I will try to accomplish three things in this short message.
1. Express sympathy for the death in the Nwobodo family
2. Re introduce Mr. Jim Nwobodo and his accomplishments
3. Lament the degradation of political leadership since his time
My family and I express sympathy to Governor Jim Nwobodo and family for the loss of their son, Dr. Nwobodo. We know that all of us would die eventually, but the Igbo wish that sons should bury their parents, not the other way round, but life and death is in the personal control of God and we must accept HIS decisions on these matters. May God accept Dr. Nwobodo’s soul and grant him peace.
After Mr. Michael Okpara (MI), the next great leaders of Ndiigbo are/were in this order: Jim Nwobodo, Sam Mbakwe and Peter Obi. The first two dwarf the third by a million miles for the last governed but a small state with a radius of no more than 50 miles. Be that as it may, Mr. Jim Nwobodo and Sam Mbakwe learned from the master, Ogbuefi Nnamdi Azikiwe. As Mr. Obi Nwakanma pointed out Nwobodo was the political son of Azikiwe. They learned what public service is supposed to be and they both subordinated their individual goals, and family needs to public service. Since this piece is about Nwobodo, I will drop Mr. Sam Mbakwe off from here. I brought him in because both were healthy rivals and colleagues.
My comments are prompted by a comment by a writer that nobody should sympathize with Jim Nwobodo (Jim from hence forward) because if he had built a big hospital his son would not have died. The writer did not know Jim, or has a very short memory, or is just one of those… Here is a short list of Jim’s legacy in a mere 4 years of service:
a. He built Anambra University of Science and Technology, now ESUT, Nnamdi Azikiwe University which gave birth to University of Uli. Each of these universities now has a reputable college of medicine. He also built College of Education Eha-Amufu. No new public (state) funded university has been built from the scratch in Enugu and Anambra states since his time. As big as these accomplishments are what I remember Jim most about is the staffing of these institutions. He came here to Boston, to recruit the foremost Nigeria educator Dr. Kenneth Onwuka Dike to nurse his new babies. He knew that Dike at Harvard was a colossal loss to Nigeria, and he brought him back to where he belonged, and Dike delivered as he was wont to do. Health and education in one bold stroke.
b. Jim brought back the Igbo pride. During the war Eastern Nigeria’s share of federal revenue was shared by the rest of Nigeria to their exclusion and after the war, the destruction was left for the Igbos to rebuild with just Awolowo’s paltry twenty pounds per account (please note that it was not to every adult as some people had written but to those who had accounts. In my family there were just three of us). The military rulers of East Central State, then Anambra and Imo States, helped themselves to the treasury. Remember Governor Akonobi who bled the old Anambra to death so much so that Mr. Onoh had to risk his life to speak out against a military ruler. Jim started restoring the Igbo pride through Rangers Football Club, via education as mentioned above, through road construction (Awka-Ekwulobia-Oko-Umunze road) and others. He inherited an empty treasury and left developments in both what is now Enugu State and what is now New Anambra state.
c. He developed the much neglected Abakaliki area now the capital of Ebonyi, lobbied the FG to rebuild Nsukka and restore the dignity of man. He brought back many Igbo refugees back to Nigeria to help him rebuild. My mentor, Dr. Humphrey Iroku was one of them. It was these returnees that helped him accomplish the many things he accomplished. He did not allow them to languish in the wilderness when their services were dearly needed at home. Each of these returnees were/are still indebted to him. When Zik ran for president to ensure that the Igbo view point was not lost in Nigeria’s debate he was a front line supporter and helped provide the votes that helped Zik remain Zik of Africa and the voice of the defeated Igbo still relevant in Nigeria’s dialogue.
I will leave his accomplishments at just these three: health and education; rehabilitation of Igbo refugees and pride; and road construction; but there are much more. I lament the lower caliber leadership that has become the bane of the Igbo after Nwobodo and Mbakwe. The least we can do is not to tarnish their images but to hold them up as the people who inherited from ZIK and MI and kept the flag flying. Perhaps it might prompt the present and future political aspirants to match or exceed their accomplishments.
Igbo kwenu
Written by Benjamin Obiajulu Aduba.
