Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu, has described late Senator Olabiyi Durojaiye as a dogged-fighter, staunch democrat and articulate gentleman par excellence.
Speaking through the Deputy Governor, Dr. Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, at the Memorable Evening of Worship and Tribute held at the Haven, GRA, Ikeja, in celebration of the life of the late Senator, the Governor said the nation has lost one of the leading lights in the struggle against military dictatorship in the country.
He said, “With the death of Senator Olabiyi Durojaiye, we have lost one of the leading lights in the struggle against the military dictatorship in Nigeria. We, however, take solace in the fact that his struggle was not in vain as he was able, not only to witness the birth of a new dawn of democracy in Nigeria, but also participated actively in the process of its entrenchment”.
Sanwo-Olu noted that as a Lawyer and an Economist, late Senator Olabiyi Durojaiye, in his 35 years of meritorious service at the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Nigeria Security Printing and Minting Corporation, served and contributed immensely to national development.
His words: “Baba was a Lawyer and an Economist, his contribution to national development in his unblemished 35 years of meritorious service at the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Nigeria Security Printing and Minting Corporation, where he served as a Director, will never be forgotten”.
The Governor added that the deceased also gave a good account of himself in politics, saying as a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria he showed outstanding commitment to promoting democratic ideals and the best interest of the people, especially the ordinary Nigerian”.
While recalling the dark period of military rule in Nigeria, Sanwo-Olu noted that Senator Olabiyi Durojaiye was one of the several Nigerians that stood firm against injustice, maladministration and inhuman treatment meted on the people by the junta.
Enunciating the role of the Late Senator in the new democracy, the Governor stated that late Durojaiye fought alongside other patriots as one of the frontline leaders of NADECO, who were committed to reclaiming the popular mandate of June 12th, 1993, given to late MKO Abiola.
The Governor said, “Senator Durojaiye paid the price and endured the pain as he was incarcerated for 560 days, which was equivalent to one year and some months, because he stood on the path of truth and justice. He expressed his views despite known facts that he can suffer personal injury”.
While commiserating with the immediate family of the deceased, he prayed that the Almighty God gives them the fortitude to bear the loss.
Similarly, the Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun represented by the Deputy Governor, Noimot Salako-Oyedele, described the Late Senator Augustine Olabiyi Durojaiye as a compassionate and God-fearing man, who was blessed with good health.
She said: “Pa Otunba Durojaiye was an eminent, well-respected son of Ogun State, whose passing is a deep loss to all Ogun State Indigenes”.
