The death of a former Governor of Oyo State, Dr Victor Omololu Olunloyo, has brought to memory some other politicians of his era.
Olunloyo succeeded the late Chief Bola Ige in 1984, after a charged election that sparked violence especially in Ibadan.
Ige’s Unity Party of Nigeria believed Olunloyo’s National Party of Nigeria rigged the poll.
A broadcast by Ige, in which he asked UPN’s followers not to hack the riggers with cutlasses but slap them with the objects had particularly spurred the violence that rocked parts of the state.
“E ma sa won ladaa. Petepete ada ni e fi na won o,” the powerful orator Ige had declared in his Ijesha-textured Yoruba.
That was the Second Republic when the late Alhaji Sheu Shagari was Nigeria’s President with the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo and the Nnamdi Azikiwe , among others, in the opposition.
Olunloyo
Although Olunloyo’s tenure was short-lived (about three months) due to the coup that brought in General Muhammadu Buhari as the military President in December 1983, he (Olunloyo) left the legacy of action.
Active, Pro-active and very focused, it soon attracted to Olunloyo the appellation of an action governor.
This is a major connection he had with the then Governor of Lagos State, the late Alhaji Lateef Jakande, who is regarded as the country’s best-performing governor ever.
He was lucky because he had a full tenure before the truncation of the second.
His legacies in education, health, housing and infrastructure remains legendary, making many still saluting him as a exceptional achiever.
It is thus not surprising that he earned the tag of ‘Action Governor’ well before the coming of Olunloyo.
More importantly, although they were not in the same party (Jakande was in the Unity Party of Nigeria) while Olunloyo was in the National Party of Nigeria), they shared the zeal to make a difference in the lives of their states.
Meanwhile, Olunloyo, who was also an acclaimed mathematician, engineer and technocrat, passed away in the early hours of Sunday, April 6.
His death was confirmed in a statement issued by Barrister Oladapo Ogunwusi, who expressed the family’s grief while honouring Olunloyo’s life of service. “With a heavy heart but gratitude to the Almighty, we announce the passing into glory of Dr. Victor Omololu Olunloyo, former governor of Oyo State, mathematician and engineer and renowned technocrat, a few days before his 90th birthday,” the statement read.
Olunloyo, who held the chieftaincy titles of Balogun of Oyo and Otun Bobasewa of Ife, was widely recognised for his contributions to academia and public service. He served as the first Rector of both Ibadan Polytechnic and Kwara State Polytechnic and held several notable positions throughout his career.
“The Balogun of Oyo and Otun Bobasewa of Ife, Dr. Olunloyo, was the first Rector, Ibadan Polytechnic and first Rector, Kwara State Polytechnic, among other notable appointments,” the statement noted.
“His long record of service to the nation and humanity is a source of pride to his family and associates, even as we come to grip with this devastating [loss],” it added.
The family appealed for privacy during their period of mourning. “The Olunloyo family will appreciate the understanding of the press and the public as they commence efforts to give him a befitting burial.
