Nigeria Newspapers Online

Former Minister of External Affairs, Professor Akinwande Bolaji Akinyemi, has described late Edwin Clark as an apostle of a united Nigeria.

Clark, a prominent leader of the Ijaw ethnic nationality and former Federal Commissioner for Information, died on Monday after he reportedly suffered difficult breathing.

He was also a delegate at the 2014 National Conference.

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In a statement to mourn his passing on Wednesday, Prof Akinyemi who was the Deputy Chairman of the confab said he received the news of his death with a heavy heart.

He said he interacted with the deceased at close quarters for six months during the conference.

Recounting his interactions with the late elder statesman, Akinyemi said: “One of the things that struck me was that Chief Clark was not late for one day or one session during the entire session of the Conference.

“While he did not speak much publicly, behind the scene, his intervention was much and it was motivated by the desire to maintain a just and united Nigeria”, he noted in a statement he personally signed.”

The former Nigerian envoy said the late prominent Ijaw leader “used his extensive links with fellow statesmen to assuage emotions when those flew.

“He has earned the rest and may he rest in peace”, the former minister said.