Jide Iwuanyanwu, the first son of the late Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu who passed away on Thursday morning, has described his father as a man of many facets.
Jide disclosed this in a statement containing a brief biography of the President General of the Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide.
In the statement made available to journalists in Owerri, he described the deceased as “a renowned Nigerian businessman, politician and traditional leader.”
He stated: “Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu was born on September 4, 1942 in Umunakanu, Ehime Mbano Local Government Area of Imo State.
“He comes from a humble background and is his parents’ first child.
“He attended St. Patrick Primary School, Umunakanu, and then St. Peter Secondary School, Umuguma.
“He furthered his education at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics.”
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Jide further stated that the late Igbo leader began his business career as a trader in the 1960s.
According to him, Iwuanyanwu ventured into various sectors including construction, manufacturing and publishing.
“He is the founder and chairman of Champion Newspapers Limited, publishers of Champion newspapers.
“He also owns other businesses, including construction companies, manufacturing companies and real estate investments,” Jide added.
He explained that Iwuanyanwu joined active politics in the 1980s and was a member of the defunct National Party of Nigeria and later joined the Peoples Democratic Party.
“He has held various political positions, including member of the State Legislative Assembly (1983-1985) and Commissioner of Works and Housing (1985-1987),” he said.
He further stated that Iwuanyanwu contested for the Imo East Senatorial District in 1992.
Jide also described his father as “a respected traditional leader in Igboland” who was granted several chieftaincy titles including Eze Udo 1 of Umunakanu and Ochiagha Ndigbo among others.
He said he received numerous awards and honors for “his contributions to business, politics and traditional leadership.”
He listed some of his awards, including the Officer of the Order of the Federal Republic and an Honorary Doctor of Business Administration from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, and an Honorary Doctor of Laws from Imo State University.
He added that the deceased was a devout Catholic who was involved in philanthropic activities.
Jide said Iwuanyanwu died at age 82 after a “short illness” and was survived by his wife, Frances, and grandchildren.
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He said the family will announce the date of his burial after consultation.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Iwuanyanwu first declared his aspiration to contest for the Nigerian presidency on the platform of the Nigerian United Congress Party in 1997.
He succeeded the late President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, George Obiozor, who passed away in December 2022.
(YAYA)