EKITI has been in the news for quite a few reasons over the years, through turbulent periods and through periods of peace.
The last time when Ekiti received people from across the country for an important event as seen in recent days was during the funeral ceremonies of the late economist and statesman, Pa Samuel Aluko, who died on February 7, 2012 at the age of 83.
On Friday, important dignitaries from across the country converged on the state once more to pay their respects and say goodbye to yet another prominent Ekiti indigene, albeit one who died at younger age, Mrs. Funmilayo Adunni Olayinka. Wife, mother and daughter of living parents, Olayinka died after battling health issues related to cancer on April 6 at the age of 52.
Until her death, Olayinka was the beautiful, elegant and charismatic deputy governor of Ekiti State, where she served alongside Governor Olukayode Fayemi since October 2010.
Prior to the final ceremony of Friday, sympathizers from near and afar had trooped to the Government House in the state capital of Ado-Ekiti to condole with the government and the people of Ekiti State.
Governor Fayemi himself addressed the state a day after the death of Mrs. Olayinka. His tone shaky, Fayemi communicated the deep sense of personal loss that Olayinka’s passing meant for him, and his wife with whom Olayinka was good friends. H spoke of his late deputy’s many contributions to running the affairs of the state successfully, including the responsibility of branding the state with a deserving identity.
It was easy for an observer to see that Mr. Fayemi and his deputy, Mrs. Olayinka, had more than a working relationship. They also had a kinship and a desire to make Ekiti State a better place than just the small, poor state of professors for which it has been known for a long time, and they sought to transform the fortunes of the state.
The families of the governor and that of the deputy appear to have developed a strong bond, with Olayinka and the Ekiti State’s first lady, Mrs. Bisi Fayemi joining intellectual forces as well-educated and well-traveled women to forge ideas to make Ekiti better for mothers and children. Where rivalries reign between wives and associates of husbands in power elsewhere, the two women were seen everywhere together as best friends and working associates, championing and promoting causes for the good of the society.
It therefore was hardly surprising to see Mrs. Fayemi wear her pained, mournful facial expressions in photos of her receiving guests from all over the country and beyond who had come to condole with her and Governor Fayemi over the loss of Deputy Governor Olayinka, with whom the governor and his wife enjoyed a smooth and tension-free working relationship.
Ekiti’s long goodbye to Funmi Olayinka commenced with a Service of Songs at the Haven Events Centre in Ikeja, Lagos State on Tuesday, April 23. People present at the event wept as popular gospel singer Lara George sang Ijoba Orun, the soulful song about heaven, to the gathered audience. Later at the same venue, the church which Mrs. Olayinka attended while in Lagos, Church of Ascension at Opebi in the same Ikeja neighborhood, paid tribute to the late deputy governor.
“She had an impeccable dress sense and was a fashion icon of sort. Mrs. Olayinka sacrificed her leisure for the love of God. She was a licensed lay-reader before her political appointment and never missed her schedule to serve. Her demise has left a vacuum in the church. She was very humble and accommodating,” the church said in an excerpt of its statement.
A website was announced on the same day in Mrs. Olayinka’s honor at www.funmiolayinka.com, where everything from her speeches and writings to her biography and tributes to her were published. It also contained records of some of her activities in office as deputy governor.
In attendance at the Service of Songs in Ikeja, alongside immediate members of the Olayinka family, were Governor Fayemi and his wife, Bisi; wife of the Lagos State Governor, Mrs. Abimbola Fashola; Senator Femi Ojodu; Lagos State Deputy Governor Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire; Adefulire’s predecessor, Mrs. Sarah Sosan; wife of the Oyo State Governor, Mrs. Florence Ajimobi; former Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Niyi Adebayo and his wife, Angela; Senator Oluremi Tinubu; former Secretary of Health Julius Adelusi-Adeluyi; activist lawyer Femi Falana; Chief Jimi Agbaje; former Defence Minister Demola Seriki and Ekiti State House of Assembly Speaker Adewale Omirin, among others.
Mrs. Olayinka’s body was transported on Wednesday by air to her home state of Ekiti through the regional airport at Akure. Accompanying the body were the state’s First Lady Bisi Egbeyemi, along with Mrs. Olayinka’s husband, Mr. Lanre Olayinka, together with their three daughters, Lolade, Yeside and Olamide. The governor received the body of deputy governor at the State House later in the day, where he gave a short but emotional speech about his departed deputy.
On Thursday, Governor Fayemi and other members of the state executive council, plus legislators at the federal and state levels, showered encomiums on Olayinka at a special executive council meeting, led by the governor. A special session was also held in Mrs. Olayinka’s honor at the State House of Assembly.
Governor Fayemi wept throughout the executive meeting while his wife, Erelu Bisi Fayemi who sat beside him kept patting him at the back and appealing to him to take it easy though, she herself could not hold back her tears.
Also, the state chief of Staff, Yemi Adaramodu had to battle tears to deliver a speech as he eventually had to drop the microphone and continue weeping for several minutes.
In his speech, Governor Fayemi described the late Olayinka as a co-pilot, strong pillar of support, dependable deputy, virtuous and loving mother, bold activist and agent of change.
“I think the only thing I say that might come closer to capture your essence and existence is that you are my sister, you are my friend, true icon, beautiful inside and outside in good and bad time. You never lost capacity to continue to smile. I believe everybody can now appreciate your actions. I learnt from your life of courage, integrity, compassion and extra ordinary pouring of heart of love.”
Later on Thursday, the body of the departed deputy governor laid in state at the Oluyemi Kayode Stadium in the state capital, where crowds had filed-in as early as 9am in the morning for an event slated to commence at 12 noon.
Gospel singer Tope Alabi sang at the event, moving the crowd to tears as did Lara George did during the service of songs in Lagos, prior to Olayinka’s journey to Ado-Ekit.
In a speech that he started by singing the favorite song of the late Olayinka, “What shall we say unto the Lord, all we have to say is thank you Lord, thank you Lord, thank you Lord, all we have to say is thank you Lord.” Fayemi described Olayinka as an “icon, a class act, a dependable ally, epitome of beauty, a woman of excellence, a virtuous wife and loving mother.”
Funmi Olayinka’s burial, which was witnessed by members of her family and a few others, was preceded by a funeral service held at the Cathedral Church of Emmanuel at Okesa, Ado Ekiti, where dignitaries extolled the virtues of the late deputy governor.
Present at the ceremonies were retired Navy Captain Caleb Olubolade, who said the late Olayinka made good use of the opportunities she had to serve the people of Ekiti State and Nigeria meritoriously, even though her abilities were not fully harnessed before she died.
“One will easily notice and find simplicity, diligence, respect and brilliance in this woman of substance tha
t is admired for all those virtues. It may not be out of place therefore to say that unfortunately her potentials have not been fully tapped before death came calling. We must thank God for a life well-spent. The opportunities she had to serve and the contributions she made wholeheartedly to the development of her state, ekiti and Nigeria which she served meritoriously and with dedication”, Olubolade said in his capacity as a representative of President Goodluck Jonathan at the occasion.
Governor Fayemi, while addressing the congregation, said her late Deputy lived a life of sacrifice, service, commitment to the people and dedication to God.
The Governor noted that Olayinka who was a lay reader in the Anglican church was faithful in all ways and did not take her faith lightly.
Fayemi who stated that her service to the State would not be allowed to go in vain said that the State Government would next week announce a project in the area of the ailment that claimed her life so as to permanently keep her memory alive.
“We shall continue to have mementoes in her memory so that others who come after her will know that it is good to be good and public service is the highest form of duty that one can render to one’s community. That’s why we have taken all the pains to ensure that we didn’t allow her to just go quietly but to see that she is celebrated and remembered, not just as a major positive influence on our state but also as an inspiration for younger women, public office holders to look up to in the future”, the Governor said.
Dignitaries from all walks of life graced the occasion, including governors and their deputies along with their spouses. Federal lawmakers from both political parties too were present, as were former governors and traditional rules.
Some of the dignitaries as reported by the Ekiti State government on its official website include Ogun State Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun; Oyo State Governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi; Osun state Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola; Bayelsa State Governor, Mr. Seriake Dickson represented by his deputy, Rear Admiral John Jonah (retd) and Nasarawa State Governor, Alhaji Tanko Al-Makura represented by his deputy, Mr. Damishi Luka.
Niger State Governor, Dr. Babangida Aliyu was represented by Dr. Peter Sarki; Kwara State Governor, Alhaji Abdulfatah Ahmed was represented by his Deputy Chief of Staff, Mr. Lekan Ogungbe, Anambra State Governor, Mr Peter Obi was represented by his deputy, Mr. Emeka Sibeudu.
Former Governors at the funeral include Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu (Lagos), Otunba Adeniyi Adebayo (Ekiti), Aremo Olusegun Osoba (Ogun), Chief Adebisi Akande (Osun), Chief Segun Oni (Ekiti), Evangelist Bamidele Olumilua (old Ondo).
Deputy Governors were fully represented at the funeral to bid their colleague farewell. They included Prince Segun Adesegun (Ogun), Mr. Efiok Cobham (Cross River), Mrs. Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire (Lagos), Chief Moses Alake Adeyemo (Oyo), Chief Yomi Awoniyi (Kogi), Mrs. Grace Titilayo Laoye-Tomori (Osun) and Alhaji Ali Olanusi (Ondo).
Wives of state governors present include Erelu Bisi Fayemi (Ekiti), Mrs. Florence Ajimobi (Oyo), Dame Abimbola Fashola (Lagos), Mrs. Olufunso Amosun (Ogun), Alhaja Sherifat Aregbesola (Osun).
National Assembly members present include Senator Babafemi Ojudu (Ekiti Central), Senator Olubunmi Adetunmbi (Ekiti North), Rep. Bimbo Daramola (Ekiti North II), Rep. Oyetunde Ojo (Ekiti Central II), Rep. Ife Arowosoge (Ekiti I) and Rep. Bamidele Faparusi (Ekiti South II).
Former National Assembly members present include Sen. Olorunnimbe Mamora, Sen. Ayo Arise, Sen. Bode Ola and Sen. James Kolawole.
Other dignitaries are former Military Administrator of Ekiti State, Navy Captain Atanda Yussuf (rtd); Lagos State Deputy Governor, Mrs. Sarah Sosan; former Deputy Governor of Ekiti State, Mr. Adebisi Omoyeni; Deputy Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Tuned Lemo.
The rest include retired Supreme Court judge, Justice Olufunmilola Adekeye, Court of Appeal judge, Justice Oyebisi Omoleye; Director General of Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Ms. Arunma Oteh.
Vice Chancellor of the Federal University, Otueke, Bayelsa State, Prof. Mobolaji Aluko; Vice Chancellor of Ekiti State University, Prof. Oladipo Aina; former Vice Chancellor of the University of Ado-Ekiti, Prof. Akin Oyebode and Chairman, Acess Bank, Mr. Gbenga Oyebode.
From the party front are the National Deputy Chairman of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Mr. Boss Mustapha; ACN National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed; South West ACN publicity Secretary, Mr. Ayo Afolabi and Ekiti State ACN Chairman, Chief Olajide Awe.
Speaker of Ekiti State House of Assembly, Dr. Adewale Omirin, Secretary to the State Government, Dr. Ganiyu Owolabi; Chief of Staff to the Governor, Mr. Yemi Adaramodu, Head of Service, Mr. Bunmi Famosaya and other members of the State Executive Council also graced the funeral.
Born on June 20, 1960, the late Olayinka attended Holy Trinity Grammar School Ibadan where she obtained her first school leaving certificate. She later attended Olivet Baptist High School, Oyo State, where she obtained her Higher School Certificate (HSC).
Olayinka holds a Masters Degree in Public Administration and a Bachelor of Business Administration [Marketing] from Central State University, Edmond, Oklahoma, United States in 1981 and 1983 respectively.
A Marketing Analyst & Strategist who started her career in Banking with First Bank of Nigeria Plc in 1986, she later worked as Relationship Manager for Corporate Accounts in Access Bank, the now defunct Merchant Banking Corporation [MBC] and United Bank for Africa Plc.
In August 2002, she took up a new challenge in Corporate Communications and promptly proceeded to Head the Corporate Affairs Division, United Bank for Africa.
She later became Head, Brand Management & Corporate Affairs, thereby leading the Team responsible for delivering a compelling Brand proposition and re-branding of the United Bank for Africa which helped to drive the bank’s business strategy & added value to the total image of the Brand.
She was also the 2nd Vice President of the Association of Corporate Managers of Banks between 2002 and 2004.