By Bisi Bamishe
The Ekiti State Governor, Biodun Oyebanji, has expressed condolences on the death of a former Military Administrator of Bayelsa State, Navy Captain Caleb Olubolade (rtd), saying the state has lost a great son.
The late Captain Olubolade, also a former Minister of Police Affairs and a governorship aspirant in the state, died on Sunday at the age of 70.
Governor Oyebanji, in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Yinka Oyebode, rued the demise of the former Minister of Police Affairs, saying: “Ekiti has lost a great son who made indelible impact in his military career, public service and in politics.”
He described Olubolade’s death as a huge loss not only to Ekiti, his home state, but to Nigeria, a country he served during his stellar military career, and as a distinguished politician and public servant.
The governor noted that the late Navy Captain’s legacies will forever be remembered in Bayelsa State, where he helped lay a solid foundation for the development of the South South state and also at the federal level where he served as a Minister in three different ministries.
According to Oyebanji, Olubolade shone like a glittering star as Minister of State for the Federal Capital Territory, Minister of Special Duties and later as Minister of Police Affairs during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan.
He noted that the deceased’s foray into politics after his retirement from the military was borne out of his desire to serve and contribute to the development of Ekiti State, where he ran for the governorship position on the platform of the Alliance for Democracy (AD), Action Congress (AC), and later Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
The governor described the deceased as an apostle of politics without bitterness, who believed in the Ekiti project and worked assiduously with other patriots for the development of the state.
He prayed to God to grant the immediate family, friends and associates of the deceased, the people of Ipoti Ekiti, as well as the entire people of the State the fortitude to bear the great loss.
Oyebanji said: “On behalf of the Government and good people of Ekiti State, I express condolences to the children, members of the immediate and extended families of the late Navy Captain Olubolade on the demise of this illustrious Ekiti leader and pray that God grant the family the fortitude to bear the loss and grant the departed eternal rest”
The first daughter of the late Olubolade, Oluwayemisi Akinadewo, is married to the Publisher of Freedom Online, Gabriel Akinadewo, who is a member of the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP).
