Betty Akeredolu, widow of Rotimi Akeredolu, the late former governor of Ondo State, has rejected the state government’s planned memorial lecture in his honour.
The lecture, set for Friday in Akure, is part of a series of events marking the first anniversary of Akeredolu’s death on December 27, 2023.
The state government announced that famous lawyer Femi Falani (SAN) would deliver the lecture, with Bashorun Seinde Arogbofa serving as chairman of the Akeredolu Leadership Lecture Series.
However, Betty Akeredolu took to her X account on Wednesday to disassociate herself and her family from the incident.
She accused the state administration of failing to involve the Akeredolu family in the planning process and of not inviting them to the event.
In her post titled “Re: Purported Aketi lecture by Ondo Lucky can’t be serious!”, Betty expressed her discontent, saying, “Which legacy? Lecture, my foot! This is not for Aketi because my family and I are not aware. Damn it! As the saying goes: You and your co-travellers cannot shave Aketi’s head in his absence. You cannot weep more than the bereaved. This is insidious propaganda carried too far! Lucky, you are preoccupied with rubbishing Aketi’s legacy; you can’t succeed anyway.”
She accused the state administration of failing to involve the Akeredolu family in the planning process and of not inviting them to the event.
“Anybody close to Aketi and Arabinrin becomes your enemy. Your minions are scared to get close; otherwise, they lose their appointments. Now you want to pretend by organising one yeye lecture for Aketi’s memorial as an entry point to chop money on Aketi’s head. You are on your own! If this is not the #Yahoo #419 lecture, tell me what it is!”
Governor Aiyedatiwa’s Chief Press Secretary, Ebenezer Adeniyan, clarified that there was no conflict between the state government and the Akeredolu family regarding the memorial lecture.
The family was invited to the event, and Akeredolu, who passed away while serving as governor, was honoured with a state burial attended by the governor.
“Akeredolu was not just a family man. He was the governor of Ondo State. He died while serving the state. He was given a state burial, and the state governor attended all the burial activities in Akure, Owo, and Ibadan,” Adeniyan said.
“The state government is organising this lecture to mark the first anniversary of his passing, and an invitation has been extended to the family for representation. There is no dispute between the government and the family, and we are aware that there will be other events lined up to mark that anniversary.”
