Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State has described the late Supreme Court Justice Emmanuel Obioma Ogwuegbu as one of Nigeria’s greatest and brightest legal minds who impacted society so much that it will be difficult to forget him.
According to a statement by Chief Press Secretary/ Special Adviser, Media to the Imo Governor, Oguwike Nwachuku, the governor described the late Justice Ogwuegbu as an embodiment of courage, discipline, integrity, and a jurist with an uncommon brilliance.
The governor spoke on Saturday at the funeral Mass of the late Justice Ogwuegbu at St. Theresa Chibugwumba Catholic Parish, Amainyi, Ihitte Uboma Local Government Area of Imo State, where tributes also poured in from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, his deputy, Vice President Kashim Shettima, the Supreme Court, the Federal High Court, the National Assembly, Governors and other key figures from the country.
While President Tinubu commended Justice Ogwuegbu’s “unwavering commitment to justice, integrity, and rule of law,” Vice President Shettima noted that the late legal icon was not just a jurist, but a “pillar of integrity and a beacon of justice whose work and contributions have left indelible mark on Nigeria’s evolving tradition of jurisprudence.”
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Uzodimma said that Justice Ogwuegbu did not just make Imo State, where he issued from, proud in all the assignments given to him, but served Nigeria and the world creditably, and by extension, served humanity and God.
Uzodimma noted that Justice Ogwuegbu wrote his name in granite across the landscape of the Nigerian legal system, serving in the Supreme Court for many years and participating in landmark judgments on sensitive matters such as federalism, university autonomy, human rights, and banking regulations and acquitting himself credibly.
The governor insisted that everyone is in agreement that Justice Ogwuegbu gave priority to his good name, above primitive acquisition of material things, a quality which is in short supply amongst today’s public servants.