Samson Aremu, personal secretary to the late Sir Olaniwun Ajayi, has shed more light on the circumstances before the passage of the
Afenifere elder statesman.
In an interaction with Nigerian Tribune early Friday morning, Samson said Sir Ajayi complained of discomfort on his right shoulder on
Wednesday after he got up from bed.
Sir Olaniwun Ajayi had scheduled an interview for Wednesday 3.00 p.m. with the Nigerian Tribune, and while the interview lasted, it was obvious that the 91-year-old felt so much unease with his shoulder.
Narrating the events before Sir Ajayi’s death, Samson stated thus: “Papa only took breakfast on Wednesday before you, (Nigerian Tribune
reporters), came.
That was all he ate on Wednesday. On Thursday, he didn’t take any other thing except tea.
“He died shortly before 12 midnight on Thursday. He was placed on a medication earlier that day. He complained that he slept on his right
shoulder on Wednesday. The pain was quite unbearable for him.
We attended to him. He felt some relief after the medication.
“While we waited around him, Papa called us to move closer to him and prayed for us. He prayed for us around 10 p.m. on Thursday night. Five of us were with him.
“He wouldn’t eat. We were worried about his condition so we had to call his children to come around. They came to pick him. It was while
they were on their way to Lagos that Papa gave up.”
Speaking on the short period that he worked with Sir Ajayi, he said “By next month, it would be two years that I started working with
Papa. We had a cordial relationship. He was a very good person.
I learnt a lot of lessons from him. I learnt not to procrastinate.
Papa was a passionate man; he was very passionate about academics. He was supportive. He also had passion for the community and the country at large.
He was supposed to have meetings with all the Yoruba obas starting from next week. The meetings would have been at the instance of moving the Yoruba nation forward.”