As tributes begin to pour in for Rear Admiral Ndubuisi Kanu (rtd), who passed on on Wednesday at the age of 78, the dramatic journey of his life has begun to unfold.
Here was a military man who, for instance, chose to join prodemocracy group, NADECO, to wrestle the Babangida/Abacha regimes over the annulment of the 1993 June 12 election.
More importantly, Kanu fought on the side of the Biafra during the Civil War, bout secured pardon after it ended.
He later blended well in the Nigerian re-experience.
Meanwhile, Pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, the Afenifere, on Wednesday described the death Adm. Ndubuisi Kanu as a huge loss to Nigeria.
Kanu, a former Military Governor of Imo (1975) and Lagos State (1976), died on Wednesday in a hospital at the age of 77.
In an interview with NAN, the National Publicity Secretary of Afenifere, Mr Yinka Odumakin, said: “It is a very painful death.
“We have lost a very ebullient, vibrant and progressive someone.
“There is nothing we can do than to accept the will of God.
“He has lived a fulfilled life and dedicated his life to good causes for which we shall always remember him. May his soul rest in peace and may God protect all that he left behind.”
NAN reports that Kanu was appointed into the Supreme Military Council in 1975.
Retired Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo dissolved the council when he became the Head of State in 1976.
Kanu fought on the Biafran side during the civil war but was reabsorbed into the Nigerian military at the end of the war in 1970.
As a naval chief, who occupied many command and political offices as part of his military postings, Kanu civilianised himself when he retired from service.
He was a member of the pro-democracy group, National Democratic Coalition, which fought for the re-validation of the annulled June 12, 1993 Presidential Election.
