Former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo has disclosed that the death of a former Oyo State governor, Chief Adebayo Alao Akala would create a void that will be difficult to fill.
Chief Obasanjo in a statement on Wednesday by his special media aide, Kehinde Akinyemi, urged admirers of Akala to hold to their faith in the Almighty Creator in the present situation.
The former deputy governor who later became governor of Oyo, reportedly died on Tuesday night aged, 71.
In a condolence letter to the Head of Akala Family in Ibadan, Obasanjo, remarked that the death, “is, indeed, a grievous loss to the entire members of his family, his friends and associates, Oyo State and indeed, the entire nation.”
The former President said “Otunba Alao-Akala was an outstanding Nigerian and leader who contributed immensely to the development and stability of Oyo State and Nigeria as a whole.
“As an amiable cop, he transcended the narrow precincts of what used to be cultural limitation to tower over his peers. From a distinguished career of a crime-buster, he straddled the “Pacesetter State” like a colossus. His humble career as a policeman did not stymie his ascendancy to the height of a Governor and unprecedentedly crowned him as a high achieving Deputy Governor, who became an Acting Governor and later Governor.
“There seemed to be nothing stopping the effervescent enigma. His politics had been that of a thorough-bred statesman, determined to make the critical difference in the lives of the people he led and he succeeded in building confidence across a wide spectrum of the social strata and validated the mandate bestowed on him as the Executive Governor of Oyo State. Indeed, the vacuum created by his death would undoubtedly be difficult to fill. I assure you that we all share your sense of deep grief.”
Obasanjo further urged all his admirers “to hold on to your faith in the Almighty Creator who understands all things and arranges all things ultimately for the best. Please bear this great loss by believing in the divine dispensation. In every circumstance, we must trust in Almighty God and acknowledge His greatness.
“I pray that God will comfort you all in this hour of travail. May He also grant the departed eternal bliss in Heaven”.
