The Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Monday, said it received with shock the death of Prof Ben Nwabueze, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria.
Prof Nwabueze who was one-time Secretary General of Ohanaeze and a truthful Icon during his rain.
The President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, in a release signed by the National Publicity Secretary of Ohanaeze, Alex Ogbonnia, regretted that the pan-Igbo group had lost many of its former leaders, ‘namely Professor George Obiozor, Professor Joe Irukwu and now Professor Ben Nwabueze’.
Iwuanyanwu reminisced the roles Professor Nwabueze played as a patriot in the service of the country.
According to him, “The numerous books and articles by Nwabueze on the constitutionalism stand him out as an intellectual genius. Beyond the services to Nigeria, the Nwabueze scholarship found a profound expression in re-engineering the Igbo into one socio-cultural umbrella body.
“Nwabueze was endowed with a magnetic mien, upright transparent disposition, disarming scholarship and an amazing public relation; the sterling qualities that helped to galvanize eminent Igbo to lend their support in nurturing Ohanaeze Ndigbo to attain an enviable global status.”
Iwuanyanwu praised Nwabueze’s services to Ohanaeze, adding that, “He was a rare gem with accomplishments in diverse fields; an erudite scholar with about thirty books, numerous scholarly articles and other publications to his credit.
“He has made history as the first Nigerian professor to be appointed a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN). He will remain a veritable source of inspiration to the generations yet unborn.”
It was gathered that Nwabueze attended CMS Central School, Atani, from 1938 – 1945; C.M.S Central School, Onitsha, 1947 – 1950; London School of Economics and Political Science, University of London, 1956 – 1961, and School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, 1961 – 1962.
He was a senior lecturer at Holborn College of Law, London; senior lecturer, University of Nigeria, Nsukka; dean, Faculty of Law, University of Zambia, and director, Law Practice Institute, Zambia, 1973 – 1975.
He was at a time Nigeria’s minister of education.
