The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, yesterday condoled with ‎the ‎Benin royal family‎, ‎Benin Traditional Council, Edo State government and the people of the state over the passage of the Oba of Benin.

Odigie-Oyegun, in a statement issued yesterday night, said he received the announcement of the passage of the Oba with grief.

The statement read: “Oba Erediauwa’s reign brought distinction, class, wisdom and integrity to the several centuries of unalloyed tradition and custom of the ancient Benin Kingdom; the traditional institution in Edo State and the country at large.

“As a ‎unifier, ‎Oba Erediauwa ‎used his revered position to promote national unity.”

The APC chief recalled ‎the Oba’s decades of meritorious and unblemished record of service to the Nigerian nation as a seasoned and thorough-bred bureaucrat‎, rising to the peak as a Federal Permanent Secretary.

He stated that Nigeria would always remember the Benin monarch, who protected the traditions and values of his people and who was also a champion of national unity.