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Like all mortals, erudite scholar and professor of law, Benjamin Nwabueze, joined his ancestors on Sunday, October 29, 2023. He died at the age of 91. A statement from his family indicated that Prof. Nwabueze lived an exemplary life of consequence.
Born at Atani in Ogbaru Local Government Area of Anambra State on December 22, 1932, Prof. Nwabueze attended the CMS Central School, Atani, between 1938 and 1945. He was at CMS Central School, Onitsha (formerly known as African College), between 1947 and 1950. He later obtained his degrees in law from the London School of Economics and Political Science, the University of London, between 1956 and 1961. He was also at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, between 1961 and 1962. He obtained his Doctor of Laws (LL.D) at the University of London in 1978.
Nwabueze’s academic brilliance was not in doubt. He did much in the area of research and writing. To his credit are many articles published in many reputable journals and over 10 books. Some of them include: Constitutional Law of the Nigerian Republic, Nigerian Land Law and Constitutionalism in the Emergent States, A Constitutional History of Nigeria, Presidentialism in Commonwealth Africa and The Machinery of Justice in Nigeria.
Prof. Nwabueze taught law at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), for many years. He was also senior lecturer at Holborn College of Law, London, between 1962 and 1965. He was dean, Faculty of Law, University of Zambia, in 1971, as well as director, Law Practice Institute, Zambia, between 1973 and 1975. He was appointed to professorial chairs in such universities as the University of Zambia, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, UNN, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, and Anambra State University of Technology. He also delivered many public lectures, which clearly distinguished him as an erudite scholar.
Professor of professors, as he was fondly called, Nwabueze was a member of the senate of the Universities of Lagos, Dar es -Salam, Nairobi, Lesotho, Botswana, Swaziland and Haile Selassie in Ethiopia. He was also the university assessor for academic appointments for Universities of Ghana, Lagos, Jos and Ife (now known as Obafemi Awolowo University).
Prof. Nwabueze was a firm believer in the rule of law and free and fair electoral process. In 1999, for instance, he persuaded Chief Olu Falae to contest the election that brought Chief Olusegun Obasanjo to power as President. Falae contested the election with Obasanjo. But Prof. Nwabueze saw the victory of Obasanjo as a monumental fraud. He also saw the 2019 election where Muhammadu Buhari defeated Atiku Abubakar as a disaster. He was among the eminent lawyers who stood firm for Atiku despite his age at the time. Atiku’s loss at the tribunal notwithstanding, Nwabueze distinguished himself in his profession. He was the first Nigerian professor to be conferred with the title of the Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN).
Before the advent of the civilian government in 1999, he was one of the strong critics of military regimes. He believed that part of the reasons for Nigeria’s backwardness was military incursion into politics. Perhaps, this was why he joined forces with others of like mind to force the late General Sani Abacha to abandon plans to transmute himself from military to civilian President.
He held different important appointments in his lifetime. He was appointed Minister of Education and Youth Development in 1993. Like many other ministers of education, he had some altercations with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), which eventually snowballed into the proscription of ASUU by the then military junta. He was a member of the Constitution Drafting Committee for Zambia as well as a member of the United Nations Study Group on the Constitutional Proposal for Namibia in 1977. He was the pioneer Secretary-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide and Oduah Afo-na-Isagba of Atani. He was a strong advocate for the restructuring of Nigeria.
Attaining the age of 91 in a country where the mortality rate is high and standard of living very low deserves nothing but celebration. Though we will miss the foremost constitutional lawyer and his positive contributions to the legal profession and our democracy, we take solace in the fact that he left worthy legacies behind.
Many prominent Nigerians have already paid glowing tributes to him. Among them are President Bola Tinubu; former Anambra State Governor and presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Mr. Peter Obi; Anambra State Governor, Professor Charles Chukwuma Soludo; and former Vice-President and the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 election, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.
Prof. Nwabueze was on the board of such companies as the United Bank for Africa Plc and SCOA Nigeria. A recipient of the prestigious Nigerian National Order of Merit (NNOM), he was married with children.
We commiserate with his immediate family, friends, well-wishers, government and people of Anambra State as well as all Nigerians who feel sad over his demise. We urge the federal and Anambra State governments to immortalise him by naming some institutions after him. May his soul find rest in the bosom of the Lord.
