Former Governor Agagu Dies Suddenly

Former governor of Ondo State, Olusegun
Agagu, is dead. He was 65. Eddy Olafeso,
former Ondo State Commissioner for
Information, said Agagu slumped and died
yesterday evening during a meeting at his
residence in Lagos.
Another source said the former governor had
been sick for sometime now, and had just
returned to the country after a medical trip
abroad. The source said further that when the
traditional ruler of the ex-governor (Orofun 1
of Ijodo, Oba J.T Timola) died about three
weeks ago, he could not come for the burial,
but only sent condolence message from
abroad, even though the late king was his
family member.
When contacted last night, the Personal
Assistant to the late governor, Sunday Oyepitan
said: “I am so devastated. I can’t talk to you
right now. He was hale and hearty. He came
back from the United States last week.”
In a condolence message friday night, Ondo
State Governor, Dr Olusegun Mimiko,
expressed great shock and disbelief over the
death of Agagu.
In a statement by the state’s Commissioner for
Information, Mr Kayode Akinmade, Mimiko
described the death as most unfortunate and
hard to believe.
“This news, to say the least, is most shocking
and very hard to believe. It is most
unfortunate and indeed a great loss,” reads the
brief statement.
Mimiko prayed God to give the family of the
deceased the fortitude to bear the loss.
Born 16 February 1948, he was Governor of
Ondo State from 29 May 2003 until February
2009, when a court voided his re-election as
governor on account of electoral irregularities.
He was a minister during the Obasanjo
administration.
Agagu commenced his elementary education at
St. Luke’s Anglican School, (now St. Paul’s
Anglican School) Okitipupa, in 1954.
In January 1958, he moved to live with his
cousin, Edward Fagbohun in Ibadan, where he
continued his primary education at Ebenezer
African Church School, Oke-Ado, Ibadan. In
1959 he transferred to Kano where he studied
at the Ebenezer Methodist School and Baptist
Primary School Sabon-Gari, Kano.
He then moved back to Ebenezer African
Church School, Ibadan where he completed his
primary education in 1960. Thereafter, he was
in Ibadan Grammar School between January
1961 and 1967 where he passed his West
African School Certificate and the Higher
School Certificate examinations. He was
admitted to the University of Ibadan in 1968
to study Botany but later changed to Geology
in which he graduated.
Agagu attended the University of Texas
between 1973 and 1974 for his masters degree
in Geology.
Returning to Nigeria, he obtained a Ph.D
degree in Petroleum Geology from the
University of Ibadan in 1978.