Let me begin by expressing condolences of Abimbola and I to Pastor Itua Ighodalo particularly and to the Ighodalo , Ajayi and all the families that gave us Ibidunni.

We sympathise with you at these very trying moments.

My Dear Brethren, I know our hearts are heavy and saddened with grief.

I can imagine how unimaginable our sense of loss is.

I can imagine how difficult it is to define how much we miss Ibidunni and will miss her.

Whatever the case, I beseech us not to cry for Ibidunni… because she is the butterfly.

I urge us to remember our childhood and our relationships with butterflies.

They bring colour, laughter and light to our homes but whenever we tried to catch them, they often defied gravity and flew away.

As we longed to touch departing butterflies and miss their colour, another child at another place is the beneficiary of the colour, laughter and light, that our departed butterfly brings.

And so I believe it is with Ibidunni; our butterfly in our Adult life.

She brought us a lot of colour with her flawless beauty, with her skills, her hardwork and her passion.

She lit up many lives at weddings, Birthdays, Receptions and other events.

At Christmas she did not only light up our State, she lit up the lives of millions of children who thronged the beautifully decorated sites, that she worked so hard to give us.

Her lights shone brilliantly across Lagos, from Ikeja to Falomo; Marina and Yaba to mention but a few.

Ibidunni has gone to the place where her light is now most needed, and she has left us with her unforgettable light.

Don’t cry for her, pass on her light.

May she Rest in Peace in the place that is lit forever.

Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN
Honourable Minister of Works and Housing