The Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki and his deputy, Rt. Hon. Comrade Philip Shaibu on Wednesday led other government officials to pay their last respect to late Hon. Barr. John Olusegun Odubela (SAN), praising the contributions of the late legal luminary to the development of the judicial system.
Speaking at the burial service of late Odubela at the Methodist Church Nigeria, Diocese of Remo, Ogun State, Obaseki extolled the virtues of the lawyer, noting that he was committed to the defense of democracy.
Odubela died on the 15th of March, 2021 at the age of 55.
Others at the burial service are Secretary to the State Government, Osarodion Ogie Esq. and the Solicitor General, Oluwole Iyamu SAN, among others.
Obaseki said: “Segun can be said to be an Edo boy because since 2006, he has been part of our struggle for democracy in Edo, defending cases for the last 15 years. He was not just a lawyer but one who was committed towards the defense of democracy.
“He became a friend and brother, beyond being a lawyer. By next week, we will be at the tribunal for our final judgment but he would not be there with us; he coordinated our legal team through his efforts.”
Speaking on the state of security in the country, Obaseki said governors are putting pressure on the central government for a decentralized security system.
He added: “We have said that unless you decentralize our security architecture, we will not be able to secure this country the way we should. We are running a three-tier government, which consists of federal, state and local government.
“There is no reason why we should run a central unitary security system and until we do that we would not be able to get around the security issues, but in Edo state we are organizing our local vigilante; we are training community police men.
“Hopefully, we should be able to get permission to arm them so that we can secure ourselves,” he assured.
On his part, a former governor of Ogun State, Sen. Ibikunke Amosun, said that he aligned with governor Obaseki on security issues and praised him for leading a high-power delegation to honour the late Odubela.
The officiating Priest, the Most Rev. Dr. Adegbemi Adewale, described the late Odubela as a good man, urging his children to keep on with the legacy their late father left behind.