Oyo State governor, ‘Seyi Makinde, on Wednesday, June 25, declared that the state government would preserve and digitise the library of a late former governor of the state, Dr Victor Omololu Olunloyo, and make it a tourist attraction centre.
Governor Makinde, who described the library as a treasure trove of knowledge capable of offering solutions to numerous challenges facing the country, said preserving the library is one of the ways of immortalising Dr Olunlolyo, who was the second elected governor of the old Oyo State comprising present day Oyo and Osun states.
The governor stated this while paying his last respect to the late Dr Olunloyo, at the lying-in-state and executive session organised in his honour by the state government and held at the House of Chiefs, Secretariat, Agodi, Ibadan.
He added that the state government would also commission the Omololu Olunloyo Leisure Park at Alakia-Airport Area of Ibadan, which was named after the revered statesman in 2023.
Recall that the state government equally named the three-kilometre Airport Road after the former governor.
Makinde eulogised the late former governor for being one of his go-to persons on how to solve the problems of the state.
He added that exploring the tourism potential of the library would also align with his administration’s focus on tourism development.
He said: “I have lost a partner. Sometimes, he would tell me how some problems were solved before my time in the state. When people look at me and wonder how come Oyo State is so peaceful during my tenure, they don’t know that I go to these leaders and they analyse things for me and leave me to take the best decisions for the state.
“We must give honour to whom it is due. This event is important; it is an avenue for us to give a befitting passage to an individual who gave a good part of his life to serve this state and country.
“There are two things I need to let this gathering know. One is the fact that the Omololu Olunloyo Park is ready for commissioning and we will open it soon. Two, in most of my discussions with Baba, there was no way we would talk and wouldn’t get to the issue of his library.
“So, I am making a public announcement now that the state would support the family to preserve and digitise that library.
“It is a library where we can practically find solutions to a whole lot of challenges we are still faced with currently. We must preserve the library and ensure that when people visit Oyo State, the library becomes a tourist centre that we can showcase.”
Also speaking, the Deputy Governor of Oyo State, Barrister Abdulraheem Bayo Lawal, described Dr Olunloyo as a towering intellectual with a strong commitment to public service.
He said: “Today is a day of reflection on the life and time of Dr Omololu Olunloyo. Today does not call for grief, sorrow or lamentation.
“In reflecting, we must put into perspective his contributions to life, our society and the world at large.
“He was a towering intellectual who had a strong commitment to public service. He served our state at the highest level with distinction and rare brilliance.
“We believe that he has left enough for us to tap into in order for us to make a good life. We have lost a colossus whose footprint would remain etched on the sands of time.”
Speaking on behalf of the Olunloyo family, the first child of the deceased, Mrs Oluyemi Olunloyo-Buckner, described her late father as a politician of a rare genius and an exceptionally brilliant statesman whose contribution to Oyo State was huge.
She added that he was a man that gave his children identity, heritage and love.
Also in their separate orations, the Chief Judge of Oyo State, Justice Iyabo Yerima and the Acting Rector, The Polytechnic Ibadan, Dr Taiwo Lasisi, described Olunloyo as an embodiment of brilliance, with a profound commitment to public service.
The event had in attendance the wife of a former governor of Oyo State, Chief (Mrs) Mutiat Ladoja; a former Deputy Governor and PDP Deputy National Chairman (South), Ambassador Taofeek Arapaja; former deputy governor, Barrister Hazeem Gbolarumi; former Minister of Trades and Investment, Chief Mrs Onikepo Akande, CON, as well as Chairman and Co-Chairman of Oyo State Elders’ Council, Dr Saka Balogun and Elder Wole Oyelese.
Other government functionaries in attendance were the Secretary to the State Government, Prof Olanike Adeyemo; Oyo State Exco Members; service commanders, traditional rulers, religious leaders, and family members, among other dignitaries.
