INNOCENT CHUKWUEMEKA CHUKWUMA MEMORIAL : Oby Ezekwesili harps on building strong institutions.
Comfort Nkong
In honor of his contribution to nation building and to immortalize his goodworks, associates friends and family of Innocent Chkwuemeka Chukwuma gathered for the opening of New Cleen Foundation office and 2nd year memorial annual impact and legacy lecture.
The lecture which took place on Wednesday at Abuja had in attendance the likes of Oby Ezekwesili, the former Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase and other dignitaries.
In her keynote address Oby Ezekwesilli former Minister of education, extolled the virtues of the late Innocent Chukwuma some of which she listed as character, competence and capacity in building institutions, adding that it is what he represents.
According to her, he was a man who really epitomized excellence and dedicated his life of passion to building systems and processes but he did not think of systems and processes as stand alone social constructs. “He understood the nexus between individuals and institutions.”
She cited a theory that says having a set of practices that govern how society runs enhances legitimacy . She stresses the importance of building institutions which she said is responsible for the development in civilized nations as this will prevent the subversion of the orderly way of doing things irrespective of the passage of time and changes in individual.
She lamented that Nigeria is an anti-intellectual society and warned that if this continues we will have people who don’t care about our institution building process.
She said the problems of society often arise from individual experiences and the agenda setting for change can never happen without the Innocent Chukwuma’s of our world who speak out against a status quo that is not right. “He was a remarkable entrepreneur. We must relentlessly work towards building institutions that endure and promote justice and democracy and inclusive prosperity just like Innocent did throughout his life.” Ezekwesili stressed.
The former Inspector General of Police and Chairman Police Services Commission, Solomon Arase represented by the Permanent Secretary of the commission Dr Ifeoma Anyanwu in his good will message said the late Innocent Chukwuma worked closely with the Commission and prayed for his wife Mrs Josephine Chukwuma. and children that God would bless them as they continue in the good work of CLEEN Foundation.
Many spoke testifying of his role in bringing about police reforms as well as empowering policemen to do their job through provision of laptop and other incentives. The Lagos state business community testified to his passion and devotion to humanity and impact on our national landscape.
His wife Mrs Josephine Effah-Chukwuma while appreciating all for their support said her late husband and founder of the CLEEN Foundation spent three decades of his life building platforms to support the civic space. The Civil society leader died in 2021 after a battle with acute myeloid leukaemia at the age of 55 and is survived by his wife and children. The event which was in two phases featured the official opening of the CLEEN Foundation headquarters in Utako Abuja and the second year memorial of Innocent Chkwuemeka chukwuma annual impact and legacy lecture series at the Yar’Adua center in Abuja.
