Address by
His Excellency
Dr. Kayode FAYEMI
Governor, Ekiti State, Nigeria
at the State Commendation Service
Emeritus Professor Jacob Festus Adeniyi Ajayi
(Sunday, May 26, 1929 – Saturday, August 9, 2014)
Thursday, September 18, 2014
Protocols
May I start by once again condoling with Mama, Mrs. Christie Ade-Ajayi, the children, as well as the entire family, friends and well wishers of our dearly beloved Emeritus Professor Jacob Festus Adeniyi Ajayi, now late, on the sad occasion of his demise.
It is with a deep sense of loss that I take on the task of addressing this gathering today. Surely you have come from far and near to be a part of history by paying your respects to the great historian at this State Commendation Service being hosted in his honour by the Government of the land of honour, Ekiti State Nigeria.
I have taken time to put my thoughts to paper on the life and times of the late Prof. Ade Ajayi and what his passing means to us in the academia and indeed the whole of Africa. You can find these in my tribute which is published in the funeral’s programme of events and which would subsequently also be readily available online via our online channels.
Needless to say however, for those of us in Ekiti, Prof. was a forebear in many ways and one of Africa’s greatest minds. As the very first Ekiti son to rise to become Vice Chancellor of a University amongst our legion of intellectuals, he was one of our esteemed patriarchs who we readily point to when we want to justifiably boast about our undeniable primacy in intellect and honour. We are extremely proud of his legacy.
On a personal note, I am very grateful to God for the privilege of being in office as Governor at this point in time. I thank God that providence has occasioned my being able to use my good offices to honour one of my dearest mentors with this modest State Event amongst other efforts we are making to immortalize him. This is consistent with a tradition established by my administration to serve the living devotedly but also honour our dead.
It has become convention for the Government of Ekiti State to celebrate the legacy of dear departed Ekiti sons and daughters who exceptionally spent their lives in the honourable and selfless service of a cause. Just as we are having today, this administration has participated in the funeral proceedings of such Ekiti giants as late Prof. Sam Aluko; late Primate Abiodun Adetiloye; late Mama Eunice Fajuyi (wife of legendary late Col. Adekunle Fajuyi); the late (former) Deputy Governor, Mrs. Funmi‘ Olayinka to mention a few.
Our deliberate posturing in this regard is part of an integrated Rebranding vision to restore our age-long values to the place of predominance in our society. Our value systems encapsulated in the word honour had experienced significant debasement consistent with the social malaises bedeviling our great country Nigeria. In these days of the maniacal pursuit of material wealth, we have gotten to a place where we collectively can’t recognize who our heroes are. Some have even sought to explain away recent incredulities in our state by attempting to demean the very essence of true Elitism.
It is on such occasions as this that we are collectively reminded who our heroes are. We are reminded that there are still men and women amongst us whose lives typify the Ekiti rigidity – the inflexible character we are known for which forbids any true son and daughter of Ekiti to compromise our high standards of morality, integrity and excellence on the platter of personal interests.
I must at this point state that the Government of Ekiti State has not only waited for our giants to die before celebrating them; we have also established measures for celebrating our heroes while still alive through such platforms as the Ekiti State Merit Awards and our Annual State Calendars themed around showcasing our heroes. I am glad that the late Prof. Ade Ajayi was so celebrated in his lifetime.
I will like to take this opportunity to also share our vision for the institutionalization of the celebration of Ekiti heroes such as late Prof. Ade Ajayi. The Government of Ekiti State in response to the yearnings of our people has taken appropriate steps to immortalize our heroes within our Heroes Park – a specially designated area that would house the tombs or epitaphs of qualifying exceptional Ekiti sons and daughters with the consent of their families.
Already, a prime parcel of land in the Fajuyi area of the state capital has been dedicated for this purpose. Also, a bill for a Law to provide for the creation, management and control of Heroes Parks in Ekiti State and related matters, is being finalised to be sent to the Ekiti State House of Assembly for necessary action.
Amongst other provisions, the draft bill provides for the composition of a Heroes Park Recommendation Committee comprising highly respected Ekiti elderly persons with senior bureaucrats serving as ex-officio members. It is proposed that this committee would also oversee the maintenance of the park consistent with its first-class status. They would also receive and consider applications/recommendations from the public on people they want to be so honoured.
In the draft of the bill, some of the qualifying criteria for those to be honoured include an exceptional and long standing commitment to the development of Ekiti State as well as bringing honour to Ekiti State on account of exceptional contributions to any field of human endeavour.
The architectural design of the park would also include demarcations for burial sections and recreational facilities. The burial sections would also be further delineated into categorizations of different walks of life such as Military and Paramilitary; Medical Sciences; Law and Human Rights; Governance and Politics; Religion; e.t.c.
The draft bill provides for our heroes to be typically honoured in the park in either of 3 ways – the allocation of a burial space; the allocation of space for the erection of an epitaph; or the emplacement of the name of the hero on the Walls of Honour categorized according to different walks of life.
I assure you that the draft bill which is being finalised is taking into consideration all factors towards ensuring the success and long term sustainability of this initiative. It is my hope that after necessary formalities are concluded, late Prof. Ade Ajayi and other heroes past, though buried in other places, would someday be honoured in the solemn company of other Ekiti legends in the sanctums of the Heroes Park.
Memorial Parks are an integral part of many advanced societies all over the world. It is important that the legacies of exemplars of our pristine honour like late Prof. Ade Ajayi are given the pride of place in our state to shine brightly so that future generations can have light to illuminate their own life paths. It is an imperative for every Ekiti person to ensure we own this initiative and support not only this administration but all successive ones in every way we can to ensure its viability and long term sustainability devoid of partisan encumberances.
In closing, I thank everyone for being here today to celebrate a great son of Ikole in Egbeoba kingdom of Ekiti State, whose contributions to the body of knowledge in the field of history and the humanities as well as his lifetime of integrity and service has become a bright light that has shone glowingly to the glory of God, the honour of Ekiti State and the benefit of humanity.
May this light shine perpetually for all time and may God grant his soul repose. Amen.
Dr. Kayode Fayemi
Governor, Ekiti State
Thursday, September 18, 2014
Ekiti State Government Press Release
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