The former President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Prof Joe Irukwu, is dead.
Irukwu passed on at the age of 89, and his death was announced on Saturday by the President-General of Amaokwe Item Welfare Union, Prince Harrison Okorie in Enugu.
Okorie said: “The Amaokwe Item Welfare Union on behalf of entire Amaba Ukwu kindred and the immediate family hereby announces the glorious but painful demise of our great patron, father, grandfather, son and brother, Prof. Joseph Ogbonnaya Irukwu.
“The Union on behalf of the Amaokwe Community, commiserates with the family and prays God to grant his soul peaceful rest.”
“The Union enjoined all Amaokwe sons and daughters to mourn the exit of this giant as we also remember to uphold his family in prayers in this moment of grief,” Okorie added.
Meanwhile, the Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide has mourned the death of Irukwu, describing his demise as a great loss to the Igbo nation.
Ohanaeze in a statement issued on Sunday by its National Publicity Secretary, Dr Alex Ogbonnia, said the Igbo apex body received news of the death of Irukwu with great shock.
He added that it had lost a "well-fulfilled man with a large heart; unassailable friendly finesse and amazing public relations".
The statement read in part: "The Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide has received with rude shock the sad news on the passing of one of our brightest, an accomplished legal luminary, moral edifice, insurance and risk management wizard, erudite scholar of world renown, Igbo leader and former President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Professor Joe Ogbonna Irukwu, SAN, CFR.
"Irukwu was elected the President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo in 2003 and he served meritoriously and bowed out in 2007. During his incumbency, Irukwu added colour, glamour, zest, robust intellect and panache to the Igbo umbrella socio-cultural organization.
"One of his works- Nation Building and Ethnic Organization: A Case Study of Ohanaeze in Nigeria, published by Spectrum, is an intellectual Magnus opus that fascinated the scholarly community in 2007 as one of the best sellers.
"In the same year, before the expiration of his tenure, Irukwu led other Igbo leaders to commission a multi-million-naira complex comprising of a 1,500-seater auditorium, library and conference room which he built single-handedly ‘as part of his own legacy to the Igbo man's quest for equitable recognition and accommodation in the Nigerian polity’.
"One recalls with nostalgia and immense delight, the social skill, wisdom and organizational acumen that Irukwu displayed in the face of the turbulence which was occasioned by the political intrigues that confronted his tenure as the President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo.
"Professor Joe Ogbonna Irukwu was called to the English Bar in 1962 and enrolled as a Solicitor and Advocate of the Supreme Court of Nigeria in the same year. He has held many top positions in both private and public sectors of the Nigerian economy.
"Irukwu resisted the lure by Dr. M. I Okpara, the then Premier of the Eastern Region, to join partisan politics; instead, he chose to pursue his dream of applying his knowledge in Law to build an enviable insurance industry in Nigeria.
“Irukwu painstakingly achieved his set goals and became a foremost risk management expert, Professor of Insurance, educationist, award-winning author and holder of many distinguished fellowships and academic awards.
"Above all, Irukwu showed a remarkable patriotism as a delegate at the National Political Reform Conference in 2005."
The statement added, "The President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Chief Dr Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, CFR (Ahaejiagamba) could not withhold his emotions on hearing the sad news of the demise of the great Iroko, a senior advocate of Nigeria and member of his Presidential Advisory Council (PAC).
"Iwuanyanwu lamented that we have lost a well-fulfilled man with a large heart; unassailable friendly finesse and amazing public relations. He added that Professor Irukwu was a quintessence of courage and character whose legacies in Ohanaeze Ndigbo will always be remembered with deep emotional attachments. He lamented that Irukwu has left him when his wise counsel is most needed.
"On behalf the National Executive Committee (NEC) and indeed all the structures of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, we send our condolences to the immediate family, the government and good people of Abia State.
"While we ask the Almighty to grant the soul of Professor Joe Ogbonna Irukwu an eternal rest in his bosom, we urge the immediate family to bear the irreparable loss with fortitude and serenity."