… Says Comrade Ihonde championed the cause of the oppressed till the very end
By Igbotako Nowinta
Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria – A former Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice in Edo State, Comrade (Barr.) Osagie Obayuwana, has said that the greatest tribute the people of Nigeria could give to the late labour leader, Comrade Jonathan Ihonde, is to emulate his consistency of purpose.
Comrade Obayuwana made the above assertion in Benin City, on Saturday April 27, 2024, during a special ceremony tagged “Tributes To A Patriot & Humanist, For Jonathan Ihonde For Humanity,” organized by Committee of Friends/Comrades, to honour the late iconic labour leader.
Barr. Osagie Obayuwana said the late Comrade Jonathan Ihonde was a humanist par excellence, who consistently fought against the exploitation of the people throughout his life.
According to the renowned human rights activist: “Today we are celebrating a comrade for not only having lived a worthy life; a life deserving emulation by this upcoming generation. Comrade Ihonde lived a life that demonstrated commitment to the best of ideas, of the upliftment of the poorest of the poor in our midst.
“What we are celebrating is the fact that our comrade started to demonstrate this commitment not only in words but through actions, right from his youthful days. He was blessed with talents of diverse nature, but he put these talents to work in furtherance of this cause and he did it consistently till the very end.”
In profusely eulogizing the extraordinary lifestyle of the late comrade, Barr. Obayuwana challenged Nigerians to immortalize him by emulating his consistency of purpose. His words: “Comrade Jonathan Ihonde championed the cause of the oppressed. Talking about immortalizing him, for me the greatest tribute to him is for those of us alive to emulate his consistency of purpose.”
The Local Organizing Committee of the “Day of Tributes To A Patriot & Legend” was chaired by Phil.Obanor, Zonal Director, Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) Benin Zonal Centre, while the electrifying ceremony was well attended by people of diverse backgrounds, who poured torrents of tributes in honour of the late comrade.
The late comrade Jonathan Ibiezugbe Ihonde was born in 1938. He was an ace television director and producer, award-winning dramatist, patriot, great philosopher par excellence. Late Ihonde died on Wednesday March 13, 2024 at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), after a brief illness.
He created the popular television series called “Hotel De Jordan,” a precursor of Nigerian Home Video (Nollywood). Comrade Ihonde was a very humble, well-bred and educated scholar, who had the benefits of higher education in Western Europe (Great Britain) and Eastern Europe (defunct USSR). He experienced capitalism and socialism in practical and theoretical terms.
He had many Diplomas in different fields and a master’s in history and international diplomacy from the University of Benin. Comrade lhonde wrote, staged, directed, and produced many plays which won many awards for NTA, Benin.
The iconic labour leader was a former Vice President, deputy president and acting president of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC). He was a detribalized Nigerian, a man of courage, a fearless fighter for a better Nigeria, and an egalitarian society.
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