Obadiah Mailafia: dies

Obadiah Mailafia, a former deputy governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, economist, politician and social critic is dead.

He was 64 years old.

Though the circumstances surrounding his death are not very clear as at the time of writing this story, it was however learnt that the presidential candidate of ADC in the 2019 general election passed on after a protracted illness midnight Sunday.

Mailafia had after the 2019 general election became one of the leading critics of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration and was also a columnist with several Nigerian newspapers.

He was born on 24 December 1956 in the village of Randa in Sanga Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

Former Minister, Femi Fani-Kayode described him as “one of the most powerful and progressive voices in our country,”  while confirming that he was informed of his death on Sunday morning.

“He was a great nationalist, a believer in Nigeria, a kind and gentle soul, a devout and practising Christian, the leading voice of the Middle Belt zone, a former Deputy Gov. of Central Bank, a former Presidential candidate, a graduate of Oxford University and one of the most brilliant men that I ever had the privilage of knowing,” he said.