After a battle with cancer, legal practitioner, writer and editor, Ayo Odekunle, died on Friday.

Born in Nigeria before moving to Canada, Mr Odekunle discovered he had stomach cancer that was spreading fast and leaving too little time to contain when he arrived in Edmonton in 2020.

The cancer was in stage four when he passed on, as doctors have said his condition had become impossible to save.

Mr Odekunle studied law at the University of Ibadan, class of 2011, and was called to the Nigerian bar. Last summer, he was also called to the bar in Alberta, Canada, a feat he attained even after learning he was on his way out.

Condolences continue to pour in from notable Nigerians upon the news of his death.

The immediate past governor of Delta State and the Peoples Democratic Party’s vice presidential candidate in the 2023 general elections, Ifeanyi Okowa, expressed sadness over the news.

Mr Okowa on X wrote: “Ayokunle Odekunle (@Oddy4Real) was a rare young man.

“The insightfulness of his tweets, the passion of his support for our party and myself, and the intentionality of his actions that he shared with us online, showed that he was a young man that was already doing great things and was destined to do even more.

“Sadly, that young, brilliant and promising life has been cut short by cancer. This is why, it is with great sadness, that my family and I send our heartfelt condolences to Oddy’s wife Halimah, their two beautiful children, and the PDP family.

“We pray that the Almighty God grants the family that he has left behind peace at this difficult time.

Also, human rights activist, Deji Adeyanju, in a condolence message, said “Woke up to the sad news of Oddy’s @oddy4real passing. I am beyond devastated. Oddy was a super great guy & friend of over a decade. The only consolation is that death is the eventual outcome of every man. RIP my brother & friend. Thank you Halima for standing by him till the end.”

In his contribution, writer and political commentator, Japheth Omojuwa, said, “Ayokunle @oddy4real has had his run. He had a great run. He fought cancer long and hard. Discovered at stage 4, he defied different dates and when he was ready, he passed yesterday in Edmonton. I deduced his last message to me as him signing out, he was ready to go. If you followed him on Twitter, you’d agree he’d come to accept things too, even though he never stopped dreaming and never stopped living. He lived every moment of these tough months and was never sorry for himself. Don’t be sorry for him.’

“Khalil, Kamilah and Halima — his two kids and wife — are here. You can be kind to them. Halima will need every help she can get. Most people will ultimately move on from this tragic news and forget about Oddy and his family — it’s not wickedness, it is life — but now that we are about him, let’s do the best we can. Let’s do the most we can for his family. After now, when you remember, do it again.”