Ex-Lagos Governor, Otedola, dies at 87

Mr. Otedola was the Third Republic governor of Lagos.

A former governor of Lagos State, Michael Otedola, has died at the age of 87, a statement by his wife, Doja, said on Monday.

The terse statement said, “Sir Michael Agbolade Otedola passed away this morning at 87. Funeral arrangements will be announced later by the family.”

Although, the statement did not disclose what led to the former governor’s death, there were speculations that he died of stroke related sickness which kept him away from public glare.

Mr. Otedola was the Third Republic governor of Lagos on the platform of the defunct National Republican Convention, NRC, between January 1992 and November 1993.

He was born in July 1926 in Epe town and was educated at the Regent Street Polytechnic, London, from where he graduated in 1958 in journalism.

He worked with the Western Nigeria Government and later became a consultant to Mobil Oil before going into politics.

The Chief Executive Officer of Zenon Petroleum and Gas Limited, Femi Otedola is one of his sons.

Meanwhile, one of Mr. Otedola’s successors, Bola Tinubu, has described the death of the former governor as painful and sorrowful.

According to a statement by his media aide, Sunday Dare, Mr. Tinubu said the news of the passing away of the former governor came to him while he was out of the country.

He said, “Though 87 years old, his passing away is still a big loss. I pray that God will comfort his family and stand by them. They must be comforted in the knowledge that Baba played his part well and the rest is now left to all of us”.

He said Mr. Otedola’s tenure as Governor of Lagos State, though short, witnessed some progress.

“He brought stability to our State and maturity to our politics. He was quiet unassuming. An individual one would always want to have in the room and on his side,” Mr. Tinubu, who was governor between 1999 and 2007, said.

“He was a key player in shaping the politics of Lagos State and Lagos will never forget him..His philanthropy is almost legendary just as his devotion to serving humanity and God was un-waivering.”

Mr. Tinubu also sympathized with the family of the late Justice Chukwudifu Oputa, a former Supreme Court judge who died on Sunday.

He said, “He was first among equals and indeed his legal brilliance and satorial elegance within the legal profession remains unequaled. During his generation the Nigerian judiciary was at the peak of its reputation and the true hope for the common man.

“Only few of his generation remain with us, thus his departure is the end of an era and a great loss to Nigeria and the legal profession.

“Former Supreme Court judge, Justice Chukwudifu Oputa has left behind a legal legacy that may be yet unrivaled in our annals.”