Prof. Ukandi Damachi Buried Almost 2 Years After Death - As Wife, 2 Children Secure Court Order For Burial

The remains of Nigeria-born international scholar, Professor Ukandi Damachi has finally been committed to Mother Earth after 17 months in the morgue. The eventual burial of the Switzerland-based rich scholar came after a long legal battle between his wife, Franca Damachi (her two daughters, Lami Damachi and Atona Damachi) and another woman he had earlier been married to - Neda Damachi (and her children), as well as some members of Damachi family led by the deceased’s elder brother. Professor Ukandi Godwin Damachi, who died in 2021, in Geneva, Switzerland (just before his 80th birthday, was buried some days ago (last month). His body had earlier been kept in the morgue of the Military Hospital, Yaba, Lagos, while the family feuded over who should take charge of the burial.  Mrs Franca Damachi, his wife and her two daughters eventually secured a court order for the release of the late Professor’s remains for burial.

To secure the order for the late Professor’s burial, Mrs. Franca Damachi and her two daugh­ters through their lawyer, Elvis E. Asia, had approached a Yaba Chief Magistrate’s Court, in suit number MISC/MCY/1012/22. The applicants in their amended originating applica­tion dated February 10, 2023, was brought pursuant to Sections 11, 27 and 33 of the Magistrates Court Law 2009; Section 38 of the Birth, Death and Burials Law of Lagos State and under the court’s inherent jurisdiction. Basically, they prayed the court for the body of the Late Professor Damachi to them for burial in his hometown, Obudu, Cross River - and that their requests were brought on the grounds that they are the wife and children of the said deceased; whose body has been lying in the first respondent’s hospital for many months since December 16, 2021; and the cost of maintaining the body at the hospital had be­come astronomical. They also claimed that the body of the deceased was becoming autolysis thereby requiring frequent main­tenance; and that the burial programme of the deceased had been fixed.

Listed as respondents in the suit were the Chief Medical Direc­tor, 68 Nigerian Army Reference Hospital, Yaba; Prof. Nicholas Damachi; Neda Massa Damachi (her children) Kalibe Damachi; Ateh Damachi Jewel; Udim Dada Damachi and Ushang Gbesse Damachi.

According to Franca and her daughters, the deceased died on No­vember 29, 2021, in Switzerland and was deposited at the Military Reference Hospital, Yaba on ar­rival in Nigeria with the receipt in the name of Professor Nich­olas Damachi. Adding that all members of the deceased family had agreed to the burial date but that the body of the deceased was not released because all efforts to reach Prof. Nicholas Damachi who was in custody of the receipt proved futile.

While opposing the application by Franca, Neda Damachi - the second respondent and the third to seventh respondents through their law­yer, Akinlolu Timothy Kehin­de (SAN), filed a 38-paragraph counter-affidavit deposed to by Prof. Nicholas Damachi, the elder brother of the deceased who averred that the mar­riage between the deceased and the first applicant was obtained by suppression and misrepresen­tation of facts as the marriage be­tween the deceased and one Neda Massah Damachi, was still sub­sisting. Adding that the second and third applicants are not the only children of the deceased; and that the death certificate clearly states that Neda Damechi is the wife of the deceased. He also stated that he is the Head of the Damachi family of Obudu, Cross-River; that Neda Damachi sent the death Certif­icate and body of the deceased to him; and that he has been responsible for the bills at the morgue. Adding that the burial of the deceased could not go on because the first applicant failed to recognise the other children of the deceased and the family of the deceased which is contrary to the custom and traditions of the Obudu people of Cross-River.