FOREMOST Ibadan chief and elder statesman, Theophilus Adeleke Akinyele, is dead.
Aged 88, he died in Lagos on Monday. Born February 29, 1932, the late Akinyele obtained a B.A. from the University College Ibadan (now the University of Ibadan) in 1959.
He also studied at the Oxford University, University of Connecticut and Harvard Business School.
Chief Akinyele, during the Old Western Region, rose to the rank of permanent secretary in both the ministries of finance and agriculture.
He was also registrar and secretary to the council of the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) and secretary to the military government in Oyo State.
He was also Head of the Civil Service in Oyo State and Director of Budget and Special Adviser of Budget Affairs to President Shehu Shagari (1979 to 1983).
Until his death, he held the chieftaincy title of Bobajiro of Ibadanland and Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON).
Reacting, Oyo State governor, Mr Seyi Makinde, described the death of the Bobajiro of Ibadanland as a great loss to the state.
The governor, who stated that Pa Akinyele’s passing meant he had lost a reliable father, added that the late bureaucrat’s wealth of experience and wisdom as well as his love for the state were unparalleled.
He disclosed in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Taiwo Adisa, that “the late Pa Akinyele is a proven historian, community leader and lover of development,” noting that he would be sorely missed by the government and people of the state.
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