All Progressives Congress chieftain, Bola Tinubu, on Monday,
paid a condolence visit to Mrs Joe Okei-Odumakin, widow of the late activist
and columnist, Yinka Odumakin.
The former Lagos State governor visited the widow at
Odumakin’s Lagos residence.
Odumakin, who was the spokesman
for pan-Yoruba group, Afenifere, died on Saturday at the Lagos State University
Teaching Hospital Covid Isolation Centre.
Odumakin was a staunch critic of Tinubu and many other
politicians in the country. The late activist canvassed the ideas of
restructuring, fiscal federalism, decentralised policing as solutions to the
country’s socio-economic challenges.
Tinubu had in a statement on Saturday said the story of
Nigeria’s democracy will not be complete without mentioning Odumakin.
He had recalled the contribution of Odumakin to the June 12 struggle after the annulment of the election won by MKO Abiola.
The former governor in the statement titled, ‘Tinubu
Condoles With the Family of Yinka Odumakin’ wrote, “In the struggle against the
annulment of the June 12, 1993, presidential election and the perpetuation of
military dictatorship, Odumakin was never found wanting.
“He was at the vanguard of the battle even at the risk of
his life and liberty. It is impossible to credibly tell the story of the
emergence of the democracy we enjoy in this dispensation today without
emblazoning Odumakin’s name in gold.
“He was a doughty fighter for freedom and the rule of law.
He was rock solid in his commitment to Afenifere, the Yoruba people and the
several other civil society groups in which he played active roles.”
Tinubu had also described the late Afenifere Spokesman as a
sincere man who always put Nigeria first despite their political differences.
“In the course of the last two and a half decades, Odumakin
and I had cause to collaborate in various organisations and in pursuit of
different political causes at different times and I can testify to his capacity
for hard work, his brilliance, his tenacity in his loyalty to his cherished
principles.
“Even if we differed politically, I had no cause to doubt
his sincerity in charting his chosen path. He will forever remain a model of
what a citizen who places the good of his country above his personal interest
could be,” the APC stalwart wrote.
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