AFTER about three months of absence,
Ekiti State Deputy Governor Funmilayo Adunni Olayinka made a final return to
Ado-Ekiti the state capital, yesterday.
She
got a tumultous welcome. There were crowds – of prominent citizens, government
officials, politicians and ordinary folks.
From
Fajuyi Junction, residents of Ado-Ekiti lined the road all the way to Ajilosun.
Although
the glittering Mercedes Benz hearse, which bore the remains of the late deputy
governor did not arrive from Lagos through the Akure Airport in Ondo State
until about 4 pm, an army of residents had lined the route since about 1 pm.
Numbering
thousands in reality and far more in effects, they were united in the mission
to capture a glimpse of the coming of the late Mrs. Olayinka who died on April
6 at St. Nicholas Hospital after a protracted fight with cancer. She was 52.
Some
of them, in groups sang dirges for the late deputy governor brought
unprecedented development, as noticeable in Ado Ekiti, her birthplace.
A
resident, Baba Ajileye, in his 60s, said: “I believe this woman was great. I
doubt if anyone has ever been this honored in the state. I have been here
(Ijigbo junction) since 1:30pm.”
The
hearse marked “Moremi Ekiti”, arrived at Ajilosun at the head of a long convoy
of vehicles, bearing various posters of the late Mrs. Olayinka.
The
motorcade snaked its way through Ijigbo, Old Garrage, Okeyinmi, Ojumose and
Okesa to the Governor’s Office.
Even
at the Government House, the crowd refused to disperse. With swollen eyes and
drenched in their own perspiration, many talked glowingly about “a humble and
great achiever”, referring to the late deputy.
In
Ekiti dialect, they sang: “ Ayiye omo lo, omo ku isehin de” (A good child is
gone; we’re mourning).
At
the Governor’s office, the body was received by the governor, Dr. Kayode
Fayemi, with whom the late Mrs. Olayinka worked between October 15, 2010 and
April 6, 2013.
Fayemi
said the people must thank God for giving them the late deputy governor whom he
said gave much in ensuring the transformation of the “Land of Honour”.
The
Senator representing Ekiti Central in the National Assembly and a kinsman of
the deceased, Babafemi Ojudu, led family members of the deceased who were
conveyed in a Coaster bus.
Many
civil servants waited to witness the arrival of the body, even after they had
officially closed from work at 4.00 pm.
At
about 5.20 pm, sounds of music, drumming and trumpeting, which signalled the
arrival of the funeral train, were heard around Okesa near the the Governor’s
Office.
Many
people wept profusely as the hearse arrived at the Governor’s Office. Many of
them recounted the good deeds of the late Mrs. Olayinka during her two-and-half
years stint as the state’s number two citizen.
Fayemi,
in an emotional voice, said: “We thank God for her sacrifices. This was her
office where she gave her all to the people. All of us, adults, young, male,
female; we cannot thank Funmilayo Adunni Olayinka enough.
“The
wise words of the elderly say that the best tree never lasts in the forest. She
lived an eventful life. Life of courage, life of sacrifice.
“We
know that heaven is the recompense of the faithful and we thank God for giving
her to us. The Bible urges us to thank God for everything and we thank God for
taking her to a good place, a safe place where there is no room for these
challenges.
“We
pray God to give her dear husband, her children-Yeside, Lolade, Olamide – the
Olayinkas and the Famuaguns the grace to continue with the fortitude to bear
this irreplaceable loss.
“She
fought a good fight, she did her best and we need to keep fighting for those
things she believed in-abundant life for our people, transformation and service
delivery.
The
train departed the Governor’s Office around 5.45pm.
Thousands
of youths embarked on a candle possession from Fajuyi Park round major streets
of Ado-Ekiti.
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