Beko: Ten years Was Like yesterday, By Owei LakemfaBeko Ransome-Kuti was the unarmed general of the people who led them in countless campaigns against the perpetuation of military rule and for the enthronement of democracy. Imprisoned in the Kirikiri Maximum Prison, charged to court countless times, and when he remained unbowed, the Abacha regime decided on a final solution; his elimination. I first met Beko in 1983 when on behalf of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) he addressed a press conference in Lagos. The name was later changed to the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights (CDHR) with Beko as president. Beko responded that you can put a dwarf on a pedestal and greet him, rather than bend to his level.