‘Cloudy weather’ bars Osinbajo from commissioning Mimiko’s projects

Officials at the Office of the Vice President on Friday blamed bad weather for the inability of Yemi Osinbajo to attend the commissioning of some projects executed by the outgoing governor of Ondo State, Olusegun Mimiko.

The Vice President was expected in Akure on Friday to commission the Akure International Event Centre and other projects of the outgoing government.

The event which was scheduled for 10 a.m. was delayed until well over 2 p..m and traditional rulers and other dignitaries waited patiently for the arrival of Mr. Osinbajo.

It was organised as part of the activities signalling the end of the Mr. Mimiko’s eight year administration and showcasing his landmarks in development of the state.

But at 2.50 p.m., Mr. Mimiko arrived the venue with some officials of the Office of the Vice President to explain the situation.

Apologizing for the long wait, he said the event had been postponed to Monday, February 20 due to the cloudy weather which hampered flights from Abuja to Akure.

Also speaking in the same vein, the Chief Protocol Officer of the Vice President, Ambassador Olisa, said the Vice President’s plane hovered in the air for long but was unable to land because of bad weather.

She said the Vice President would be present on Monday for the event and would also be holding another meeting as part of his ongoing interactions with the oil producing states.

Ms. Olisa was in company of the Special Adviser to the President on Amnesty, Paul Boro, and other officials of the presidency.

Mr. Mimiko, while urging the dignitaries to return on Monday at 12 noon, said, “the Vice President is a stickler to time and had taken off from Abuja at 10 a.m., but the plane hovered in the air for about an hour and could not land due to the cloudy weather.

“He had to return to Abuja and was waiting at the airport in Abuja for several hours for the clouds to clear.”

He asked the dignitaries present to return on Monday to honour Mr. Osinbajo who would commission the centre and other projects in the state.