Tears all over moviedom for man of cinema, Eddie Ugbomah

Tributes have continued to pour in for the veteran filmmaker, Chief Eddie Ugbomah, who passed on last Saturday.

The Delta State-born filmmaker reportedly died at a medical facility on Lagos Island. One of his eldest children, Amaechi Ogunnibi (nee Ugbomah) disclosed that he would have been 78 in December.

Lagos State Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Steve Ayorinde, described the late Ugbomah as a committed filmmaker, who produced more films than his contemporaries.

“We didn’t lose him; he is only gone to rest eternally with his Maker. His films, his legacy, will remain with us forever,” Ayorinde wrote in a personal tribute.

A former Director General of the National Theatre, as well as National Troupe and current Dean of the Faculty of Humanities of the Redeemers University in Ede, Osun State, Professor Ahmed Yerima, described Ugbomah as a fearless and vocal critic of the establishment.

Yerima wrote: “Who will criticise us now? Who will be firm at us in our mistakes? Who will not care whose horse is gored now?

“Rest well sir, you have played your part so brilliantly well here. We won’t forget you in a long while.”

Trained in England, where he majored in journalism, drama and later in film and television production at the London School of Television Production, Ugbomah is undoubtedly one of the most prominent independent filmmakers in Nigeria.

A recipient of the national honour, Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON), he founded Edifosa Films Limited, a production company that produced 14 celluloid films, including The Rise and Fall of Dr. Oyenusi, The Mask and Death of a Black President.

Known in the industry as someone, who exhibited a felt passion for filmmaking and who envisioned a thriving movie industry for Nigeria, Ugbomah, who is survived by many children, passed on with his plans to publish a book, complete a documentary project and digitalise his films, so it could be available for the younger generations to see.

He also passed on with the plan to establish a hall of fame for entertainers, for which he had commissioned portraits of the inductees.