ON a day members of the Ibrahim Babangida family were celebrating the 70th birthday of the former military president, members of the Augustus Aikhomu family were mourning the death of the former vice-president to General Babangida.
Augustus Akhabue Aik-homu, Nigeria’s Chief of General Staff between 1986 and 1993 when Babangida was the military president, died in Lagos, on Wednesday, the same day his former boss clocked 70 years.
He was said to have died around 6.00 p.m at his residence, Forcado area, in Lagos.
His death, following a prolonged battle with prostate cancer, was confirmed by his younger brother, Rear Admiral Joe Aikhomu and associates in Lagos.
Born on October 20, 1939 in Irrua-Ishan, Edo State, the late Aikhomu had his education at Irrua Government School; Yaba College of Technology (1954-1958); Royal Britannia Naval College; Long Gunnery Specialist Course, India and the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, near Jos, Plateau State.
The deceased, who served as the chairman of Regency Alliance Insurance Plc, was a fellow of the Nigerian Institute of Management (NIM).
He was also a prominent member of the All Nigeria People’s Party (ANPP) and was in 2003 appointed the chairman of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the party before he later joined the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Meanwhile, reacting to his death, President Goodluck Jonathan said he received the news with shock and sadness.
In a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr Reuben Abati, on Wednesday, Jonathan said Aikhomu was a patriot, who dedicated his life to the service of Nigeria.
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