By Nwanosike Onu The Nation
Chris Ngige mourns
A former Speaker of the House of Representatives in the aborted Third Republic, Chief Agunwa Anaekwe, has died.
The top politician from Adazi in Anaocha Local Government Area of Anambra State reportedly died on Saturday.
Anaekwe became the House of Representatives Speaker on December 5, 1992 and ended on November 17, 1993 when the administration was terminated by the General Sani Abacha military junta.
He was a graduate of Law from the prestigious University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN), Enugu Campus, and an old student of the Christ the King College, CKC, Onitsha, Anambra State.
After his tenure as the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Anaekwe refrained from partisan politics. He later joined the All Progressives Congress (APC) after its formation and was in the party till his demise.
The late Anaekwe was said to have suffered a leg injury but managed to attend APC functions in Awka, the Anambra State capital.
He was the second House of Representatives Speaker from Anambra State, after the tenure of the late Chief Edwin Ume-Ezeoke from 1979 to 1983.
Recently, he led some officers of the National Assembly to meet with President Bola Tinubu, where they discussed many issues.
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The Nation鈥檚 efforts to contact the family of the deceased were unsuccessful last night.
But a long-time friend of the former Speaker and ex-Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige, confirmed Anaekwe鈥檚 death last night.
In a statement last night, Ngige, a former governor of Anambra State, expressed shock and sadness over the death of the former Speaker.
He described Anaekwe鈥檚 death as the uprooting of a big political iroko tree from Ibo land and Nigeria.
鈥淢ay the good Lord comfort the family, the government, and our people in Anambra State and Nigeria in general, on this colossal loss, just as we pray that the good Lord will grant his soul eternal rest,鈥 Ngige said in the statement.