Dr. Ikedi Ohakim, a former Governor of Imo State, has joined other prominent Nigerians to mourn a fellow compatriot, brother and elder statesman, Dr. Ezekiel Izuogu, who passed away on Saturday 19 July, 2020.
In a statement he signed today, he wrote that a lot had been said and written about this illustrious Nigerian especially concerning his pioneering efforts, more than two decades ago, at gifting the world with a completely indigenous made in Nigeria vehicle, Z-600.
Dr. Izuogu’s passage, as Ohakim put it, comes at a most significant time because it coincides with a period during which Nigeria, nay Africa, is passing through pains that would not have been as excruciating as we are experiencing had our past leaders paid attention to the strategic imperative of capacity building, whether individual or collective.
Engineer Izuogu, according to him, showed uncommon capacity that came from a combination of personal talent, training and exposure but which, unfortunately, was not harnessed; “for the same reason that makes our country a most vivid illustration of the metaphor of an aero plane which took off but never able to gain altitude. He certainly was not the only Nigerian whose ingenuity was so shoddily treated but his death at a period like this offers us a good opportunity for introspection.
Ohakim added: “Dr. Ezekiel Izuogu was also a brilliant politician who was never a victim of desperate quest for power or political patronage. He might not be the author of ‘Politics Without Bitterness’ but it was he who manifested its tenets in practical terms.
We can pay him no greater tribute than to strive, from now onwards, to uphold his most cherished ideals particularly that of a rancour-free polity in which the interest of the people takes paramount over personal ambition.
My family and I join other well meaning Nigerians to pray the good Lord to grant him eternal rest.”