Father of Seven commits Suicide in Bayelsa(Photos)

Tragedy struck on Thursday in the Yenagoa metropolis, Bayelsa State, after a man, identified as Gbemite Kitchen, allegedly committed suicide.



The incident took place on Asingbi Street in the Amarata area of Yenagoa, the state capital.

Kitchen, 43, who had been unemployed for about seven years, was said to be dependent on his wife and friends.

Although the immediate cause of the suicide could not be ascertained, there were two different versions as to why the former councillor and employee of the Ekeremor Local Government Area of the state hanged himself.

A version said that Kitchen took his own life because of his wife’s alleged infidelity and refusal to let him have sex with her.

But another version said the man took his life due to hardship as he had been jobless since 2010 when his former employers allegedly relieved him of his job.

When punch correspondent visited the neighbourhood, he observed sympathisers and family members discussing the incident in hushed tones.

A lady, who claimed to be a sibling of the deceased, alleged that Kitchen and his wife had some misunderstanding.

The caretaker of Kitchen’s apartment, Mr. Benjamin Samuel, said the deceased visited his room around 12 midnight.

He said, “We charged our phones together on Wednesday night. His children were at home, but his wife was away.

“Later, I saw him making some calls after charging his phone. He was searching for his wife, who was nowhere to be found.

“I was still asleep when his children and other neighbours started shouting and crying this morning (Thursday). At first, I thought there was a robbery attack. When I opened the door, I was led to one of the rooms upstairs where I saw his lifeless body dangling from the ceiling.

“I was the one who untied and brought the body down. I tried to see if he could breathe again. I poured water on his head, but to no avail.

“I am confused and disturbed. Why will he kill himself, leaving seven lovely children behind? It is unfortunate.”

Another neighbour, who spoke on condition of anonymity, alleged that the deceased was not in good terms with his wife, who was a petroleum products retailer.

He added that Kitchen had always complained that his wife was always away and that she usually starved him of sex.

The neighbour said, “Around midnight, he went about knocking at tenants’ doors and saying that he was looking for his wife. When he knocked at my door, I told him that she (his wife) was not in my apartment.

“Some of us also tried to help him find his wife because her mobile phone indicated that it was switched off, only for us to wake up this morning to discover that he had hanged himself.”

When PUNCH Metro visited the residence of the Kitchens, the deceased’s widow, identified as Beauty, who was seen weeping profusely, was being consoled by sympathisers.

It was gathered from sympathisers that Beauty was not at home on Wednesday because she was allegedly arrested by the police for a matter that had to do with her business.

When punch correspondent visited the room where Kitchen hanged himself, his corpse was seen on the floor.

When contacted, the spokesman for the Bayelsa State Police Command, Mr. Asinim Butswat, said the incident had not been reported to the police.