Date Published: 09/05/09

Mimiko mourns Gani Fawehinmi, says death painful

The Governor of Ondo State, Dr Olusegun Mimiko on Saturday expressed sadness over the death of the human rights activist and legal luminary, Chief Abdul-Ganiyu Oyesola Fawehinmi (SAN), whom he described as a Colossus and a pride not only to Ondo State, Nigeria but the whole world.

Mimiko who is also an indigene of Ondo town where Gani Fawehinmi hailed from said he received the news of the passage of Gani with a rude shock saying for him, Gani’s death “was painful and an irreparable loss coming at this stage of our development in Ondo State when we needed his wealth of knowledge”.  

The governor who spoke through his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Kolawole Olabisi stated: “On behalf of the people of this Ondo State, I most sincerely thank the good Lord for giving us this distinguished man to us in Ondo State; he was an eminent Nigerian, a global personality of the finest cast who, no doubt lived a life of social struggle. His was a selfless life dedicated wholly to the advancement of justice and the defense of the common man.

“His contributions to the development of our jurisprudence predicated upon a deep sense of revulsion at injustice and oppression remain unprecedented. In the seventy-one years that it pleases almighty Allah to bequeath him with on earth, Gani towered above several of his contemporaries and became an appropriate role model for generations of younger Nigerians.

“Though he is dead now, but we are grateful to the Lord for his life and we are proud of our association with him and we thank him for the eternal pride that he brought the way of our dear Ondo State, for whether anyone likes it or not, the Gani Fawehinmi phenomenon has helped substantially to define the nature and image of the Ondo State personality as a dedicated defender of the truth, a focused and conscientious hard worker, resilient in struggle, and driven by a deep sense of conformity with the omoluwabi ethos of the Yoruba.

“Though today, Gani Fawehinmi is no more, but we are consoled by the fact that he would rest well confident that his place in the heart of Nigerians and lovers of truth, freedom and justice all over the world is assured.”

In demonstration of the high esteem he held the late social crusader, Dr Olusegun Mimiko on assumption of office as the governor on February 23, 2009 had on March 19 this year mandated the State owned University, the Adekunle Ajasin (AAU) to honour Gani Fawehinmi with a Special Convocation and confer on him a Honourary Doctorate Degree. The institution had earlier intimated Gani with its decision to honour him with a Honourary Doctorate Degree only to later drop the name of the gadfly from the convocation list for no identifiable reason.

Indeed, at the Convocation Gani, who represented by his daughter, Basirat Biobaku, was full of praises to God for what he termed “a new rebirth of Ondo State” with the enthronement of popular democracy through the instrumentality of the law.

“My father was overjoyed when he heard the verdict of the Appeal Court in Benin which declared Dr Mimiko as the Governor of Ondo State on February 23, this year. He called me from London and asked me if it was true that Mimiko is now the Governor of Ondo State and when I said yes, he now said, ‘listen, I am going to sound like the Gani Fawehinmi that you’ve always known. Ha! Ha! Thank God! Democracy has returned to Ondo State. The welfare of the people shall be the priority of the new government, Good roads, well equipped hospital, food on the table, potable water and clean environment shall be put in place and the people of Ondo State will rejoice once again. Oh! I am happy for Dr Mimiko and I know he will make the people of the State proud. I am fulfilled, I am happy to have witnessed this. Oh! I thank God!’”

Quoting from the book of Proverbs, Fawehinmi, stated that “when a good man rules, the people rejoice but when a bad man rules, the people mourn. A good man has come to rule in Ondo State and the people must surely rejoice.”

“My father sends his best wishes to Dr Mimiko, he says for me to tell you that you will succeed; that you will not fail because you are destined to succeed, the Iroko tree never dies, and you will not die. I congratulate the people of Ondo State and I wish to tell you that I wholeheartedly accept this honour done to me with this special convocation ceremony. I thank you most profusely”