Senate President David Mark and other personalities on Thursday paid their last respects\u00a0 to the late Chief\u00a0 Oluwole Awolowo at\u00a0 a Lying-in-State service held\u00a0 in Ibadan.<\/p>\n
At the\u00a0 ceremony held at the Tribune House, Mark described Awolowo\u00a0\u00a0 as a personality noted\u00a0 for his immense humility and passion to serve.<\/p>\n
He said\u00a0 Awolowo, the former publisher of the Tribune titles, lived a life\u00a0 based on his faith and belief in God, adding that\u00a0 “ this made him a reliable friend.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n
Mark added that all the accomplishments of the Tribune family would not have been\u00a0 possible had the deceased not\u00a0 brought everyone together as a family.<\/p>\n
“The news of Awolowo\u2019s death was very painful and difficult for me considering that he was courageous and stood for the truth, even until he drew his last breath.<\/p>\n
“He lived a much fulfilled life having died at the appointed time by God and has left for us a legacy, which though, difficult to match, must be sustained.<\/p>\n
“One challenge for all of us, whose lives he had touched, is to emulate him by doing those things we can defend before God, our maker,\u2019\u2019 Mark said.<\/p>\n
Also speaking, the Aare Musulumi of Yorubaland, Alhaji Abdul-Azeez Arisekola-Alao, said\u00a0 Awolowo was a very reliable man and a symbol of humility.<\/p>\n
“I knew him for over 50 years and in that period, he was a dedicated family man and businessman who was very kind to everyone he came across,\u2019\u2019 Arisekola-Alao said.<\/p>\n
Mr Femi Adesina, President of the Nigeria Guild of Editors, said that though the late sage\u2019s\u00a0 son was born great, he chose to live a life of simplicity and respect for others.<\/p>\n
“One editor once told me that when Awolowo wanted something published in the paper, he would ask; can you please use this for me?<\/p>\n
“After you have done it, he would say ` thank you.\u2019\u00a0 This is\u00a0 commendable and a lesson to all of us in humility,\u2019\u2019 Adesina said.<\/p>\n
A board member of the African Newspapers Plc and publishers of the Tribune title, Mr Tayo Fadoju, said Awolowo became the first child of the dynasty to become a publisher in the company.<\/p>\n
“He was also the first Awolowo child to become a board member as he lived up to expectations. It is a pity that we will miss him,\u2019\u2019 Fadoju said.<\/p>\n
The officiating minister at the service, Very Rev. Opeyemi Awe,\u00a0 urged political leaders to always imbibe the\u00a0 attitude of selfless sacrifice in delivering their mandates.<\/p>\n
“You must remember that you will one day give account of your stewardship.<\/p>\n
“To be truly unbreakable in your legacies, you must be profound in being totally reliant on God for His grace and strength as we are nothing without Him,\u2019\u2019 Awe said.<\/p>\n
The News Agency of\u00a0 Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Oyo State governor, Sen. Abiola Ajimobi, was represented by his Chief of Staff, Dr Adeolu Akande.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Senate President David Mark and other personalities on Thursday paid their last respects\u00a0 to the late Chief\u00a0 Oluwole Awolowo at\u00a0 a Lying-in-State service held\u00a0 in Ibadan. At the\u00a0 ceremony held…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7527,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12297","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n