Obasanjo, Owu traditional council mourn Oba Ogunleye

Former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, has described the passing of Oba Olufemi Ogunleye, the traditional ruler of Akinale in Owu Kingdom, Abeokuta, Ogun State, as shocking and a great loss to Owu land, Ogun State and the entire country.

He said this as the Owu Traditional Council formally announced the demise of the late erudite journalist and public relations expert on Thursday in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.

Oba Ogunleye died on Wednesday in the United Kingdom after a brief illness aged 79. He would have been 80 in September 2024.

Mr Obasanjo, in a statement by his Special Assistant on Media, Kehinde Akinyemi, said the news of Oba Ogunleye’s passing was shocking, having informed him about his travelling some weeks back in high spirit.

The former President, who is in South Africa for the second term inauguration ceremony of President Cyril Ramaphosa, said the people of Owu, Ogun State and Nigeria would miss the late Oba Ogunleye for his resourcefulness and promotion of the cultural heritage of his homestead.

The Owu Traditional Council, led by the Oganla Owu, Johnson Olu Fatoki, had declared that with the passing of Oba Ogunleye, the Council had missed one of the erudite monarchs in Owu Kingdom.

READ ALSO: Obasanjo speaks on Nigeria’s economic challenges, solutions

He described Oba Ogunleye as “peace loving, progressive and a bridge builder.”

The late Oba Ogunleye is survived by his wife, Olanike Ogunleye, children and grandchildren, among whom is Bamidele Ogunleye of the Ogun State Broadcasting Corporation (OGBC), Abeokuta.