,” he said. He described his deceased sibling as an unassuming military officer, who associated with everybody irrespective of the person’s age or background.“We are brothers, but we were like friends. His death has brought sorrow to the family. He was a unifying factor and now he is gone. The family will miss him greatly,” he said.

The late officer’s friend, Captain Jackson Fubara, who spoke to reporters, said they became close when both of them served in NNS Pathfinder Okemiri, Port Harcourt, Rivers State. “Then, I was serving in Bori Camp, 2nd Battalion. I know him as a dedicated, committed, level-headed officer who exhibited high professionalism.

Meanwhile, the Deputy Governor of Rivers State,  Tele Ikuru yesterday visited members of the late Kalio family to commiserate with them. The state Governor, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, who was said to be out of town on official duty, is expected to visit the family on his return.