Ibadan Teen’s Tragic Death: A Blameworthy Chain of Failures Involving Father, OYRTMA and Police 

On Tuesday, May 20, 2025, Ibadan was plunged into griefs and rage after the distressful killing of a 14-year-old student, Kehinde Paul Alade. Kehinde, a student preparing for his WAEC examinations, was fatally struck by a stray bullet fired by a police officer during a cluttered traffic enforcement operation at Alakia-Gbagi. Obviously, he wasn’t the target of a criminal investigation. He wasn’t breaking the law. He was just a teenager on his way to school, seated in the backseat of his father’s vehicle. Yet, in a system haggled by excessive force, disjointed agency responsibilities, and institutional carelessness, his journey became his very last. However, this article examines the roles and failings of Kehinde’s father, the Oyo State Road Traffic Management Authority (OYRTMA), and the Nigeria Police Force, and poses urgent questions for Nigeria’s law enforcement structure.

The disaster started with a reckless traffic violation by Kehinde’s father, Mr. Odunayo Alade, who admitted to taking a one-way route in the Alakia area, a dangerous and all-too-common infraction on Oyo roads. It wasn’t just a lapse in judgment; it was an intentional decision that exposed his children to needless danger. According to available video evidence and initial police reports, Mr. Alade broke through barricades and rammed into official vehicles while attempting to evade traffic enforcement, prompting a police officer to fire at the vehicle’s tyres. So sadly, the bullet struck Kehinde instead, who was seated in the backseat.

“I admitted I was wrong,” the bereaved father said. “But while I was explaining, a policeman shot. Before I knew it, my son pointed out that blood was coming from his side. He was gasping for breath. I rushed him to the hospital, but he was pronounced dead.” Now, Kehinde should not have died. This sad outcome compels us to confront a layered failure. Mr. Alade’s unlawful and aggressive driving did not justify the deadly response that followed, but it did help create the conditions for the tragedy in a broken system riddled with poor coordination and excessive force, individual accountability still matters.

Yes, OYRTMA’s presence at the scene was part of a “routine enforcement” effort, launched in response to complaints of the regular one-way driving and recent assaults on their officials. Understandably, they requested police backup due to safety concerns. However, how they managed the situation raises critical concerns. Why engage in force-backed operations during school rush hour? Why fail to de-escalate a non-violent traffic stop involving a child? OYRTMA is not a paramilitary body. It does not carry firearms. Its duty is to enforce road regulations with civility and restraint. The decision to involve armed police in minor infractions like one-way violations, especially around vulnerable groups such as school children, displays a grave lapse in judgment and planning. In truth, OYRTMA should have de-escalated the situation without summoning armed response, ensured proper crowd control and civilian engagement training. They could have also limited the timing of high-risk operations to non-peak hours. They could have done better.

Now, according to the police, the officers involved claimed they suspected a “possible abduction or criminal activity.” They alleged that Mr. Alade’s erratic behavior prompted the use of force. However, this narrative, conveniently circulated after the fact, mirrors a tired and sad script, where victims are criminalized to justify lawless police conduct.

Mr. Alade has denied those claims. “I am not a kidnapper. I am a driver. I was taking my children to school. I demand justice. Justice must be served.” His statement, though coming from a man partly responsible for his son’s death, points to a deeper rot, a regular police system that gives us the same story line when incidence like this happens. Let’s be clear, even if the vehicle had evaded barricades, and even if there were signs of a possible offense, opening fire in a crowded civilian area, especially with visible children in the vehicle,i s inexcusable. The use of lethal force over a traffic violation is not policing; it’s murder in uniform.

The officer who fired the shot has reportedly been taken into custody, and the Commissioner of Police has promised a full investigation. But Oyo people have heard this too many times. These “investigations” often lead nowhere. Public outrage dies, the headlines fade, and the cycle continues. In a country where police brutality is a recurring plague, justice remains a ghost story.

As expected and in response to the killing, the streets of Ibadan erupted in protest. Hundreds of angry residents, Okada riders, traders, marched to the State Secretariat, carrying Kehinde’s corpse. It was a scene both horrifying and symbolic, the people dragging the evidence of a broken system to the doorsteps of power. Oh well

Also, the Oyo State House of Assembly condemned the killing as “unwarranted and painful,” demanding a full investigation, compensation for the family, and the formation of a follow-up committee to ensure transparency. Even more, the state government also issued a statement, calling the incident “shocking and painful,” and pledged to support the police in their internal probe. But beyond words, will accountability be served?

Should state traffic enforcement operations involve armed officers at all? Why does Nigeria still lack an independent civilian review board to investigate police killings? How often are officers retrained on use of force and civilian engagement? Do our law enforcement agencies even understand the emotional and psychological trauma they inflict through their actions? 

However, Kehinde’s death must not be buried with him. Concrete steps must be taken. There must be Immediate prosecution and dismissal of the police officer responsible. Also, a formal apology and compensation to the family of the slain student and a ban on joint traffic operations involving armed officers except in confirmed high-risk zones. Even more, there should be a clear separation of roles and jurisdictions between traffic agencies like OYRTMA and the police to prevent overlapping enforcement chaos. More necessary, there should be a mandatory retraining of law enforcement on civilian interaction, conflict de-escalation, and firearm protocol and a lot more. 

Finally, Kehinde, a child with dreams. A boy heading to school. His life was not only ended by a bullet but erased by the combined failures of multiple institutions, his father’s recklessness, OYRTMA’s poor judgment, and the police’s deadly force. This sad convergence demands more than mourning, it demands reform. Justice for Kehinde is not just a slogan for his father only. It’s a test of our humanity, our laws, and our institutions. Let those responsible for Kehinde’s death be held responsible. Justice for Kehinde is not just a slogan. It is a moral mirror for every Nigerian. A test of our institutions. A call to conscience. Until those who caused this tragedy are held accountable, no child, not in Ibadan, not anywhere in Nigeria, is truly safe.

Ogungbile Emmanuel Oludotun writes for Oyo Affairs