• Honoured with 21-gun salute
• Okoh, Anglican clergy, others laud lifetime
With a 21-gun salute in his honour, the remains of the first civilian governor of Delta State, Olorogun Felix Ibru, were committed to earth at 2:43p.m., yesterday, at his hometown, Agbarha-Otor.
The funeral service at All Saints Anglican Church, Ughelli, Delta State, was presided over by 26 ministers including the Archbishop Metropolitan and Primate of All Nigeria, The Most Rev. Nicholas Okoh.
“Today, Felix Ibru is lying here. We should remember that he has completed his assignments. As a man of honour, he will be remembered forever. There are two churches, and he has gone to the second one to meet with his Father,” said Okoh.
Delivering a tribute, the Bishop of Ughelli Diocese, Cyril Odutemu, said: “The entire Ibru family are known as Anglicans. However, the personal commitment of Felix Ovuodoroye Ibru stands out in our diocesan records. He kept constant communication with the diocese. And even on his sick bed, he asked after synod and other projects of the diocese. We know that many never knew your commitments to God and His Church, but your Redeemer lives. And at the last hour, he shall surely grant you grace to fellowship in the company of the blessed.”
The event was attended by Delta State governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, immediate past governor, Emmanuel Uduaghan, and former deputy governors, Prof. Amos Utuama and Chief Benjamin Elue. Others include: Pa Edwin Clark, General Alex Ogomudia, Senators James Manager, Peter Nwaoboshi and Ovie Omo-Agege.
The first son of the late Ibru, Paul, expressed gratitude to God for his father’s life, and thanked Governor Okowa and the people of Delta State for standing by the family.
Okowa praised the late Ibru’s leadership qualities, admitting that putting into words the remarkable life and times of the elder statesman was no easy task. He added that the deceased would always be remembered as a patriot.
Utuama urged people of the state to find consolation in the fact that Ibru lived an impactful life and left behind an enduring legacy of service.
At a valedictory service on Tuesday, Uduaghan had said Ibru was a passionate Deltan, who worked relentlessly to ensure development in the state, crediting him with promoting unity in the Urhobo Progress Union (UPU).
“He believed strongly in the fact that the Urhobo must live in harmony with their immediate neighbours and other ethnic nationalities in the Niger Delta. As UPU President General, he was very concerned with the physical, economic, political and cultural development of the Urhobo people. Of major concern to him also was the level of environmental degradation that was going on in Urhobo land and other parts of the Niger Delta,” said Uduaghan.
Ibru’s greatest legacy, Okowa had stressed, is that Delta, besides surviving as a state, has continued to flourish as a key component of the Nigerian project, adding: “Felix Ibru will be remembered as a patriot, a man of courage and an extraordinary leader who always stood on the side of the people. His life reminds us that wealth and service are not antithetical to each other; that our true wealth lies in our willingness to give ourselves, our time and resources for the common good.”
Going down memory lane, Okowa said Ibru’s political acumen shone brightest during his tenure as executive governor when he weathered storms to keep the multi-ethnic state united.
“It was in this tense political atmosphere that Ibru assumed leadership of the state. It fell on him to douse the tension and mutual distrust that threatened the successful takeoff of the new state.
“It was his noble disposition, steely resolve and unrivaled commitment to fuse the different ethnic groups into a unified, coherent entity that undoubtedly laid the foundation for the growth and development of Delta State,” said Okowa.
