Sir: Today, two years ago, on the 29th of October, my most precious friend Olayinka Olasehinde Simoyan (Yinka) stepped away from his mortal body into glory and left me behind. I have found it most difficult and oppressive to have to write a tribute to my closest friend and a dear brother of over 70 years. Yinka was closer to me than any blood brother! We were together through thick and thin.

Yinka was always concerned about anyone I was concerned about and would do anything within his power for anyone who was dear to me. God gave Yinka a heart of love and concern for anyone that he met; that was the secret of his popularity with all people wherever he went.

When he was in Afribank, it was his desire to help anyone he could without discrimination. He was particularly concerned about Okun indigenes. He believed that if he was placed in any position, God did so to give him the opportunity of helping others!!! He exercised that policy to a fault! We shared the same philosophy that with the help of God, nothing is impossible! Even when some disappointed him he still continued with that philosophy of life.
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Yinka was always ready to assist people with his own possessions! This came out pungently even on the day he died! Many people testified that he gave them gifts even that day. When they learnt in the evening that he had passed on they could not believe the news. Yinka was very humble and very grateful to anyone who did him a favour, no matter how small.

Yinka was a prolific writer and a historian. He enjoyed and loved writing. I had the privilege of editing some of his works. He wrote as he talked, which made the reading somewhat difficult prior to the editing. He was completing his autobiography when he passed on! He trained as a diplomat.

Yinka was among the top of that special class that I first taught in 1951 at Central School, Egbe, Kogi State. At the time, the class included gifted young ones like Femi Kayode, Tunji Arosanyin, Albert Tunji Yeyeodu, Florence Agbana, Sunday Bamidele, James Olukosi, Matthew Ajamufua and Louisa Nwachukwu. They were all brilliant pupils ready to learn and very alert! That was the best group of students I had in my teaching career of over 40 years!

Yinka was a patriot! He was well known in Egbe and throughout Okunland. He was awarded several titles at home and abroad. He was one of the three Egbe sons given titles by the first Elegbe of Egbe. He was responsible for convincing Dumez Company (a French Civil Engineering Company) to locate their camp at Egbe. And he refused to take anything from them as a reward. He said his reward was that Dumez camped at Egbe.

Yinka was forever grateful to anyone who did him any good and would declare it publicly whenever the opportunity to do so presented itself. He would tell many others what you had done for him but would not say a word about what he had done for you. Yinka was a gem given to the Egbe community and Nigeria for over 85 years!

We thank God for His graciousness in giving to us Olayinka.

Prof. David Ayodele Balogun.
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