TEARS flowed freely yesterday in Benin City, as two prominent sons of Edo State, the former Chief of General Staff, Admiral Mike Okhai Akhigbe and former Director General of the Center for Democratic Studies (CDS), Prof.Omo Omoruyi began their final journey on earth. The remains of Admiral Akhigbe, touched down at the Benin Airport, aboard a Nigerian Airforce plane with registration number NAF-031, at 11.45am, with Governor Adams Oshiomhole, his deputy, Dr Pius Odubu and several Naval officers on hand to receive the corpse. While the corpse of Akhigbe was being received at the Airport, commendation service for former Prof Omoruyi, held at the Akin Deko Main Auditorium, University of Benin. It was followed by a funeral service at the Central Baptist Church, Benin City. The late Political Scientist was later interned at his 18, Oza Street, family home. Omoruyi had requested in his book, My Journey back to life that he should be buried in Oza street where his family house is located. Shortly after late Admiral Akhigbes corpse was received at the Benin Airport, it was moved to the Edo state Government House Benin City where it was laid in state for about an hour. Father Andrew Obiyan officiated during a brief mass in his honour. Both leaders of the All Progressive Congress (APC) and that of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) put aside their political differences to give their last respect to the late Naval Chief. Oshiomhole in his tribute said Akhigbe made it possible for people like him to ascend to become President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and later governor of Edo state, through the removal of obnoxious extant laws, adding that the late Admiral gave his all to Nigeria. According to him, anyone who had the opportunity to interact with our late brother closely, will know that he will live forever wherever he is today. The story of my journey to Edo state Government will not be complete if not for the contribution of this truthful man, a complete gentleman. Admiral Akhigbe during while he was Chief of General Staff during the administration of General Abdulsalami Abubakar, repealed the decrees which forbid people like us then from contesting the position of the NLC President. They repealed those decrees and that was how I was now legible to contest as President of the NLC. If I did not become the President of the NLC, may be I would have remained a stranger in Edo state. He did not do that because we came from the same area but because that administration respected human rights, and it was the freedom they created that led to the democracy we started enjoying in 1999. So if a man has made these contributions to our great nation, what else do we ask from God to give him. Yes as human beings we will miss him, we are grieved but we must not fail to thank God for what he has used him to achieve for our nation and out state in particular. Our brother stood by the truth always, he had the courage to speak the truth even to his senior colleagues. And I am particularly happy that throughout his time in the service, he was never associated with any scandal, that will tell you a gentleman that he was. Even as we mourn, we know that our brother is in heaven with our Lord. Oshiomhole further admonished the family to take solace with the fact that the late Admiral was a great man who contributed immensely for the democracy the nation is enjoying today and assured the continuous support of the state government to the family. Shortly after the lying in state at Government House, the body of the late Admiral was taken through a motorcade to his ancestral home in Fugar, Etsako Central Local Government Council of Edo state, where he will be buried today (Saturday). …As IBB eulogises late Akhigbe Former Head of State, General Ibrahim Babangida has joined pantheon of Nigerians who continue to eulogise the sterling qualities of the late Chief of General Staff, late Vice Admiral Mike Okhai Akhigbe who passed on recently at the age of 68. IBB, in an eulogy termed Akhigbe: Death, A Thief Forever said he still could not absorb the shocking news and thus short of words to convey his heartfelt condolence to his family and the nation for the loss f another great Nigerian. Describing the former number two man in the General Abdulsalam Abubakars administration, he said Okhai was not only down-to-earth on anything he laid his hands on; he as an extra-ordinary officer amongst his compatriots in course 3, some of whom I had the rare privilege of working with both as an officer of the Nigerian Army and later as Military President and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. He went on to say Akhigbe will be sorely missed, not only by the Nigerian Military but every Nigerian who understands and appreciates the capacity of the human intellect to contend with situations. There are too many anecdotes to recall about Mike Okhai Akhigbe, which I would have loved to share with our fellow country men and women, but my mood even as I write this, is forlorn he said.
Posted on: Sun, 24 Nov 2013 23:24:26 +0000
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