Two weeks ago, I lost a comrade, brother, and friend, Innocent Chukwuma. Innoma, as I called him, was 55, and until a few months ago when he retired, the regional director (West Africa) of Ford Foundation. Every waking moment in the last two weeks has left me thinking about life and Innocent Chukwuma’s death.
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I had a busy day on Saturday, April 3. Earlier that day, my spouse had informed me of the news of the death of the political activist, Yinka Odumakin, national publicity secretary of Afenifere, the Pan-Yoruba socio-cultural group. At 2:22p.m. Pacific Standard Time, I was about to put my phone on flight mode for a nap when I received a message from Dr. Chidi Odinkalu. The first message read: “Good evening sir. How are you doing?” It was followed by two questions; all three messages in a space of one minute: “Family?” “Have you heard about Innocent…? I replied immediately, “Good. Thanks. Innocent?” I became apprehensive when I didn’t get an imme
Innocent Chukwuma
Two weeks ago, I lost a comrade, brother, and friend, Innocent Chukwuma. Innoma, as I called him, was 55, and until a few months ago when he retired, the regional director (West Africa) of Ford Foundation. Every waking moment in the last two weeks has left me thinking about life and Innocent Chukwuma’s death.
I had a busy day on Saturday, April 3. Earlier that day, my spouse had informed me of the news of the death of the political activist, Yinka Odumakin, national publicity secretary of Afenifere, the Pan-Yoruba socio-cultural group. At 2:22p.m. Pacific Standard Time, I was about to put my phone on flight mode for a nap when I received a message from Dr. Chidi Odinkalu. The first message read: “Good evening sir. How are you doing?” It was followed by two questions; all three messages in a space of one minute: “Family?”
Innocent Chukwuma: Fulfilled Purpose and Dying Empty, By Omano Edigheji
Inno, you played your part as a positive change agent to make Nigeria, in particular, and the world, in general, a better place. Inno, in your life, you lived a life of purpose. In the short time you lived in this world, you clearly identified your life purpose, fulfilled it and died empty, after given it your all. Inno, like Apostle Paul, you fought the good fight. You finished the course and you kept the faith. Your integrity and dedication to humanity were unquestionable.
The goal of life is not to die old but to die empty. I want you to die with nothing else to do. I want you to die because you have poured out all of your dreams, ideas, visions, books, music, inventions, publications, that you died empty. You died because there is nothing to keep you alive. You have done what you were born to do and that is the greatest service to humanity. –
Innocent Chukwuma: You Fulfilled Your Purpose and Died Empty, By Omano Edigheji premiumtimesng.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from premiumtimesng.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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Innocent Chukwuma: Evergreen legacies that never fade
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By Adewale Adeoye
His death struck like lightning: swift, decisive and frightening. How can we humans disappear, like a loose kite in the sky, just like that, with all the knowledge, the wits, the future we all look at, like a far off blistering star?
If death was thoughtful enough, Inno should not have been the next victim. If death had listed excellent people at the bottom of its roll call and villains on the top,
Inno would have lived up to 100 years and disgusting rulers would have been consumed in rage. But death is nagging, unpredictable, indiscriminate, like the feeding habits of house flies: It sometimes takes the righteous, leaving behind the nasty and the cruel. Wicked and malicious beings scale the hurdle; they sometimes dwell long, even outliving the victims of their despotism.