Mrs Mary David, mother of the 22-year-old Nigerian student killed in South Africa, Isaac Satlat, shares the anguish surrounding her son’s death with BIODUN BUSARI
When did Isaac travel to South Africa?
I was the one who took him to South Africa in 2013. I took Isaac to South Africa when he was 11 years old. Four of us travelled together — Isaac and his two sisters, Emanuella and Christabel. We all travelled to meet my husband, who was there ahead. I took Isaac to him to stay there.
How long had your husband lived in South Africa before you took Isaac to him?
My husband had dwelled there for two years before we went there.
Why did he travel alone without taking the family along?
There was no specific reason. We did not actually plan for all the family members to move at once or relocate. That was not our intention.
Have you gone there to check on him?
Yes, we did. We went the following year, 2014, and came back in 2015, together with his siblings.
How did you cope with living in two different countries for years?
Well, I want to believe life and relationships are all about understanding. We had that understanding. There’s no day we don’t communicate. Even Isaac’s siblings here are not always around because they are in school. But we keep our communication intact. South Africa was not where we thought of settling down as a family. It was the arrangement.
What do you do for a living?
I am a businesswoman, and I am into estate development too. I also serve as an agent to other people who are interested in purchasing property, land and all that. That’s what I do in Abuja.
Do you and your husband hail from the same state?
My husband is from Plateau State. He is from Panjshir Local Government. I am from Benue State, Idoma by tribe.
How did you receive the news of your son’s death?
Well, it’s not palatable news to any parent. It’s not something you even wish your enemy, if at all I have any. But it has happened. We are just trying to fall back on God. Since we cannot question Him, we have to accept it. Even with all the questions I have raised, there are no answers to them. I’m trying to hold on to God at this point. I never expected what happened to me.
What was the reason you let him go to South Africa?
Our aim was that he should finish his secondary school and college there. He was my first child and only son. He was a child who loved getting things done at his own pace. He loved cars. He was a child who carried grace. He always achieved what he desired.
So, since he loved innovations and inventions that have to do with automobiles, we wanted him to go to South Africa and from there move abroad. Our intention was for him to come back to Nigeria and move abroad, since he wanted to study automobile engineering.
Was it his love for cars that made him work part-time as an e-hailing driver?
He was supposed to finish up his academic programme last year and come back home. Then he would proceed to any country of his choice. That was the arrangement. But something happened. So, he was upgrading himself, and the company where he was an intern gave him the car.
I think the car was registered for Uber or Bolt. He was just using it in his leisure time to make a little money. His company gave him the car for use.
What were his dreams that he discussed with you?
He wanted to go into automobile engineering and help in creating more comfortable cars for humanity.
How often did you speak with him?
We talked every blessed day. There was no time we didn’t talk. The only day I didn’t hear my son’s voice was the night this incident happened and the following day till now. The arrangement was that by the end of this month (March), he would come back and move to Canada. I was even teasing him that all Nigerians were rushing to Canada and the UK, so he should go to a different country that was not so popular.
But my boy said he wanted Canada. He said one of his friends, a South African who finished secondary school with him, was in Canada. So, he was supposed to travel to Canada in April. As a matter of fact, the Canadian school he was enrolled in sent a notification about his programme. But I don’t know where a case of mistaken identity came from, and they killed my son (sobs).
I don’t want a situation where I will keep on asking God questions that would turn to blasphemy. On the day he was killed, I spoke with him in the morning. We discussed his forthcoming graduation from college and his next move to Canada. He said all the preparations were on the ground. Then he told me that we would talk in the evening.
What kind of justice do you want for him?
No kind of justice can bring him back to life. However, the justice I want for Isaac is for all Nigerians and other Africans in South Africa. It’s no longer about my son. I believe God is in this matter. I have been able to watch a glimpse of the video when people were sharing all manner of stories.
So, the justice I want is that the Nigerian government and South African authorities should work together and protect Nigerians in South Africa. Justice is no longer useful for Isaac but for Nigerians in South Africa. The justice that must be served is the one to save our people.
Did you talk in the evening?
That evening, I was restless. I was about to go out, but I don’t know what brought me back. I was restless. There was no time I prayed without committing my children, my family, friends and loved ones to God for protection and preservation. I did this most especially for Isaac and his father. I don’t even pray for myself like that, and even his siblings. Why? Because I know he’s far off. That same evening, at about 5pm to 6pm, I was restless.
I couldn’t even stay inside. I went outside. I sat there, and all of a sudden, my neck and shoulders down became heavy. I didn’t know that that was the time they were killing my son. I remained outside in the evening till about 11 to 12 midnight before I came in.
Afterwards, I sent him a message, but there was no response. It was a strange feeling. The following morning, as soon as the day broke, I sent him a message, saying, ‘Ziko, how are you?’ I didn’t call him Isaac; I called him Ziko. I followed up with a call, but still no response.
I sent a message to his dad but no response. His dad is such a person that every morning and evening he will send prayers. He will send scriptures every morning and evening. That fateful Thursday morning, which was the following day of his death, there was no message from him. No message from Isaac. Isaac was not online, unlike him. I didn’t hear anything till about 11 am.
What happened thereafter?
Somebody used my husband’s phone to call me. It was a direct call and not a WhatsApp call. That was also strange because we usually communicated via WhatsApp. When I picked it up, it was a woman’s voice I heard. She asked, ‘How are you?’ I said, ‘I’m fine.’ She was saying that my husband wanted me to help him get some stuff. I said, ‘Okay, what kind of stuff?’ I said, ‘Let me speak with the owner of this phone.’
She said, ‘No.’ All along, they didn’t know how to tell me. I thought his line was hacked. I quickly switched off my line and my data. When I switched on my phone, I sent a message to both my husband and son, but there was no response. I knew that something was not adding up.
A girl was with me. I quickly called her and asked if she had received a message from my husband. She said she didn’t get any messages. Later, my girl got a call from the woman, so I collected the phone from her.
At that point, the voice said she was like his pastor. She said my son had an accident. I asked where Isaac was, and she told me he was in the hospital. I asked if he was alive, and they said, ‘Isaac is dead.’
How did your husband receive the news?
He was devastated and even fell ill. His blood pressure rose. But by the grace of God, he’s getting better. As a man, he has to put himself together to see how he can bring his son back home. At this point, Isaac needs us more than ever before.
We are his knees, his legs and his eyes. He needs all the love and care he needs. We cannot afford to break down totally. We need to face the challenges, the reality of life and do the needful. So, that’s all the courage we have.
What are the memories of Isaac that you hold dear?
I think, as a mother, I have never had any issues with my child. To the glory of God, all my children — even from pregnancy through raising them — I have had no problem. Isaac was so special and peculiar, maybe because he was a child who had left his mum for many years. He left for South Africa when he was 11. He always gave me joy.
Most of his South African friends attested to his kind nature. Even his South African godmother always hailed his character. Isaac had an open heart. Each time I travelled there, or whenever he requested anything from home, like our Nigerian attire, he would get it for his friends.
Sometimes they were 10 or eight in number. I have this to say: he was a loving child. He visited orphanages to celebrate most of his birthdays. He promised to help the siblings get on their way back by next month.
How are his siblings doing?
They are trying to cope with the reality of life, which has taken their brother away. I believe my strength is also their strength. So, I am also trying to carry them along.
