FEC holds valedictory session for Ocholi, fixes burial for March 18

Federal Government has fixed March 18 for the burial of the late minister of state for labour and productivity, James Ocholi.

The late Ocholi alongside his wife and son were on Sunday killed in a ghastly auto crash along the Kaduna-Abuja road.

Secretary to the government of the federation (SGF), Babachir Lawal, made the announcement during a valedictory session held by the Federal Executive Council (FEC), Wednesday.

According to Lawal, “though the burial is a Federal Government affair, the wishes of the family would be adhered to. A 13-man committee comprising of representatives of the federal and state government, the church he attended and his family. The FEC has also broken into sub committees that would plan the funeral.”

March 16 has been fixed for service of songs and plans were still on to secure the International Conference Centre as a venue. Ocholi’s body is expected to leave Abuja for his village in Dekina Local Government on March 17, and be buried on the 18.

Meanwhile, President Muhummadu Buhari has approved scholarship for two of the children who are still in school and Federal Government jobs for those who have graduated.

At the valedictory session, the President took the lead, describing Ocholi as a humble person who had agreed to serve under a professionally junior colleague during the merger period of the All Progressives Congress (APC). His contributions at FEC meetings were always substantial, whether or not it concerned his ministry, the President said.

Six ministers representing the different zones eulogised the late minster. The minister of labour and productivity, Chris Ngige, described Ocholi’s death as a colossal tragedy of unimaginable proportion. He said Ocholi’s skills had come to bear when he chaired the committee looking into the labour crisis with the Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU) and his last contact with him was on Friday, when he called to give a report on the progress of the negotiations.

Others described him as an organised, methodological, respectable man of character, a good listener with balanced views, a good man, and soft spoken, jovial, among others.

The Corp Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Corp (FRSC), Boboye Oyeyemi, briefed the Council on its interim report on the auto crash, blaming the crash on over-speeding.