Olusegun Adeniyi loses younger brother whose immigration story inspired his latest book

Agboola, younger brother of Olusegun Adeniyi, chairman of THISDAY editorial board, is dead.

Details of his death are still sketchy but TheCable understands that Agboola, who has been ill for a while, died after undergoing a surgery on Friday morning.

In “From Frying Pan To Fire: How African migrants risk everything in their futile search for a better life in Europe”, Adeniyi’s latest book, the author documented the harrowing experiences of young persons who risk their lives to Europe through the deserts.

At the launch of book at Yar’Adua Centre, Abuja, in November, Adeniyi narrated how the personal experiences of the deceased inspired him to write the book.

He said Agboola was lost for six years as a result of irregular migration, between 1993 and 1998.

He said his brother narrated his experience to him at regular intervals.

Adeniyi added that the “excruciating” stories of three Nigerians who were killed in Indonesia in 2005 also motivated him to write the book.

“I could not sleep because he (his brother) said one of those guys was together with him in Mali,” he had said.

“He said the guy is a footballer but killed in Indonesia for drug trafficking. He said he was not convinced that the guy actually carried drugs but once you are an irregular migrant and you are caught and you cannot speak their language, they will give you a form to sign and you don’t even know what you are signing yourself into.”

He is survived by his wife and two children.