Nnamdi Azikwe

Zik in Traditional attire

Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe, the first Nigerian president was born on November 16, 1904 and died on May 11 1996. He hailed from Zungeru in Anambra state of Nigeria. He attended various grammar and high schools in Onitsha, Calabar and Lagos. He went forward to spend almost 10 years (1925-34) studying in the United States, where he attended several schools, including Howard University in Washington D.C. in 1934. He went to the Gold Coast (now Ghana) where he founded a newspaper and as a result become a mentor to Kwame, Nkrumah (first president of Ghana).

Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe joined politics in 1944 and became the founder of the National Council of Nigeria and Cameroon (NCNC), there he was elected to the Nigerian Legislature Council, and he later served as premier of the eastern region in (1954-59); from where he led (NCNC) into 1959 federal elections which preceded Nigerian Independence. He is one of the bedrock of Nigerian Independence.

In 1969 Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe realized the hopelessness of the war, and stood for freedom by throwing support to the Federal Government. He became a Chancellor of the University of Nigeria Nsukka from 1961 to 1966, and was the president of several sports organization for football, boxing and table tennis. He became an important figure in the history of Nigerian politics. In fact, the story of Nigeria is not complete without people like Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe.

Five hundrednaira bank note with the image of Zik

In Nigeria today, many things are named after him because his hard work towards the nation can never be forgotten; his portrait reflected on Nigerian N500 currency note, many streets are named after his name. The international airport in the Federal Capital Territory in Abuja is also named after him and his statue was built in his hometown, Onitsha.

I admire him so much as my hero, because he is a man of noble character, a man of honesty and sincerity. As a patriot, someone who has a strong love for his country, he fought for freedom of this great nation; in other words, he stood to ensure that the people of Nigeria are set free from the bondage of colonialism. As a result of his honesty, sincerity, responsibleness, love, accountability and transparency, a title was conferred on him as “THE ZIK OF AFRICA”, and many other titles were also conferred on him.

Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe's noble qualities and lifestyle have really challenged me to develop strong love for my country and also to be a responsible citizen. I used to wonder how Nigeria as a nation could have succeeded without such a person of integrity. Dr. Nnamdi Azikwe is not only a patriot but also a great hero.