The burial of Sen. Isiaka Adeleke, which was earlier scheduled for 4:pm on Sunday, has been postponed.
Adeleke, a former civilian governor of Osun, died in the earlier hours of Sunday at Biket Hospital in Osogbo and his corpse which was brought to his residence in Ede at 1:10 pm in preparation for the Islamic burial rites, was returned back to Ladoke Akintola Hospital in Osogbo for autopsy on the orders of Adeleke’s younger brother Deji.
Deji was also said to have directed that the burial ceremony be postponed till Monday.
Friends and sympathisers, who were waiting for the burial ceremony, were told around 5:30 pm that the event had been postponed.
A family source said the burial had been fixed for 10: am on Monday, pending the outcome of the autopsy.
Giving a picture of the developments leading to the demise of the late flamboyant politician, one of the domestic staff told NAN that Adeleke had attended a meeting till around 2: am on Sunday before he went to bed.
The staff, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Adeleke also attended burial and wedding ceremonies in Guta and Iwo on Saturday.
The source further explained that early in the morning on Sunday, Adeleke complained of leg pain and his private doctor was called in to attend to him.
According to the staff, the doctor gave him an injection and he left, only to be called back after the senator complained of stomach ache.
”He was later rushed to Biket Hospital where he was finally confirmed dead,” the source said.
The news of the death had resulted in violent protests by youths in Ede, with many of them barricading the ever busy Osogbo-Ibadan road and setting bonfires which disrupted the free flow of traffic.
It took the combined efforts of both the regular and mobile police force to disperse the irate youths.
The Police Commissioner in the state, Fimihan Adeoye, who said normalcy had been restored in the area, urged the youths to refrain from violence
As at the time of filing this report, two armoured personnel carriers were stationed at the road leading to Adeleke’s house in Ede while one was stationed directly opposite his residence.
Meanwhile, the President of the Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, has reacted to the death of two-term serving Senator, Isiaka Adetunji Adeleke, a development he described as a sad personal loss.
Saraki, in a statement signed by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Yusuph Olaniyonu, described Adeleke — the first elected Governor of Osun State — as an important figure in the Eighth Senate.
“My heart goes out to the family of Senator Adeleke, and the people of the great State of Osun,” Saraki said, “Adeleke was a leader in every right, a formidable colleague, patriotic statesman, good family man and complete gentleman whose contributions to the development of the of Osun State in particular and the nation in general will never be forgotten.”
The Senate President went on to eulogize Adeleke, who served as the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Capital Market as a consummate reformer, courageous public servant and grassroots politician whose love for his people and commitment to national service remains unparalleled.
“From his track-record as a second term Senator, it is clear that Adeleke was a man who his people trusted to carry out their mandate in the Senate,” he said, “He was always passionate about his work in the legislature, and showed competence, dedication and an ability to work with everyone to bring about the greater good. He will be sorely missed.”
He commiserated with the immediate family of the deceased, the larger Adeleke family, Osun West Senatorial District, Governor Rauf Aregbesola and the entire people of the State of Osun, the Vice Chairman and members of the Senate Committee on Capital Market, the Senate, and indeed, the 8th National Assembly.
Saraki prayed to Almighty Allah to grant Adeleke a place among the righteous ones in Aljannah firdaus.
Similarly, the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, on Sunday described the death of Adeleke as a rude shock.
A statement issued by Moses Olafare, a media aide to the monarch, said Adeleke’s sudden death was a great loss to the state and the country at large.
A former governor in the state, Olagunsoye Oyinlola, in a statement in Osogbo, also described Adeleke’s death as a monumental loss.
Oyinlola, who said he was on his way to Osogbo from Lagos when the news was broken to him, said he was still in shock.
He described Adeleke as a brother, friend and confidant whose demise had made him, the state and the political class in Nigeria poorer.
Oyinlola prayed God to grant his soul eternal peace.
The Osun chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party in a statement described Adeleke’s death as shocking and devastating.
The party, in a statement by its Chairman, Soji Adagunodo, said Adeleke was a grassroots politician whose impact on the life of the people was noticeable and remarkable.
Adagunodo said the party had declared a three-day mourning for Adeleke, adding that the PDP’s flag in the state would be flown at half mast in honour of the late politician.
Follow Us
”