The death of former Anambra State Governor, Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife, came at a time when the nation needed him most. A message from the family signed by Rob Ezeife indicated that he died on December 14, 2023, at the Federal Medical Centre, Abuja. He was 85.
Born on November 20, 1938, at Igbo-Ukwu, in Aguata Local Government Area of Anambra State, Ezeife, fondly called Okwadike Igbo-Ukwu, was withdrawn from school after his primary education. He did not attend secondary school, as he ended up being an apprentice trader. Nevertheless, he taught himself through correspondence courses and later gained admission into the University College, Ibadan, where he got a BSc in Economics. He later attended Harvard University on a Rockefeller Foundation scholarship and obtained his master’s and PhD.
After his sojourn at Harvard, Ezeife decided to go into teaching. Due to the Nigerian Civil War, he moved to Uganda and became a lecturer at Makarere University College in Kampala. He was also a teaching fellow at Harvard University as well as a consultant with Arthur D. Little in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He returned to Nigeria after the war and went into the civil service where he rose to become a federal permanent secretary in the Ministry of Transport.
During the aborted Third Republic, he became the first executive governor of Anambra State, from January 2, 1992, to November 17, 1993. This was barely four months after the creation of Anambra State on August 27, 1991. He won the election on the platform of the Social Democratic Party (SDP). During his brief tenure as governor, Okwadike achieved a few milestones for his state. As an economist, he planned to develop Anambra like never before. His main target was urban development, industrial growth and improved health care. He championed the ‘Think Home Initiative’ that is raging now among the Igbo and encouraged well-to-do citizens of the state to invest at home. He was reported to have said that Anambra was naked and he would clothe it during his tenure as governor. Unfortunately, he was still planning to do this when the military, led by General Sani Abacha, struck and sacked the then interim government of Chief Ernest Shonekan. Thus, Ezeife’s dream was cut short. Before he was removed from office, he had succeeded in transferring Nnamdi Azikiwe University and the Federal Polytechnic, Oko, to the Federal Government.
Ezeife later became Special Adviser on Political Matters to the President Olusegun Obasanjo. He was also a presidential aspirant. He was conferred with one of the nation’s prestigious honours, Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON).
As a community leader and lover of Igbo language and culture, Ezeife was once quoted to have berated Igbo parents whose children could not speak the Igbo language. His former boss, Obasanjo, extolled his virtues in this regard, saying: “Dr. Ezeife was by all standards a distinguished Nigerian and a good ambassador of his people of Igbo extraction. He served his community faithfully and with distinction. He was part of the moving history of Anambra State, the people, their culture and their lives, and would ever be remembered for his favourable political disposition towards his kinsmen.”
Okwadike hated injustice and did not mince words to defend the cause he believed in. The perceived marginalization of the South-East in the scheme of things in Nigeria was one of the things that attracted his caustic criticisms. He was a strong advocate of President of Igbo extraction. He also spoke vehemently against manipulation of election results, and, sometimes, led demonstrations against some flawed elections in Nigeria.
The impact he made in the lives of people reflected in the tributes that poured in soon after his demise. President Bola Tinubu, while sympathizing with the bereaved family and the government and people of Anambra State, described his death as a painful loss. Former President Obasanjo described him as an unequivocal patriot with exceptional courage. He said Nigeria had lost an intellectual giant, a brilliant thinker and profound humanist. Saying the nation has lost one of the brightest stars in its firmament, Obasanjo affirmed, “I can attest to his patriotism, selflessness, integrity, humility and a sense of purpose – qualities which define the essence of his leadership.”
Anambra State governor, Professor Charles Soludo, described him as a man of many hats and a titan in the annals of Anambra and the nation. Ezeife, Soludo added, “was a bridge-builder, a voice of reason, and a tireless advocate for the unity and progress of Anambra State and Nigeria as a whole.”
We commiserate with the government and people of Anambra State, particularly his family in Igbo-Ukwu. We urge the state government to immortalize him by naming a major institution after him. We also pray that God will give his family and loved ones the fortitude to bear the loss.