Death scorns royalty like it does commonplace natives of the boondocks. The grim reaper, without doubt, shows deference to no one irrespective of class or social clout of its victims; little wonder it stole into the home of Prince Alaba Oniru, the immediate younger brother of Oba Idowu Oniru, just as it would, the home of average folk, to wrest his life off him. The dirge of life resonates again, this time in the household of Alaba. Death, the dreaded dialogue between the spirit and the dust has finally manifested like a dark pall, shielding the late millionaire’s mortal soul from the beams of life.
Alaba is dead; the millionaire philanthropist has gone to sleep where earthly crusts weigh upon the eyelids, keeping it closed six-feet underground. The Lagos prince, who was born on the 17th February 1941, died in December in the United Kingdom at the age of 75. In his lifetime, Prince Alaba Oniru was Managing Director of the Oniru Royal Family Property Company Limited. He was founding promoter of British International School; Chairman, Jajire and Ventures Limited and a Director of Global Trust Savings and Loans Limited; among others. With his departs the hopes of a world that had turned his life into part of its own projected unforgettable history and experiences. Alaba captivated and intrigued the world like few privileged humans has.
His grace and charm substantiates his irrepressible image as the ordinary boy who became an extraordinary icon for generations of Nigerians, irrespective of class, gender and ethnicity. He managed to enthrall us with his ingenious philanthropy and humane politics. Sadly he had to depart our mortal world at the age of 75.