The sky turned dark without a dot of star. No one ever thought that death could undo the man of conscience without much grey hair. We are in a period where each man fixed his eye on his feet and kindness is extended through the window without a little handshake. In the midst of the new normal, we heard the final stroke of the respected public intellectual, Professor Ebere Onwudiwe.
Professor Ebere Onwudiwe is a renowned economist, political scientist, writer, and promoter of Afro-optimism. According to family sources, he died on Saturday, January 9, “due to…complications of the global pandemic.” He was born on October 10, 1952, and is from Isunjaba in Imo State of Nigeria, where he recently held the traditional title of Mba 1 of Isunjaba.
Being an advocate of good governance and true federalism, he had advised the Federal Government to encouraged the state to generate funds rather than providing bail-out funds for them at intervals. Most of the states now relied on the FG bail-out fund than generating internal revenue for themselves.
He said, “What the federal government owes these badly governed states is tough love. It should make it very clear that henceforth, it will no longer bailout any state that receives the FAAC allocation. This because some governors have become addicts, hooked on Abuja manna. It is, therefore, appropriate for the federal government to enforce constraints on them.”
He was a holder of a doctorate degree in Political Science, he also acquired postgraduate degrees in Economics and International Relations. He held several local and international positions in his lifetime, including serving as professor of Political Science at the Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio, where he also became Director of the Centre for African Studies and Executive Director of the Centre for International Studies.
The late Professor Onwudiwe was equally a governance consultant at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and, until recently, was a Distinguished Fellow at the Centre for Democracy and Development, as well as the Lagos Business School. Until his death, Mr. Onwudiwe was a regular commentator on contemporary issues and a well-read columnist with West African Pilot.
According to Premium Times, One of his closest associates, along with whom he was a Fellow of the Abuja-based Centre for Democracy and Development, Jibrin Ibrahim, could barely contain his shock at the rather unfortunate demise of the renowned scholar. For Mr. Ibrahim, a professor, “the death of Prof. Onwudiwe is painful. He was a perfect gentleman, good friend, committed nationalist and fine scholar that so many of us will miss dearly. He gave up a high-flying academic career in the United States to contribute his quota to the development of his country.”
Another close associate, Pat Utomi, the founder of Centre for Values in Leadership (CVL), described the late scholar as a passionate intellectual and afro-optimist, who left indelible marks wherever he worked. Mr. Utomi, a professor, recalled their meeting many years ago, during one of the gatherings that Mr. Onwudiwe convened for prominent African scholars in America. He further described the late professor as a person someone who took particular interest in the challenge of Afro-pessimism and deliberately promoted a positive flip for Africa through his numerous persuasive writings on Afro-optimism.
Just about two weeks ago during a ceremony in Mr. Onwudiwe’s village, veteran journalist Ray Ekpu recalled how he met the late professor many years ago in the United States of America and persuaded him to come home. This was the call that he finally heeded on retirement from active teaching in the American university system.
The deceased is survived by a son, MbaMemme; daughters, Chinwe and ObiAwo; wife; and a number of other family members. Other prominent Nigerians like Rotimi Amaechi, the Minister of Transportation and Steve Azaiki of the House of Representatives responded in shock to the death of Mr. Onwudiwe and prayed to God for the repose of his soul.
Sam Amadi, a former Director-General of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), described Mr. Onwudiwe as a quintessential public intellectual, the news of whose passing is, “very sad and surprising.” To Mr. Amadi, “COVID19 has now finally hit home. It has taken someone who is so close. I have known Professor Ebere Onwudiwe for more than 12 years. I met him first at an international conference organised by the Harvard African Law Student Association and the Human Rights Program at Harvard Law School. He was one of the distinguished speakers. As usual, he was brilliant in his submission on democracy and development. But he won our hearts with his charm and friendliness. He cared so much about our work as graduate students and encouraged us in our passion to gain insights about the African predicament.”
Mr. Amadi further observed that “unlike some of the African scholars who are either pessimistic or unduly optimistic about Africa’s future, Prof. had clarity about the challenges of development in the continent but maintained (a) healthy hope that African scholars and statesmen have what it takes to resolve these challenges. It was love of the country that made Professor Ebere return to Nigeria to join other intellectuals and activists in the struggle for democracy and development. Until his death, he remained a firm believer in the future of Nigeria and the African continent, and through his writings, he promoted human rights-based governance.”
