Funeral brochure of Ajie Ukpabi Asika, showing tributes from friends, associates and family. Including President Olusegun Obasanjo, General Gowon, T.Y.Danjuma, Chu Okongwu, Ukwu I Ukwu, Jibril Aminu and many others.

3. ContentsContents
Funeral Programme 3
Making of a Detribalised Nigerian by Nnabuenyi Edmund Byron Asika JP 5
Bio-Data on Ajie (Dr.) Ukpabi Asika 9
TRIBUTES
President Olusegun Obasanjo 12
General Yakubu Gowon 14
Lt Gen TY Danjuma 16
Alhaji Ahmed Joda 18
Alhaji MD Yusufu 21
Mr Allison Ayida 23
Chief Tayo Akpata 24
Chief Phillip Asiodu 27
Chief Osita Okeke 30
Chief Hope Harriman 33
Rev. Canon (Dr.) Magnus Adiele 34
Prof. Ukwu I. Ukwu 35
Chief Martin Elechi 37
Hon. Justice A.C. Orah 41
Mr Nwofili Adibuah 43
Agbalanze Society of Onitsha 44
Dr Eddie Iroh 45
Dr Henry T. Molokwu 47
Akosa Egwuatu 48
Paul Enenia Modebe 49
Chief Innocent Nwoga 51
Onitsha Improvement Union 53
Prof. Pat Utomi 54
Mr Jide Adibuah 56
Mallam Sidi Ali 57
Nwolu Odiamma 59
Prof. Syl Whittaker 60
Senator Onyeabo Obi 60
Dr Amechi Obiora 60
Chief Dr Alex Eneli 61
Sen. Prof. Jibril Aminu 61
Gen. Domkat Bali 61
Mrs Clara Taiwo Harriman 62
Sen. Evan Enwerem 62
Amb. Moses Ihonde 62
Chief Barr. Kingsley Ononuju 63
Dr. Eddie Mbadiwe 64
Dunu Chu S.P. Okongwu 65
CONDOLENCE LETTERS
Chief Achike Udenwa 78
Chief George Akume 79
Owelle Rochas Okorocha 82
Ambassador A.O. Esan 83
Brig. Gen. Dantsofo Mohammed (Rtd) 84
Dr. (Mrs.) Maryam Babangida 85
Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, OFR 86
Brig. Gen. David Bamigboye (Rtd) 87
Chief Emeka Anyaoku, CFR 88
Members of Ajie’s Cabinet 89
1

4. NEPAD Business Group - Nigeria 90
Prof. Turner Isoun 91
Rt. Hon. Irem Oka Ibom 92
Hon. Edward Eta Ogon 93
Chief Onyema Ugochukwu 94
Dr. Nnenna A. Orji 95
Ambassador I. A. Aluko-Olokun 96
Mrs. Glo Chukukere 97
Hon. Justice R.N. Ukeje 98
Senator Robert B. Koleosho 99
Chief Gogo Nwakuche 100
Princess (Mrs.) Stella A. Odife 101
Engr. Charles Ugwuh 102
Arc. M.J. Faworaja 103
Africa Leadership Forum 104
Anthony O. Mogboh, SAN 105
ASPMDA Lagos 106
Aka Ikenga 107
Brig. Gen. Abba Kyari (Rtd) 108
Chief (Mrs.) Julie Alale (Madam Rangers) 109
Engr. Dr. Sule Yakubu Bassi 110
Mr. Nnamdi Anammah 111
UNIDO 112
Umuoba Town Union 113
V.L. Akintola 114
Ide John C. Udeagbala 115
Ugbor Vincent 116
Rotary Club of Trans-Ekulu, Enugu 117
Aba Chamber of Commerce 118
HRH, Eze Egbu 119
Chief (Dr.) A.C. Eneli 121
Chief (Mrs.) Opral Benson, MON 122
Olisa Agbakoba, SAN 123
Engr. Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso 124
Chief (Dr.) Bayo Kuku 125
TRIBUTES FROM FAMILY
Nnabuenyi Edmund Asika 126
Kelechi Ejiogu 128
Eric Tagbo Odiari 129
Obiajulu Ihekoromadu 132
Enyika’enyi Ihekoromadu 133
Elizabeth Ukueku 134
Osarobo Bazuaye 135
Mrs Sylvia Akosa 136
Odera Onwi Bazuaye 137
Chinazor Okasi 138
Nnenna Onyewuchi 139
Data Chinyere Pax-Harry 140
Dr. Omboye Pax-Harry 141
Obiageli Pax-Harry 142
K.C. Akpoteni 144
Uju Asika 145
Nkiru Asika Oluwasanmi 147
Babajide Oluwasanmi 149
Obi Asika 150
Chief (Mrs.) Chinyere Asika 155
Acknowledgements 159
Final Words – Ajie Ukpabi Asika 160
2

5. ProgrammeF u n e r a l
Programme
for
Chief (Dr.) Ukpabi Asika, cfr
Ajie Ukadiugwu
FRIDAY 19TH
NOVEMBER
8.30 a.m. Farewell Ceremony led by President Olusegun Obasanjo, Abuja
1.00 p.m. – 3.00 p.m. Lying-in-State Ceremony led by SE Governors, Enugu
7 p.m. – 8 p.m. Cortege arrives at Funeral Venue, 22 Niger Drive, GRA, Onitsha
8.00 p.m. till dawn IKPOSU OZU
Ekwe, 42 gun salute, Egwu Ota and All-Night Vigil – musical/dancing
groups etc.
SATURDAY 20TH
NOVEMBER
8.00 a.m. IKPU AKWA/ITU UGO by Representatives of Eze Onitsha and
Ndi-Ichie Ume followed by traditional slaughter of Cow by Eze Onitsha.
9.00 a.m. – 11.30 a.m. LAST RESPECTS – IKPU AKWA/ITU UGO by Kindred groups,
In-Laws, Friends/Associates and general public.
12 noon ITU UGO by AGBALANZE ONITSHA
(N.B. All other activities are suspected while the Ozo-titled gentry pay their last respects).
12.30 p.m. – 2.30 p.m. LAST RESPECTS (continued) – Kindred groups,
In-Laws, Friends/Associates and Musical dance groups, Masquerade
displays etc.
3.00 p.m. NDI-ICHIE perform Egwu Ota (Royal Drum) Dance
(All other activities suspended until their departure)
6.00 p.m. IDU AFIA by Long Juju (private burial ceremony) and closing of casket.
* Traditional funeral ceremonies for Ndichie (red cap chiefs and immortals) of Onitsha are festivals of dance and ritual that
have been performed for at least 500 years. The ceremonies are less an
occasion for mourning and more a celebration of life, since in Onitsha custom, Ndichie do not die.
3

6. 4
The Psychological Meaning of
Ukpabi Asika
United we stand, divided we fall
Keeping Nigeria one is good for all
Play well your part for there lies your honour
A miss is as long as a mile
Be bold to be indifferent for a just course
I am for the unity of Nigeria
Administrators are born not made
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
Industry, knowledge and power will uplift Africa
Keep your head when all about you lose theirs
All is well that ends well.
Tribute by Students of Omu Aran High School, Kwara State 1972.

7. 5
Making of a Detribalised Nigerian
by Nnabuenyi Edmund Byron Asika, JP
Ajie Dr Ukpabi Asika was born to the late Edward
Obiozo Asika and his wife, the late Enyi Nwabunie
Rebecca Nwanyife Asika on June 28, 1936 in Barkin
Ladi, Jos. Both parents hailed from Onitsha in the
present Anambra State of Nigeria. Ukpabi, was
therefore, a Nigerian citizen by birth, and of Igbo,
specifically Onitsha extraction.
The Asika Family of Ogbeoza, Umuezearoli
Quarters of Onitsha is a member of the larger Isitor
Uyaelua Family, which is in turn, a prominent
constituent of the Ijelekpe Royal Dynasty of
Onitsha.
Ukpabi received infant baptism in a Roman Catholic church in Jos, when he was christened Anthony,
informally Tony. He was the third son and seventh child in a polygamous family consisting progressively
of three wives, six sons and ten daughters. Father, mother and both step-brothers are now deceased, as are
five siblings, namely, his eldest brother, lawyer Evarist Odiatu Asika (1915 – 1949), two eldest sisters, Enyi
Azumdialo Lady Joan Ozo Analo (1922-2003) and Enyi Nwakibie Felicia Chio Emodi (1924-2002),
immediate younger sister Enyi Okpuzo Phina Ebusieje Asika (August 1938 – June 2004), and younger
brother Edward Etuka Asika (January, 1948 – July 29, 1966).
Father had a brilliant career in the colonial civil service, rising in 1944 to the coveted post of Assistant
Surveyor in the Post & Telegraph Department, a senior appointment popularly perceived in those days as
a “European post”. Consequently, Tony and his siblings enjoyed a life of considerable ease and comfort.
His noble birth and traditional clout notwithstanding, Tony’s early and intimate exposure outside Onitsha
and Igboland effectively conditioned him to look beyond the narrow confines of his hometown and tribe,
and to see himself essentially as a citizen of Nigeria.
In 1940, Tony who was then only four years old, accompanied his mother and siblings to Onitsha on his
first ever visit. Mother and children all stayed with maternal grandfather and his family at Ogbe
Umuonitsha in the waterside area of the city. Shortly afterwards, mother gave birth to a baby, and her
attention and care were naturally diverted, albeit temporarily from her older children, namely Gloria, then
aged ten years, Sylvia (eight years), Edmund (six), Tony (four) and Phina (two). The person to whose lot it
fell to make up for the shortfall in care and attention due from mother was her stepmother, a delectable
and resourceful Kano-born woman named Aishetu who spoke her Igbo with a distinct Hausa accent. All
the children instantly took to her, but Tony would perhaps not have hesitated to adopt her as a second
mother, such was his filial attachment to her. All learned a lot from Shetu about the ways of our Northern
brothers and sisters, but none was left in any doubt that Tony was the most enamoured of the culture.

8. Maternal grandfather, the late Ononenyi Ogbologu Chukwudebe had met and married Shetu during
his extensive peregrinations within the then Northern Nigeria. Long before that, he had lived for many
years with maternal grandmother Enyi Nnabuenyi Omunwanyi Ukpabi and their two daughters,
Hannah and Rebecca at Baro and Yola. It was at Yola that Tony’s mother, Rebecca, learned to speak
Fufulde. Later, while living with her husband in Jos, Kaduna and other Northern Nigerian cities, she
also became fluent in the Hausa language.
In 1946, to stem the disruptive effect of frequent changes of school (due to father’s job at P&T that
sent him on transfers across the country), father arranged for Edmund and Tony to live in Onitsha,
first with with his cousin, the late Dr J. O. Onyeochonam and his family and subsequently with their
maternal grandmother. Edmund left Onitsha for Lagos in January 1948, in pursuit of secondary
education, Tony left for St Patrick’s College, Ikot Ansa, Calabar in January, 1949. After one year at St
Patrick’s, father was again transferred to Benin City and it was convenient to relocate Tony to Edo
Government College, where he completed his secondary education in December, 1953, having
qualified to receive a Grade Two Certificate in the Cambridge (Overseas) School Certificate
examination of that year.
Full years from January to December which Tony lived out, as a child, in Onitsha were 1941, 1946,
1947, 1948 and 1954, i.e. five years in all. Father died at the Creek Hospital, Lagos on June 12, 1952
while still in service as Surveyor in charge, Central Telegraphic Office, Marina. His widows and
children of primary school age thereafter settled in Onitsha. Tony was then in his fourth year of
secondary school and came to Onitsha to spend some holidays. Before father’s death in 1952, some of
Tony’s secondary school vacations were spent with the family wherever father happened to be working
and others with his cousin Francis Ikwueme who was District Manager of the Amalgamated Tin
mines of Nigeria (ATMN), based in Barkin Ladi, a beautiful suburb of the present Plateau State
capital. How Tony loved Barkin Ladi! He subsequently named one of his companies BLADI
Properties & Investments Company Limited and even planned to build a country home or retreat at
B/Ladi.
Tony’s pan-Nigerian outlook was also reflected in the composition of his many friends. Any attempt
to name all of them could impact invidiously on the many who might be inadvertently omitted.
Suffice to say his friends came from every part of Nigeria and from all over the world.
Traditional Role Of Ukpabi Asika In Onitsha
Kingdom
Ukpabi Asika received the Onitsha Ozo title of Akunne
Odoziobodo in 1980 and the Nzele or Ndichie titles of
Ajie, Ukadiugwu, Isagba, Idejiogwugwu in 1985. He was
not an upstart in the area of Onitsha traditional titles as he
only lived up to his noble pedigree; his paternal great
grandfather, Isitor, was Okwuagwe Alum; his paternal
grandfather, Etuka, alias Asika was Agba Oriogu; his
maternal great grandfather Chukwudebe (of
Umuanumudu, Umuasele Quarters of Onitsha) was Ede
Gbogbogaga; his paternal uncle John O. Asika was
likewise Ede Gbogbogaga in a subsequent generation, and
his maternal great uncle Akigwe Ukpabi (of Ezeolisa
6

10. family of Umuaroli) was the immediate past Ajie Ukadiugwu whom he succeeded in that office and
title in 1985. It is perhaps necessary to state that Onitsha chieftaincy offices or titles are neither
hereditary nor in any respect reserved to any family, but are rather conferred by the Obi of Onitsha on
individuals as reward for services rendered or expected to be rendered to kingdom or the country.
Until his traditional last rites of passage, Ukpabi will remain the Ajie Ukadiugwu, the second highest
ranking member of the Ndichie Ume, which is the innermost of the Onitsha monarch’s three colleges
of traditional chiefs, of which the remaining two are Ndichie Okwa and Ndichie Okwareze.
The college of Ndichie Ume consists of six chiefs, namely Onowu Iyasele, currently Chike Offodile
SAN, erstwhile Attorney General and Minister of Justice of the Federal Republic of Nigeria; Ajie
Ukadiugwu currently Dr Ukpabi Asika CFR, erstwhile Administrator of the former East Central State
of Nigeria and only civilian Member of the Supreme Military Council; Odu Osodi currently
Onyeachonam Okolonji, a retired Deputy General Manager of First Bank Nigeria PLC; Onya Ozoma,
currently Dr Amechi Obiora, Founder Director of the elitist Eko Hospital; Ogene Onira, currently
Prof. A.N. Modebe, a renowned Agriculturist and former university don; and Owelle Osoma,
currently Chukwuma Azikiwe, first son of the late Rt. Hon. Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe GCFR, who himself
served in the same office of Owelle Osowa with great distinction.
8
Ajie with other Ndichie Ume during the time of his investiture (1985)

11. Ajie (Dr.) Anthony Ukpabi Asika, cfr
Date Of Birth: June 28th
1936
Place Of Birth: Barkin-Ladi, Plateau State
Married: Chinyere Edith Ejiogu 1965
One Son, Two Daughters
Academic Career
1949-51: St. Patrick’s College, Calabar
1951-53: Edo College, Benin
1956-61: University College (Now University of Ibadan), Ibadan
1961-65: University of California, (UCLA) Los Angeles, USA
1965-67: Associate Professor, Political Science, University of Ibadan
Academic Honours & Award
1960: Prizeman In Economics, University of Ibadan
1960: Bsc, Economics, University of Ibadan
1961: Canada Council Non-Resident Fellowship for Economics
1961: Rockefeller Foundation Scholar, USA 1961-65
1963: US National Honors Fraternity In Social Sciences
1963-65: President, African Student’s Association, Southern California, USA
1961-65: MSc and work towards Phd In Political Science, University of California, USA
1970: Awarded Honorary Doctor of Laws, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria
1971: Awarded Honorary Doctor of Letters, University of Nigeria, Nsukka
Public Sector Work Experience
1953: Career Clerk, Onitsha Town Council
1953: Clerk, Department of Marketing and Exports, Lagos
1954-56: Clerk, Northern Nigeria Marketing Board, Kano
1967-75: Administrator, East Central State, Nigeria
1973-75: Presidential envoy to Togo, Senegal, Ethiopia, Sudan and OAU
1967-75: Member, Supreme Military Council of Nigeria (The only Civilian Member of
the Highest Ruling Body in Nigeria)
1973-75: Chairman, Technical Commtee on the Review of the National Census of 1973
1974-75: Commissioner for Economic Development and Reconstruction, East Central State
1985: Team Leader, Presidential Delegation to Niger, Chad and Cameroon to Re-Open
Nigerian Borders
1992: Led Lagos State Committee that Discovered New Towns Such as Ibeju-Lekki, Aja and
Eleko
9

12. Private Sector Career
1975-2004: Chairman/CEO of Bladi Property &
Investment Company
1985: Chairman, IndustrySkoda Limited
1983: Director, Guardian Press Ltd and
Guardian Newspapers Ltd
1992: Director, TNT Express Worldwide
1992: Director, Oilscan Nigeria Ltd
Traditional Titles
THE AJIE OF ONITSHA, AJIE UKADIUGWU
Ukpabi Asika holds senior traditional titles from all
parts of Nigeria and they number in excess of 100
titles. However upon his ascension to the rank of
ndichie (immortals) in the ancient kingdom of Onitsha
in 1985 he has not accepted any other title. He is the
traditional warlord of Onitsha and the number three
citizen in the royal hierarchy of Onitsha and one of the six chiefs who together form the Obi-in-
council.
National Honours
COMMANDER OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC (CFR), NIGERIA
ORDRE NATIONAL, REPUBLIC OF SENEGAL
ORDER OF THE TWO NILES, FIRST CLASS, SUDAN
Others from Mauritania and Togo.
10

13. Ajie at his 60th birthday
11

14. 12

15. 13
Ukpabi Asika, then Administrator, East Central State with then Col. Olusegun Obasanjo at a cocktail party in Enugu in1970.
President Olusegun Obasanjo congratulating Ajie after awarding him the Commander of the Federal Republic in 2002.

16. 14
TRIBUTE TO THE LATE DR. AJIE UKPABI ASIKA, CFR
BY
GEN. YAKUBU GOWON, GCFR, PHD, JSSC, PSC.
“All the world is a stage and all the men and women merely players, they have their exits and their entrances” and this is
Ajie Ukpabi Asika’s exit from the world and the National Stage in which he played a prominent and noble
role.
It has pleased God that a friend, a brother and colleague, Ajie Ukpabi Asika should leave us to a new
life beyond. We shall all surely miss him in this mortal world, but will never forget him and the
immense contributions he has made to the unity, peace, stability and well-being of his fatherland.
A consummate lover of his country and nation, he would sacrifice his life and all for the corporate
existence of his country, Nigeria. He passionately loved his country, Nigeria and her people and
particularly cared for his people, the Igbos and devoted his life to their well-being and success.
A brilliant scholar and political scientist, an intellectual of no mean repute, he relished and understood
the Nigerian political scene and terrain very well and was known to read it with dexterity.
I recall our first meeting in late 1967 when I was looking for a suitable person to administer the
liberated part of East Central State. A young man who looked more like a “fresher” was brought in to
see me. I was struck by his enthusiasm and intelligence and later by the show of courage in accepting
the monumental challenge put before him – that of accepting the risky job and task of administering
in a hostile environment. The courage, zeal and confidence with which he accepted the challenge was
disarming and endeared him to me. So felt anyone who met him thereafter. He understood his
assignment, to administer and reassure his people of their rights and privileges as Nigerians and to
ensure good governance for the people. He did just that and extended his authority as an
administrator to all the East Central State as it was liberated. He jealously guarded and protected the
interest of his people and ensured their well-being.
Through the period, during the civil war and after, he dutifully carried out his role as a good
administrator reassuring the people and restoring their trust and confidence in their country, Nigeria.
He undertook many changes and reforms to ensure that the East Central State, the Igbo heartland was
able to play their noble role for themselves, the country and nation at large. This he did to the extent
that soon after the
end of the crisis
(war) and the
implementation of
the 3Rs
(Rehabilitation,
Reconciliation and
Reconstruction), the
East Central State
was sufficiently
restored to enable
the state to fully
participate in the
National
Ukpabi Asika with former Head of State General Yakubu Gowon in 1971

17. 15
Development Plan (1975 – 1980) as an equal with all the other states. That was indeed a real
achievement.
I will also remember him as a great fighter and survivor. He loved life and fought to live. Many would
have given up when struck by serious illness as he was and few would survive it. He lived for many years
thereafter when most had given up that he would survive at all, he did so with his faculties amazingly
intact.
Ukpabi is a special person, a truly detribalized Nigerian with friends throughout the length and breadth
of the country. He will be missed by all, especially the beloved and devoted family, Mrs. Chinyere Asika,
Obodoechina, Nki and Uju Asika and all other relatives, friends and colleagues.
Ajie Ukpabi Asika has indeed lived a full and rewarding life, he played his role well and left behind a
legacy of commendable service and achievements that should inspire generations to come.
Adieu, brother Ukpabi. Rest in Perfect Peace. With love and fond memories from Victoria, Ibrahim, Saratu,
Rahila, Yakubu (Jack) Gowon and all colleagues and friends.
Former Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon, his wife, Mrs. Victoria Gowon with Ukpabi Asika, Mrs. Chinyere Asika, Obi and Nkiru.
The Gowons are godparents to Nkiru.

18. 16
RECOMMENDATION FOR NATIONAL HONOURS
Formal Citation Prepared on 16th
May 2002 by Lieutenant General T Y Danjuma (Rtd) (then
Hon. Minister of Defence), that led to award of Commander of Federal Republic (CFR) to
Ajie Ukpabi Asika in 2002.
1. Dr. Anthony Ukpabi Asika, the Ajie of Onitsha, was the Administrator of the then East Central
State of Nigeria during the turbulent years of the Nigerian Civil War. When we recollect the dire
circumstances of the country as this dark period of our nationhood, Asika stands out as one that
must be remembered in the annals of Nigeria’s history as a true patriot, a visionary leader and
political strategist whose most potent weapon was the belief that Nigeria must remain one.
Indeed, very few Nigerians would exhibit such level of patriotism given the inherent dangers that
were involved, but Ajie braved it all by going ahead to challenge the inevitable in the course of
Nigerian history.
2. Asika is a consummate intellectual, a detribalized Nigerian whose sense of values is of the
highest grade; a distinguished Nigerian who recognizes excellence no matter where it is from.
Born on June 28, 1936 at Barakin-Ladi in Plateau State, Ajie is married to Chinyere Ejiogu, his
devoted and loving wife. Their marriage is blessed with three children.
3. Ajie was educated at St. Patrick’s College Calabar; Edo College Benin; University College Ibadan
(now University of Ibadan) and University of California (UCLA) Los Angeles. He earned a
degree in Economics from the University of Ibadan, 1960. he added a Masters of Science (MSc)
and a Doctor of Philosophy PhD in Political Science at the University of California in 1962 and
1965 respectively.
4. An intellectual of immense depth, Ukpabi Asika has won many academic honours and awards.
Among these is the prize man in Economics, University of Ibadan which he won in 1960. He won
the Canada Council of non-resident fellowship for Economics in 1961. He was the Rockefeller
Foundation Scholar from 1961 – 1965. he again won the United States National honours Fraternity
in Social Science in 1963. He was the President African Students Association, Southern California,
USA – 1963 – 1965. He was awarded honorary Doctorate of Laws by Ahmadu Bello University,
Zaria in 1970 and an honorary Doctor of Letters by University of Nigeria, Nsukka in 1971.
5. His working experience covered a wide variety of fields of human endeavours and at whatever level
he found himself he proved to be very competent and dedicated worker. He started his career in
1953 as a clerk in Onitsha Town Council. Later that year he served as a clerk in the Department of
Marketing and Export, Lagos. he also served as a clerk with the Northern Nigeria Marketing Board,
Kano between 1954 – 1956. After his academic pursuits he become a lecturer in the University of
Ibadan in 1965 where, until the outbreak of the Nigerian Civil War in 1967, he rose to become an
Associate Professor of Political Science.
6. Historical antecedents do reveal that it is during crisis situation that the sterling qualities of great
men become manifest, and nowhere is this better exemplified than in Ajie Ukpabi Asika. Not
only was he an advocate of peaceful co-existence and non-violent resolution of conflicts, but as a
patriot and nationalist he believed in the indivisibility of the Nigerian State. At a time when tribal
interests, sentiments and other parochial pursuits, swayed people, Asika was a steadfast and
courageous champion of the Nigerian Union. On the eve of the Civil War and at great risk to
himself and family, he remained at his post in Ibadan when his tribesmen responded to Ojukwu’s
back-to-the-East call.
7. As the successful prosecution of the Civil War progressed, the Federal Ministry Government
appointed Asika the Administrator of the East Central State in October 1967. His willingness to

19. 17
accept, what was perhaps, the most unenviable appointment during the civil war, even at a great risk
and peril to himself, family and clan, was no doubt governed by those principles, which are deeply
rooted in his patriotism. In spite of widespread opposition, accusations of betrayal and vilification of
his person and family, he saw in his job an opportunity to serve Nigeria without compromising the
interest of his Igbo people.
8. Asika is a visionary leader who even in the darkest days of the civil war saw the urgent need to end the
hostilities and thus minimize the disastrous effects of the war on his people. And when it became clear
that the rebellion had been roundly defeated, Asika promoted the noble idea of “No Victor No
Vanquished” to facilitate reconciliation, an idea he successfully sold to the Head of State General
Yakubu Gowon. Asika also demanded and got total amnesty for the people of Eastern Nigeria, from
the Federal Military Government.
9. In the aftermath of the Civil war, Asika left indelible marks and contribution towards the actualization
of the Federal Government’s Reconciliation, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Programme. This period
brought out the strong, exemplary and compassionate leadership qualities in Asika, which manifested
in his display of unparalled courage and wisdom in dealing with many intractable problems of people
devastated by war. The remarkable speed with which reconciliation and re-integration of the Igbo
People into the mainstream of the Nigeria State in the post civil war took place was due largely to his
pragmatic leadership style.
10. Ajie Ukpabi Asika served as a member of the Supreme Military Council from 1967 – 1976. Within the
same period he remained as the Administrator of the East Central State. He was Chairman, Technical
Committee on the Review of the National Census of 1973. In 1985, he was the Team Leader, President
Delegation of Niger, Chad and Cameroun to re-open Nigerian Borders.
11. Ajie is an affable man with a dignified presence, for whom friendship and respect knows no religious
and tribal boundaries, an attribute that has endeared him to those he has come into contact with. Asika
holds more than 35 traditional titles from all over Nigeria but stopped accepting additional titles when
he ascended to the rank of Ndichies, (immortals) in the ancient Kingdom of Onitsha, in 1985. He is
the Ajie of Onitsha, Ajie Ukadiugwu. He has also received national honours from Senegal. Sudan,
Mauritania and Togo.
12. In presenting this recommendation I am mindful of the fact that at the end of the Nigeria Civil War it
was decided that, in order to promote the spirit of reconciliation, no medals or honours were to be
conferred on the major actors in the resolution of the crisis. However, I am also aware that since the
decision, some of those who served on the Biafran side have had one form of honour or the other
conferred on them. And I have recognized that throughout the difficult civil war years and after,
Asika’s deep commitment to the national cause and national unity remained unshakeable. It is also a
historical fact that most of the credit for the reconciliation that took place after the civil war goes to
Asika. I am persuaded by the weight of the foregoing compelling reasons to recommend that Ajie
Anthony Ukpabi Asika be bestowed the National Honour of the Commander of the Order of the
Federal Republic (CFR).
Mr. Asika (third from left in battle jacket) seen with Lt. Col. Yakubu Danjuma
in charge of Enugu sector (second from right) admiring Zik’s statue in Enugu
during the Administrator’s tour of liberated areas of EastCentral State.
(11 December, 1967).
Mr. Asika and wife, Chinyere, with Lt. Col. Yakubu Danjuma

20. 18
ANTHONY UKPABI ASIKA, CFR
AJIE OF ONITSHA (1936 – 2004)
By Alhaji Ahmed Joda, CFR
I made acquaintance of Anthony Ukpabi Asika in July, 1967 in the home of Mr. AllisonAkene Ayida,
then Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Economic Development. He had, just that day,
been introduced to General Yakubu Gowon, Head of the Federal Military Government, Commander-
in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. He had been brought from Ibadan
by the then Lt Colonel Olusegun Obasanjo, then Rear Commander of the Second Division of the
Nigerian Army based in Ibadan. He was offered and had accepted the position of the Administrator
of the East Central State of Nigeria, then firmly under the control of Lt Colonel Odumegwu
Ojukwu, leader of the rebel territory of Biafra consisting of all that territory which today is made up
of Anambra, Enugu, Ebonyi, Abia and Imo States. The Civil War was raging and no one knew for
sure how or when it would end.
General Gowon, had since May 27, 1967 been looking for “an Igbo man, mad enough to accept to
take on the impossible task of governing the East Central State” which had been borne out of crisis.
Everyone knew that it was a near impossible task and a heavy burden of responsibility bound to be
unrewarding. He found one, who turned out to be the best person under any circumstance and who
certainly proved not to be mad. This was something no one could expect in July 1967 from any part
of Nigeria.
Tony’s courageous decision to take on the assignment, was an act of faith and deep patriotism not
found in ordinary mortals. I have frequently, silently, wondered to myself whether under similar
circumstances, I or any of us who had become his colleagues, friends and confidants would have had
the courage of our convictions to do the same. What really motivated him, I could not easily
comprehend, until his death when I saw a letter he had written to a University friend of his in the
University of Los Angeles, California on the first of June, 1967, five weeks to the outbreak of the
civil war. In the letter he had expressed his deep fears for his kinsmen and for his country of birth, the
likely course tragedy would take, the suffering that would be inevitable and the tragedy not only to his
own people but to his country, both of which as the letter demonstrates, he deeply loved and
continued to love until his last breath.
In that letter Tony clearly expressed his strong attachment to the land of his birth, firmly stated his
love for his people (the Igbos) and saw clearly that their future happiness and well-being lay in ONE
Nigeria which he was firmly committed to defend with his life and for which he was willing to
sacrifice the family he loved and cherished.
Tony could not take his post in Enugu immediately, because, it was still not firmly in Federal hands.
So he was obliged to operate as best as he could from Lagos. At the first opportunity, he moved to
Enugu to set up Government from nothing, absolutely nothing. From the moment I met him and his
wife, Chinyere, I liked and admired them both and I became a member of the Asika family. From then
on I have been a regular and welcome visitor to their home wherever it was. We, along with our many
other friends have shared the best as well as the worst moments of the history of our nation.
Throughout the period of the War, I visited regularly and was always their guest. We shared
experiences; pained over the sufferings of our people in the war affected areas; dreamt dreams of a
safer, more united and more prosperous Nigeria, free of ethnic and other divides. We spent evenings

21. 19
together and argued into the wee hours of the morning, only to do the same, the next day and the next
time we met, until 1994 when he had a massive stoke which left him unconscious for months.
He survived that stroke and came out of it fighting. If it were possible for anyone to fight death and
win, it would have been Tony. He not only survived this first challenge to his life he regained all his
senses and, although paralysed on one side, he retained his full senses, kept abreast with political,
economic and social trends in Nigeria and around the world with clarity, honour and understanding of
all that was round him. He read newspapers, listened to the radio, watched television and surfed the
internet. A second, but less severe stroke weakened him and blurred his speech. Even so he continued to
fight gallantly. He recognised everyone and it was clear that he knew and understood all and tried to
communicate forcefully.
Throughout all of my acquaintance with Tony, I have never known him lose his temper or his honour or
to hold anything against anyone. He hated no one. I doubt that there is any one who can truly hate
Anthony Ukpabi Asika, the Ajie of Onitsha. He is the only one I have known who “turns the other
cheek”. At the worst moments during the Civil War, and many other serious problems which we all faced
from time to time and when everything seemed hopeless and when all of us would become despondent
and down hearted, discouraged and tending to give up in desperation, the one to first recover and urge
us on was always Tony.
The night the civil war effectively ceased I was with Tony until the small hours of the morning of 10
January, 1970. When we eventually went to bed I could only sleep fitfully. I woke up around four in the
morning and could not go back to sleep. I switched on the radio and got the Voice of Biafra. The
announcement that the “Head of State of Biafra, General Odumegwu Ojukwu” was going to broadcast
to the Nation was going on repeatedly. I became wide awake and alert. I continued to listen until the
broadcast was made to the effect that Ojukwu was going out of Biafra in search of peace. I instantly
recognised that the thirty months of war was at an end. I dressed up and went to try to reach Asika, but
the security would not allow me. I drove to then Brigadier T.Y. Danjuma’s house. He too had heard the
broadcast, had dressed up and was coming down the stairs when I went into his living room.
Together we drove to Government House and went straight into the Administrator’s bed room and
literally lifted him out of bed and told him that the war was over. He instantly became alert. We sat down
Alhaji Ahmed Joda with Ajie’s children Nkiru, Obi and Uju on the occasion of Ajie and Mrs. Asika’s 25th Wedding Anniversary
in 1990.

22. 20
on his bed and composed the broadcast he would make to the people of the East Central State and, as
it turned out to Federal Troops at the War Fronts on how to receive, welcome and treat the liberated
people into back into the fold. The now famous, often quoted words “No Victor, No Vanquished”
were first uttered in that room. They came from Asika’s mouth. Danjuma and I had no problem in
recognising the wisdom of those words and the effect they would have on the minds of people and
the future of Nigeria. It was apt that these words were uttered by the bravest fighter for the cause of
one Nigeria. I take pride that I played a part in preparing the speech. But most importantly, in
importing these same words into the broadcast of the Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon, whose
contributions to the Nigerian nation during her most dangerous period of existence will, perhaps, be
recognised by our history and fully documented. One of General Gowon’s abiding legacies to Nigeria,
was in finding, recognising and working with Anthony Ukpabi Asika.
When General Gowon was over thrown in a military coup d’etat at the end of July, 1975, well after the
Civil War, Tony, along with all the former Military Governors with whom he had established deep and
lasting friendships suffered humiliation of a scale never before imagined in Nigeria. Tony, clearly had
not accumulated wealth, but what he had was confiscated. For years he had to live in a one bedroom
flat, waiting for the good Lord to come to his rescue and that of his family. All that most of us could
do for him at this, the most trying time of his personal life, was to identify with him and his family
and remain his friends until “death do us part”, which mercifully sneaked in peacefully when he was
asleep. God showed his mercies to a good man.
What is remarkable throughout this period is that Tony never exhibited any bitterness towards his
tormentors. He remained steadfast in his beliefs and his faith in Nigeria and the Nigerian people. At
the worst of times, when those of us who had not been affected by what was happening and were not
suffering like he was doing, were critical towards the injustice of it all; it was always, the victim, Tony
who could find justification for all that happens in the course of nation building and restore a sense
of balance to the extreme views that were sometimes expressed. He never lost his cool or balance.
I only know one incident that occurred which forced him to express some anger. Shortly after the
formal pronouncement of the end of the War, on the 15th
of January, 1970, I had undertaken a tour
of the newly liberated areas of the East Central State. At Orlu, I went to visit the Biafra transmitting
Station where the Voice of Biafra had operated. There was looting and vandalising going on
everywhere. Afraid that some of the equipment would soon be vandalised, I ordered that the
transmitters should be dismantled and transported to Milliken Hill where the Nigerian Broadcasting
Station operated and from where Tony had made his famous broadcast marking the end of the war.
Obviously a report went to Tony that I had acquired the transmitters for the Nigerian Broadcasting
Corporation. A telegram was fired to the Head of State, General Gowon stating that “one man by the
name of Joda, had ordered transmitters which is the property of the East Central State Government
taken away. This is intolerable”.
General Gowon showed me the telegram and commented that he was certain that the “two of you can
settle it”. I went to Tony and said: “Look, I have been shown a telegram apparently signed by you to
the Head of State”. Tony laughed aloud and said: “We deserve a cold drink, don’t we?” The matter
seemed settled. That was Tony.
Those of us who knew him, have lost a great friend. Nigeria, our country, has lost a champion for her
unity, strength and greatness. May His Great Soul Rest in Perfect Peace.

23. 21
UKPABI ASIKA: AN OUTSTANDING NIGERIA PATRIOT
By M. D. Yusufu
One of the people, who in his life became outstanding because of the farsighted and courageous way he
stood and fought for the preservation of Nigerian unity and the integration of Igbos into the fabric of
the country, after the civil war of 1967 – 1970, was the late Ukpabi Asika. He was called names and
vilified by those who wanted to break Nigeria, and reverse the process of the liberation and unity of
Africa. But he is now already seen, and he will over time come to be more clearly seen, as one of the
most perceptive and patriotic scholars and statesman of his generation.
I came to know Mr. Ukpabi Asika very well, after he became the Administrator of the East Central State
in 1967. But I must admit that I knew him as one of the activist political science lecturers at the
University of Ibadan, through a critical and informative monthly magazine called the Nigerian
Opinion. Apart from Asika the group including, Tayo Akpata, Billy Dudley, Tekena Tamuno, Akin
Mabogunje, Femi Kayode and others. The Nigerian Opinion circle in Ibadan also included expatriate
lecturers like James O’ Connell and R.J. Gavin.
This magazine seems to have come about, because some lecturers who were teaching social sciences, but
particularly political science became worried about the economic, political and social direction of our
country since the attainment of independence in 1960 and they wanted to contribute to bring about
positive developments. The Nigerian Opinion did not just create a forum for criticizing the
Governments but made effort to proffer reasonable solutions to each of the country’s problems
discussed. In doing so, Asika and his colleagues mobilized people from all fields of endeavour to
contribute to serious debate about the key issues facing the country.
The articles in the Nigerian Opinion were bold and frank and therefore the magazine attracted the
attention of the Federal and Regional Governments as well as politicians, public officers and academics
outside the University of Ibadan. What is particularly distinctive about the group making up the
Nigerian Opinion was that they hardly acknowledged authors of articles, expect when written by
people outside their circle.
I have no doubt in my mind that the Federal Government identified Mr. Ukpabi Asika in 1967 from his
clearly patriotic Nigerian stand in this magazine and his other activities outside the University. He
refused to be cajoled into joining the secessionists and remained a Nigerian, right inside Nigeria through
out the period of the crisis and the civil war. Indeed, he was one of the active Nigerians who spent
sleepless nights seeking for ways and means of stopping the 1966 crisis from exploding and when the
civil war broke out, he led the Igbos to find an honourable was to end the secession.
He was appointed the Administrator of the newly created East State on 28th
October 1967. What he first
did was to appeal to the entire Igbo population to abandon the road to secession and take the necessary,
but painful steps to re-unite with the rest of the Nigerian nation. This appeal was made in his maiden
press conference titled: Enough IS Enough: A Challenging Appeal to the Igbos of Nigeria. This
press conference was held in Lagos on Friday, 10th
November, 1967. Mr. Asika was very frank and direct.
He said.
Let me say a few words to the embattled and embittered people of the Central Eastern State. During the
past year, you, the Igbo people of the Central Eastern State, suffered either directly or indirectly from acts of
some of your brothers, especially in the former Northern Region. It is true the tragedy was not wholly
unprovoked.
It is true that the tragedy occurred because of the dissolution of the established patterns of order and authority
which occasioned and was furthered by the initial coup d’etat.
He made special appeal to the Igbos to calm down, overcome bitterness and animosity and look ahead to
see the danger and consequences of the continuation of the civil war.

24. 22
He said:
I ask you now, will ask you again and often, when next I speak to you from Enugu, you fathers of our
families, mothers of our homes, to call home from the battle-field your sons, our sons and our brothers.
Tell those who ask you to send your sons to die that when all the sons are dead the lineages and the families
die too. And that the security, the only hope lies in the return to Nigeria, in the return to your friends, to your
brothers, to your sisters, to other Nigerians who are prepared and willing to welcome you back.
There were quite a number of Igbo leaders who like Asika believed in Nigeria but were unable to
openly and immediately come out to denounce secession, and join in leading the way Asika
demonstrated; he also stood up shoulder high above his colleagues, because his support for Nigerian
unity was not built on office seeking. He did not seek for the office of the Administrator of the East
Central State, he was invited by Government to take up and he accepted the challenge. When in office,
he did not preoccupy himself with amassing wealth. He was committed to public service and he
served the Igbos, the wider Nigerian society and Africa, honourably and decently.
Asika stood for Nigeria and was able to successfully show Igbos that the crisis of 1966 was a bitter
Nigerian family misunderstanding, which could be resolved without recourse to further violence. The
success of Nigeria over Biafra demonstrated that Ukpabi Asika was far ahead of most Igbo
intellectuals and politicians in the understanding and comprehension of society and history and how
to go about resolving conflicts. He was indeed, politically very perceptive. His ability to go beyond
ethnic chauvinism and sentiments made it possible for him to see, right at the onset that secession was
not only a worthless path for the Igbos to take but was doomed to fail. History proved him right. The
Igbo intellectuals never forgave him for that into death.
He argued, discussed and cajoled to get the Federal side to adopt the no victor no vanquished policy,
thanks to General Gowon whose deeply held Christian virtues guided us to end the war and the
national crisis in the way it ended.
Ukpabi Asika was deeply Nigerian, lived in Nigeria, struggled for its unity and survival, died in
Nigeria and it is only appropriate he should now be buried in Nigeria with the country paying him the
respect, which he clearly deserves. He was truly an outstanding Nigerian patriot. May he rest in peace.
May future generations learn from his example.

25. 23
A TRIBUTE TO
HIS EXCELLENCY, LATE AJIE (DR.) UKPABI ASIKA, CFR
By
Allison A. Ayida
Former Secretary to the Federal Government and Head of Federal Civil Service
It is like yesterday. Three visitors called on me at 17, Ikoyi Crescent at about 4pm in 1967. They were
Chief Tayo Akpata, Igiesoba of Benin, late Prof. Billy Dudley and Father J.O. Connell, all from Ibadan
University. Their mission was to sell the services of a former colleague, then in Kenya, who was anxious
to return to Nigeria and join in the struggle to preserve “one Nigeria”. That night when we met with
General Gowon at his residence, I mentioned Dr. Ukpabi Asika. He was subsequently appointed His
Excellency, Administrator of East Central State, the only civilian Governor with the full powers of a
military governor and member of the Supreme Military Council.
On July 29 1975 when General Gown was removed as the Head of State, Dr. Asika was affected. Yet he
had the time to prepare Col. Inneh’s incoming speech as Military Governor, Bendel State with full
briefing on what to expect when he assumes duty in Benin City. That was a remarkable achievement – to
care about what happens after his downfall.
He was a man of mission and he believed in “one Nigeria” and he preached “one Nigeria” all the way. It
was a lonely life. He sacrificed everything to achieve what it takes. History will record his contribution as
the landmark.
The late Dr. Ukpabi Asika was a gentleman and of noble birth. He was honoured as the Ajie of Onitsha,
a Red Cap Chief – third in rank to the Obi of Onitsha.
May his gentle soul rest in perfect peace. Amen.

26. 24
FAREWELL AJIE ANTHONY UKPABI ASIKA
By
Osayande ‘Tayo Akpata
The Ogiesoba of Benin
Significantly, Anothony Asika commenced his final home journey in harness. After the conclusion of
the Zik-Gowon lecture in early 1994, a group of Nigerians formed a Committee of Patriots, which
included the likes of Ade Martins, Allison Ayida, Ahmed Joda, Ukpabi Asika as well as the writer. We
were earnestly seized at that time, with the means of addressing the political predicaments into which
the nation has been needlessly plunged. The clamour for the validation of June 12 election dominated
the political horizon. In the midst of this popular effusion, full-blown military rule was once more
born. Ukpabi Asika and I were the putative Joint Secretaries of the Committee. In furtherance of our
assignment, he visited me for hours, on a Sunday, sometime in October 1994, we rubbed minds and
juggled ideas. Some twenty-four later, Ukpabi suddenly flopped physically.
Patriotism, nationalism, self-sacrifice, reliability and above all intellectualism were some of the
endearing and shining attributes of Ukpabi. His hobbies apart from the physical ones were intellectual
discussions in which he could engage endlessly. Being a consummate academic and all – round –
educated man, he held his own on practially any topic. It was always refreshing and delightful to spar
with or listen to him. Nevertheless, he was courteous, cool, patient and never condescending. Readily,
he conceded rational points in arguments without feeling diminished. Hardly anyone would meet and
cross swords with Ukpabi without being the better for it, at least one may become skeptical of
hitherto held ideas. Correspondingly, he was always open to novel ideas. It took him no time to
conceptualize such as ideas and graft them into his amazing repertoire of esoteric thoughts. Ukpabi’s
command of the English Language and smithy of words were memorable. Hardly any academic
juggled political sociological concepts to such an incredible ethereal level as he did.
I remember Ukpabi as a new lecturer at the University of Ibadan in 1966, when at the end of his
lecture some of my students came to me, both in offcial position and for my personal relationship
with Ukpabi, to complain about what they dubbed the “Dryness” of his lecture. Ukpabi in his lecture
describing some sociological phenomena, talked about the youths being in a state of “anticipatory
mobility” and that the future had become “futuristic”. Likewise, describing some situation in the post
– civil war eastern Nigeria, he talked of the “asymmetry of the society” in which he feared the distinct
possibility of “Social anomie” among the youths.
During the civil war, in his admonition of the Nigerians in the breakaway Eastern States, he added an
incomparable phrase to Nigeria Lexicon: “enough is enough”. Political elites and the populace alike
who had hitherto drunk deep in Zikist Scintillating glossary marveled at Ukpabi’s inimitable turn of
phrases. His knowledge of events was encyclopedic. What a voracious reader and a devotee of Arts!
His collection of antiquities was intimidating. Although born a Catholic, he seemed more at home
with philosophical disputations most of the time than attend mass. He was by no means an apostate.
However, for him the Bible was a collection of ancient wisdoms, albeit with strong Judaic
connotations.
Ukpabi started his secondary school education at St. Patrick’s college, Calabar. His parents, at the time,
who were family friends of my parents, worked in Benin City. Our relationship was further reinforced
by the ideological friendship, which had existed between our two older brothers in England. Evaristus
Asika had qualified as a lawyer and was returning to Nigeria in a mail boat, when he met his untimely
death in very suspicious circumstances in November 1949. Ukpabi and I were very much inspired by
the nationalistic exploits of the idealogical duo namely, Evaristus Asika and Bankole Akpata.

27. 25
However, during the holidays, particularly in the years 1949 – 1951, Ukpabi, his brother Edmund, sisters
and ourselves, my brother Okungbowa, my sister Omobola, my cousins; Uwagboe and other friends like:
Bayo Omage, Adekunle Eweka, Josephine Izuora etc, clubbed together in Benin city. We were a happy
lot and not unlikely, we painted the city red. Among all of us, it was only Ukpabi who was in far flung
Calabar. To me, as a Benin man and for historical reasons, Calabar was a foreboding place. The rest of
us thought that Ukpabi ought to be nearer Onitsha or Benin City. Thus in 1951, our prayer was heard.
Ukpabi was admitted to Edo College, Benin City. Either by coincidence or design, his bed was placed
next to mine in boarding house, Speer House. It was at Edo College, I began to notice the prominent
attributes that were to mark him out of the crowd in later years. At school, Ukpabi walked with a
majestic poise without pompousity. Soft spoken, unaffected, pungent, quick-witted and hugely articulate.
It was his elegant poise in and out on the playing field that earned him the adoring sobriquet of “Don
Ameche” the name of a noted American film star of the late nineteen forties. On the cricket pitch, he
was known as a “blocker’ as he tended to tire out bowlers during inter-house competitions.
For over fifty years, until the cruel hand of death ambushed Ukpabi, hardly any time were we not in
communication physically or by correspondence. At Edo College, the fatter a book other than the
classroom textbook was on any subject, the more the book recommended itself to Ukpabi. Up and down
the compound, Ukpabi held cour non all imaginable topics. Most of the time together, we discussed
Nigeria Politics, Zik, Awolowo, Sardauna, Imoudu etc, and the prospects of national independence and
socialism in Nigeria. Avidly, we read the West African Pilot, particularly the Colunm, “Weekend
Catechism” by Mazi Mbonu Ojike. In all this, Ukpabi used the dialectic mode of argument to a telling
story effect. As my school certificate examination drew nearer in late November 1951, I exercised his
nightly intellectual barricade. We declared a ceasefire, which lasted until after my examination.
When Ukpabi returned to Ibadan in 1965, our friendship waxed stronger than ever. The ominous cloud
of political uncertainty was gathering in the country. Various groups were avowing and disavowing
Nigerian nationhood. On the campus of Ibadan university, ethnic and regional based particularistic
groups were irresistible to many of the academics. Few of us such as Ukpabi, Essien-Uddom, Dudley,
Olunloyo, Sowunmi, Ayo banjo, Tamuno, Larry Ekpebu etc, remained resolutely “Nigerians” of “all
seasons”. In an issue of the Nigeria opinion at that time, I wrote on “The Role of Intellectuals in
Contemporary Nigeria”, which Ukpabi in a later edition followed up in the same vein with “The Uses of
Literacy”. The burden of our offerings was the adumbration of the historic and crucial roles of
intellectuals in times of crisis such as we experienced in this country from 1962 to 1970. The near
similarity in our mode of expression and views were such that the authorship of an anonymous
publication, “Nigeria in Confidence” issued in 1974, was freely and wrongly attributed to Ukpabi and I,
even by some of our close friends!
Consequent upon the disturbances in the country in September 1966, the Eastern Region, under the
Governorship of Lt. Col. (as he then was) Emeka Ojukwu, was in virtual rebellion. For example,
Ojukwu was to complain passionately that no one had apologized to the East for the killings in the
country. At Ukpabi’s instance, a University Relief Fund was formed by Sam Aluko, Dudley and I. On
behalf of the Nation, the Committee publicly regretted the disturbances in the country. We collected
money from the Universities of Ife and Ibadan communities, which we donated to General Gowon on 9
December 1966 for disbursement to displaced persons in all parts of Nigeria. In addition, we urged on
the Federal Military Government to form a National Relief Committee. In February 1967, Dr. Sam
Aluko and I as joint Secretaries of the University Committee were invited to Dodan Barracks for the
inauguration of the National Committee on Rehabilitation with the late Bank Anthony as Chairman.
Ukpabi Asika came to national Limelight at the outbreak of the civil war. Much as he and his wife
Chinyere, were on sabbatical in East Africa at the time, they both promptly returned to Nigeria. Before
then Ukpabi was most vocal on campus in his support of the oneness of Nigeria. In private and public,
he unwitheringly argued about futility of secession while advocating timely redress for the obvious ills

28. 26
and dyfunctionalities in the polity. On the part of his soul-mates on campus, which included the
writer, when it was being rumoured that a credible, loyal patriotic dependable, politically unblemished
Ibo Nigerian was being sought out as an Administrator of the newly created Central Eastern States,
for whatever our support was worth, we had no hesitation in vigorously advocating Ukpabi’s
candidature. To achieve our end, Dr. Dudley, father James O’ Connell and I took to the road for
Lagos, in order to lobby the likes of Asiodu, higher federal civil servants, for them to recommend
Ukpabi with his compelling nationalist credentials for the post.
Thus at the tender age of 31 years, Ukpabi was plucked from the lecture room as the Administrator,
Central Eastern State to carry the can on behalf of the nation in the least auspicious circumstances.
Apart from faith, courage, and nationalism, he was to build a house without brick and without
workmen. During and after the civil war, Ukpabi faced the daunting challenge of rebuilding a war-
ravaged state and resettling millions of misplaced persons. With great zeal, energy and fervent
determination, he refused to be distracted by misplaced invectives from “radio Biafra Enugu”, being
spewed out by the “Ndems”. Earlier on, as soon as Onitsha and Enugu were liberated by the Federal
forces, Ukpabi lost no time in visiting those places, while the decibels of arms were still roaring. On
seeing the despoliation of Onitsha, his native hometown, he was terribly devastated. Soon the
Administrator picked up courage to face the Herculean task in hand. Given the gargantuan
infrastructural rehabilitation required in the State, during and after the war, at a stage there was the
hardly justified feelings in some quarters, that perhaps the Administrator was somewhat tardy in
tackling the enormous problems. Still in all these, Ukpabi demonstrated absolute commitment and
nerves of steel without fuss or ostentation.
The Nigerian Nation owes Ajie Anthony Ukpabi Asika, a wealth of gratitude. He remains at all
times a glittering and beaming example of selfless patriotism. His eldest child and only son born
in 1968, was christened Obodoechina (Obi), meaning ‘so that my country will not perish”. What a
consummate patriot! Ukpabi was a totally disectionalised Nigerian with close friendship ties
across the national spectrum. His was a life totally and unstingingly devoted to the service of the
Nation, at anytime, the trumpet was sounded. The national honour, Commander of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria, CFR, which was conferred on him two years ago was most deserving but
needlessly belated. Indeed he deserved more! Ajie, a.k.a “enough is enough”, ought to have been
honoured soon after the civil war. He gave his ‘all’ to the Nation when such ungrudging sacrifice
was direly needed. For me, his most lamentable death is a personal blow from which one is not
likely to recover until the end of time.
My family and I have been deprived of some fifty-five years of close, happy and mutually
rewarding relationship. Profoundest heartfelt condolence goes to Chinyere, the devoted and
untiring wife who nursed Ukpabi for the last ten years of his excruciating existence. Alas, she
bore it all with stoic fortitude! We grieve with the son Obi, his sisters, Nkiru and Uju, the
grandchildren, Edmund, the elder brother of Ukpabi, as well as the entire Asika family, for the
terrible deprivation they experienced for close on a decade and now forever. Ajie will be very
sorely missed by the Onitsha nobility and above all, the Nigerian Nation, for which he gladly and
dutifully put his life on the line, without ever counting the cost. There was a colossus ‘whence’
comes another one again? If there is life after death, may be we shall meet “and smile again”.
Fare Thee Well ‘Don”

29. 27
Anthony Ukpabi Asika, CFR.
Ajie of Onitsha
A Tribute
By
Chief Philip C. Asiodu, CON.
Izoma of Asaba
I first met Anthony Ukpabi Asika on the eve of his historic appointment as Administrator of East
Central State soon after Enugu was taken by Federal Forces early in October 1967. There was the
pressing need to establish an Administration under an “indigene” of the state with good credentials, to
begin the arduous task of restoring governmental services, order, normalcy and hope to severely
traumatised people in a war - ravaged area. Asika was invited to Lagos by Tayo Akpata and a group of
University of Ibadan staff wholly committed to the cause of Nigerian unity and African progress, to be
introduced to the Federal Military Government. Indeed, I knew a little bit about Ukpabi Asika’s family.
His elder brother and I were both at Hope Waddel, Calabar in 1943 and I believe they lived then at the
Clerk’s Quarters.
Early October, 1967 and for many months after were very dangerous and trying times. Although Enugu
was in Federal hands, much of the East Central State was still under Biafran control and war was raging
all over the area. Any daring group might take a lightning dash to Enugu, not to occupy it but to cause
havoc and disrupt order. Biafran propaganda was loud, effective and resourceful in exaggerating the
Biafran capacity to resist. Elements within the French government were making strenuous efforts to
secure international recognition for Biafra starting with French - speaking countries of West and Central
Africa.
One can imagine the wholesale abuse and foul invectives that Biafran propaganda would mount against
an Ibo man leading a war time Administration in Iboland under the authority of the Federal Government
of Nigeria. And so it was.
Yet it was absolutely essential for the federal cause and the Federal promise of equal treatment of all
Nigerians, that an Administration should be immediately established, with an Iboman at its head and on
equal terms and of equal status with the other eleven states of the Federation. Similar nucleus state
administrations had been set up in South East State and Rivers State.
The hour produced the hero - Anthony Ukpabi Asika. The hour needed a man of great courage and
fearlessness, a man of great conviction and of single minded commitment to national unity. It required a
man articulate and eloquent, able to espouse the greater advantages of the people of Nigeria staying
together and able to hold out hopes for justice, equality and beneficial re-integration to a people greatly
wronged and traumatised by the pogroms of 1966-67 and the ugly ravages of war. The times also
needed a man who would be confident and skillful enough to command the respect and trust of his
colleagues in the Supreme Military Council and of Nigerians at large. He must be selfless and greatly
dedicated to duty and should be willing and able to build up a functioning governmental machinery
however daunting the odds are.
Asika, the hero, one of the great historical figures of modern Nigeria accepted the challenge. He was
appointed Administrator of East Central State on 28th
October, 1967. He quickly moved to Enugu and
set up a nucleus Administration with Ambassador Chukwura of the Foreign Service as one of his
principal officers. Although I cannot help it in this context, calling Asika an Iboman rather detracts from
his stature and significance. He was always to himself a Nigerian and a citizen of the world.

30. 28
No ordinary man could have agreed to brave the dangers not only of death at so young an age, 31
years and only two years married, but also of the consequences of failure in such an uncertain
enterprise.
I first visited him at Enugu soon after he set up his office there – I believe three of us – Ayida, Joda
and myself went on that trip. His residence and office were located near the Army Headquarters. The
war front was not far away. The city was still largely empty. One can try to imagine the thoughts
passing through his mind in those early days of laying the foundations for winning the peace. But
even a brief encounter with Asika left no one in any doubt about his bravery and confidence.
Thinking of the state of mind of Asika then facing the challenges and difficulties of every new day, I
recall these words of a British poet:
“… We must be brave
and strong
And hail the advent of each dangerous day
And meet the great adventure with a song.”
Asika quickly won the confidence of Federal Nigerian troops and of the whole country. Eloquent and
frequent were his broadcast appeals to the Ibos engaged in a war they could not win, having failed to
secure international recognition and support in the early weeks and so unable to acquire the means to
lift the blockade and encirclement imposed on Biafran forces, to negotiate for peace and end the
suffering of the people. We all recall his famous speech – “Enough is enough.”
Gradually, populations began to return to liberated areas and some services. Distribution of food and
other essential supplies by relief Agencies was improving steadily. The visits of military international
observers which began in July, 1968 was making a contribution towards mitigating the fears of
massacres following surrender as happened disastrously at Asaba in October, 1967. It is to the great
credit of all Nigerians that no such disasters followed the surrender of Biafran forces and the end of
the attempted secession in January, 1970.
We visited Asika at Enugu quite a few times during the war and we spent much time with him during
his visits to Lagos. We thought and planned a great deal about Post-War Rehabilitation,
Reconstruction and Reconciliation. His role during the Civil War, the authority and trust which he had
acquired with General Gowon and the members of the Supreme Military Council, his good relations
with the Federal Civil Service were crucial in ensuring the relatively smooth re-integration of large
numbers of returning civil servants and staff of the Parastatals after the war.
During the Post-War reconstruction efforts, Asika’s confidence in the scores of government
professionals/engineers in the East Central State made him persuade the Federal Government not to
give the contracts for the reconstruction of some major roads to international contractors as was done
elsewhere, but to the State Ministry of Works. This was meant to put the scores of Ministry engineers
to useful work. The results were not satisfactory. This led to criticism of both the State and Federal
governments and harsh comparisons with the state of roads elsewhere in the Federation.
Again with hindsight, one must agree that the cancellation of all bank accounts, operated even in the
smallest manner in the war zones which led to long lasting bitterness could have been moderated.
There was also the very unsatisfactory handling of the issue of so-called abandoned or “liberated “
properties in Port Harcourt.
All these policies were not of Asika’s making and occasioned much criticism which he bore with quiet
dignity.

31. 29
Yet thanks to his wise deployment and use of the pre- secession Civil Service and the resilience of the
people. Ukpabi Asika with his Executive Council of fairly young intellectuals, made good progress in
rehabilitation, reconstruction and the economic re-integration of the East Central State with the rest of
the country.
Ukpabi Asika also made parallel progress in restoring social life and together with his energetic and
charming wife, tried to introduce elegance into the functions at State House. There were the innovative
Gala Nights with Mrs. Chinyere Asika as Chief Hostess.
I made several official and holiday visits to Enugu after the end of the war. Asika was always a most
attentive and generous host. It was always a treat to converse with Ukpabi Asika. His brilliant mind, his
love of witty argument, of new ideas, the broad eclectic range of his interests were always a delight to
encounter. We often found time to play tennis. Asika was quite good at it. His schoolmates tell me he
was quite a sportsman at school. I am sorry that he gave up Tennis soon after leaving government. After
the hardwork of the day and tennis on some afternoons, I enjoyed with Asika the pleasures of good
food, good wines and good cognac. I was not able to join him in smoking. Asika lived well.
Not the overthrow of General Gowon in July, 1975 but what followed amazed many of us. We were
amazed at the utterances and acts of people we thought were friends. Asika bore with quiet dignity, the
taunts and misrepresentations immediately following the overthrow of General Gowon. For one who
showed throughout his life such loyalty and consideration for friends, Asika must have felt greatly
disappointed. Yet thanks to God, he lived to see truth re-established. My wife and I are very saddened
that Ukpabi Asika has departed rather soon. We were very sorry to miss these last years, his very
penetrating and memorable commentaries on national affairs.
I am glad, and many people rejoiced, that Ukpabi Asika was honoured with the decoration, CFR
(Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic) in 2002 – thirty five years after he showed that he
was willing to make the supreme sacrifice in the service of his nation!
But Nigeria is yet to fully acknowledge his immense personal contribution. The great psychological and
moral force which he brought to bear in winning over the minds of the people of East Central State and
so make possible the triumph of the Federal cause and the unprecedented Reconciliation that belied the
terrible expectations of the rest of the world as to what would follow the collapse of the Biafran attempt
at secession.
Asika was indeed a great hero at the most trying time of Nigeria’s modern history. In his daring and his
achievements as Administrator of the East Central State “The path to duty was the way to Glory.”
Adieu! Anthony Ukpabi Asika, Ajie of Onitsha.

32. 30
AJIE UKPABI A. ASIKA
1936-2004
By
Osita Okeke
Anthony Ukpabi Asika had a mind of his own; analytical, dispassionate and coldly logical. For him
there was no room for emotional coloration in the reasoning process. Tony possessed a highly
developed intellect (he often distinguished between intellectuals and intellectual workers!), but this in
no way made less poignant his compassionate humanity, cultured mind and warmth of personality.
1966 was a trying year for most Nigerians. Events moved with lightning speed from one catastrophe
to another. For Easterners, particularly Igbos, the news was not so good. The Igbo community in
Ibadan, town and gown alike, felt particularly vulnerable as mass slaughter of human beings in
Northern Nigeria replaced the usual discourse and disagreements that hitherto characterized the
relationship between ethnic nationalities. Easterners who had lived all their lives in remote areas of
Northern Nigeria were hounded – men women and children- like animals for the hunt, and wasted.
This experience naturally exacerbated feelings and several discussions, some furtive, others quite open,
were the order of the day.
I remember one such encounter between Tony and me. This was after the September 29/30 slaughter
of Igbos at Kano airport. Easterners were being evacuated from the North. They had assembled in
their numbers at the airport to be ferried to Enugu when bedlam was let loose and mayhem ensued.
Estimates of upwards of 30,000 deaths were touted. I felt enough was enough, and I said so. I
thought this was a final rejection of Easterners from Nigeria, and so I said I would leave Ibadan
immediately for the East. Tony was very logical. First of all he expressed his deep sorrow for the
number of Igbo (and other Eastern Nigerian) lives lost. He then went on to say we could not abandon
the nation – Nigeria – because of the loss of some lives. He dug deep into history to show how many
peoples who had passed through a worse crucible of human hatred and mutual slaughter, had finally
emerged strong, united nations. Tony said that the loss of 30,000 lives was not too much sacrifice for
one, united Nigeria. I was stunned but remained unmoved by this postulation, which in normal times
may have made some sense but which in the heat of the moment, with reports of these gory activities
flying all over the place, could not be countenanced. I packed lock, stock and barrel and departed
Ibadan for home, a couple of days later. Many Easterners left Ibadan and Western Nigeria at this time
with only a handful staying behind. Of these, many returned much later – some as late as April 1967.
We learnt from the late returnees that Tony had relocated to East Africa. He would be recalled from
there later in the year to assume duties as the Administrator of East Central State of Nigeria.
Those who knew Tony could say without equivocation that he would be nobody’s lackey. As a matter
of fact he seemed providentially situated in the Nigerian hierarchy at the time, to mediate a less
dishonourable re-entry into Nigeria for all Biafrans, at the end of the civil war. Thanks to his presence
in the sanctum of governance, the hawks on the Nigerian side of the conflict were denied what they
considered “the wages of rebellion”. It was through no mean effort that he secured for his bloodied
kindred the post civil war status of “no victor, no vanquished”. He pursued vigorously the 3 R’s –
Reconciliation, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction – which ensured a far more rapid and humane
resettlement of war ravaged “returnees”. Civil servants and other public officers were reabsorbed into
Federal and State employment. He generously and selfishly reabsorbed his erstwhile colleagues in
academia into the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, promoting to Senior Lecturer status with effect from
1st
July 1970, any one who had joined the service of any University in Nigeria before the beginning of

33. 31
the Civil War and was still below the level of Senior Lecturer. Above all, Tony refused to adopt the
attitude of “I told you so” towards his friends and associates. He regarded all previous differences of
opinions in the pre-war days as just that – differences of opinion, which he had no difficulty in shoving
aside. All he sought from colleagues and friends was “… come join me reconstruct our State and make
the lot of our people better”. With this attitude, he found no difficulty in attracting some of the harshest
critics of his position.
As an economist and well grounded intellectual, it was not difficult for Asika to put his imprint on policy
formulated at the Supreme Military Council, the highest organ of Government in Nigeria, which was
populated except for him by professional soldiers, well trained in the art of warfare. For eight years, five
and a half of them after the end of the civil war, he led the East Central State of Nigeria, today’s five
states of Enugu, Imo, Anambra, Abia and Ebonyi. Unlike what was to happen in many administrations
that succeeded Gowon’s, Asika concentrated in first rehabilitating and reconstructing the infrastructure
and projects damaged by the war, before embarking on any new one. Nigersteel, Nigercem, Golden
Guinea, Adapalm, Modern Ceramics, Turners Asbestos etc were some of the projects resurrected. The
University of Nigeria and other educational institutions like the Alvan Ikoku College of Education,
received serious attention. He fought, against tremendous odds (odds constituted by those in positions
of influence who were unhappy at the “kid gloves” treatment extended to “secessionist rebels”), to
attract allocations from the Federation Account to ameliorate the lot of his people. This effort was quite
often not helped by the attitude of vociferous Igbos, who literally believed the slogan “no victor, no
vanquished”, along with other similar propaganda one-liners from Federal Government operatives, and
proceeded to proclaim and aggressively seek to appropriate certain “rights” not yet firmly established!
Unlike the proverbial cock, which usually stood on one leg before it mastered the terrain, some of our
people plunged into the “task of exhuming the corpse, feet first”! Not one to suffer fools gladly, Tony
reserved one of his now famous quips for such errant knights. “General amnesty” was one of the
propaganda one-liners at the time. Tony said, “General amnesty does not mean general amnesia”!! Of
course those who had “ears to hear” heard!
There are a couple of incidents which occurred during this period. They later became very well known
and often spoken about. Not so long after the end of the Civil War, several groups within the country
began to canvass for the creation of new states. One such state fervently sought after was Wawa State
(what is now Enugu State). The proponents of this State, like others, took out several newspaper adverts.
Each advert for Wawa state was signed by some of the leaders of the movement. Thus you had such
signatories as Chief C. C. Onoh, “Ex-Chairman Nigeria Coal Corporation;” Chief B.C. Okwu “Ex-
Minister of Information, Eastern Nigeria”; Chief Jim Nwobodo, “Ex-Chairman, Nkanu Local
Education Board” etc. In his budget speech for that year, Asika took a swipe at these signatories, calling
them “Ex-this, ex-that and ex-everything else; people who would rather be bosses in Hell than serve in
Heaven”! His speech was directed at the campaigners for the Wawa State. Unfortunately Dr. Nnamdi
Azikiwe had also canvassed in a treatise, for “Niger State” which had a very peculiar configuration;
starting up in Ndoni in the Niger Delta and trailing on to Oguta, Aboh, Ogbaru, Onitsha, Asaba, Illah
and branching off the River Niger along Anambra River into Anam land parts of Igalla, and ending
somewhere in Uzo-Uwani. Zik believed Asika was also attacking him as “Ex-this, ex-that and Ex-
everything else” – he was of course Ex-President of Nigeria, Ex-Senate President, Ex-Governor General
as well as Ex-Premier of Eastern Nigeria, among other offices he held. Zik struck back in a newspaper
article, calling Asika the “ex-doctoral fellow, son of an ex-postmaster” and saying “no condition is
permanent as can be read on the lorries that ply the ill-maintained roads of East Central State”. This
made waves at the time.
There was also the matter of a special request for the piece of music “onye ube ruru ya racha ma”,
(meaning “he whose pear has ripened, let him eat it”) often wrongly attributed to Asika, when he was the
Administrator of East Central State. It was generally held that because he so enjoyed the perquisites of
his office, he requested this piece of music at a gala night. Nothing could be further from the truth. In

34. 32
October 1972, Mr. Dan Ibekwe, at the time East Central State Commissioner for Works and Housing,
was appointed a Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria by the Federal Government. Asika gave a
sendforth party for the late Justice. To open the floor with his wife at the party, Justice Ibekwe
requested that piece of music (by the Oriental Brothers; I think) which was a very popular piece at the
time. It had nothing at all to do with Ukpabi Asika!
As a student at the University College Ibadan, Asika was not very gregarious. He however cultivated
several friendships on individual basis. Most of these friendships lasted till the very end and were very
deep! Apart from his general interest in music, the arts and theatre, Tony indulged extensively in the
game of chess. In those days, you would see Asika and his co-lawyers, including notably Ukwu I.
Ukwu and Agwu Okpanku, glued to the chessboard in the Junior Common Room at well past 2 am.
One wondered when they found time for their books, but it emerged that soon after their games, they
retired to their rooms to swot! Tony would usually miss the first lecture the following day! This in the
end in no way affected his academic grades adversely. He simply excelled.
Tony had an enormous capacity to commit things to memory. This is different from “cramming”. He
would look at a document briefly, and when you later discussed the subject matter with him, it would
sound as if he was mouthing verbatim what was in the document! His memory was photographic! It
did not matter if the content of the document was completely technical and outside his discipline.
Tony is gone! “When cometh there such another?”
ADIEU TONY!
Ukpabi Asika (in white outfit) striding into greatness with other titled men when he took the Ozo title in 1980.

35. 33
TRIBUTE TO
HIS EXCELLENCY, ANTHONY UKPABI ASIKA,
AJIE OF ONITSHA
By
CHIEF HOPE HARRIMAN
The passing away of a very devoted and dear friend, even after a long illness, must still produce its shock
to his numerous friends who have so far survived these turbulent years of our existence. In particular,
we remember Ambassador Leslie Harriman, Professor Eugene Odunjo, Godfrey and Gladys Eneli, to
mention a few.
Tony, as we all fondly called him, was a particularly amiable, reliable friend and counsel. His clarity of
thought and his apt comments on very complex issues of the day, were superb.
When on one evening in July 1967, a gentleman drove to my residence at 2 Bourdillon Road in a Peugeot
404 to introduce himself as Tony Asika, the name rang a bell, because my late brother Ambassador
Leslie Harriman, my cousin Ambassador Paul Engo of the Cameroons, now a world Court Judge in
Hamburg and Chief Tayo Akpata always talked of him in their Edo College days. When I later called on
him at his temporary residence at what was Flagstaff House, I found assembled a good number of
friends, including Alhaji Femi Okunnu, Asiodu, Ayida, Damcida, Joda, M.D. Yusuf.
I owe my friendship to many members of the then Supreme Military Council like the late Governor
Musa Usman, Abba Kyiari, Gen Danjuma and later Prof. Senator Jubril Aminu, to Tony Asika. Also
prominent Ibos like Nnameka Agu, former Surpreme Court Judge, Offia Nwali, to mention a few.
After Enugu was liberated, I became virtually the Deputy Administrator of the East Central State. On
his official visit to Midwest State, surprisingly Governor Ogbemudia and his cabinet, who were seeing
off the delegation headed by His Excellency Tony Asika found I was next to the Administrator on the
protocol list! So was the visit to North Central State. He always sought advice which formed part of his
good policies. His ability to mix with other Nigerians, irrespective of their ethnic origins, no doubt,
contributed to the rapid rehabilitation of the devastated Ibo land.
In the tribute letters on his 60th
birthday celebration in London in 1996, with him sitting on the
wheelchair, one common theme by most contributors was about his humility and versatility and his
enormous propensity to make friends. He battled against death with dignity and resilience. Like most of
his close friends, who have departed, he lived hard and well and attained a full life. His contribution to
the Igbo and Nigeria’s history will grow with time in Nigerian history when the present lesser men would
have shrunken to little measure.
Fare thee well Ajie. We will miss you.

36. 34
A TRIBUTE TO
HIS EXCELLENCY AJIE (DR.) UKPABI ASIKA
By
Rev Canon (Dr.) Magnus C. Adiele
The news of the passing away of His Excellency Ajie (Dr.) Ukpabi Asika came to me like a
thunderbolt. How could it be that the colossus, the towering and seasoned Administrator of East-
Central State of Nigeria from 1970-1975 is no more?
I served in his Government first as the Commissioner for Education (May 1970-October 1972) and
later as Commissioner for Health (October 1972-July 1975). I was also a member of the Executive
Council. Throughout his regime, he was a very effective and tireless Administrator, an astute scholar
and eloquent speaker. He was a man of tremendous stamina, courage and goodwill. He loved his
work, which was quite challenging. Indeed, he was a great achiever who was not afraid of innovations
as he left indelible marks in East-Central State of Nigeria.
By his demise, we have lost a great friend and mighty hero…A LEGEND IS GONE! To his amiable
wife, Her Excellency Chief (Mrs.) Chinyere Asika, the children and the entire brothers and sisters of
our great ‘H.E.’ (as he was popularly called by his colleagues), my wife Grace and family join me in
sending our deepest condolences on this irreparable loss. We pray that the Almighty God comforts
and sustains you all.
May the soul of H.E. rest in perfect peace…Amen!

37. 35
Tribute to
His Excellency (Dr.) Ukpabi Asika, CFR
Ajie Ukadiugwu
By
Professor Ukwu I. Ukwu
Where do I begin to write about Ukpabi Asika? What and how do I write about him? I knew him for
forty-eight years in many ways, as a fellow undergraduate gisting and arguing far into the night, as a
fellow lecturer and bon vivant in senior common rooms and seminar halls, as an adversary in the mad
days of the civil war, as my boss in the Government of the East Central State in the years of
reconciliation, rehabilitation and reconstruction, and always as a friend.
I know that my deep sense of loss on his passing is nothing compared to the devastation felt by his
beloved wife, children and grandchildren. I know that the country mourns the loss of one of its greatest
icons. But this isn’t the time for mourning. When Ukpabi Asika became the Ajie Ukadiugwu of Onitsha
he was ritually inducted into the ranks of the ‘Immortals”. Immortals do not die; he has no death to be
mourned. Rather, we can and must celebrate his life and his achievements.
I first met Ukpabi Asika as a fellow undergraduate at Ibadan and we were drawn to each other by our
mutual respect for independent and unconventional thinking, a passion for intellectual discourse and yet
a shared love of privacy and personal reserve. Soon friends, we became part of a small coterie of
“arrogant intellectuals” who disdained the fads and passions of undergraduate life and often presumed
to dispute the wisdom of our lecturers and deflate the posturing of our political leaders.
After our graduate studies many of us returned to Ibadan, into a charged political climate soon to
degenerate into coup and military rule. We established and tried to keep going an island of reasoned
dialogue amidst a maelstrom of sectional strife, but not for long. When it came to the crunch, every one
had to go their own way. Ukpabi Asika went the Federal way, I the Biafran way. But we had argued the
issues exhaustively, and while neither shared the other’s way we appreciated and respected the honesty
and integrity of their position.
Ukpabi Asika did not do things by halves. When he was called upon to lead the government of the
federally created East Central State he accepted the challenge. We know from the records that he kept a
cool head, was a moderating influence in the federal conduct of the war and governed the territories
under him with fairness and compassion. At the end of the strife he was instrumental to the articulation
of the historic principle of “No Victor, No Vanquished.”
Having been vested with the full authority of military governor, as Administrator of the East Central
State, this quintessential political scientist shouldered the responsibility of reassuring and restoring
confidence to a traumatised people, erasing the scars of war, rebuilding the state and bringing it into the
mainstream of national life. I was shocked when he invited me, an arch rebel straight from prison, to his
Cabinet only to find that most of my new colleagues were also from the Biafran side. By this insightful

38. 36
move he had sent a clear signal that all of us – former “vandals” and former “rebels” belonged
together in the common task of reconciliation, rehabilitation, and reconstruction. Under his leadership
the initial reserve and suspicion in the Cabinet melted away and we were soon able to work together as
a team, focused only on the rebirth of our State from the ashes of war.
For some members of the Cabinet it took some time to get used to, but the Asika Cabinet was run
much on the lines of a university committee in which every issue was “thrashed out” before decisions
were taken. This led to round-the clock sessions, but everybody understood why decisions were taken.
When it came to implementation, the Administrator expected every State commissioner to do their job
without his holding their hand. We had full authority to act and needed to consult or seek directives
from him only when necessary. So within this broad mandate we took full responsibility for the work
of our ministries. By the same token the civil servants had the authority to do the professional and
technical jobs of managing and operating the system. Things moved.
I had the honour of serving as State Commissioner first for Trade and Industry then for Finance. It
was my privilege to direct and oversee the rehabilitation of all the industries we inherited within 18
months of our Administration. As Commissioner for Finance I was allowed to fully exercise the
responsibilities of the office, including signing release warrants as and when due, monitoring revenues
and expenditures and ensuring regular publication of statutory statements. This aided the observance
of due process.
Enjoying the special goodwill and respect of the Head of State and his colleagues in the Supreme
Military council, the Administrator was able to secure from the Federal Government considerable
support for the reconstruction and development of the State. By the time the regime was overthrown
in 1975, the State had in many respects recovered its position in the development league. A
revolutionary approach to educational reform put the State from a destroyed education system to the
top of the league on primary school enrolment, while its innovations in local administration soon
became a model for other states.
After the July 1975 coup, Ukpabi Asika retired into private life. But his entry into the world of
business was quiet and dignified, and he kept out of partisan politics. He had become, at quite an
early age, an Elder Statesman. When his own community of Onitsha honoured him with the high
traditional title of Ajie Ukadiugwu, it was a public manifestation of what had long been recognised -lo
that Ukpabi Asika is a worthy son who has exercised the highest level of leadership for his people
when they needed it. The nation was to cap this much later by creating him a Commander of the
Federal Republic (CFR). Truly, a prophet finally honoured in his own country.
Sadly, the latter part of his life was dogged by illness. This he bore with uncommon fortitude and
dignity right to the end. We shall miss His Excellency Dr. Ukpabi Asika, CFR, Ajie Ukadiugwu
Onitsha. May God in His infinite mercy send us more like him.

39. 37
Tribute to a Titan:
His Excellency, Ajie (Dr.) Anthony Ukpabi Asika
1936-2004
By
Chief Martin Elechi (MFR)
The Ocho Udo of Alike
At the risk of saying the seemingly unacceptable, it is tempting enough to aver that the man Ukpabi
Asika was unknown to the larger Nigerian society, and would probably have remained so but for that
most horrendous event of the Nigerian history – the 30-month civil war ( July 1967- January 1970).
The Nigerian civil war was anchored on a tripod of personalities. On one side was Lt. Col
Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, later a General of the Biafran people’s army, who led Eastern
Region to secession under the banner of the Republic of Biafra. On the Federal side was Lt. Col Yakubu
Gowon, later a General of the Nigerian Army, for whom “to keep Nigeria one is a task that must be
done”. The duo went to battle with military hardware and their propaganda machines exchanged
venomous outpourings to justify their respective positions.
The third party was a one man outfit: Mr. Anthony Ukpabi Asika, alter Ajie Dr. Asika, appointed from
the classroom of the University of Ibadan to become the Administrator of Enugu and other liberated
areas of the East-Central State. At that stage his duty was essentially one of mediation and
reconciliation. His only weapon was his spoken words, the outward expressions of his prodigious
intelligence. Far from being the saboteur of the Igbo cause he was perceived to be by his Igbo detractors,
Dr. Asika portrayed himself as a true Igboman, proud to be an Igboman, at a time many hid their Igbo
identities in order to survive, but nonetheless asserted his rights and privileges, his duties and obligations
as a patriotic and detribalized Nigerian.
I served under Ajie Dr. Ukpabi Asika during the civil war as an administrative officer from August 1968
to May 1980, from where I was appointed into his cabinet as:
a) Commissioner for Lands, Survey and Urban Development (June 1970 – Mid November 1971);
b) Commissioner for Trade and Industry (Mid November 1971 - 30 September 1972)
c) Commissioner for Works and Housing (1st
October, 1972 – 31 July 1975).
I was therefore close enough to him to know and note his ideas and visions; his incredible capacity for
work, the discipline he brought to bear on his administration, his frustrations and lamentations, and the
courage and commitment of a man whose indomitable will to succeed was matched only by the
consummate skill of his style of governance.
The news of his death was aired on NTA network in September 2004; a devastating blow to his family,
friends and the nation in general.
To talk of Dr. Asika is to replay the dialogue of the six blind men of Hindustan, each of whom likened
an elephant to the particular part of the body of the beast which he touched. By dwelling on only one
aspect of his vast and varied attributes, I am neither losing sight of, nor playing down on, the rest of
them. He was too great to be sketched out, and even much greater for a fair deal in a brief tribute such
as this.
Asika was a graduate of Economics and a holder of a Master’s degree in Political Science. He combined
both disciplines most elegantly with philosophy, demonstrating most often the practice of Hegelian
dialectics in the myriad of problems he faced. Until his death and up to the present moment, he has

40. 38
remained probably the only Nigerian regularly referred to by both colleagues and the news media as
“scholar-statesman”. And he justified it. He frequently made the point that conflict resolution was
achieved by the harmonization of opposites in obvious reference to Hegelian ideas. He posited that
the Nigeria State was at the time of independence at the state of thesis, and bound to undergo a re-
birth: a procession to the stage of antithesis. That was brought about, and represented, by that
collapse of internal cohesion known as pogrom-secession-and-war. The third and final stage of
synthesis was the re-unification of the secessionist enclave with the rest of the country. At the stage
of synthesis the best from thesis and the best from antithesis are unified into a harmonious whole,
qualitatively higher than the two previous stages. This was the guiding principle which Ajie applied to
all facets of his public administration.
But the envisaged practical application of the principle of dialectics required verbal explanation. In his
broadcast of October 1968 entitled “An Afterworld: Prospect and Retrospect” he said:
“If I may, in conclusion, borrow and paraphrase some of the words of some of the leaders of the American Civil
War: “Today there should be no victors, no vanquished. As Nigerians we may all claim a share in the new Nigeria
born out of this war…”
“Before you lives the future, a future of truly golden promise of expanding national wealth and glory. Let me beseech
you to lay aside all rancour, all bitter sectional feeling; and to make your place in the ranks of those who will bring
about a consummation devoutly to be wished – a reunited country…
“nothing is here for tears, nothing to wail or knock the breast; no weakness no contempt, dispraise or blame.”
The collection of Dr. Asika’s war-time speeches is published under the title “No Victors, no
Vanquished” and some times erroneously ascribed to the Federal Military Government.
The salient facts of the doctrine are that Nigerians generally felt sorry for the travail which the Ibos
went through; there was a yearning for their reunion with other Nigerians. Far from condemning the
Ibos for their secession Ajie praised their courage and gallantry in battle and justified their display of
anger which led to secession. But he appealed to them to realize that secession was the wrong option.
Having lost many battles and large territories, having lost many close relations and the diplomatic
recognition of Biafra, there was nothing to fight further for. It was better to lay down their arms, not
their lives, and re-embrace the Nigerian nation.
Nigerians on the other hand shouldn’t feel superior just by the fact of military conquest of Biafra but
should appreciate and tap the resourcefulness of the Ibos in a united Nigeria. For Ajie Asika to
assume such a posture in a Supreme Military Council where he was the only civilian member was
indeed a display of the supreme act of courage.
In his war time and post-war reconciliation, rehabilitation and reconstruction (the famous 3R’s) he
wore on the one hand the emblem of “No victors, no vanquished,” and on the other hand, the guiding
principle of dialectics.
The distribution of relief materials to war victims was ordered along kindred lines to accord with the
structure of traditional Ibo societies. In recognition of the duality of loyalty between traditional
authorities and institutions to which subjects paid homage and owed allegiance on the one hand and
the modern states whose wealth was abused and looted by public officers, on the other hand it was
considered safe and more expedient to channel relief resources to the poorest victims through their
kindred heads. This was the forerunner to the famous Divisional Administration in which local
governments were created to reflect closest kindred ties and cultural identities. It engendered healthy
competition, the hallmark of Ibo spirit of enterprise.
Education was one of the earliest areas of his reform. Appreciating the enormous cost of
reconstructing the damaged infrastructures, and recognising also the divisive and mutually-exclusive
trend which education had acquired in the hands of voluntary agencies and private proprietors,

41. 39
Dr. Asika announced in May 1970 the compulsory take over of all private schools in the East-Central
State by the State Government – the boldest and most controversial decision of all times.
A school Board was put in place, and a Teachers Service Comission also established to manage and give
a new direction to education as the foundation of all development, and independent of the civil service
strings. For the first time Teachers Service Manual was worked out showing their career progression at
different levels. For the first time also, and never again thereafter, primary school headmasters and
headmistress were given car loans and allowances, with salaries paid as and when due. Teachers’ rewards
were no longer in heaven but here on earth.
At the secondary level, schools were reconstructed and expanded to include boarding facilities since
students were to be posted away from their home environments, unless they were physically
handicapped. It was reasoned that by living away from their accustomed environments they would make
friends and earn, for their own social enhancement, the cultural traits of other people. This again, was
another forerunner to the National Youth Service Corps Scheme which the Federal Government initiated
three years later in 1973.
The Institute of Management and Technology (IMT) was established to produce middle-level manpower
needed in all facets of public and private lives. By its equipment and staffing it ranked higher than some
of the present day tertiary institutions.
Together with Brigadier U.J. Esuene, the then Military Governor of South-Eastern State (present Cross
River and Akwa Ibom States), Ajie Dr. Asika reconstructed and re-opened the University of Nigeria,
Nsukka and handed it over to the Federal Government on grounds of financial insolvency.
Nowhere were the war damages more visible than on roads and industrial establishments, the former
through military engagements, the latter by looting and artillery fire. Here again dialectics was brought to
bear as a guiding principle in the proven belief that the stage of synthesis was eminently more desirable
than the preceding stages of thesis (pre-war) and antithesis (immediate post-war). Thus in the
reconstruction of the Nigerian Cement Company Ltd. (NIGERCEM) Nkalagu, Aba Textile Mills,
General Cotton Mills, Onitsha, Modern Ceramics Industry, and Golden Guinea Breweries, both as
Umuahia, the resultant plants were much bigger than their pre-war installed capacities thereby turning
them, in cost and scope, into new industries.
To assist the private sector, a Fund for Small Scale Industries (FUSSI) was established with Bank loans
sourced and supplemented by Government to give soft loans to viable private entrepreneurs. I was
privileged to be the first Chairman of the committee which administered that Fund.
Similarly the reconstruction of roads was given a very critical review: the old order was about to change.
Many communities which were hitherto forgotten, but which had great potentials for agricultural and
commercial development, were to be brought on board. This gave rise to the new designs, on higher
engineering scales, of such roads as Abakaliki ring road, Udi-Agbani-Nkerefi-Amasiri-Nguzu Edda
Road, 9th
Mile Corner-Ezeagu Road, Nsukka-Adani Road, Aba and Onitsha Township Roads, etc. Funds
were urgently needed to commence their construction.
Neither time nor space can allow the inclusion of what Dr. Asika did in the fields of health care delivery,
practical agriculture, traditional institution and financial management. In each of these, he proved
himself a master of the art.
What Dr. Asika needed most was money and time to justify conclusively the programme and project
which he set for himself for transforming the East-Central State from the ashes of war to a burgeoning
economy. But money and time was what destiny denied him. There was a yawning gap between his