By Valentine Amanze, Online Editor
The Anambra State government has expressed shock over the death of Mr Oscar Mbanefo Onwudiwe, the President of Aka Ikenga, the influential think-tank of Igbo professionals and scholars in Lagos.
Onwudiwe, 68, died of coronavirus (COVID-19) in Lagos.
In a statement by the Commissioner for Information & Public Enlightenment, C. Don Adinuba, the Anambra State government said that Onwudiwe’s death was shocking to the Igbo world, coming days after that of the former military governor of both Lagos State and the old Imo State, Rear Admiral Ndubuisi Kanu, who died of coronavirus (COVID-19).
It said the deaths underscored the ravaging nature of the virus in its second phase in Nigeria and the need to always comply with the precautions to check the scourge like proper wearing of the face mask, keeping of social distance of two metres and constant washing of hands with running water and soap for at least 20 seconds.
Onwudiwe was a senior lawyer with keen interest in public affairs and consequently developed a powerful sense of social justice. Of both Igbo and Itsekiri parentage, he was born and raised in Lagos and had close friends across Nigeria.
He observed early in life the systematic injustice which the Igbo people have been suffering since the end of the Nigerian Civil War in January, 1970, and so devoted much of his adult life to chart a new course for his people even at the expense of his professional and personal development.
He was the founding Secretary General of Aka Ikenga, but also played a significant role in the establishment of Ndigbo Lagos, which articulates, espouses and proactively defends interests of Igbo people in Lagos. There are more Igbo in Lagos than elsewhere outside Igboland. Therefore, it is imperative to have a powerful association of the Igbo in Lagos like Ndigbo Lagos, led by some of the most successful and brightest Igbo sons and daughters, to protect their interests in Nigeria’s commercial capital.
Onwudiwe was, in addition, instrumental to the founding of the League of Anambra Professionals, one of the most influential pressure groups of well-educated and successful Anambra indigenes. LAP began in Lagos, and has since spread to different parts of the country and beyond.
In recognition of his rare qualities, Governor Willie Obiano in November, 2019, appointed Onwudiwe to the Anambra Vision 2070 Committee, the group of experts charged with developing a strategic plan to make Anambra State attain the status of a developed place within 50 years, as places like Dubai and Taiwan have done within a generation.
The Anambra State Vision 2020 Committee is headed by the former Central Bank of Nigeria, Professor Chukwuma Charles Soludo, a highly respected economist.
Meanwhile, Governor Obiano and some members of his administration have spoken to members of the Onwudiwe family of Ifite, Ogbunike, in Oyi Local Government Area to commiserate with them on the death of their illustrious son, Mr Oscar Onwudiwe, who left behind a wife, Mrs Maureen Onwudiwe, four children and four grandchildren.