Ohakim said in a statement signed on Friday that the news of the death of Onu came to him as a shock.
By Jeffrey Agbo
Former governor of Imo State, Ikedi Ohakim, has paid tributes to the late first civilian governor of old Abia State, Ogbonnaya Onu.
Onu, who was also Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation during the Muhammadu Buhari administration, died on Thursday in Abuja after spending three weeks in the hospital.
Ohakim said in a statement signed on Friday that the news of the death of Onu came to him as a shock.
The ex-governor said Nigerians owe Onu’s memory nothing better than to strive to live up to those ideals which he cherished and lived for.
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“It is with profound grief that I join millions of other Nigerians to mourn my brother, a highly patriotic Nigerian and Academic Per Excellence, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu,” said Ohakim.
“The news of the passage of Dr Onu came to me with a big shock. Dr Onu was a fine gentleman, calm, unassuming and lived truly to the ambience of ‘politics without bitterness’.
“Nigeria has lost a rare gem whose maturity, brilliance and wealth of experience in national service is highly needed during this most crucial period of our collective existence.
“We shall miss him but we find solace in the knowledge that Dr Onu lived a worthy and exemplary life. We owe his memory nothing better than to strive to live up to those ideals which he cherished and lived for. May God Almighty grant his soul eternal rest.”