Prof Gregory Ibe mourns death of Dr Ogbonnaya Onu

Titus Maduako Eleweke

Member of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Presidential Advisory Council, Prof Gregory Ibe has bemoaned the sudden death of the first civilian Governor of old Abia state, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu at the age of 72.


Reacting to the demise of the former Minister of Science and Technology on Thursday, Prof Ibe expressed deep condolences to the immediate Onu family of Uburu in Ebonyi state.

He enjoined them to bear the loss with courage while reminiscing on the legacies of the former Governor.
"I am deeply saddened by the disturbing news contained in Thursday's edition of Tribune Online, conveying the sudden death of the pioneer civilian Governor of our state Dr Ogbonnaya Onu, at the age of 72. Let me therefore use this medium to condole with members of the Eze David Aba Onu family of Amata Uburu in Ohaozara Local Government Area of Ebonyi state, and enjoin them to bear the loss of our political leader with courage while reminiscing on his educational and political legacies. "
Recalling the last close contact and interaction he had with the late former governor, Prof Ibe described Dr Onu as "a peace loving man whose love for his land of nativity and the Igbo nation was exemplary", and prayed for repose of his soul in eternity.
"I recall his last visit to the 7th Convocation ceremony of our institution, Gregory University Uturu, where he was conferred with honorary degree by our college of Natural and Applied Sciences. Since then we have been in constant conversation considering strategies for lasting reformation of our national education curriculum as it affects Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics(STEM) education. In fact our last discussion on the subject only took place just last month.Thats why I feel so sad about this development"
News about the sudden death of Dr Onu, who resigned as former President Buhari's Minister of Science and Technology in order to contest the 2022 APC Presidential primaries was disclosed by family sources on Thursday" he stated.