26th February: Today in Nigeria history, The Congress of Berlin gave Nigeria to England, other events

• Pfizer, a US Pharm. Company agreed to settle victims of “Meningitis drug trial”
• The Congress of Berlin gave Congo to Belgium and Nigeria to England
• Tunde Kilani’s birthday
• Cultists invaded burial ceremony in Anambra, kill 20 mourners
• Bandits killed ten and kidnaped fifty-seven in Birnin-Gwari, Kaduna
• The Islamic State in West Africa (ISWAP) killed twenty-four in Biu, Borno

According to Terri Guillemets, no volume of history is insignificant, even the worst chapters especially the worst chapters.

When we look back or reflect on the past, it’s not because we are happy or excited about the tragic events or stories; rather, we do it for educational and life-lesson purposes.

In an effort to close the gap in historical documentation and for educational purposes, WITHIN NIGERIA has highlighted six significant historical events that occurred on February 26th in Nigeria.

The Congress of Berlin gave Congo to Belgium and Nigeria to England

On this date, 26th of February in 1885, the Congress of Berlin gave Congo to Belgium and Nigeria to England.

The European race for colonialism made Germany start launching expeditions of its own, which frightened both British and French statesmen. Hoping to quickly soothe the brewing conflict, Belgian King Leopold II convinced France and Germany that common trade in Africa was in the best interests of all three countries.

Under support from the British and the initiative of Portugal, Otto von Bismarck, the Chancellor of Germany, called on representatives of 13 nations in Europe as well as the United States to take part in the Berlin Conference in 1884 to work out a joint policy on the African continent.

The conference was opened on 15 November 1884, and continued until it closed on 26 February 1885. The number of plenipotentiaries varied per nation, but these 14 countries sent representatives to attend the Berlin Conference and sign the subsequent Berlin Act.

Pfizer, a US Pharm. Company agreed to settle victims of “Meningitis drug trial”

On this date, 26th of February in 2009, Pfizer decided to settle its legal case with the 200 plaintiffs. An out-of-court settlement was reached, and scheduled to be put in writing at a meeting in Rome, Italy in March 2009.

The settlement followed months of negotiations between Pfizer and the Kano state government which represented the plaintiffs.

According to Wikileaked US embassy cables, Pfizer’s country manager admitted that “Pfizer had hired investigators to uncover corruption links to federal attorney general Michael Aondoakaa to expose him and put pressure on him to drop the federal cases”.

The talks were brokered by the former Nigerian military leader Yakubu Gowon and the former U.S. President Jimmy Carter. The lawyer representing the Nigerian government was Babatunde Irukera.

In October 2009, the medical records of the victims of the 1996 Pfizer Trovan clinical trial could not be found at the Kano State Ministry of Health nor at the Infectious Diseases Hospital (IDH) where the trials were conducted, according to the state’s Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice Barrister Aliyu Umar, shortly after Umar confirmed that the state government had received $10 million from Pfizer as part of the $75 million settlement of the protracted dispute.

The Nigerian government conducted their own investigation, whose report was kept secret for five years with the only three printed copies being lost.

Tunde Kilani’s birthday

On this date, 26th of February in 1948, Nigerian film-maker, Tunde Kelani popularly known as TK was born.

Tunde Kelani was born in Lagos but, at the age of five, he was sent to live with his grandparents at Abeokuta in Ogun State. He attended the Oke-Ona Primary School in Ikija, Abeokuta, and had his secondary school education at Abeokuta Grammar School.

During this time, his grandfather was a chief (the Balogun of Ijaiye Kukudi) and he was privileged to have witnessed at close quarters most aspects of Yoruba ways of life, the Yoruba religion, Yoruba literature, Yoruba philosophy, Yoruba environments and the Yoruba world view in arts.

In the 1970s, Kelani worked as a BBC TV and Reuters correspondent, and in Nigerian TV. For Reuters he travelled to Ethiopia to cover the drought and to Zimbabwe three times to cover independence there. Once he finished from the London Film School, he returned to Nigeria and co-produced his first film with Adebayo Faleti, called The Dilemma of Rev. Father Michael (Idaamu Paadi Minkailu).

Other co-producers include Alhaji Lasisi Oriekun, Wale Fanubi – his partner from Cinekraft, Yemi Farounbi and screenplay by Lola Fani-Kayode. Kelani has also worked on most feature films produced in Nigeria in his capacity as a cinematographer. Some of the 16mm feature films he worked on include: Anikura; Ogun Ajaye; Iya Ni Wura; Taxi Driver; Iwa and Fopomoyo.

In 1990, Kelani was an assistant director and an actor in the 1990 film Mister Johnson, the first American film shot on location in Nigeria. Starring Pierce Brosnan and Maynard Eziashi, the film was based on a 1939 novel by Joyce Cary.

Cultists invaded burial ceremony in Anambra, kill 20 mourners

On this date, 26th of February in 2022, armed men suspected to be members of a secret cult invaded a burial ceremony in Ebenebe, Awka North Local Government Area of Anambra State, killing about 20 persons.

It was gathered that it was the burial of a suspected leader of a cult named Ozo and while the corpse was lying in state in his compound, some suspected cultists arrived the scene and sacked mourners, shooting at them.

Bandits killed ten and kidnaped fifty-seven in Birnin-Gwari, Kaduna

On this date, 26th of February in 2022, bandits killed ten and kidnapped 57 person in Birnin-Gwari, Kaduna.

A statement released by the Kaduna State Government reads partly;

The statement noted, “the nightmare of armed banditry along Birnin-Gwari-Kaduna highway has further deteriorated in last twenty-four hours.
“Today, around 10:00am, a final year student of Science Secondary School Birnin-Gwari escaped with bullet wounds on his shoulder on his way to register for JAMB/UMTE in Kaduna.

“The dreadful armed bandits spray bullets on the vehicle conveying the student and others at Manini village after Kuriga along Birnin-Gwari Kaduna Highway.

The Islamic State in West Africa (ISWAP) killed twenty-four in Biu, Borno

On this date, 26th of February in 2022, the Islamic State in West Africa (ISWAP) reportedly killed twenty-four in Biu, Borno.

ISWAP had stormed a remote village, Sabon-Gari in Damboa Local Government Area of the state on Saturday, killing at least 11 persons.