Goodluck Jonathan reacts to Northern Elders Forum Chibok Ultimatum

President Jonathan replies the Northern Elders forum on Chibok girls ultimatum.

President Goodluck Jonathan has fired a shot back at the Northern Elders Forum who gave him an ultimatum over the Chibok girls.
In a statement released today, President Goodluck Jonathan forcefully denied that he would comply with any
"threat" or "ultimatum" dictating how he should execute his presidential duties.
This comes as a direct response to a demand from the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) on Monday, where they issued an October deadline for the release of the Chibok girls.
Senior Special Assistant to the President, Dr. Doyin Okupe, made the president's position known today, calling the demands "preposterous", "contrary to common sense", and "divisive".
Yesterday, the NEF suggested that the insurgency and the resulting crisis mismanagement were politically designed to destroy northern Nigeria. “We are convinced that most of these conflicts are being engineered to weaken the North politically and economically by interests, which intend to exploit such weaknesses for electoral benefits."
The forum furthered: “In the light of our firm conviction that the insurgency and related security challenges pose threats to the 2015 elections and the survival of our nation, we strongly advise President Goodluck Jonathan to bring an end to the insurgency in all its manifestations and produce the Chibok girls before the end of October 2014." 
"The circumstances under which our fellow citizens in and around Gwoza in Borno State in particular live and die will not be tolerated by any people who have a government and a leader sworn to defend them, and they must be reversed immediately,” they concluded.

Goodluck Jonathan tells Northern elders forum who is in charge.

Today's response from the Jonathan administration alleged that the President and his team were making considerable strides in the fight against the insurgency, notably in empowering the military and boosting morale. "We are deploying more resources to maximize operational efficiency, acquire more advanced and relevant weaponry and boost the general morale of our combatants," the statement said, moves that justified the recent request for an additional 1 billion USD.
The statement maintained that such "distractions" and "accusations" like those presented by the citizens of the NEF were "deliberate attempts" to "disseminate hate mentality and cause mischief”.

See Presidents Jonathan's press statement below:

We read with deep concern the statement published in the Media today by the Northern Elders Forum giving President Goodluck Jonathan a two ultimatum on the Boko Haram Insurgency and the Chibok Girls abduction Saga.
We wish to state categorically that President Jonathan does not require any threat or ultimatum from any group of persons to be alive to his responsibilities to the Nigerian People.
The issue of Insurgency especially those ideologically based on Islamic extremism is a global phenomenon and requires tact, military capability, serious de-radicalisation techniques and community based counter insurgency programmes to ensure success.
In these areas, the Federal Government is making progress:
a)   We are improving on our operational capabilities and efficiencies by acquiring more advanced weapons and technologies for our military and security agencies.  
b)   We have drafted more military personnel to the region to strengthen the fighting power of our armed forces.  
c)   We are taking advantage of the offers from our international military and intelligence allies to assist in identifying key locations.
d)   We are working with our neighbours to secure the borders and limit the movements of the Boko Haram fighters, building on the agreements reached at the recent summits in Paris and London.  
e)   We are deploying more resources to maximize operational efficiency, acquire more advanced and relevant weaponry and boost the general morale of our combatants. This is why the Government recently requested for an additional funding of $1bn.  
f)    And the last piece in the puzzle is targeting the domestic and international funding, and stopping the money flows into the coffers of the terrorists.
g)   With all these efforts and the support of our allies, these steps will help fight the threat of the Boko haram and move us closer to bringing the girls back safely.
Lastly, the suggestion that the Government is carrying out any scheme to annihilate any section of the country for political gain is preposterous, contrary to common sense, divisive and essentially a deliberate attempt to disseminate “hate mentality” and cause mischief.  
President Goodluck Jonathan was voted for by an overwhelming majority of Nigerians across the board, and he will never promote any policy that is either divisive or inimical to the well being of any section of the polity.  
What the country needs today is total co-operation, of all its citizens and stakeholders, with the Government and our military and the security agencies.  
We wish to assure Nigerians that in spite of this and many more distractions, the President is focused on continued successful executions of his transformation Agenda; and the guarantee of the security of lives and properties of the Nigerian people.

4 Indian Doctors say they're being forced to treat Ebola Patients in Nigeria

Four Indian doctors in Nigeria say they are being forced to treat cases of Ebola against their will and have accused their employers of taking away their passports to stop them
leaving the country, the Hindustan Timesreported on Tuesday.
However, the hospital in the Nigerian capital Abuja where the doctors are working denied the claims, pointing out there were no cases of Ebola in the city.
The doctors said they were ordered not to leave the Primus Hospital despite their fear of contracting the deadly disease, the newspaper reported.
"We haven’t been provided with any security kits. Our passports have been impounded. When we spoke to the Indian High Commission, we were asked to come to the mission. But we were stopped by guards from leaving the hospital," one of the Indian doctor's was quoted as saying.
He said the Indian doctors were forced to work after local physicians – who have been on strike – refused to come back to work.

There are no known cases of Ebola in Abuja. The country's commercial capital Lagos has 10 confirmed cases of Ebola and two patients have died. Africa's most populous nation has declared a national emergency over the outbreak.
The hospital authorities told the CNN-IBN television channel that the Indian doctors were not being forced to stay.

"These doctors were treating 25 ICU (intensive care) patients and they wanted to leave all this and wanted to go to India. I told them to work on humanitarian grounds. We have not seized their passports. I told them if we are doctors, we can't abandon the patients. Ebola is a global issue but there is no case in Abuja," said Sunny Ukachukwuu, Primus Hospital's director.
Government sources told the Hindustan Times that the situation has now been resolved with the intervention of the Indian High Commission in Nigeria. The doctors have agreed to work a few more days and then return to India.
The death toll from the world's worst outbreak of Ebola has climbed to 1,013, according to figures from the World Health Organization which has called its spread an international health emergency.

There are 40,000 Indians living in Nigeria and another 4,700 in the other affected West African countries - Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia.
Indian authorities fear a return of many of its citizens due to the outbreak will increase the risk of the disease being imported into the country and are introducing measures to screen and track travellers from the four nations. A hotline has also been opened and has reportedly received 200 calls in two days, mainly from people asking about the symptoms of the disease.
A man who returned to India from Nigeria over the weekend displaying symptoms of upper respiratory tract infection has tested negative for Ebola, the health ministry said on Monday.

Iraq ISIS Terrorist wishes Robin Williams to Burn in HELL!

The ISIS terrorist and Robin Williams.

This is the funniest thing ever in a sad situation.Robin Williams still manages to make me laugh even in death! The ISIS who are currently involved in some of the most terrible form of killings and disregard
for human lives in Iraq showed some compassion in form of one of their members tweeting his love for the actor and his movies.
He also laughed at people who were shocked to find he knows Robin Williams and his movies.But the "ISIS member is British born,his name is Abdullah."
But as soon as he was called to the fact that Robin Williams was actually against Jihad and spoke out against some parts of the Islamic fighters,ISIS member Abdullah switched and said may Allah make Robin Williams burn! Abdullah said "Robin Williams was going to hell and anyone who wishes him to RIP will burn in hell too"!
This people are so warped with their mindset..totally unbelievable.Anyway i'm wishing Robin Williams to RIP..See you in hell fool!

Dwayne The Rock takes mum home after harrowing crash

The big smile on the face of Dwayne The Rock Johnson says it all as he wheels his mother

away from the hospital on a journey home.

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s beloved mother has been released from the hospital following a harrowing crash involving a drunk driver last week.

Ata Naivia Johnson was wheeled out of a Florida hospital by her famous son, who posted a photo to his Instagram Tuesday. Ata was smiling but sporting a cast her lower left arm that extended to what appeared to be broken fingers.

Takin’ mama home. Banged up, but she’s a tough one and will make a full recovery” the 42-year-old shared.

He added “grateful to see her smile. And thank you guys for all the prayers, love and well wishes. #GratitudeAndBearHugs #ChoicesMatter #100PercentPreventable #DontDrinkAndDrive.”

Johnson’s mother and his cousin Savelina Fanene were leaving a charity event August 2 in Clemont, Florida when a drunk driver slammed head on into her Cadillac Escalade. Both women were hurt but luckily neither suffered life threatening injuries. The driver of the other vehicle has been charged with DUI.

The Hercules star posted a photo of the terrifying crash scene on Sunday, noting “first reaction is to find the person who did this and do unrelenting harm to them. But then you realize the most important thing is my family lived through this and we can hug each other that much tighter these days.”
source RumourFix

Ebola case at Turkey Airport with Nigerian Woman&4yr old son

The Ebola crisis might have found its way into Europe as Nigerian woman and her 4 year old son have
been held in isolation after falling ill with Ebola virus symptoms at Istanbul Aiport Turkey. 

The woman showing symptoms of the Ebola virus has been put under segregation after arriving at Istanbul’s Ataturk International Airport. 

The Nigerian woman and her four-year-old son were on a Turkish Airlines flight from Lagos in Nigeria to Istanbul on Tuesday when the mother, named as 32-year-old Stella Omorowa by the airline, told the cabin crew she was feeling unwell. 

Both mother and son were transferred to a nearby hospital after the mother showed symptoms of fever and vomiting.The woman was also said to be pregnant. 

They arrived in Istanbul to catch a connecting flight to Barcelona, Spain. 

Ebola, a contagious disease for which there is no definite treatment or cure, has been responsible for more than 1,000 deaths in West Africa since and the latest outbreak in February. The virus has been largely confined to Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone except two deaths in Nigeria and a health worker who died in Spain on Tuesday. 

In a statement, the Turkish Health Ministry said the passengers were taken under supervision as a precaution, adding that it was too early to say if they have the virus. “Since they are coming from an Ebola-affected country, Nigeria, the Health Ministry is taking every possibility into account,” the statement said.

source  Anadolu Agency 

Chief Deputy Coroner tells how Robin Williams died

Chief Deputy Coroner tells how Robin Williams died

The Chief deputy coroner gave the reason of Robin Williams death as Asphyxiation due to hanging.
Investigators from the Marin County Sheriff's Office gave an update on the cause of Robin Williams
death.The Chief deputy coroner Boyd, made a statement regarding the death of Robin Williams.He confirmed that his death was by hanging.Stating that they responded to a distress call just before 12 pm...at 12 02 pm they discovered Robin Williams dead.He was found by his Personal Assistant.His wife had gone shopping and arrived after the Sheriffs office arrived at the scene.His wife had seen him last at 10.30pm,the previous night. At 10.30 am next day,she left the house believing his was still alive and sleeping from the previous night.

After failing to respond to calls his assistant was worried ,the door was forced open and they found Robin Williams slumped on a chair in a seated position with a belt tied round his neck .He had superficial wounds.How many,has not been revealed yet.
There were no struggles or sign or foul play.
It is believed Robin Williams took his own life.keith Boyd said he was not discussing whether there was a suicide note or not.He also said toxicology test where going on to determine whether drugs or alcohol was in his sytem.

Singer 9ice joins political train,to contest for House of Representative

Seems the latest trend right now is Nigerian entertainers delving into politics.9ice made his

intention known of joining politics and becoming a member of the house of reps about a year ago.But now it looks like things are getting a bit more official.

The Gongo Aso,Photocopy,Gbamu Gbamu to mention a few crooner,officially made public his intent to contest for the House of Representatives seat for Ogbomosho North/South/Orire Federal Constituency of Oyo State in the February general election of 2015.

9ice joins the list of Julius Agwu,Jibola Dabor,Kate Henshaw,Desmond Elliot who have also made a career move into the political field.Not forgetting Tony One Week who already has been elected to represent his people.

It remains to be seen the actual intention of all the artists who now want to be politicians.Maybe they are the new change the society is crying for.Time will tell if 9ice and his pals are the answer.

A look at the Isolation centre for Ebola Patients in Lagos

In case you wondered what the quarantined site that the Lagos State Government has set up for the Ebola Virus victims looks like,here it is at Mainland hospital in Yaba, Lagos State.

This is where the patients are in isolation. 

Miguel Pajares,Spanish Priest Dies from Ebola disease

Spanish Priest,Miguel Pajares, 75 who died from the Ebola Virus

Aww sad news,just when i thought we were getting good vibes today from the dreaded Ebola disease,some bad news slips through.

The Spanish missionary who contracted the Ebola virus while working in West Africa

has died in hospital in Madrid.

Miguel Pajares, 75, was airlifted back to Spain from Liberia last week with a nun who tested negative for the virus.I think he being so old probably played a part in his body not being able to cope with the treatement and virus itself.

For the past few days he had been treated with an untested, experimental drug, Zmapp.

A World Health Organisation (WHO) panel is expected to rule on Tuesday on the ethics of using ZMapp.

"A panel of medical experts has ruled that it is ethical for infected patients to be treated with experimental drugs such as ZMapp", the World Health Organisation said.

The UN health agency said in a statement: "In the particular circumstances of this outbreak, and provided certain conditions are met, the panel reached consensus that it is ethical to offer unproven interventions with as yet unknown efficacy and adverse effects, as potential treatment or prevention." 

The priest was part of a Catholic order at St Joseph's hospital in the Liberian capital, Monrovia.

The hospital has now been closed because of the outbreak.

A Congolese nun died there on Saturday, days after its director, Patrick Nshamdze, also died.

Kefee's Husband Teddy talks about her death& legacy in interview

Teddy Don Momoh with his late wife Kefee.

Kefee the Nigerian gospel star who died 3 months ago at the age of 34 is still fresh in our memories.Her husband Teddy Don-Momoh,had been upset with the media the way they

covered Kefee's death and burial,as he believed they reported untrue events without checking or confirming their stories.

Teddy,has finally broken his silence and spoke about his wife Kefee's death in an interview with Encomium Magazine.Here are excerpts of the interview:

On what you will miss so much about Kefee: “I can’t say all I’m going to miss about her because there are uncountable things to miss. She was complete, Godly, highly intelligent and strong woman. All these I will miss, and also not having her by my side forever. She was a woman that knew what to say to me to keep me fired up.”

On the last memories they shared together: “The last memories we had together were shared between Nigeria and America. We shot our first video together here in Nigeria as certified video producers and directors. It was fun to see her contribute highly and creatively in the camera positioning, and I told her, ‘You are what the industry has been waiting for’. This happened just a day before she travelled back to America.”

On Kefee’s unfulfilled dreams and how he intends to carry them on: “Before her untimely death, she was working on her beautiful album from the best of both world compilation double CD and I would be putting finishing touches to the album. She had two projects for her foundation that she was working on before she travelled. But by God’s grace, the team would bring it to realization. Also, watch out for her video compilation that our team would be dropping soon. She left her legacy and I’m asking her fans to support her even now as we drop songs on iTunes and CD for public consumption.”

On heading back to work despite still mourning: “As much as I miss and adore her, ‘Life cannot be the same without her’ and the same applies to work. But as a professional, in my career with over 17 years of broadcasting experience, I will keep pushing and giving my best.”

Standards drop as WAEC results for May/June released

WAEC standards have dropped,

The West Africa Examination Council (WAEC) on Monday released its May/June Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) results.This takes me back to
many years ago.Judging from the statistics of the results released,the standards of education keeps dropping,less than half of those who sat for the exams had 6 credits or above.But having said that,it does not say how many subjects were sat for.If it is 8,then it's not tto bad i guess.
Announcing the release on Monday, the Head of National Office, WAEC, Mr Charles M. Eguridu, disclosed that a total of 1,705,976 candidates registered for the examination, while, 1,692,435 (929,075 male, and 973, 360 female) eventually sat the examination.
Of the total number of candidates that sat for the examination, 791, 227 candidates (46.75%) obtained six credits or above; 982, 472 candidates (58.05%) obtained five credits or above.

Furthermore, 1,148,262 candidates (67.84%), obtained credits in four subjects, while 1,293,389 candidates (76.42%) obtained credits in three subjects.

Mr Eguridu also revealed that a total of 529,425 candidates, representing 31.28%, obtained credits in five subjects or above, including English Language and Mathematics.

However, a total of 145, 795 results have been withheld as a result of instances of examination malpractice.

Mr Eguridu also announced the extension of registration for November/December 2014 WASSCE. “The Council has decided to extend the normal registration period for the November/December 2014 WASSCE to Sunday, August 17, so as to enable candidates who sat the last May/June examination, and who may have any deficiencies, to register for the November/December diet, if they so wish,” he added.

Ebola-Passengers Flee at Lagos Airport as Man slumps&Dies

A busy Murtala Muhammed Airport Lagos where man slumped and died !

The Ebola syndrome reared its ugly head again as it caused panic at the Murtala Muhammed International Airoort Lagos.

There was confusion at the Arrival Hall of the Airport on Monday, as a passenger slumped and died.

Sources at the airport told Punch that the passenger slumped in front of the Port Health Services office, while waiting to collect his vaccination card, usually known as Yellow Card.

Some staff and passengers fled the scene following the man’s collapse, as they feared he was infected with the deadly Ebola Virus Disease.

His body was covered with an orange-coloured cloth and left unattended to by the office. However, the area was barricaded to forestall people coming there, as people were redirected to pass other routes.

Our correspondent gathered that the dead man was supposed to fly to Ghana for medical check-up when he suddenly collapsed at the airport and died.

It was also gathered that the passenger, who was of middle age, may be of Ibo origin.I personally am not sure of that fact,Osei is clearly a Ghanaian name isn't it? 

A lady that was seen accompanying him before his sudden death was seen making calls to their relatives in Igbo language, telling them what happened.

The sad incident, which happened at the arrival floor, set fear in the spine of passengers and other airport officials that witnessed what happened.

The female relative of the dead man, who was crying, was quoted as saying, “Ceekay, please get up; Ceekay, please get up”.

Meanwhile, a statement later released by the General Manager, Corporate Communications of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, Mr. Yakubu Dati, gave the late passenger’s name as Mr. Akunne Osei.

It noted that the deceased was tested for the Ebola virus and the result later came in negative.

The statement said, “FAAN wishes to inform the public that a Nigerian passenger, residing in Accra, who arrived Lagos for business transactions aboard an Arik Air flight on Friday August 8, 2014, has died at the Murtala Mohammad Airport, Ikeja, on his way back to Accra.

“The passenger, Osei, took ill on Saturday August 9 and started stooling. When the situation got worse, he called his doctor in Accra, who instructed him to return to Ghana immediately for further treatment.

“During boarding formalities for his return trip to Accra at the international terminal of MMA, Osei, who had obviously become weak at this time, was subjected to Ebola Virus test by port health officials, the result of which was negative. No further attention was paid to him after his Ebola Virus result read negative but the passenger later slumped and died around the port health office.”

Liberia now to get Ebola experimental drug

Liberia to get Ebola experimental drug

After a storm there truly comes the calm,looks like today is a day of positive news from Ebola Virus,first it was the news from "Nigerian Lagos that the Ebola patients were stable and improving",and now the

news that the Ebola experimental drug was being sent to Liberia to treat infected victims.

Liberia has announced it is to receive doses of an experimental Ebola drug and give it to two sick doctors, making them the first Africans to receive some of the scarce treatment in a spiralling outbreak.I hope it's more than two people they are making the drug available to though.

The US government confirmed that it had put Liberian officials in touch with the maker of ZMapp and referred additional questions to the manufacturer. In a statement, the California-based Mapp Biopharmaceutical said that in responding to a request from an unidentified west African country it had run out of its supply of the treatment.

The news came amid growing anger over the fact that the only people to receive the experimental treatment so far had been westerners: "two Americans and a Spaniard, all of whom were evacuated to their home countries from Liberia".

On Monday the World Health Organisation said 1,013 people had died in the Ebola outbreak in west Africa. Authorities had recorded 1,848 suspected, probable or confirmed cases of the disease, the UN health agency said. The updated WHO tally includes figures from 7-9 August when 52 more people died and 69 more were infected.

There is no Ebola vaccine or treatment available but there are several in development besides ZMapp. That treatment is so new that it has not been tested for safety or effectiveness in humans. The company has said it would take months to produce even modest quantities.

It was unclear how much of the treatment would be sent to Liberia.

The Liberian statement, posted on the presidency’s website, said it was also receiving an experimental treatment from the World Health Organisation. It was unclear if this was referring to ZMapp or another treatment.

In the past few weeks the experimental drug was given to two American aid workers diagnosed with the disease while working at a hospital that treated Ebola patients. On Monday officials in Spain disclosed that the treatment was also given to a Spanish missionary priest who fell ill while working in Liberia.

The Americans are said to be improving but there was no way to know whether the drug helped or if they are getting better on their own. "Around 40% of those infected with Ebola are surviving the current outbreak".

Some have called for the untested drug to be given to Africans. The outbreak was first identified in March in Guinea but likely started months earlier. It has since spread to neighbouring Liberia and Sierra Leone, and possibly to Nigeria.

The ethical dilemmas over using an untested drug and who should get it prompted the UN health agency to consult on Monday with ethicists, infectious disease experts, patient representatives and the Doctors Without Borders group. Most participants in the closed teleconference were from developed countries but Uganda and Senegal were represented. The World Health Organisation said it would discuss the results of the meeting at a press conference on Tuesday.

Companies can provide experimental drugs on a “compassionate use” basis, usually after they have been fully tested in humans. The Food and Drug Administration approves such uses in the US but has no authority overseas. Ultimately the companies alone decide whether or not to share their products.

Spain’s health ministry said it obtained ZMapp this weekend with company permission to treat Miguel Pajares, a 75-year-old priest evacuated from Liberia and placed in isolation on Thursday at Madrid’s Carlos III hospital.

“The medicine was imported from Geneva where there was one dose available in the context of an accord between the laboratory that developed the medicine, WHO and [Doctors Without Borders],” the ministry said, invoking a Spanish law permitting unauthorised medication for patients with life-threatening illnesses.

Spanish authorities refused to comment beyond the ministry’s statement but Geneva University hospital told the Associated Press it was involved in getting the drug to Madrid.

The evacuated American aid workers, Dr Kent Brantly and Nancy Writebol, have been improving at Atlanta’s Emory University hospital. They got the treatment after their international relief group Samaritan’s Purse asked Kentucky BioProcessing, which produces it for Mapp Biopharmaceutical.

The treatment mixes three antibodies engineered to recognise Ebola and bind to infected cells so the immune system can kill them.

A Sierra Leone official said they had not asked for the drug but the other governments said they wanted any treatment that might help patients recover, despite the risks of unproven medicines. “The alternative for not testing this is death, a certain death,” said Liberia’s information minister, Lewis Brown.

Alhoussein Makanera Kake, a spokesman for the Guinean government committee on Ebola, said: “Guinean authorities would naturally be interested in having this medicine.”

In other Ebola developments on Monday an African nun who worked with the infected Spanish priest died from Ebola in Liberia, their Catholic aid group said.

A nurse who treated Patrick Sawyer also died, Nigerian authorities said. She had treated the Liberian-American when he flew into Nigeria and died last month. The nurses’s death raised the number of locally confirmed Ebola cases to 10. Nigeria is monitoring 177 contacts of Sawyer to contain the outbreak. The WHO has yet to confirm any Ebola cases in Nigeria.

Ivory Coast, which shares borders with Liberia and Guinea, has banned direct flights from the infected countries and said it would increase health inspections and enforcement of its borders, but stopped short of closing them entirely.

George Weah, a Liberian former Fifa world player of the year, joined awareness efforts by recording a song titled Ebola Is Real, with proceeds going to the Liberian health ministry.

source The Guardian Newspaper

Tributes pour in for Dead Prof Ade Ajayi,ex Unilag Vice Chancellor

Professor Ade Ajayi,ex Unilag Vice Chancellor who died at 85

Tributes have been pouring in for dead Eminent Nigerian and African historian, Prof. J.F. Ade-Ajayi, who died at 85 . He died at the University College Hospital, Ibadan after a brief

illness.Amongst the tributes coming in,was one from President Goodluck Jonathan.

Vice Chancellor, University of Ibadan, Prof. Isaac Adewole described Late Ade Ajayi as an intellectual colossus and fountain of knowledge who blazed the trail in establishing the validity of African history as an academic discipline.

"The late Ajayi was an important part of the anti-colonial, and post-independence, scholarship that successfully established the fact that Africa had a history which pre-dated European encounters with the continent. Mentor of many generations of historians, Ade Ajayi was an ethical researcher and outstanding scholar, who with others established the Ibadan School of History."

Prof. J. F. Ade Ajayi was a foundation student of University of Ibadan, then known as University College in 1948. He was Head of the Department of History at the University of Ibadan from 1966 to 1969, and Dean of the Faculty of Arts between 1964 and 1966. Between 1972 and 1978, Ajayi was Vice-Chancellor of the University of Lagos. He also held teaching and research appointments at the University of California, Los Angeles, and Stanford University among others. He retired from the University of Ibadan in 1989.

President Goodluck Jonathan, yesterday, joined other eminent Nigerians to mourn the death of late Emeritus Professor of History, and former Vice Chancellor of the University of Lagos, Professor Festus Ade Ajayi, who died on Saturday at the University College Hospital, Ibadan 

The President, in a condolence message signed by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati urged “late Ajayi’s family and his many students, friends, associates in academics and colleagues in the field of Nigerian and African history to take solace in the knowledge that in passing on, he leaves behind a body of significant works that will stand to his eternal credit and assure him of alasting place of honour among Africa’s greatest historians.”

According to the statement, “President Jonathan reaffirms the nation’s enduring gratitude for Mr. Ajayi’s notable contributions over many years to the development of education and educational institutions in Nigeria as a lecturer, Professor, Dean, Deputy Vice Chancellor and Vice Chancellor at federal universities. The President assures Mr. Ajayi’s family, relatives, friends and colleagues of the Federal Government’s full solidarity and sympathy as they mourn the very eminent historian and 1993 winner of the Distinguished Africanist Award.”

Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi and the Minister of Works, Prince Dayo Adeyeye also condoled the immediate family and the people of the state over Ajayi’s death.
Fayemi in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Olayinka Oyebode in Ado Ekiti, yesterday, described the Ikole Ekiti born
renowned scholar and administrator as an intellectual giant whose legacies would continue to benefit generations to come.

The Governor described the late Professor Ade Ajayi as a man of integrity who built a reputation of hard work, honesty and represented
the core values of Ekiti.
He said the deceased was a great Ekiti ambassador who positively projected the image of the state and that of Nigeria all over the
world. He added that the renowned historian showed tremendous concern for the growth and development of Ekiti State.

Fayemi recalled his last engagement with the Emeritus Professor of History shortly after the June 21 governorship election in the state,
describing him as a man of immense wisdom, who was ever willing to encourage and mentor the younger ones.

Describing Ade Ajayi as “Professor of  Professors,” Fayemi noted that the late History icon mentored numerous scholars who had contributed immensely to teaching, learning and research all over the world, saying, “the works of this great scholar in the field of History have become reference points to scholars, researchers, students and the general reading public.”

The Governor said Ade Ajayi’s tenure as Vice Chancellor of the University of Lagos recorded unprecedented successes and still remains
a reference point in the history of the institution. He noted that the vacuum created by the deceased would be very difficult to fill given his impact in academia, administration, culture and other areas of human endeavour.

Also, the Minister of State for Works, Prince Adedayo Adeyeye described the death of eminent historian as a great loss to Ekiti
State and Nigeria as a whole, saying, “again, Nigeria has  lost one of the torch bearers of its academic’s finest moments.”
Adeyeye, in his reaction to Prof Ade Ajayi’s death, said the deceased will be sorely missed for blazing the trail in establishing theauthority of African history as an academic discipline.
No doubt, we have yet lost another important player in the pre and post independence historians that gave credence to the existence ofAfrica history as pre dating the whitemen invasion of the continent.

“Prof Ade Ajayi was an outstanding scholar, who as one of the foundation students of University of Ibadan, then known as University
College, also impacted knowledge on many people as a teacher in the university. If one puts in perspective the quality of life that helived, especially his contribution to education in Nigeria, there is every cause for us to celebrate a man with virtues plated insuperlatives. The irony of life however, is that no matter how long and fulfilled they lived, we do not ever wish to lose our loved ones

Meanwhile, several sympathisers yesterday thronged the residence of the late Professor.
According to  Abidoye Babalola, one of the numerous students of the late don said his former teacher saw his death coming and adequately prepared for it.

Babalola who recalled the last moments with the deceased said it appeared that his former teacher knew of his death as he called all
his children and grandchildren together and exchanged some words with them.
He said after taking his family members to the residence of one of his colleagues, Oladipo Akinkugbe, he showed some signs of weakness.

“He believed in the university system and thorough university administration. A humble, friendly, unassuming and somebody who made the most impact on my life, a man I’m proud of”, Babalola said.

One of the five children of the deceased,  Oyinkansola Ajayi said it was painful losing such a caring father. She described her father as a
great family man that the whole members of the family would miss greatly.

The Vice Chancellor of the University of Ibadan, Prof. Isaac  Adewole, said, “We on behalf of the UI came to commiserate with the family of the international community of scholar on the transition to the world beyond of a great scholar, icon and astute administrator. Baba, we thank God for a life dedicated to humanity and Africa”.

Another sympathiser,  Professor Bisi Sowunmi said, “Erin wo! What a glorious exit for an icon, a foremost scholar, yet humble, God fearing and truly Christian. We take consolation in your outstanding and exemplary life in all areas and that you are at peace with your Lord, whom you served to the very end”.