President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, has expressed his sadness at the news of the death of Professor Femi Odekunle on Tuesday, 29th December 2020.
In a statement signed by Ola Awoniyi the Special Adviser (Media) to President of the Senate on Wednesday, 30th December, 2020, Lawan described Professor Odekunle’s death as a great loss to the academic community and to Nigeria.
Describing the late Professor’s achievements, the Senate President said “Odekunle, the first Professor of Criminology in Nigeria, was a reputable scholar and an academic giant who imparted knowledge to his numerous students and served his country with his expertise in a discipline in which he was an authority.”
Lawan also recalled his immense contributions as a member of the Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC).
The Senate President condoled with the family of the departed professor. He also commiserated with the Government and people of Osun State and the entire academic community over the irreparable loss.
Lawan prayed for the sweet repose of his great soul and for God to grant his loved ones the fortitude to bear his loss.
The 77-year-old Professor was reported to have died at the COVID-19 isolation center in Gwagalada, Abuja, on Tuesday evening.
Prof. Odekunle, a graduate of the University of Ibadan in 1968, got his PhD in Sociology and Social Psychiatry from the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, United States, in 1974.
Odekunle lectured at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria in Kaduna, and other universities.
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