Senator Sharafadeen Alli (APC-Oyo South) has expressed deep sorrow over the passing of former Governor of Oyo State, Dr Omololu Olunloyo, describing his death as the end of a golden era of wisdom, scholarship, and statesmanship in Nigeria.
This is contained in a statement signed by his Special Adviser on Media, Akeem Abas and made available to newsmen on Sunday in Ibadan.
Senator Alli said Olunloyo was a towering intellectual and one of the brightest minds to ever serve in public office in Nigeria.
He noted that the late elder statesman was not only a former governor but also a respected mathematician, engineer, and renowned technocrat whose legacy would continue to inspire generations.
“The death of Dr. Olunloyo is a monumental loss to Oyo State and Nigeria at large. He was a symbol of brilliance, simplicity, and unwavering commitment to public service.
“His contributions to governance, academia, and the development of our dear state remain unmatched,” he said.
Senator Alli extended heartfelt condolences to the Olunloyo family, the good people of Ibadanland and the entire Oyo State.
He prayed that God would comfort the family and grant the departed soul eternal rest.
“We have lost a gem, a leader with rare intellect and an elder whose counsel was always profound.
“May Almighty God rest his soul in peace and grant us all the strength to bear this great loss,” the statement added.
In his tribute, a former President, Nigeria and African Union of Journalists, Comrade Lanre Ogundipe said that. “it is indeed an end of an era…MOLETE BRIDGE is FINALLY DOWN. Even though, he alerted us, we failed to work and walk in redeeming the time. We are caught napping, unaware and the entire archive, the repository of the Nigerian State, lost.
“Aside his academic attainments, his political status as a colossus in Ibadan and by extension in Ọ̀yọ́ state, are all too entrenched, both in history and in sociological references. In the Nigerian political space, he was an administrator per excellence.
“And in a Nigeria where merit and competence are receding denominators, where dignity and integrity are diminishing details of our deficits and lacks, the painful actuality therefore is the loss of yet another leading light of intellection, without a ready replacement in sight. All the gems in the museum at Molete seemingly have now left with the curator”.
