Afenifere Renewal Group mourns the passing of one of its key members, Dipo Famakinwa, the pioneer Director-General of Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) Commission.
In a statement jointly signed by its chairman, Hon. Olawale Oshun, and secretary, Ayo Afolabi, ARG said Famakinwa’s death is a huge loss to all of us in ARG, the entire Southwest region and all Yoruba people worldwide.
In the statement, Famakinwa was described as a single-minded passionate believer in the wellbeing and social development of the ordinary citizen, a cause for which he left his thriving private business to serve.
According to the statement, ARG in pursuit of its objective to reenact the development-focused and welfarist minded philosophies of the Awolowo era midwived two major institutions – the Yoruba Academy and DAWN Commission and as a devoted and committed member of the body, Famakinwa played key roles, with other members, in the planning and founding of these institutions.
“The DAWN Agenda may have remained a document on the shelves, like many of such in Nigeria but Famakinwa, following the adoption of the Commission by the Southwest governors, worked hard to give life to it and nurtured the seed to a blossoming tree that is now the model and go-to place as far as regional integration in Nigeria is concerned,” the statement said.
“The renewed fervor by Southwest states regarding regional integration and cooperation, which has led to smooth cooperation among Southwest governors, is largely due to the work put in by the DAWN Commission under Famakinwa’s leadership.”
“We take solace in the fact that he has written his name in the golden pages of our history. We in ARG and millions of other Yoruba people across the world will not forget his contributions to the development of our people.”
