I am constrained to put this piece together for a man I have come to cherish and respect. Inside me, I feel a deep sense of pain because words can never adequately convey how I feel about him at this hour. My pain is aggravated when I consider the friendship that exists between us. I should have done this long before now but the suspenseful wait for his return has not given way to cheering news. The man whose picture appears here is an epitome of gentility. You will easily notice this in his appearance, inter-personal relations and the warmth of his reception any day. He doesn’t carry any bag of airs around himself despite his exalted position. He is just as plain good as the nice guy you know who lives next door. Tall, huge and immensely handsome with a carriage that will make you think he also makes a living from modelling, Arc. Emenike Ihekwaba became a permanent secretary in the Imo State civil service at a relatively young age. In 2007, CKN Nigeria and I had met him when he was the permanent secretary in charge of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. Our parts had crossed when we sought for the marketing right for an event organized by his ministry. Those who claimed to have known him had tried to ‘’obtain’’ money from us before facilitating a meeting with him by painting him as a very tough and rigid man. Their antics didn’t sit well with us and we decided to take the bull by the horn. We readied our documents and headed straight to him, defended our proposal and by the time we came back the next day, the marketing right was in our hands in principle. We eventually got the letter empowering us as marketing consultants. During the first and subsequent meetings, we came out with the impression that this is a very caring man, ready to assist and filled with the milk of human kindness. In retrospect, I think he is a man who is always ready to assist especially when you have an idea that will help him excel in his job. Sometimes, I wonder if people like him can still be found in the civil service. In 2011, when the Rochas administration cruised into power, he was posted to the office of the then Deputy Governor, Sir Jude Agbaso, as the permanent secretary in charge of works. This was during the heyday of the now heavily slowed down if not abandoned Rochas Road Revolution. Sometime in August 2012, the unexpected happened. It was devastating news to everyone who has encountered this man. Arc. Ihekwaba, a native of Nkwerre and a prominent member of the Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship (FGBMF), while returning to his home town from a function outside the state capital was accosted by gun-toting kidnappers. Riding with his wife, he had stopped at a certain location on the way home to buy a few things for the household. Quickly, his attackers bundled his huge frame into the booth of his car and sped off. Almost two years down the road, this good man has been missing without a trace. Who are these kidnappers? What is their grouse? He has been been kept incommunicado for as long as I know. These are questions that have remained unanswered up till this day. His family has been living with the agony of his unknown where about. So also are his friends and colleagues. Please if you have any information on the where about of this man; don’t fail to bring it to the knowledge of the appropriate authorities.
Posted on: Thu, 27 Mar 2014 13:56:32 +0000
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