Dr Ogbonnaya Onu, a former governor of Abia State, has died at the age of 72 on Thursday morning.
According to a kinsman in Ebonyi who confirmed the sad news to SaharaReporters, Onu had been battling illness for some time.
His family had planned to fly him abroad for better medical treatment after the Sallah break, but unfortunately, he did not survive until then.
The Former Governor, originally from Ebonyi State, held great positions during his career.
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He served as the first civilian governor of Abia State and later as Nigeria’s Minister of Science, Technology, and Innovation from November 2015 until his resignation in 2022.
His political journey began when he aspired for a senatorial seat in the old Imo State under the National Party of Nigeria (NPN).
He later contested for the position of Governor of Abia State in 1991, winning under the umbrella of the National Republican Convention (NRC).
In January 1992, he was sworn in as the first executive governor of Abia State and became the inaugural chairman of the Conference of Nigerian Elected Governors (CNEG).
In 1999, Onu was the presidential candidate of the All People’s Party (APP), but he stepped aside in favor of Olu Falae after their party merged with the Alliance for Democracy.
Unfortunately, Falae lost to Olusegun Obasanjo of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the presidential election.
Onu continued his political journey, eventually becoming the national chairman of the All Nigerian People’s Party (ANPP).
In 2013, the ANPP merged with other parties to form the All Progressives Congress (APC), which is currently the ruling party in Nigeria.
In November 2015, he assumed the role of Minister of Science and Technology under the administration of then-President Muhammadu Buhari. However, he stepped down from his position in 2022.
