How time flies! It is exactly two years to the day that my father and friend, the vibrant multi-talented and workaholic Ejeh of Ankpa, HRH Alhaji Ahmadu Yakubu Adaji was committed to mother earth. He was laid to rest amidst flood of tears, wailing and lamentations from relations, colleagues, co-traditional rulers, Ankpa community, close associates, Ankpa Local Government Traditional Council, Igala kingdom traditional council and indeed, Kogi State and the entire emirate council of Nigeria. The emotional outpour of grief and of glowing tributes reveal the importance of Agaagwu to humanity; the multitude of sympathizers, relations, close associate from the north, south and west of Nigeria demonstrated in clearterms that while Agaagwu was alive, he enjoyed tremendous good will of the people from all walks of life.
Ejeh Ahmadu, an amiable, engaging, vivacious and a self-made man developed his innate potentials by a dint of hard work, integrity and diligence. Agaagwu was a prodigious man, a genius of sparkling personage and a shining gold fish in the golden bowel throughout his lifetime.The man with the milk of human kindness, Agaagwu had no dark corners to life. He believed in humanity, and his generosity, ingenuity,intellect and captivating mien, oratory fireworks together with his formidable asset paved the way for his sporadic ascension to the stool of Ejeh of Ankpa and the chairman of the Ankpa Traditional Council. It is therefore right to describe Agaagwu as a bank and fountain of wisdom where the sluggard found their refreshing comfort. He gave all that he had including his life to serve Ankpa and Igala kingdom. He was a ‘peace dove’ who flew the peace reed of mankind.
My world came crashing when I first heard of the news of the passing away of Agaagwu, HRH(Dr) Ahmadu Yakubu Adaji. Although late, my consolation comes from the fact that Agaagwu lived an eventful life, and that even though he did not live to see the end of the edifice he erected in the book that he was pleased with and commissioned to be written which opens a new vista of Igala history, his legacies are indelibly imprinted on the marble of history in gold. Words cannot adequately express my profound and esteemed gratitude to Allah for the wonderful and eventful life he endowed Agaagwu with on this planet. May the Almighty Allah reward him for his unflinching interest in social, human and communal development, and may Allah grant his kind soul Aljanat firdaus (Amin).
To lay bare account by account the support,encouragement and wisdom I got from Agaagwu will amount to using a spoon to collect water from a sea.No human, in all of my life’s journey, ever gives his all so generous as Agaagwu did. The vacuum he left behind, a challenge for the living and a glory for the dead, will take a century to be filled by any living being. I have yet to see a man that puts actions to words, and measures up to any responsible and functional standard as Agaagwu.
Were he alive today, all the minor challenges our world is currently passing through, arising from procrastination, usurpation and deliberate failure on the side of men to give actions to life would have been surmounted. Agaagwu goaded me on to no end in the course of my academic sojourn. That support led me to the hall of academic fame today.
Agaagwu, your good work here on earth has created a peaceful place for you in the world that is currently better than ours.Rest on Dad at the bosom of your Creator until we meet to part no more.
– Musa Abdulkarim Itodo
