… President Says She Was An Exemplary & Inspiring Trail-Blazer
SAN FRANCISCO, October 02, (THEWILL) – President Goodluck Jonathan has received with immense sadness, news of the passing away of one of the most eminent Nigerian female journalists and former Managing Director of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Dame Felicia Oluwaremilekun Oyo, a statement from the Nigerian Presidency said Thursday.
Oyo, who had also served as a Presidential spokesman to former President Olusegun Obasanjo, died on Wednesday, October 01, 2014, after a battle with an undisclosed form of cancer.
“On behalf of his family and the Federal Government, President Jonathan extends sincere condolences to her husband, Vincent, her children, Otome and Okiemuote, her surviving siblings and other relatives.
“The President similarly commiserates with the Nigerian Guild of Editors who Dame Oyo served most admirably as a two-term President in the course of her trail-blazing journalism career, the management and staff of NAN as well as the many colleagues, friends and protégés she garnered in her very fulfilled life.
“President Jonathan joins them in mourning Dame Oyo who having attained great success in a profession hitherto dominated by men, patriotically entered national service as Senior Special Assistant (Media & Publicity) to former President Olusegun Obasanjo in 2003 and served with great distinction as the first female Press Secretary to a Nigerian Head of State until 2007.
“The President believes that although she was already much honoured in life with accolades and awards including Officer of the Order of the Niger, Dame Oyo will always be remembered and continually honoured in posterity for her exemplary professional life, her inspiring leadership qualities, motherliness and generosity, her immense patriotism and her remarkable transformation of the News Agency of Nigeria during her tenure as the agency’s Managing Director.
“He prays that God Almighty will comfort her family and all who mourn Dame Oyo, and grant her kind soul peaceful repose in eternity,” the statement by Reuben Abati, the President’s spokesman said.
Remi Oyo Left Indelible Footprints in Nigeria’s History – Uduaghan
Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State has expressed regrets at the death of Oyo, stating that she left indelible footprints in the history of Nigeria.
In a statement by Felix Ofou, his Press Secretary, the governor said the late Mrs Oyo will be remembered for her pioneering role as a journalist, editor, media manager, community leader and ultimately, as spokeswoman of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
Dr Uduaghan pointed out that she excelled in various roles assigned to her as a thorough bred professional culminating in being elected the first female president of the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE), a position used in providing responsible leadership for journalists in the country.
“The highpoint of her career was being elected president of the guild (NGE) , a position she used in galvanising journalists for purposeful leadership role in the country. It is not in doubt that it was on account of excellent performance that endeared her to former President Obasanjo and the subsequent appointment as his media adviser,” he recalled.
Governor Uduaghan further noted that it was on account of distinguished performance that the former NGE president was subsequently appointed Managing Director of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) after her tenure as spokeswoman to the President.
He particularly applauded the simplicity, poise and humility with which she executed tasks assigned to her, ensuring that the media remained a pillar that could not be ignored in the country’s nascent democratic experiment.
“Irrespective of which political divide you belong, one fact that was visible to all was her determination to make the media relevant and sustain it as an important pillar of democracy. That is why I regret that she would not be around to contribute her quota in the transition to the 2015 general elections’, he added.
Governor Uduaghan asked God to grant the deceased family, the NGE, NAN, and the media fortitude to bear the loss and exit of a quintessential Amazon like Mrs. Oyo.
Also, Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State has condoled with family, friends and associates of the deceased over her passing.
The governor, in a statement issued in Ibadan on Thursday by his Special Adviser on Media, Dr. Festus Adedayo, said that the demise of Mrs. Oyo, who was also a two-term President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) in a London hospital on Wednesday, was shocking and disheartening.
“Mrs. Oyo was a leading light in the journalism profession in Nigeria. She was a professional to the core and had used her skill and dexterity to lift the profession and impact positively on the lives of upcoming journalists.
“Her indelible contributions to the soaring image of the Nigerian Guild of Editors during her two-term tenure as the President of the body between 1999 and 2003 cannot be over-emphasized as she raised the ante of the Guild and brought it into more reckoning in the scheme of things in Nigeria.
“Indeed, her brilliant performance at the Guild enhanced her appointment as the Senior Special Assistant to President Olusegun Obasanjo on Media and Publicity. This was aside her earlier appointment as a member of the 1999 Constitution Drafting Committee by the General Abdulsalami Abubakar administration,” he said.
Governor Ajimobi also recalled how the late Mrs. Oyo, a recipient of Nigeria’s National Honour of the Officer of the Order of the Nigeria (OON), turned around the fortunes of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) during her six-year tenure as the Managing Director, a fear which he said had endeared her to the entire staffers of the agency.
The governor described the late veteran journalist as humane, kind hearted, humble and pleasant, stressing that her motherly but intellectual approach to issues of national discourse had proved her as a patriotic citizen who worked assiduously to ensure an egalitarian society.
“To this extent, such a woman, who was a rare gift to humanity, should be celebrated rather than mourned as she lived a fulfilled life worthy of emulation,” he said.
Governor prayed God to grant the soul of the deceased eternal rest, and the family the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss.
Remi Oyo was a role model to professional women – Atiku
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has said the death of Remi Oyo, was not only a loss to Nigerian journalism, but also to Nigerian women at large.
Atiku, who disclosed this in a condolence message released by his media office in Abuja on Thursday, noted that the late former Managing Director of News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) had distinguished herself in her own profession as an excellent and hardworking journalist who rose to the position of President of the Nigeria Guild of Editors.
The former Vice President noted that Oyo’s rise to prominence in her chosen profession was a testimony to the fact that women could attain any position through excellence, once the opportunity was given to them.
Atiku Abubakar explained that the late Oyo was a pride to Nigerian journalism and womanhood at large, adding that she was a role model to many professional women committed to hard-work and excellence.
