UNILORIN VC mourns ex-Kwara Governor, Adebayo

The Vice Chancellor of University of Ilorin, Prof. Wahab Egbewole,  has commiserated with the government and people of Kwara State over the death of a former Kwara State Governor,Cornelius Adebayo.

Adebayo was Governor of Kwara State between October 1 and December 31, 1983; he died on Wednesday following old age-related illness at 84 years old.

The Vice-Chancellor, in a statement by the University’s Director of Corporate Affairs, Kunle Akogun, on Wednesday in Ilorin,  described the death of the former governor as the end of a remarkable era in public service.

Prof. Egbewole, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) recalled several roles played by the late Adebayo in national development, particularly in the nation’s education sector.

He said that the late elder statesman was a lecturer at the then University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University), Ile-Ife, Osun and the former Kwara State College of Technology (now Kwara State Polytechnic), Ilorin.

The deceased, Egbewole said, was also a former Commissioner for Education in Kwara in the late 1970s.

The Vice-Chancellor recalled that the tenure of the Adebayo as Commissioner for Education coincided with the period when the University of Ilorin was taking shape.

“The support enjoyed by the university, from the government and people of Kwara contributed to making the university what it has become.

“He served as a Senator of the Federal Republic from 1979 to 1983, also Minister of Works and Minister of Communication in the administration of Chief Olusegun Obasanjo between 2003 and 2007,” he said.

Prof. Egbewole recalled the services of late Adebayo as leader of the defunct National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) during the military era.

“His contributions and those of his colleagues in the struggle in the 1990s culminated in the enthronement of the current political dispensation.

“The life style of the late elder statesman exemplified uncommon patriotism and profound services, as the career of the deceased was a great example of an academician that impact the society greatly,” he said.

The Vice-Chancellor described the deceased as one of the friends and supporters of the University of Ilorin “and it’s unfortunate that he died while the University was preparing for its Golden Jubilee anniversary.”

Prof. Egbewole, who is also the Secretary-General of Association of West African Universities (AWAU), commiserated with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Governor of Kwara, Malam AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq on the death of a frontline leader.

The multiple award-winning legal luminary also sympathised with Chief Adebayo’s immediate family and the entire people of Kwara over the loss of a great son.

“I pray to God to rest the soul of the departed in eternal peace and give his family and colleagues the fortitude to bear his death,” he said. (NAN)