Dr Chukwuemeka Ezeife was one of the most colourful and traditional politicians in Nigerian history. The death of the iconic former Governor of Anambra State on December 14, 2023, aged 86, has left a huge vacuum on the Nigerian political space.
A popular politician always hailed by his traditional title of Okwadike, Chukwuemeka Ezeife was born in the historic town of bronzes, Igbo-ukwu Aguata Local Government Area in present-day Anambra State, on November 20, 1937.
He was not deterred by the lack of opportunity to attend a secondary school like his mates. He remarkably undertook private studies at home on his own through correspondence courses. His natural intelligence shone through as he passed all his papers and earned qualification for university education.
He gained admission into the esteemed University College, Ibadan and earned a BSc in Economics. A distinguished high-flying student, he then attended Harvard University, USA, on a Rockefeller Foundation scholarship. After earning a Master’s degree, he took a PhD in 1972.
Ezeife has served as a School Headmaster and as a Lecturer at Makarere University, Kampala, Uganda. He was a Teaching Fellow in his alma-mater Harvard University. He distinguished himself as a Consultant with Arthur D. Little in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.
Upon returning to Nigeria, he got employed in the civil service as an Administrative Officer and rose to the ultimate position of Permanent Secretary.
A highly principled and populist personage, he felt he could make the greatest impact in the field of politics. He pitched his tent with the Social Democratic Party (SDP) during Military President General Ibrahim Babanginda’s transition-to-civil-rule programme.
Ezeife was elected as the Governor of Anambra State, and served the state to the best of his ability from January 2, 1992 to November 17, 1993 when General Sani Abacha removed the Interim National Government of Chief Ernest Shonekan through a military coup.
As a Governor who put so much premium on planning, Ezeife ensured the transfer of Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka and Federal Polytechnic, Oko to the Federal Government. Most of the plans he had for the grand development of Anambra State got aborted by Abacha’s coup.
He returned to private life and bided his time while joining other progressive forces to challenge military dictatorship. A social democrat, he had unstinting belief in fighting for just causes.
In the 4th Republic, he was appointed the Presidential Adviser on Political Matters by President Olusegun Obasanjo.
A great defender of the people of the streets, Ezeife was appointed as a member of the board of Centre for Development and Empowerment of Commercial Motorcyclists.
He stoically paid the price when in February 2006 the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) bulldozed his house in Abuja.
He kept up the fight for just causes when in January 2010 he joined thousands of demonstrators in the streets of Awka to call for free and violence-free elections in the state.
Ezeife’s Think-Home philosophy is a worthy legacy that the Anambra State Government led by Governor Chukwuma Soludo, is taking further to ensure a peaceful and prosperous homeland.
Ezeife’s death on December 14, 2023 is akin to an iroko tree falling down. He left behind outstanding legacies for which he shall be cherished by all.
Written by SIR PAUL NWOSU
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