Nigeria, March 16 -- Friends and admirers gathered at the Unity Fountain in Abuja on Wednesday to mourn the passage of the Nigerian-Canadian intellectual, Pius Adesanmi.

Mr Adesanmi died in the Boeing 737 Max 8 Ethiopian Airlines plane crash on Sunday morning,

The professor and PREMIUM TIMES columnist was among the 157 passengers and crew members who died in the crash which occurred shortly after the aircraft left Addis Ababa for Nairobi, Kenya.

Hundreds of Nigerians joined the gathering for a night of tributes and candlelight procession in his honour.

Those in attendance include the Senate President, Bukola Saraki; the senator representing Kogi West District, Dino Melaye; the co-convener of the BringBackOurGirls (BBOG), Aisha Yesufu;...