Olusegun Obasanjo, the country’s former president, has criticised the nation’s patriotic leaders’ declining ranks, especially when their wise counsel and extensive experience are sorely needed.
Ayo Adebanjo’s passing, which was announced by Obasanjo in a condolence message, described the late former federal commissioner as a great brother and friend, a veteran lawyer, an experienced administrator, an accomplished politician, and a respected community leader.
His Special Assistant on Media Kehinde Akinyemi made the note in the message to journalists on Tuesday that Clark has always had an unwavering love for his people and has remained one of the more vocal advocates for better conditions for the oil-bearing States of the nation.
“We lost Chief Ayo Adebanjo, another well-known and illustrious son of Nigeria, just about four days ago, which was shocking,” he said. Indeed, the ranks of the country’s patriotic leaders are quickly dwindling due to the absence of our devoted and skilled patriots, especially in this crucial stage of our country’s history, where their wisdom and vast experience are sorely needed,” said Obasanjo.
There is no disputing Chief Clark’s accomplishments, including his numerous contributions to the nation as the former Midwestern State’s commissioner for education and finance between 1968 and 1974, and his unrecognizable role as the federal government’s official spokesman in 1975. He was a close friend of General Yakubu Gowon’s Cabinet, as I can recall.
It is known that he spearheaded the fight for minority rights as the Senator of the Federal Republic and the representative of the Delta Senatorial Zone in 1983.
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Obasanjo emphasized that “Chair Clark remained one of the more articulate and vocal advocates for improved conditions for the oil-bearing states of the nation over the years” and “over the years, he was imbued with an unwavering love for his people. Up until his death, he exhorted his people to the importance of peace and stability in the region as one of the most influential leaders of both the Ijaw people and the South-South region as a whole.
“He acquitted himself as a peace-loving, unassuming, and committed patriot. He firmly believed in participatory governance and democracy. As a front-liner politician and community leader, he has since established an impressive reputation for having great goodwill and compassion for his people. Nevertheless, his thoughts, utterances, and deeds were completely devoid of political partisanship. He had friends from all over the nation and was a detribalized Nigerian.
As a devoted nationalist, Chief Clark, even at his most senior, never gave in to his oars in his commitment to national development. I recall sometime in 2021, he, for the greater good of the nation, volunteered to be part of the Committee for Goodness of Nigeria (CGN) which was convened by me along with His Eminence Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar, His Eminence John Cardinal Onaiyekan and General Abdusalami Abubakar to look, at the time, into the pressing issues of national unity, security, peace, integration, economic revitalization and development, women and youth welfare and general progress. Chief Clark never once relied on his oars in his contributions to the socio-political development of our country and national discourse for all I knew about him since our paths crossed.
Source: Channels TV
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