As Iwuanyanwu returns, his footprints speak on, By Nosike Ogbuenyi

Like a massive oak, Emmanuel Chukwuemeka Iwuanyanwu’s (4 September 1942 – 25 July 2024) life tapestry cannot be comprehensively viewed from a single angle. At the time of his return to his Creator on 25 July, 2024, he was the President-General worldwide of the umbrella socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo.

He assumed the mantle of Ohanaeze leadership after the sudden death of its erstwhile President-General, George Obiozor, a professor and former Nigerian Ambassador to the United Nations. Iwuanyanwu’s footprints transcend diverse fields and sectors. I will dwell on few here for sake of brevity

In sports, particularly football, he invested so much. When the old Imo State-owned Spartan Football Club was on the verge of extinction, he acquired, revived and renamed it Iwuanyanwu Nationale Football Club which became popular at both national and international competitions.

Chief Iwuanyanwu played pivotal role in taking Nigeria’s football performance to its most glorious level ever when the Super Eagles dazzled the world. He was the Chairman, National Sports Development Funds Raising Committee that mobilized millions of naira that enabled the Nigerian Football Association to meet its its financial obligations for the hugely successful performance at the USA “94 FIFA World Cup and the winning of Africa Cup of Nations.

It was not only the legendary USA 94 Super Eagles squad and the AFCON winning team of the same year that the late business mogul helped raise funds to prosecute. He did the same in many other circumstances such as the building of Imo Airport. He did not just raise funds for the airport project but committed large sums of his personal to the construction of the airport.

One cannot agree less with the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who in his tribute aptly described Chief Iwuanyanwu as a statesman, patriot and champion of peace who contributed immensely to the growth and progress of not only Igbo land but Nigeria in general.

The late Champion Newspaper publisher offered premium leadership in many aspects of life endeavors. His ambience was charismatic and dignifying in both appearance and manifestation. He thus embodied honour, sincerity and philanthropy.

The intensity of his passion, candor and constant determination to excel was the secret of his heroic exploits in life.

His generosity and caring mien typified his essence as a rare leader. Through the Iwuanyanwu Foundation which he founded, thousands of scholarships were awarded to underprivileged students and others who excelled in their academic pursuits.

I was a beneficiary of his foundation’s scholarship in the latter category- academic excellence. The award of Iwuanyanwu foundation’s scholarship to me initially came as a surprise to my family members as I never applied for such.

Upon the conclusion of my second year at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, I travelled to Warri to spend part of the holidays with my two maternal uncles, Monday and Godwin Nwadialor who were employees at the newly built Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company. It was a deviation from my earlier pastime of spending the long vacation with my paternal uncle who was a senior salesman with the Maiduguri branch of Cadbury Nigeria Plc.

As I was in Warri during the long holiday on a particular date mid 1985, my attention was drawn to the publication of my name in Concord newspaper. I was not too surprised seeing my name among 19 undergraduates who were awarded Iwuanyanwu Foundation’s scholarship based on academic excellence in view of the fact that I emerged the best student in my department and faculty during my first year. The 19 of us were drawn from the then 19 states of the federation and I represented the old Bendel State in the list. Despite the fact that the selection was based on outstanding academic performance, the list of the awardees reflected Nigeria’s ethnic, religious and geographical diversity.

As the new academic year started in September 1985, signaling the beginning of my third year at UNN, three of us among the awardees from the UNN journeyed to the Owerri office of Iwuanyanwu Foundation. Sixteen other beneficiaries came from other universities representing the states of the federation. We all converged on Owerri for the official presentation of the award letters and bank cheques in the value of N1,500 each per academic year. The value of that amount is more than one million naira today.

I benefitted from the award for the remaining two years between 1985 and 1987 when I graduated from the UNN.

My special request to President Bola Tinubu is to immortalize Chief Iwuanyanwu by naming a prominent public institution or facility in Imo State after him. Federal University of Technology, Owerri (FUTO) comes to mind here. It will not be too much if FUTO is renamed EIUTO (Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu University of Technology, Owerri) by President Tinubu as a way of immortalising Chief Iwuanyanwu.

I concur with the Archdeacon of Ikoyi Archdeaconry of Lagos Diocese (Anglican Communion), The Venerable Folorunso Agbelusi, who said the late Iwuanyanwu was a blessing to Nigeria, a true leader who touched many lives whose legacy should not die with him.

Chief Iwuanyanwu truly symbolised courage of conviction, peace, unity, tolerance, tenacity, love, industry, philanthropy.

Nosike Ogbuenyi, a winner of Iwuanyanwu Foundation’s academic excellence scholarship in 1985, writes for Premium Times