Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has mourned the passing of the Speaker of Ekiti State House of Assembly, Rt Hon Funminiyi Afuye.
Afuye died on Wednesday during a brief illness at the age of 66.
NAN, reporting a statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Gboyega Akosile in Ikeja, said Sanwo-Olu described Afuye (APC-Ikere 1) as one of the illustrious sons of Ekiti.
He said Afuye contributed immensely to the growth and development of Ekiti during his lifetime.
The governor said that the deceased was a principled politician, progressive, loyal, trustworthy and a committed member of the ruling APC in Ekiti.
He said the lawyer and rights activist, turned politician spent his life in the service of humanity, of Ekiti and of Nigeria.
Afuye served as a Commissioner for Information, lawmaker and later Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly.
Sanwo-Olu also commiserated with his Ekiti counterpart, Mr Biodun Oyebanji, the former governor of the state, Dr Kayode Fayemi and the entire members of the Ekiti State House of Assembly on the death of the former speaker.
He urged Oyebanji, the deceased’s family, friends, and the entire people of Ekiti to preserve the legacy of the deceased by immortalising the good name and the struggle of the deceased speaker.
“On behalf of the people and government of Lagos State, I sympathise with Ekiti State governor, Mr Biodun Oyebanji and the entire people of the state on the demise of the Speaker of the Ekiti State House of Assembly, Mr Funminiyi Afuye.
“Afuye was a committed public officer who served Ekiti passionately and selflessly in different capacities.
“He did his best for Ekiti as a member of the executive and legislative arms of government. He was also a committed member of our great party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) till his death.
“I pray that God grants the soul of Afuye eternal rest and comfort the immediate and political families and the people of Ekiti he left behind,’’ Sanwo-Olu said.
Afuye, a lawyer, was born on July 11, 1956.
Between 2007 and 2011, he served as a member of the state’s third assembly representing Ikere constituency I. He served in the administration of the immediate former Governor Kayode Fayemi as the state’s commissioner for Information between 2011 and 2014 and later that of Integration and Intergovernmental Affairs.
He later won reelection in the sixth assembly; and on June 6, 2019, he assumed his position as speaker of the house.
He passed away on Wednesday evening, October 19, at the Ekiti State Teaching Hospital (EKSUTH), Ado-Ekiti, the state capital.
He had reportedly suffered a cardiac arrest earlier in the day and was being treated there for his condition when he passed away.
