A group, Omo Eko Pataki, on Thursday, expressed shock at the death of former Lagos State governor, Alhaji Lateef Jakande, describing him as a great man who devoted his life to the growth and the development of the state.
The group, in a statement by its leader and trustee members, Chief Bode George; Maj. Gen. Tajudeen Olanrewaju, and Mr Gbadebọ Dallas described the late Jakande as a selfless, dedicated, devoted Lagosian and a Nigerian patriot whose life was anchored on principled morality, stripped of rancour or bitterness.
The statement, titled: ‘The Passage of Alhaji Lateef Kayode Jakande’, reads: “The passage of Alhaji Lateef Kayode Jakande is shocking, heartbreaking and sorrowful. We all feel orphaned, solitary and sad as we mourn the passage of a great man who devoted his life to the growth and the development of our state.
“LKJ was a selfless, dedicated, devoted Lagosian and a Nigerian patriot whose life was anchored on principled morality, stripped of rancour or bitterness. “He was unarguably the greatest builder of modern Lagos whose tenure as the first civilian governor of Lagos state from 1979 -1983 will remain imperishable in the giantism of his superlative attainments.
“Everywhere you look, his legacies are perceived in the multiple housing estates, in the building of schools, making education affordable to all. He built health centres, built the first state-owned University and polytechnics, created opportunities for the indigenes to pursue higher learning.
“LKJ led a life of simplicity, a life of contentment void of greedy ostentatious brazenness that is now the norm.
“He now belongs to the Lagosian Pantheon of heroes, the very few Ọmọ Eko Pataki who will never trade their heritage for a mess of porridge. He lived well. He will never be forgotten where duty, honour truth and service to humanity are treasured.”
Vanguard
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