Oyetola, Oyinlola, Akande, others mourn Senator Salami’s death

GO V E R NOR  Ad e g b o y e ga Oyetola of Osun State, former G o v e r n o r Olagunsoye Oyinlola, former Governor Bisi  Akande and several serving and former government officials in Osun State joined hundreds of other citizens of the state on Friday to mourn Senator Adebayo Salami who died on Thursday.

Reacting to the news of the senator’s death, Oyetola, in a post on his official Facebook page, commiserated with the family of the deceased and the Muslim community in the state. The governor wrote: “Sad to learn of the passing of the  Baba Adinni of Osogbo and chieftain of our party, APC, Senator Adebayo Hamzat Salami. This is a huge loss not only to his family and friends but to the people of Osogbo and Osun at large.

“My prayers and thoughts are with his family and the Muslim community in Osun. As we mourn Baba Adinni’s demise, I  pray Almighty Allah to overlook his shortcomings, grant him a place in Aljannah Firdaus, and give the family and all  those who mourn his demise the strength to bear this loss.”

In his own reaction, Prince  Oyinlola described the death of Senator Salami as a great loss to Osun State in general, stressing that he was a very decent human being who was a friend to all, young and old. “Senator Bayo Salami’s death has robbed us of a very decent religious person whose politics knew no bitterness. He had friends across all divides. He was a very good man. His death is a personal loss to me and to all of us, his friends. God will grant his soul eternal peace.”

Chief Bisi Akande described the death of Senator Salami as unfortunate, shocking and painful. The former governor said  Senator Salami was a worthy politician and faithful follower, noting that he was true to the essence of progressive politics and good governance till he breathed his last.

According to him, Salami was a grassroots politician who contributed to the development of Osogbo, his hometown, and  Nigeria in general. Personalities from all walks of life visited the residence of the deceased to commiserate with the family.

Some of the personalities sighted at the home of the deceased were a former Secretary to the Osun State Government,  Alhaji Moshood Adeoti; Osogbobased businessman, Chief Tunde Badmos; a former National Vice Chairman (South  West) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Tajudeen Oladipo and his wife; and a former Osun State Attorney  General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr Afolabi.

Also present at the late lawmaker’s house were wives of the Ataoja of Osogbo, representatives of the Oludo of Ido- Osun, Oba Aderemi Adedapo. Many of the sympathisers at Salami’s residence located at GRA, Osogbo, betrayed emotions as they wept to mourn the departed.

Speaking with Saturday Tribune, Adeoti described the deceased as a never to- be-forgotten personality whose lifetime preached humility, humanity and simplicity. He said Salami would be remembered for his cont ri b u t i o n s to the development of humanity.

The first child of the deceased, Toyin, who received those who paid condolence visits to the Salami residence, described his father as a gentleman and an easy-going person. She said her father was a value adder who always put smiles on the  faces of people.

The Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Honourable b le Timothy Owoeye, described the death of Senator Salami as a  blow to the progressives’ family in Osun State and Nigeria. Owoeye, in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Kunle   Alabi, stated that the death of the politician would leave a temporary vacuum for the APC in Osogbo Federal  Constituency.

In his own message, the caretaker chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state, Prince  Gboyega amount, said the death of the senator was one too many. H e d e s c r i b e d t h e departed as an illustrious son of Osogbo housed his endowments for the progress of the city and its environs.

Also, Senator Ajibola Basiru representing Osun Central Senatorial District described his death as shocking and devastating. Dr Ajibola Basiru stated this in a condolence message to the family of the deceased politician, said Senator Ayo Salami was one of the pivots on which the progressives in Osun rested at the return of democracy in 1999. “He was a mercurial politician whose period in the Senate laid a foundation for subsequent senators from Osun Central. We  have lost a political icon.” “Senator Bayo Hamzat Salami,a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, was chairman,  Olorunda Local Government and Governorship candidate on the platform of the National  Republican Convention in the aborted third Republic before he got elected into the Senate in 1999 on the platform of the Alliance for Democracy”.

“He was member, Senate Committee on Public accounts, Power, Mines and Steel and Water Resources. He was reported to have breathed his last in a US hospital during a brief illness. sympathising with the immediate and extended families of Senator Bayo Salami and the Ataoja of Osogbo, Senator Ajibola   Basiru prayed Allaah to accept the return of the deceased and give the family the fortitude to bear the loss.