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The immediate past governor of Oyo State, Chief Adebayo Alao-Akala, has declared that it was after he left office that he was able to identify his true friends, saying he appreciated those who still stood with him after his loss at the April 26 gubernatorial election in the state.
The former governor, who made this known while speaking at a thanksgiving service held in his Ibadan residence on Friday to mark his 61st birthday, also said that his experience in and out of office had made him to know the essence of service to humanity.
"Igba iponju lan m'ore. Ka di ju, ka se b'eni ku, ka wo eni ti yio sun'kun eni; ka bu rin, bu rin, ka fe se ko, ka w'eni ti yio se ni pele (It is at the point of tribulations that we know our friends. We should close our eyes and pretend as if we are dead for us to know who will mourn us; we should walk and hit our toes against the stone for us to know who will genuinely say sorry).
"It is now that we are out of office that I know my friends. I am highly impressed with this large turn-out at my birthday party. I don't know that I still have such a large followership. If you want to know your true friends, it is when you have a little setback, though what we are passing through now is not setback or tribulation. I appreciate you all", he said.
In his sermon at the service, Pastor-in-Charge, Molete Baptist Church, Ibadan (MBCI), Reverend Edward Alabi, described Chief Alao-Akala as a rare gift to the state and a governor who had a successful tenure while in office because he served the people with the fear of God.
Describing his life as testimony to others, the cleric likened the former governor to the Biblical King David, saying that Alao-Akala was a man after the heart of God who served the people of Oyo State with all his strength and with the heart of the Lord.
He said that, for certain reasons, Alao-Akala's achievements, while in office, were worthy of being celebrated, particularly on his 61st birthday, saying that, in the first instance, the former governor, with his humble background, had no legacy bequeathed to him but had left an enduring legacy on the political turf of Oyo State.
He described the former governor as a leader who God gave His full backing and that this accounted for the fact that all he needed to be successfully functional while in office were miraculously and divinely provided.
Reverend Alabi also said that in the recent political history of the state, it was only Alao-Akala that would leave office and people would continue to celebrate him, adding that the former governor did his best for the state and succeeded because God was with him.
Source: Tribune