{"id":4132,"date":"2013-05-24T05:29:18","date_gmt":"2013-05-24T05:29:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/disnaija.com\/nigerian-newspapers\/jonathan-mahama-anyaoku-others-bid-achebe-farewell\/"},"modified":"2013-05-24T05:29:18","modified_gmt":"2013-05-24T05:29:18","slug":"jonathan-mahama-anyaoku-others-bid-achebe-farewell","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/disnaija.com\/jonathan-mahama-anyaoku-others-bid-achebe-farewell\/","title":{"rendered":"Jonathan, Mahama, Anyaoku, others bid Achebe farewell"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Presidents Goodluck Jonathan and his Ghanaian counterpart, John Mahama, yesterday led dignitaries to bid farewell to the late Prof. Chinua Achebe.<\/p>\n

Achebe\u2019s remains were buried in a mausoleum in his country home after a funeral service at the St. Phillip\u2019s Anglican Church, Ogidi, Anambra State.<\/p>\n

Jonathan, at the church service, said the late Achebe was a man of value.<\/p>\n

He said: ”Though I did not have enough time to interact with him, but I did interact with those who are like him and with mama here (Achebe’s wife Christie). I wondered whether he loved his books more than his wife.<\/p>\n

”He used literature to express his ideas of life. He used Things Fall Apart to illustrate the loss of our value system. we should ask ourselves: have we changed from what Achebe talked about?<\/p>\n

”We should work hard so that by the time Achebe (Jnr) will write his own book, he will write that ‘\u2019There is a country\u2019 and not \u2018There was a country’.<\/p>\n

”All of us should come together, traditional rulers, Clergymen, the big business moguls, we have to correct those things, there is nothing wrong with us , it is just a matter of bringing back those values.”<\/p>\n

The president announced that the Federal Government and Ghana would rebuild Akpakaogwe Primary School, Ogidi, which the late Achebe attended.<\/p>\n

Speaking after the funeral service, prominent Nigerians paid tributes to him.<\/p>\n

Former Vice-President Alex Ekwueme described the late Achebe as a pacesetter who blazed the trail for the revolution of African literature.<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cBefore he came on the scene, it was a matter of foreigners writing about us. His first book: Things Fall Apart, made such impact worldwide. It was an opportunity for people to learn the impact the white people had on African culture. That made him a trail-blazer.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Former Commonwealth Secretary-General Chief Emeka Anyaoku described the late Achebe as an \u2018Iroko\u2019 in the literary forest, who instilled confidence into African literature.<\/p>\n

Anyaoku said: \u201cHe was an outstanding, by global standards, storyteller and a social critic. His work will live for a very long time because he brought confidence into African literature. Like the renaissance in Europe which gave European writers confidence in their culture, Chinua Achebe\u2019s writings gave African writers confidence because his social analysis was to the point and he created an atmosphere that enabled African writers to rediscover the dignity of the Africans before the Europeans came. And so in that way, his legacy will live forever.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Delta State Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan said the late Achebe was a moral compass for many Nigerians who stood on very strong moral grounds on a lot of issues in Nigeria.<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cHe will be remembered for his steadfastness in ensuring that we have a better society. He had a small pamphlet on how to deal with leadership issues which many people have read to help shape their lives,\u2019\u2019 the governor said.<\/p>\n

Former Governor of Anambra Dame Virgy Etiaba described the late Achebe as a fearless, courageous and outspoken character, who would never be easily forgotten.<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cAll those who reacted negatively and positively to his last book: There was a Country, have all come together to give him a befitting tribute.This is because he was very hard working. He started from a humble beginning and ended in great heights.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Minister of Labour and Productivity Emeka Wogu said the late literary icon lived a good life and was renowned as a writer of repute.<\/p>\n

He described the late Achebe as a great African and Nigeria\u2019s gift to the international community.<\/p>\n

Minister of Finance and Co-ordinating Minister for the Economy Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said the late Achebe\u2019s literary contributions to the world would endure forever.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve learnt a lot from his commentary over time about leadership, the need to have integrity and honesty and that is what we strive to do in our work.<\/p>\n

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Posted in Nigerian Newspapers. <\/a>A DisNaija.Com<\/a> network.<\/p>\n

Source: The Nation Newspaper<\/p>\n

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