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Sunday Ani
It was an evening of accolades on the exploits of the Great Zik of Africa, the Owelle of Onitsha; late Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe.
His unparalleled achievements in the political and economic life of his people, the Igbo, Nigerians and Africans at large, were brought to the fore. It was the gathering of the League of Anambra Professionals in honour of a man who did so much for the survival of the Igbo race, particularly after the Nigeria/Biafra war.
The event convened by Sir Nnamdi Nwigwe and hosted by the Chief Executive Officer of Chisco Groups of Companies, Chief Chidi Anyaegbu, with Oscar Onwudiwe as a guest lecturer, was put together to celebrate Zik’s posthumous birthday.
The event which was held on Monday, November 18, at Villa Angelina Hotel, Ikoyi, Lagos, attracted professionals from Anambra as well as their friends and well-wishers from all parts of the country.
Delivering his lecture, Onwudiwe declared that while others were discussing hate speech, some of them at Aka Ikenga had already started discussing the code of standard for any Igbo who aspires to public office. He revealed that a pamphlet in that regard was underway and that it would soon be out and distributed. “It is Nnamdi Azikiwe that is inspiring that pamphlet,” he added.
He also revealed that a new slogan in Igbo land which would have the acronym, WWZD, meaning ‘What Will Zik Do?’ would soon be launched. It is his belief that if the Igbo judge their political decisions with what Zik would do if he were around, things would get better because Zik, according to him, came with vision, wisdom, courage and compassion.
He commended Zik for introducing compromise in the Nigerian politics, saying that if Zik was rigid like Ahmadu Bello, Nigeria would have been thrown into civil war around 1959, much earlier than 1967. “But he saw more than that; he was bigger than Nigeria,” he stated.
Describing Zik’s qualities as unparalleled and novel, he said: “If we look at our president today, he only knows his kinsmen and tribesmen. Bu t look at the large heart of the man called Zik. His heart was beyond even Nigeria; it involved the entire Africa. It takes a large heart to be able to do that.”
He charged the Igbo to be wise by holding onto Zik’s accomplishments to rebrand the Igbo completely and let the world know that in truth the Igbo are accommodating and large hearted.
“There is so much about the Igbo. We have not told our story but we can start doing that using the Great Zik of Africa. He represented vision, courage, knowledge, compassion, character, consistency and large heart. If that is our father, should we be different? But we abandoned that and started a one-man show. Zik’s system of politics was that charity must start from home and that means that we should all be in one place, and use that as a bargaining chip. But, what do you see today? Our people are scattered in various parties fighting for individual gains; Zik never did that. What he did was to bring his people together and with that we bargained in 1959 and 1979,” he stated.
He recalled that when Zik celebrated his 90th birthday, the Indian President said: “Your invaluable contributions to the freedom of Nigeria and support for the liberation movement in the African continent are inscribed in the recent history of Africa.”
Lateef Jakande also said: “Zik’s great contributions which history will not deny him was and still is that he is a great and talented inspirer of men.”
Onwudiwe posited that Zik inspired many African leaders like Kwame Nkuruma of Ghana, Julius Nyerere of Tanzania, Jomo Kenyatta of Kenya and lots of others who became heroes in their various countries.
Onwudiwe noted that besides his intellectual legacy, Zik also established Aba and Onitsha to be the industrial and commercial hubs respectively in the old Eastern Nigeria. “And that was why by the time he was leaving office; the old Eastern region was the fastest growing economy in the whole world. Such is the height he commanded but today, you see some ignorant Igbo folks denigrating Zik, saying he didn’t do anything for the Igbo. But, I pity such people because this was a man who wrestled the white man to a standstill. Neslson Mandela was imprisoned for about 27 years by the colonialists, but Zik used wisdom to escape Madela’s fate. That is Zik of Africa for you. He was a colossus and should be celebrated by all.”
Anambra State Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Cdon Adinuba, represented Governor Willie Obiano at the event. He recalled the many accomplishments of Zik in his lifetime.
Recalling how Zik empowered the Igbo economically and educationally, he narrated how the Igbo were not attending higher institution until Zik’s return from the United States where he went for further studies.
“Zik searched for intelligent Igbo like K.O Mbadiwe, Nwafor Orizu and about seven other Igbo sons who were extremely intelligent and sent them to study in America. He sent them to America instead of the United Kingdom because the American education was practical-oriented. So, that the majority of Nigerians in America are Igbo is traceable to Zik’s far-sightedness,.
“The first steel company in Nigeria, Niger Steel Company in Emene, Enugu State and the first cement company in Nigeria, Nigercem in Nkalagu, Ebonyi State, opened on January 1, 1955, were all established by Zik as the Premier of the then Eastern Nigeria.
“Also, the first industrial estate in Nigeria, Emene Industrial Estate, was established by Zik. It was followed by Trans-Amadi Industrial Estate in Port Harcourt, still the handiwork of Zik. Niger Gas Emene, the first gas company in West Africa, was established by Zik. The first bank by an African, ACB, was conceived and built by Zik and that was what helped the Igbo to emerge from the ashes of the civil war,” he stated
He said the Igbo would have been in perpetual slavery after the civil war if not for Zik who negotiated a soft landing for them.
He said Gov Obiano has even approached the president to ask for a national holiday for Zik considering that all the African leaders that were inspired by Zik have national holidays in their honours in their various countries.
“Kwame Nkruma of Ghana, Sekou Toure of Guinea Bissau, Dr Augustino Neto of Angola, and Julius Nyerere of Tanzania among others all have national holidays in their honour in their various countries but in Nigeria, the man who inspired all these great African leaders has no national holiday to his honour,” Obiano, said the commissioner, had told the president.
Adinuba urged well meaning Igbo to start early to plan for next year’s birthday of the Great Zik of Africa. “Governor Obinao did not get the cooperation he expected from the other South East governors for this year’s celebration. But I have told him that he must reach out to the governors of the South-South zone also because Zik represented and worked for the old Eastern Region which includes the present South-South,” he submitted.
