Late Onu, a patriot, unifier — Rep member

A member of the House of Representatives from Lagos State, Hon. Okey-Joe Onuakalusi, has eulogised the former Abia State Governor and elder statesman, Chief Ogbonnaya Onu, who passed on recently.

Onuakalusi, representing Oshodi/Isolo II Federal Constituency, described Onu as a man who ennobled politics with virtue. The Labour Party lawmaker, in a statement on Monday in Abuja, said that if there is any special trait readily noticeable in Onu, it is his calm composure and permanent exudation of sanguinity.

He noted that this striking feature of Dr. Onu’s is so infectious that many have testified they have hardly ever caught him in a state of unease or distress.

“Despite being a consummate politician, how Dr Onu managed to navigate the murky waters of active politics without amassing enemies to himself is, for many, the mark of genius. This is why observers say no one ever spoke ill or unkind words about Dr. Onu – a man known for his Spartan discipline and high ethics,” he said.

The lawmaker said Onu meant many positive things to different people. “For not a few, he was the paragon of dependability and constancy. His word was his bond,” further enthused Onuakalusi. He was steady, unfazed, upbeat, and unyielding like the Rock of Gibraltar. He pitched his tent with the opposition at a time when it appeared a politically injudicious thing to do.

“All through the transmogrification of the opposition from the All People’s Party (APP) to the All Nigerian Peoples Party (ANPP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Onu happily rode the ebb and flow,” he said.

The lawmaker said while his political peers easily jumped ship from the opposition to the ruling party and back for their benefit, Dr. Onu remained focused and content. “Hence, in 2015, his constancy paid off, as his party, the APC, swept the polls in a landslide. It trounced the then-ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) beyond belief at the general election of that year, following which Dr. Onu was appointed the Minister for Science and Technology.

“Dr. Onu was a man of conviction. He was also a thoroughgoing detribalized Nigerian. He was seemingly guided by the principles of unity, equity, teamwork, bridge-building, and compromise. Yet, he was an incurable Igbo romantic, playing a major role in the Ohaneze Ndigbo as a unifying figure.

“His leadership within Ohanaeze Ndigbo was a testament to his profound commitment to the welfare of the Igbo people, advocating for their rights and spearheading their socio-economic growth.

“He was, however, not narrowly confined by his Igboness, which he rather saw and exploited as a springboard for connection and friendship across Nigeria’s extensive ethnic bandwidth. Hence, during his first foray into politics in the Second Republic, Dr. Onu ran for a senatorial seat on the platform of the National Party of Nigeria (NPN) instead of the more ethnically tilted Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe-led Nigerian People’s Party (NPP).

“He won the governorship seat in Abia State not on the platform of the more popular Social Democratic Party (SDP), but on the National Republican Convention (NRC) ticket.

“Although he lived the greater part of his life as a career politician, he never lost touch with his roots as an academic and lover of education and mentorship of the young. He remained a teacher at heart and a scholar.

“This explains why his tenure as Abia State governor saw him establishing the Abia State Polytechnic in Aba and the College of Education at Arochukwu, while at the same time attracting the establishment of the Michael Okpara Federal University of Agriculture in Abia State, precisely at Umudike, near Umuahia.

“To be sure, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu was a graceful gentleman for whom the pacta sunt servanda principle was the lubricant of human relations. His disarming humility, integrity, humanity, sincerity, and rectitude distinguished him as one who eschewed inordinate ambition and was rather guided in his politics by patriotism and the ennobling need to serve humanity with the instrumentality of political office,” Onuakalusi said.