NAN-H-113
Death
By Constance Athekame
Abuja, March 9, 2017 (NAN) The Minister of Communications, Mr Adebayo Shittu, has described the demise of former governor of the defunct Western State, late Gen. Adeyinka Adebayo as a monumental loss to the country and Yoruba nation.
The Special Assistant to the Minister on Media, Mr Victor Oluwadamilare, quoted the minister as saying this in a statement in Abuja on Thursday.
The minister, who reacted to the news of his death, said that though the frontline Yoruba nationalist died at a very ripe age, Yoruba land and the nation would miss his ability to integrate and his unalloyed passion for the unity of Nigeria.
Shittu described the late Adebayo as one of the rare Nigerians that put their lives on the edge for the survival of Nigeria, especially at a time when the nation was at the brink of collapse.
“The 30-month civil war could have erased the geographical entity called Nigeria but for the patriotic and assiduous zeal of privileged Nigerians like the late Gen. Adebayo to salvage the country by restoring peace.
“They fought for the unity of Nigeria and subsequently served in different capacities in the military governments to uphold the unity of Nigeria.
“And posterity will forever not forget them for what they have done for the nation,” he said.
The minister said that in the past two decades, the late Adebayo has contributed in no small measure to the integration of the Yoruba nation of the South-West geo-political zone.
“He served the Yoruba nation until his last breath as his contributions to the evolution and sustenance of the Pan Yoruba group, Yoruba Council of Elders (YCE) were legendry,” he said.
Shittu added that Adebayo’s memory would linger in the minds of Nigerians and Pan-Yoruba elements for a very long time for his sterling contributions to the political emancipation of the Yoruba nation.
He therefore commiserated with the family of the deceased, the former Ekiti State Governor and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Otunba ‘Niyi Adebayo.
He also commiserated with the good people of Ekiti State and the entire nation over the demise of the great compatriot and nationalist.
Adebayo, who died in Lagos on Wednesday at the age of 89, was born on March 9, 1928 in the Ekiti State.
He became the governor of the Western Region after Col. Francis Adekunle Fajuyi’s death in the 1966 coup, ruling from Aug. 4, 1966 to April 1971. (NAN)
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Edited by Grace Yussuf