Republic Senate Leader, Dr Olusola Saraki.
The elder statesman died at the age of 79 years.
Gov. Abdulfattah Ahmed of Kwara, who announced the death of the
politician at the Government House in Ilorin, said Saraki passed on
in the early hours of Wednesday.
The governor declared Wednesday a work-free day to allow residents
of the state to receive the body of the late politician who died in
Lagos.
Ahmed also declared a three-day mourning period across the state.
The body of the late politician was expected in Ilorin at 2:00 p.m
while the burial was expected to take place at 4: 00 p.m.
Scores of residents had trooped to the GRA residence of the late
politician as news of the death filtered into the state capital.
Government officials, however, kept sealed lips on the death of
Saraki while many top public officers were sighted at the Government
House and the residence of the deceased discussing in groups.
The state-owned radio station, Radio Kwara, suspended all regular
programmes in honour of the late Waziri of Ilorin.
In its place, the station was playing different sound tracks
eulogising the life and times of the late politician.
NAN reports that Saraki was born in Ilorin on the 17th of May,1933 and
was educated at Eko Boys High School, Lagos.
He also attended the University of London and St George's Hospital
Medical School, London.
The late politician also worked as a Medical Officer at the General
Hospital, Lagos and the Creek Hospital, Lagos.
He first entered for the parliamentary election in Ilorin as an
independent, but failed to win.
After the election, he returned to his medical practice in Lagos, only
returning to party-politics in 1978/79.
In 1977, Saraki was elected as a member of the Constituent Assembly
that produced the 1979 constitution.
Also in 1979, he was elected a Senator of the Second Republic and
became the Senate Leader.
In 1983, Saraki was re-elected into the Senate on the platform of the
National Party of Nigeria (NPN).
The late politician in 1998 became a National Leader and member of
the Board of Trustees of the defunct All People's Party (APP) and
contributed to the party's success in Kwara and Kogi States.
Saraki was also to declare support for the PDP in the 2003 elections
and backed his son, Bukola, to clinch the governorship seat. (NAN)