Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba @54
The Rising Profile of a Political Realist
Time and circumstance play can and do play decisive roles, in the lives of people. It could be a long stretch of related or unrelated events. It could just be a flash; and the person is catapulted to national limelight or global prominence. It can also be by the convergence of careful planning and some divine intervention.
For Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba, the Hon. Minister of State for Education, as Henry Wadsworth Longfellow would say, “The strides by great men…were not attained by sudden flight, but they, while their companions slept, were toiling upward in the night”. For many who never heard of or knew Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba before the briefings of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, in Nigeria, there was the temptation to think that he had just been thrust on the public scene from nowhere. But that is the farthest thing from the truth.
What is perhaps correct is that, unlike many politicians who relish the klieg lights, this self-effacing young man, who turned 54 last week, prefers anonymity, to the razmataz of the traditional politician. that reminds me of an encounter with a politician, as a young editor, many years ago. The politician had reported that one of my colleagues told him that his stories were no longer appearing in the newspaper because they were considered to be negative and not good for his image. His response, a paradox of sorts, was as shocking as it was entertaining. “Editor”, he intoned “the worst thing that can happen to a politician is to be out of the news. It means political death”. Then he pleaded: “Editor, positive or negative, use my stories but illustrate them with my portrait so that people will know that I am still relevant”.
While attention-seeking may be the pastime of many a politician, by contrast, Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba is not consumed by the desire to be in the public glare. He would rather leave that to entertainment celebrities. Yet, he is a celebrity, in his own right. Perhaps, one should start with his outstanding performance during the COVID-19 briefings when he represented the Federal Ministry of Education. He demonstrated consummate knowledge of the intricacies of the moment, as he not only purveyed the Federal Government’s position but espoused deep convictions about the efficacy of the distant learning platforms aimed at ensuring that students were engaged while at home. Besides, his every word was laced with compassion for the pupils and students whose education had suffered a setback because of the pandemic. That he was able to navigate the landmines posed by the COVID-19 challenge was ample demonstration that this young man who landed on the national scene when he was elected to the House of Representative, in 1999, has indeed come of age.
Yes. At age 29, he was elected to the House of Representatives under the platform of the Peoples’ Democratic Party, PDP, to represent the Ehime Mbano/Ihitte Uboma/Obowo Federal Constituency, in Imo State. In spite of his youthful age, he was made chairman of the House Committee on Works, a position that he used to build a social network that traverses every nook and cranny of Nigeria today. A focused politician, in 2003 he ran for the governorship of Imo State on the platform of the All Nigeria Peoples Party, ANPP. Many believe that that was where he came into contact with President Muhammadu Buhari who, at the time, was the presidential candidate of the party. He lost the ANPP nomination which many believed that he won. If Dr. Chuba Okadigbo, former Senate President and vice-presidential candidate had been alive, he would have been in a position to reveal the internal intrigues and conspiracies that made Nwajiuba to lose the ticket. But, as the cliché goes, all that, is now history. He repeated in 2007 and lost.
Like the postage stamp that sticks to one place until it is delivered, Nwajiuba stuck to Muhammadu Buhari by following him to the Congress for Progressive Change where, this time around, he emerged the governorship candidate of the party in the 2011 elections. Like Buhari, he lost. Undeterred, he stuck to the President and was to play a major role in the negotiations and constitution drafting exercise that culminated in the formation of the All Progressives Congress, APC in 2013.
Ever since, his political profile has been on an upward swing. First, while still serving as chairman of the policy advisory group to President Buhari, on important national issues, he was appointed chairman of the Tertiary Education Fund (TETFUND). Following the re-election of President Buhari in 2019, he was nominated and confirmed a minister and subsequently appointed as Minister of State for Education.
Many Nigerians would have noticed his visibility over several platforms, all the time representing either the Minister of Education, Alhaji Adamu Adamu or the President. For his path, his candour and, at times, blunt positions on issues can ruffle feathers. One such occasion was during the protracted ASUU strike which had coincided with the COVID-19 lockdown when he said that rather than sit at home doing nothing, the teachers could take to farming. Recently he had argued, and correctly too, that university funding should not be left to the Federal Government alone, implying that universities should benchmark global standards whereby alumni intervention and consultancy services contributed to the survival of these institutions.
His dedication, patriotism and disciple have not gone unrecognised. In a message to Nwajiuba, on the occasion of his 54th birthday, President Muhammadu, through his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, said of the Minister: “As someone who believes that education is key to a successful and prosperous Nigeria, the President recognises the Minister’s tireless devotion in working with key stakeholders and international partners to enhance the capacity of the nation’s education systems”. In October 2020, Nwajiuba rejected the request by the Federal Government College, Sokoto to name an elegant lecture theatre after him, stating that it was against his principles to accept such honour while in office.
Emeka Nwajiuba hails from Umuezeala Nsu in the Ehime Mbano Local Government Area of Imo State. He was born on 20th August 1967 to Pa Jonah and Nwajiuba. He attended Imo State University, University of Lagos and the University of Jos where he bagged LLB, LLM and Ph. D, respectively. He was for many years into corporate law practice through which he established a friendship network that has played a critical role in his political career. Unassuming and deep, Emeka Nwajiuba believes in the promise of Nigeria and believes that today’s political problems can be resolved through painstaking dialogue and flexibility.
A dedicated family man and staunch member of the Anglican Communion, Hon. Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba who prefers that his enormous philanthropic deeds be kept away from the public, still finds time, from his hectic official schedule, to attend to domestic demands in a home where his equally humble wife, Dr. Adaku Nwajiuba takes charge during his frequent official engagements.
In recent times, Nwajiuba’s name has been frequently associated with the possibility of running for President in 2023; that is, if the APC zones the position to the South-East. While some consider that a distant shot, given Nigeria’s present official demographic reality, there is no doubt that he remains a formidable political asset to the APC. Among the factors that play in his favour are his youthfulness, vibrancy, even handedness in distributing the dividends of democracy, philanthropy and obvious proximity to the levers of power.
In some circles, Nwajiuba is said to be the closest politician, of South-East extraction, to President Buhari. Besides, he is seen as a bridge builder who commands the confidence of Nigerians across ethic, religious and the so many divides. How this plays out, in the weeks and months ahead, is left to be seen. One thing is clear though: no matter how 2023 plays out, at 54, the minister has many more years of active political life ahead of him.
