The 2023 Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has mourned the death of a former chieftain of the PDP and former Executive Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Cairo Ojuogboh.
Atiku described Ojuogboh as a patriotic Nigerian whose love for the country was unwavering.
Sources close to the former PDP Chieftain said he passed away on Wednesday evening while watching the AFCON semifinals match between Nigeria and South Africa.
Ojuogboh was a former director of projects in the immediate past interim board of Niger Delta Development Commission, he was expelled from the APC over his unethical conduct during the February 25 presidential and March 18 governorship elections. He was also a 2019 Governorship Aspirant in Delta State.
Reacting, Atiku said Ojuogboh’s death was a personal loss to him.
Posting on X, Atiku wrote: “The sudden passing of my close friend, Dr. Cairo Ojougboh, deeply saddens me. His love for our country was profound.
“Cairo was a shining example of patriotism; his dedication to Nigeria was unwavering, and his departure is a personal loss that leaves a void in my heart. As we mourn, let us remember the passion and zeal for Nigeria that defined his life. May his soul rest in perfect peace. -AA”
Meanwhile President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has also expressed sadness over the demise of the statesman.
Tinubu in a statement through his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, sympathised with the Ojougboh family and the government and people of Delta State over the tragic loss.
“It is with a heavy heart that President Bola Tinubu receives the news of the passing of Dr. Cairo Ojougboh, former Executive Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), who died on Wednesday.
“While praying for the peaceful repose of the departed, President Tinubu comforts his family and urges them to find strength and hope in God Almighty, who presides over the affairs of men, as well as in the cherished memories and legacy of the late APC chieftain,” the statement read in part.
