By Hon. Paul Ugbede Ebije
Usually, it is the death of a very close blood relative that invokes in most men a deep sense of loss and grief. But Libanius, the ancient Greek rhetorician, in his funeral oration upon his sovereign and friend, the Roman Emperor Julian, had helped put in the appropriate words an occasion such as this which invokes universal mourning over the loss of one individual whose unique life helped defined his epoch. Hear Libarnius:
O thou that dost fill but a little spot of earth by thy tomb, but the whole inhabited world with admiration…. O thou that art more to be regretted by fathers than their own lost sons, by sons than their own fathers, by brothers than their own brethren.
The death of my friend and brother Hon Egbiti Abu Sule aka Jagaban was a painful, slow and tragic death which shattered me and left me in stitches. Aside Egbiti being an important friend to me, it is excruciating that he has died after the much suffering he had to endure. Like the proverbial dry meat, it has filled my mouth with grief and left me utterly speechless.
It is with rude shock that I condole with the entire family, friends, relations, and associates of a quintessential political bulldozer.
Death no doubt is an inestimable end which must come when it will come. If it comes to a beloved one, the grief of all those affected as a result of the death can best be imagined, especially when it becomes very obvious that never again can such a fellow be seen or heard.
Late Hon Egbiti lived a fulfilled live that even the ‘deaf and dumb’ felt his impactful life while he was alive.
While ‘commiserating good’ with his immediate family over this ‘trying time’, let us not forget that late Hon Egbiti who was described by many as an erudite political leader was a father and mentor to many whose legacies will stand a test of time.
I actually tried to write a poetic tribute to him but emotion comes in to affect my choice of words as there is no figure of speech neither adjective that can best describe his personality.
Late Hon Egbiti as a father, a father turned to a mentor, a mentor turned to a teacher, a teacher turned to a friend and a friend to to a brother… While celebrating this life of Hero, I am forever grateful my path crossed with him.
Hon Egbiti, you were beautiful, you were a gift to me. I will always remember all the good times. Thank you for coming into my life and making me believe in myself. I will remember you as a warrior who fought to the very last. I will not forget you. I will honour you in my stories and in their perpetuation of our shared passions. I love you, sir, now and forever. Farewell into the light of God’s glory and that of our ancestors, where there is no pain. You live on in my heart sir.
Yours Sincerely, Hon. Paul Ugbede Ebije
Ebije is a former commissioner, Culture and tourism in Kogi State
