BREAKING: Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, Ohanaeze Ndigbo Leader, Is Dead At 82

It is a black day in Igboland, South-East Nigeria, as there are reports that Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, has died.
Reliable sources told Sundiata Post that Chief Iwuanyanwu, 81, died on Thursday in Abuja after doctors battled to stabilise him. He was diagnosed with low blood pressure and placed on oxygen.
According to Max Amuchie of Sundiata Post, the findings indicate that the doctors wanted to stabilise him and fly him to the United States for further treatment before he died.
Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma, who is in Abuja, is said to be meeting with his (Iwuanyanwu) family and Ohanaeze Ndigbo leadership before making any formal announcements.
Born on September 4, 1942, was the 11th president-general of Ọhanaeze Ndigbo. He took over as President-General in 2023, succeeding the late Professor George Obiozor.

Despite coming from a humble background, Chief Iwuanyanwu rose to prominence as a politician, businessman, and philanthropist in Nigeria. From 1948 to 1952, he attended St. Patrick’s School, Nkpokwu (later renamed Rukpokwu), in Port Harcourt, for grades one through four. For his fifth and sixth grades, he was transferred to Holy Trinity Primary School in Holy Trinity Church, Umuapara. This lasted from 1953 to 1954. From 1955 to 1959, he attended New Bethel College in Onitsha, Anambra State. Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu was admitted to the Federal School of Science in Lagos in 1960, along with a few other brilliant students, to study Pure and Applied Mathematics, Physics, and Chemistry.

In 1963, he was admitted to the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, where he studied civil engineering. Because of his outstanding academic achievements during his early years at university, Iwuanyanwu was awarded the prestigious German Academic Exchange Scholarship, which covered fees, boarding, holiday tickets, and feeding and was quickly facilitated by the Federal Republic of Germany. This award was given to a few talented students of African descent.

First Attempt at Presidency

In June 1990, Nigeria’s then-military president, General Ibrahim Babangida, lifted the ban on political activities. Chief Iwuanyanwu became the National Chairman of the unregistered Nigeria National Congress (NNC), which later merged with the National Republican Convention (NRC) party. He ran for president of Nigeria under the NRC. In addition, General Ibrahim Babangida lifted the ban on former First and Second Republic politicians, including Adamu Ciroma, who entered the contest. He won the NRC presidential primaries, and the party selected Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu to be his running mate.
The Social Democratic Party (SDP) was the NRC’s primary rival. Alhaji Shehu Musa Yar’Adua triumphed in the SDP’s presidential primaries. Unfortunately, allegations of widespread electoral malpractice by aspirants from both parties were made to the government. As a result, on October 6, 1992, the political parties suspended their presidential primaries. On October 16, 1992, the Armed Forces Ruling Council (AFRC) declared the party primaries’ suspended results invalid and dissolved both the NRC and SDP party executives.
The nullification of results and dissolution of the parties’ executive committees effectively eliminated Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu and other politicians from the race, allowing Alhaji Bashir Tofa to emerge as the NRC’s presidential candidate. After the presidential election on June 12, 1993, Moshood Abiola of the SDP was elected president. The then-military president, General Ibrahim Babangida, declared the elections invalid, citing widespread irregularities, but no evidence of fraud was presented to the Nigerian public.

Second Attempt at Presidency.

On December 12, 1995, the Nigerian military government, led by General Sani Abacha, established a new eight-member National Electoral Commission of Nigeria. The next day, the government established a Transition Implementation Committee (TIC) to oversee the transition to civil rule process. The National Congress of Nigeria (NCN), which was founded in part by Chief Iwuanyanwu, merged with other organisations to form the United Nigeria Congress (UNC). The UNC merged with the United Nigeria Party (UNP) to form the United Nigeria Congress Party (UNCP). On September 30, 1996, NECON officially registered five political parties. These included the Committee for National Consensus (CNC), United Nigeria Congress Party (UNCP), National Centre Party of Nigeria (NCPN), Democratic Party of Nigeria (DPN), and Grassroots Democratic Movement.
Aside from Chief Iwuanyanwu, other prominent members of the UNCP included Dim C. Odumegwu Ojukwu and General Joseph Nanven Garba, the former President of the United Nations General Assembly. Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu chaired the UNCP’s Finance Committee as well as its Contact and Mobilisation Committee. He began running for president with the UNCP. As of July 1997, only Chief Iwuanyanwu of the UNCP had expressed interest in running for president. Other politicians were hesitant to show interest because they feared General Sani Abacha would use the party to become a civilian president.[20] In the 469-member national legislative assembly elections on April 25, 1998, the UNCP won more than 70% of the seats. Its closest rival, the Democratic Party of Nigeria (DPN), received only 17% of the seats. During the height of Chief Iwuanyanwu’s presidential campaign, he flew his private jet to the Republic of Chad to meet with his political ally, Chad’s then-Prime Minister Koibla Djimastas. Upon his return, General Abacha considered arresting Chief Iwuanyanwu on fabricated charges of plotting against his government, but Iwuanyanwu was eventually released. As a result, on October 6, 1992, the political parties called off their presidential primaries.
The country’s circumstances, as well as the strain on Iwuanyanwu’s relationship with Abacha, prompted him to withdraw his candidature for president. Chief Iwuanyanwu announced his intention to run for Senate at a UNCP meeting in Owerri on Monday, January 19, 1998. Dr. Olusola Saraki and Chief Donald Etiebet were among the other presidential candidates who had withdrawn by this point.
In April 1998, four political parties had chosen Abacha as their sole presidential candidate. Iwuanyanwu quickly planned a covert journey to exile, suspecting General Abacha of detaining him in the same way he had Diya and others. Iwuanyanwu’s complications were brought to an end when General Abacha died unexpectedly on June 8, 1998, and General Abdulsalami Abubakar took power.

Third Attempt at Presidency

On August 11, 1998, Abubakar established a 14-member Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), led by Justice Ephraim Akpata (rtd). Fourteen days later, INEC announced that voter registration would take place from October 5 to 19, 1998; local government elections would be held on December 5, 1998; governorship/state house of assembly elections on January 9, 1999; national assembly elections on February 20, 1999; and presidential elections on February 27, 1999. Chief Iwuanyanwu established the National Congress. This eventually evolved into the United Nigeria People’s Party (UNPP). He later led many UNPP members to the All People’s Party (APP), where he was a founding member. Dim Odumegwu Ojukwu also led members of his Peoples Democratic Congress (PDC) to the APP. As a result, the APP grew strong enough to take on the People’s Democratic Party. The PDP was formed by the G-9 (Dr. Alex Ekwueme, Chief Solomon Lar, Senator Francis Ellah, Alhaji Abubakar Rimi, Chief Bola Ige, Dr. Iyorcha Ayu, Prof. Jerry Gana, Alhaji Sule Lamido, and Mallam Adamu Ciroma), which later evolved into the G-18 and then the fearless G-34, which had previously petitioned Gen. Sani Abacha, advising him not to succeed himself.
By late November 1998, Iwuanyanwu was adopted as the APP’s consensus presidential candidate for the south-east in the presence of Chief Francis Arthur Nzeribe; Dim Odumegwu Ojukwu; Prof. Godwin Odenigwe; Chief Gbazueagu Nweke Gbazueagu (aspiring to be governor of Enugu State); Dr. I.C. Madubuike; Chief Chris Nwankwo; Chief Max Nduaguibe; Prince Pat Abii (who was running for governor of Imo State); Chief Martin Elechi; Chief Chekwas Okorie; Chief Jerry Ok
On Sunday, February 14, 1999, the APP primaries took place. At the time, there were nine candidates for the APP final nomination. Among the presidential candidates who ran were Chief Harry Akande, Alhaji Umaru Shinkafi, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, Chief Bode Olajumoke, Dr. Gamaliel Onosode, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, and Dr. Abubakar Olusola Saraki. Dr. Saraki had refused to accept the party’s decision to zone the presidency exclusively to southern candidates. Chief Ogbonnaya Onu, former governor of old Abia State, also ran for the presidential nomination, defying the general consensus among south-east politicians to support Iwuanyanwu. Chief Onu emerged as the APP’s presidential candidate.
With gubernatorial results showing the PDP as the dominant party, the APP formed an alliance with the Alliance for Democracy (AD), and Onu was sidelined by his party due to powerful interests in the West-North presidential and vice presidential tickets for both the PDP and the APP-AD.
Thus, Chief Olu Falae of the AD was chosen as the presidential flagbearer, with Alhaji Umaru Shinkafi of the APP as his running mate. Olusegun Obasanjo emerged as the PDP’s presidential candidate, with Alhaji Atiku Abubakar as his running mate. During the elections, Iwuanyanwu supported Obasanjo’s political structure, which helped Obasanjo become Nigeria’s president in 1999.

As a Leader of the People’s Democratic Party

In September 1999, the leaders of the APP in the South-east, including Chief Iwuanyanwu, Chief Vincent Ogbulafor, Mrs. Joy Emodi, and their political allies, defected to the PDP. Thousands of their supporters followed suit. Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu, the then-governor of Abia State, praised the action as strategically important to the Igbo people. Chief Iwuanyanwu supported the Obasanjo administration. He declined to be a minister, instead successfully recommending acolytes for the position. He declined to be a minister, instead successfully recommending acolytes for the position.
Until his death, he was the oldest member of the People’s Democratic Party Board of Trustees.
During the 2003 Presidential election, he coordinated the party’s campaign in the South-East zone. In 2005, he served as a member of the National Political Reform Conference.

Executive Membership and President-General of Ohaneze Ndigbo.

Since 1988, Chief Iwuanyanwu has been publicly involved in the activities of the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the Igbo’s apex socio-cultural organisation. The Organization’s primary goal is to foster solidarity among its members in order to represent the Igbo political interests in Nigeria.
It was the primary platform that propelled his political career. He previously served as Chairman of the Ohaneze Igbo Planning & Strategy Committee, the Ohaneze Political Committee, the Ohaneze Ndigbo State Creation Committee in 2006, and the Ohaneze Ndigbo Council of Elders. As Chairman of the Ohaneze Council of Elders, Chief Iwuanyanwu was outspoken on issues affecting the Igbo people.
On April 20, 2023, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu was named President-General of the Ohanaeze Ndigbo worldwide. This was in accordance with the “doctrine of necessity,” which went into effect when the National Executive Council of the Ohanaeze Ndigbo directed the people of Imo State to find a credible replacement for Ambassador Obiozor, the former President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, who died in December 2022. The Imo State Council of Elders, led by Eze Ilomuanya, presented Chief Iwuanyanwu to Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State as “the consensus candidate” for the Council to lead Ohanaeze Ndigbo worldwide.

On taking office, Iwuanyanwu improved working relations with Nigeria’s South-East governors, coordinated the attention of Igbo business tycoons to Ohaneze Ndigbo affairs, ended the leadership crisis in Ohaneze Ndigbo (United Kingdom and Ireland), and formally admitted some African-Americans who had provided evidence of authentic Igbo ancestry into the Igbo fold.