Former President Obasanjo expresses shock over ex-minister, Audu Ogbeh’s death

By Samuel Solomon

A former President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, has expressed shock and sadness over the demise of former Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development and former National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Chief Audu Ogbeh, on Saturday.

Obasanjo, who is currently on a visit to Uganda, described the late minister as a peace-loving, unassuming, committed patriot and a firm believer in democracy and participatory governance.

In a statement by his Special Assistant on Media, Kehinde Akinyemi, on Saturday, the former president further stressed that the former PDP leader was “a man whose political career stretched from the military era through the present democratic dispensation.

“To this extent, he was the Deputy Speaker in the Plateau House of Assembly in the 1970s, Minister of Communications from 1982 to 1983, Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) from 2001 to 2005, and Minister of Agriculture and Food Security from 2015 to 2019. All of these serve as evidence of his faith in the prospects of participatory politics.

“Ever since, he built for himself an impressive profile of immense goodwill and affection among his people as a frontline politician and community leader.

“Chief Audu Ogbeh will be missed for his unwavering commitment to politics, governance, and democracy, as he made significant contributions to the re-establishment of democracy in Nigeria. His place will be very difficult to fill within his community, the state, the party, and the nation.

“May God console his wife and the entire family. May his soul rest in perfect peace.”