On October 24, 2022, Kelechi Madu, QC, took yet another oath of office, this time as Deputy Premier of the Province of Alberta, Canada, while retaining his portfolio as Minister of Skilled Trades and Professions (previously Labour and Immigration).
Three years ago, precisely on April 30, 2019, Nigerian-born Kelechi Madu, QC, popularly called Kaycee by acquaintances, made history in his adopted country, Canada, when he took oath of office as Minister of Municipal Affairs of the Province of Alberta, with the third largest portfolio of over $3.7 billion.
But that was only half of the story then. Three weeks after his historic ministerial appointment, he also took another oath of office as a lawmaker, having been elected on April 16, 2019, to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta representing Edmonton South-West.
These were incredible achievements, no doubt. But for Kelechi Madu, the sky will only be a stepping stone, not the limits of his potentials for pulling off extraordinary feats, which explains why a year later – August 25, 2020 – he was appointed Minister of Justice and Solicitor General for the Government of Alberta and Provincial Secretary and Keeper of the Great Seal of the Province of Alberta. He, thus, became the first African Minister of Justice in a Canadian government.
That particular achievement caught the attention of President Muhammadu Buhari, who described Madu’s appointment as “historic,” and a proof that Nigerians are go-getters, who will always “distinguish themselves in different walks of life.”
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar said Madu’s feat was proof that “Nigerians are indeed global players with unlimited capacity to impact our world positively.”
But barely one year after this historic feat, there was a career-threatening setback when on March 10, 2021, Madu was pulled over by the Edmonton Police and issued a $300 ticket over an alleged traffic offence.
The Justice Minister, who felt he was unjustly profiled, called the Edmonton Police Chief, Dale McFee, raising concerns about the context of the stop – discussing people of colour being stopped by police and tension with the Lethbridge Police Service.
The Police Chief, who said he didn’t even know exactly what was on the ticket, admitted in a December 2021 interview with the CBC News that, “Minister Madu did contact me via the telephone, concerned about a ticket. But just to be very, very clear, he never asked to get out of the ticket.”
Yet, when the incident became public knowledge on January 17, 2022, there were calls for his resignation on the suspicion that he was trying to pervert the cause of justice, and he was placed on a leave of absence same day by Premier Jason Kenney, who appointed a retired Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench Justice, Adèle Kent, to investigate the matter.
When the report of the investigation which was received on February 15, 2022, was made public, Madu, expectedly, was cleared of any wrongdoing. But he was subsequently transferred to the Ministry of Labour and Immigration where the Premier said he will now lead “important reforms to the Alberta Advantage Immigration Programme and continued implementation of the Fairness for Newcomers Action Plan to help break down barriers to the economic success of immigrants.”
“It is clear from the report that his motivation in making the call was not to reverse the ticket but to raise broader concerns, particularly related to racial profiling,” Kenney said in a statement, quoting the investigator’s conclusion that Kelechi Madu “being angry, wanting assurances that he was not racially profiled are all understandable reactions, given the context of the phone call.”
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In his new position, Madu was also expected to “help deliver on the Alberta Work Initiative, a key part of Budget 2022’s plan to connect unemployed Albertans with available jobs through expanded training programmes.”
As if his vindication was not enough vote of confidence, on October 24, 2022, Kelechi Madu took yet another oath of office, this time as Deputy Premier of the Province of Alberta, while retaining his portfolio as Minister of Skilled Trades and Professions (previously Labour and Immigration). Again, another first.
“It is with humility that I announce that I was sworn-in on October 24, 2022 as Deputy Premier and Minister of Skilled Trades and Professions for our exceptional province of Alberta,” a fulfilled Kelechi Madu wrote.
“I am grateful to Premier Danielle Smith for her confidence and trust in me to help her lead our people and province. Premier Smith’s commitment and vision to defending Alberta, unequivocally protecting our charter rights and freedoms, ensuring the best economy and opportunities, as well as, protecting our most vulnerable population are ones that I share deeply… May God bless Alberta and may He always keep our province strong, free and prosperous.”
Kelechi Madu’s accomplishments in Canadian politics, where he has, no doubt, become a trailblazer, are awe-inspiring and magical. His peculiar circumstances make them even more so.
Born in 1974 into a rather large family of 11 siblings, Kelechi Madu, despite his naturalization in Canada, remains a full-blooded Nigerian. As at the time he emigrated to Canada in 2005 with his wife, Emem, whom he met as a student at the University of Lagos where they both read law, he was already 31 years. And he equally attended the Law School in Lagos and was called to the Bar in Nigeria.
Though his was a very humble background – illiterate parents, his father who died this year a nonagenarian was a petty trader and farmer – the Madu siblings, like most Mbaise people, were determined to better their lots in life.
Even at that, Kelechi’s elder sister, Mrs. Eucharia Anyanwu (nee Madu), with whom he lived in Calabar, Cross River State, while growing up, said he has always been exceptional.
“Ours was a very humble beginning,” Eucharia, who was this writer’s senior in secondary school, said when his brother was first appointed minister.
“Our parents were not educated and we didn’t have much in terms of material possession. Our wealth were the values of hard work, honesty, integrity and dignity, they gave to us. Kelechi was determined very early in life to be a success. His perseverance is unrivaled.”
That doggedness has paid off handsomely with a lot of firsts now safely tucked away under his belt.
Yet, despite this dizzying height attained by dint of hard work, he never forgot his roots. And that counts positively for him. When he won the United Conservative Party’s nomination in December 2018, the then party leader, Jason Kenney, extolled his sublime qualities, one of them being his ability to identify with his roots.
“Kaycee is a member of the Igbo Cultural Association of Edmonton and supports his community league activities and his church,” Kenney wrote.
Even as he continues to soar higher like the eagle that he has become, Kelechi Madu remains not only humble and self-effacing, but also a committed member of Mbaise Leadership Forum (MLF), a grouping of Mbaise sons and daughters both at home and in the diaspora formed to harness the enormous socio-economic and political potentials of the people and to rebuild Mbaise into a first world community in a third world nation, a community not defined or limited by geographical boundaries.
In a sense, Kelechi is a crystallization of the MLF worldview, little wonder his achievements have become a badge of honour won proudly by his people.
As news of his latest elevation in Canadian politics broke, Mbaise people back home erupted in indescribable ululation and congratulatory messages poured in.
Mr. Chris Ohanele, Moderator of MLF, wrote: “Hon. Kaycee, you continue to excel and we are the happier for it. Dr. Collins has today shared on MLF platform news of your elevation to the post of Deputy Premier of Alberta Province. Please accept my personal congratulations. May God continue to guide you and give you the wisdom to fulfil your huge responsibilities to your constituents and to the people of Alberta in general.”
The Board of Trustees of MLF is chaired by Dr. Sylvester Ugoh, the 91-year-old Harvard-trained economist, former Minister of Education, who also hails from Umuokrika, Ekwereazu, Mbaise.
As Nigerians continue to grapple with the consequences of a leadership recruitment process on the blink, it is heartwarming that one of their own – Kelechi Madu – is making giant strides in a country where character, competency and sundry skill-sets are the yardsticks for admission to the governance table.