‘Death and Burial of Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu: The Foreign Policy Implications

Bola A. Akinterinwa 

When I heard about the demise of the Governor of Ondo State, the ‘Sunshine State,’ which I prefer to call ‘The State,’ my first impression was that death had occurred to security in Ondo State simply because Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu, alias Aketi, stood more than a Rock of Gibraltar like a buffer wall, stopping the missiles coming from the Fulani herdsmen, and thus preventing the missiles from going further to hurt the Ondo State citizens.  Again when the programme of his burial was announced, my first impression was that Arakunrin Akeredolu would lie-in-state at the beautiful auditorium of the Achievers University, Owo. This is because the family house of Arakunrin Akeredolu is located at the tail end of the newly constructed Macadamised dual carriage way leading to the Achievers University, a leading university without any whiff of braggadocio. 

In fact, my belief was further strengthened by the succession of the Deputy Governor, Lucky Àiyédàtiwa as Governor, and particularly by Àiyédàtiwa’s appointment of a new Deputy Governor, Chief Olayide Owolabi Adelami, on 1st February 2024, following his confirmation by the Ondo State House of Assembly on 25 January, 2024 and swearing in at the International Culture and Events Centre, Akure by the Chief Judge of Ondo State, Justice Olusegun Odusola.

And true enough, the Deputy Governor not only hails from Owo like Arakunrin Akeredolu, but also has strong affiliations with the Achievers University. Consequently, I have thought that Achievers University could not but be required to play a major role in the burial arrangements of Arakunrin Akeredolu. My strategic calculations missed the road, but I was not the only person that miscalculated. There were also the people who thought that the funeral service would be held at the Saint Francis Xavier Catholic Church where not less than 40 innocent people praying in the church were ruthlessly killed on 5 June, 2022. The killing and Arakunrin Akeredolu to the Fulani herdsmen’s invasion of Yoruba land, and particularly, Ondo State. It is in this context that the death and burial of Arakunrin Akeredolu raises the need for re-determination to sustain the anti-Fulani herdsmen invasion and also address the foreign policy implications.

Death and Burial

Life is the beginning of death which also has a beginning and a conditional end. In the Yoruba tradition, the life any Yoruba person would live is generally reflected in his or her names. Names do reflect the circumstances of birth of any Yoruba person in the traditional setting. For instance, the names of both the late Arakunrin Akeredolu and his successor, Mr. Lucky Orímísàn Àiyédàtiwa, speak volumes. The late governor answers Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu. ‘Arakunrin’ means ‘Mr.’ It is adopted by the governor to reflect simplicity of life and originality, home discipline and courteousness, as well as dignity of purpose. 

And more importantly, the names reflect cultural homeliness. Arakunrin is a Yoruba word. The choice of the word is not only to affirm his Yoruba personality, but also apparently to replace the use of ‘barrister’, which professionally, cannot be used as a title. It is wrong to address a lawyer, like Akeredolu, as Barrister Akeredolu. In the same way the use of His Excellency or Her Excellency is synonymous with ‘Ambassador’,’ hence the use of His Excellency cannot be followed by Ambassador. Other titles like Chief, Dr., etc. can follow but bracketed. 

The name of the new governor, Lucky Orímísàn Àiyédàtiwa, is particularly interesting. Lucky, though an English word, is good a name. Everyone wants luck but it is not a Yoruba name. The other two names reflect self-assertion in terms of good luck, goodness of life. It means my own time to shine. Orímísàn also means my head is that of goodness. Àiyédàtiwa is also luck or good destiny, a head of potential goodness. Àiyédàtiwa also means ‘the world or good life belongs to me or opportunity or success belongs to me.’ His political career clearly reflects the goodness of all his names: He was lucky to have been chosen as a Deputy Governor. His head ‘was good’ to have succeeded his principal. With the succession, the world now belongs to him.

But more interestingly, the death of Arakunrin Akeredolu, also referred to as ‘Mr. Talk and Do,’ ‘a fighter,’ ‘a man of courage, not a pretender,’ raises several thought-provoking questions and concerns. First, it raises the question of importance. The death and burial of any Very Important Person (VIP) creates unique opportunities for societal development in various ramifications. Whenever the President of Nigeria is visiting any of the constitutive States of Nigeria, it is a tradition of the state to be visited to repair the access roads to the state capital, to ensure environmental cleanliness, and to give impression of goodness at all levels of governance to their guest. In fact, many access roads to Owo were generally patched up. At least, the serious potholes were repaired, enabling convoys to drive at high velocity and also recklessly without due regard to ordinary road users. Radio jingles and other media advertorials flourished. 

The bill board tributes were noteworthy. They explained the importance of Akeredolu’s death and burial. The Ondo Southwest Governors Forum says ‘Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu, SAN, CON, July 21, 1956 – December 26, 2023 Aketi Eternal.’ This advertorial only gave information on the deceased without much of what the Governors Forum had in mind. In the words of Chief Olusola Oke, SAN, ‘Goodnight. We shall continue with your good legacies of truth, voice for the voiceless and good governance.’ While Chief Oke is pledging to continue with the legacies of Aketi, and telling the world that Akeredolu served as a voice for the voiceless and left behind a legacy of truth, Honourable Wale Akinterinwa adopted a very simple tribute, but with great impact. He said, ‘For Ever in Our Hearts.’ This simply means whatever Akeredolu represented before he passed on would remain in ‘our’ hearts. Our heart can be singular, referring to him only and it can also have a plural meaning, referring to all the followers of Akeredolu. This is the normal language of every servant leader and therefore quite noteworthy. 

Grosso modo, the demise of any VIP also enhances security, as it is always beefed up when a VIP is visiting a place. Access roads to such a place and the security of the place, etc. are always given a face lift. And more interestingly, the venues and the church chosen for the funeral service cannot but always take advantage of the presence of the VIPs in seeking for development assistance. This was the very case with the Cathedral of Saint Andrews, Owo which hosted the funeral service.

A second question is whether there is really death? True, there is death but which death are we talking about? The Eckankar church does not believe in death because of the consideration that the soul never dies. Lobsang Rampa, the pen name of Cyril Henry Hoskin (8 April 1910 – 25 January 1981), has authored many novels, especially his The Third Eye, in which he showed that there is life after death. If there is life after death, what then is the meaning of death that only leads to another life?

Thirdly, is death more important than burial in terms of social preparation and laying to rest? Is it the act of burial that is more important than the celebration of death and burying? Apart from the fact of inevitability of death, as prescribed by God, which is more of concern, the struggle against death or the struggle to bury? Akeredolu struggled to combat death in a German hospital but to no avail. In other words, everyone accepts that death is inevitable but no one wants to die now or later. Pastors preach the sermons of beautiful mansions in heaven. God’s Paradise is presented as another el dorado, yet, no one wants to live the inclement world of devilishness and wickedness. In fact, no one talks evil of the dead. Every one prays that death should be for the future over which no one has control. But the history of Arakunrin Akeredolu is a truism. He left a good record and he reportedly anointed a successor, Honourable Wale Akinterinwa.

Fourthly, Arakunrin Akeredolu reportedly died on Wednesday, 27 December 2023 at 2 am at a German hospital. We contend here that he already died on the very day the Fulani herdsmen detonated a bomb and killed more than 40 people at the Saint Francis Catholic Church in Owo in 2022. In that year, Arakunrin was the only South-Western Governor who openly and defiantly resisted the invasion of the Fulani herdsmen. He opposed President Muhammadu Buhari (PMB) who came up with various policies to justify why the Fulani herdsmen should have the right to settle in any part of Nigeria. PMB first came up with the re-interpretation of the 1978 Land Use Act which vested right of sovereignty over land on the states and not on the Federal Government. PMB again came up with the RUGA policy in 2019, purportedly with the intention to reduce herder-farmer conflicts, but all to no avail. Besides, the Fulani herders freely carried and still carry AK 47 rifles while the Amotekun security agents would not be allowed to carry same. Akeredolu was not happy with this. The herdsmen knew much about this and appeared to have decided to punish him by attacking his people. Arakunrin Akeredolu did not relent in resisting the herdsmen onslaught. It is against this background that his demise and burial should be appreciated and considered very sorrowful, especially by the Yoruba South West. It is also against this consideration that the foreign policy implications should be explicated.

Foreign Policy Implications

The death and burial of ‘Mr. Talk and Do’ first raised the question of time diplomacy, and particularly the so-called African time. Arakunrin Akeredolu’s corpse was brought into the Cathedral of Saint Andrews, Owo after the church service had started. It was particularly noteworthy that the church service began at 10.01am a minute after the scheduled time. The promptness reflected discipline, good character building, patriotic personality building, and most importantly, godliness-building by the church. Many Nigerians wrongly believe that the time when scheduled flights were delayed because of ministers had been thrown to the garbage of history. They also wrongly believed that nothing could be successfully done to contain the societal indiscipline. 

However, the spiritual discipline always introduced by the Anglican churches, without fear or favour, has now proved them wrong. Societal ills in Nigeria can always be addressed if leadership by example, as shown by the Cathedral of Saint Andrews in Imola, Owo, is emulated. The culture of delaying events is still in vogue and should be eschewed on a permanent basis. The commencement of the service at the scheduled time is a good effort made by the Anglican Church to rid the society of societal ills. It is therefore a clear message to government to accept that timeliness is the soul of business. 

We are not unaware of the fact that very senior government officials can be simultaneously seized with many government assignments. In such a situation, the principle of priority of all priorities should be adopted to allow for respect for timeliness in other commitments.

Imagine! The church service had started before the host Governor, Lucky Àiyédàtiwa and  President Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who was represented by his Vice, Mallam Kashim Shettima arrived. Competent sources have it that the host governor was at the Akure Airport to receive the Vice President. There is no reason why the Vice President should be arriving late. The Ondo State Governor had to receive the Vice President by rule of protocol. Why is it that leaders of other countries are always able to keep appointed times and Nigerian leaders are always giving excuses? 

It is interesting to note the several arrival of planes in Akure, one having to wait for another to be cleared. Akure was, indeed, a terra cognita of who was who in Nigeria at the airport. In Owo, more than ten state governors were present. One can imagine the côterie of personalities and cortège of convoys along Akure-Owo route. Indeed, the road from Akure to Owo witnessed various sirens, long and short convoys, and planted security agents about one kilometer from one another until the Emure Junction. The tight security on the road was to the extent that no kidnapper would have dared to come to the neighbourhood. All these environmental factors might have explained the late arrival of some very important dignitaries.

However, can these factors serve the purposes of diplomatic justification? In diplomatic practice, time is time. Does the arrival of the vice-president portray him well, and particularly the image of the president who he represented? What is the image implication for the Tinubu administration? President Tinubu currently has a diplomacy of 4-Ds, that is, Development, Democracy, Demography, and Diaspora. It has become necessary to also predicate the 4-Ds on time diplomacy and all Nigerians should be encouraged to cultivate the culture of timeliness in whatever they engage in. In fact, in many advanced countries, the achievement of development projects or goals are also given time within which to get the projects completed. They are generally organized into immediate, medium, and long term periods.

A related diplomatic question is the issue of observation of protocols. Unnecessary long observation of protocols that are again repeated by several speakers could not in any way be said to be befitting. The church moderator was unnecessarily too long. He, in fact, breached the rule of order of precedence, especially when he had almost completed reading his protocol list and names of other important people were still brought to his notice for recognition. 

It is important to note here that it is quite wrong to say or observe all protocols. Protocol can be synonymous with agreement. It is not possible to want to respect all protocolar agreements. Even when protocol is used to refer to order of precedence, unless one is looking at established protocol based on attendance at an event, it cannot but be very difficult to establish an accurate list based on seniority. Order of Precedence is, stricto sensu, defined by the rule of seniority. The moment the church established a standard, even if it was long, the ideal thing is for all subsequent speakers to stand on the already established protocol. And if another style is to be adopted, the time for protocol observation should not be longer than the time for discussion of points to be raised.

The sermon delivered at the funeral service was very Godly in design, objective in delivery, and also diplomatic in implication.  In his sermon, titled ‘Life is Brief,’ the Dean of Church of Nigeria, from Anglican Bishop of Ikwerre, Rivers State, Most Reverend Dr. Blessing Enyindah, who represented the Primate of the Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, Most Reverend, Dr. Henry Ndukuba, asked President Tinubu to make meaningful efforts towards revamping Nigeria’s economy. He said that there was the urgent need to reduce the sufferings of Nigerians and save the country from impending danger.

As he put it, ‘May I on behalf of Nigerians pray and call on the President, Senator Bola Tinubu, to do something to reduce the hardship faced by Nigerians. We have the hope he would do it because he promised us renewed hope and according to him, it is his turn, so the turn and opportunity has been given to him now. We are waiting and expecting the fulfillment of the renewed hope. We plead with him to do it fast, because time, that is, four or eight years, as the case may be, is brief and the time is running.’

This is the political aspect of the sermon which is quite interesting. It was a message to the president to keep his promise and to give meaning to his renewed hope. More interestingly, President Tinubu campaigned on the basis that it was his turn to govern Nigeria, ‘Emi lokan’ implying that he had been planning for his presidency. The international community already relied heavily on this factor. Consequently, with the current socio-economic problems, the church is now wearing the shoes of the common man to serve as an advocate and solicitor in the quest for good governance in Nigeria. People have tried to exonerate PBAT from the various problems confronting Nigerians, arguing that the problems were inherited.

What should also be noted is that the funeral service lasted for fewer hours while the politics of development of the church lasted longer. The church made it clear that Arakunrin Akeredolu was very critical to the making of the Medical Diagnosis Centre to which the deceased had played active parts when he was alive. In fact, Arakunrin Akeredolu was the Pro-Chancellor of the church. In light of this, the need to sustain his legacy was emphasised. All the governors were called upon to assist. Governor Aiyedatiwa accepted the responsibility to coordinate the project with all his colleagues. And most interestingly, Akeredolu has come and has gone. Who will succeed him? Is it the incumbent governor or Wale Akinterinwa, who reportedly had been anointed by Arakunrin Akeredolu before he passed away? Will Owo people prefer the Deputy Governor or the anointed candidate of the deceased? In terms of strategic calculations, Governor Aiyedatiwa appointed his deputy from Owo, either in appreciation of Akeredolu’s goodwill to him or in terms of his electoral strategy come November 2024. Appointing his deputy from Owo is also saying that if he gets the mandate of the APC, he will expect all the people of Owo kingdom to vote for him. The critical problem is that the governor also comes from the same Senatorial District as Wale Akinterinwa whose people are saying that no one in their area has ever been given the opportunity to serve as governor and are therefore compelling Wale Akinterinwa to contest. This cannot but createssss a sharp division in the Senatorial District. At the reception in Owo, Wale Akinterinwa showed the gathering that governorship is not a child’s play. But as Jimmy Cliff said, ‘time will tell.’