Posted by By MOSHOOD ADEBAYO, Abeokuta on
It was a black Sunday for the people of Ogun State as the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Otunba Olumayowa Olukoya died in an auto crash. He was aged 64.
• 3 others injured
It was a black Sunday for the people of Ogun State as the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Otunba Olumayowa Olukoya died in an auto crash. He was aged 64.
The accident which occurred at Kobape (Onipepeye) on the Sagamu/Abeokuta expressway at about 2.35p.m. also claimed the life of his police orderly.
The State Commissioner for Finance, Mr. Kehinde Sogunle who was also involved in the crash, however, escaped with minor injuries.
Although there was no official details of how the afternoon accident occurred, Daily Sun learnt that the late SSG who took over from the current Minister for Mines and Steel Development, Alhaja Sarafa Isola was said to be returning from Bayelsa State.
The late SSG, who led the state delegation to a function was said to have been riding in an Honda Odyssey along with others when the front tyre of the car burst and the driver lost control.
It was further learnt that the car skidded off the road and landed in a bush from where good Samaritans rushed in to rescue the victims.
The SSG was said to have had his two thighs seriously broken. His orderly was said to have sustained head injuries from which he bled to death.
The General Hospital, Ijaye, Abeokuta, where the SSG died after about one hour of battle to save his life, was a rallying point for top government functionaries who trooped out in a bid to salvage the situation. Otunba Olukoya who hailed from Ijebu-Ife in Ijebu-East Local Government Area of the state was said to have died at the state General Hospital as attempts were being made to transfer him to the Olabisi Onabanjo University Teaching Hospital (OSUTH), Sagamu.
The late SSG along with his predecessor, Alhaji Sarafa Tunji Isola was to be honoured by the Sadatul Abadiyya Organization of Nigeria on the fateful Sunday in Abeokuta, the state capital.
It was a mournful day for government officials as the sad news spread across the state capital.
Olukoya was the Chairman of the State Agricultural and Multipurpose Credit Agency (OSAMCA) before his appointment by Governor Daniel last June as the SSG.
He was also a one-time District Governor of Rotary Club of Nigeria District 910 whose tenure many Rotarians described as very remarkable.
Efforts to get official reaction proved abortive as all those contacted kept sealed lips.
Meanwhile, efforts were being made by the state government to break the sad news to his family. Already an emissary led by Chief Agboola Alausa had been dispatched to the paramount ruler of Ijebu-Ife, Oba Olusesan Oguntayo, the Ajalorun of Ijebu-Ife, his country home.