Senate suspends plenary to honour late Chukwumerije

*Burial takes place May 22nd

The Nigeria Senate on Tuesday adjourned plenary as a mark of honour for the late Chairman of the Senate Committee on Education, Uche Chukwumerije, who died at the weekend.

Sen Chukwumerije died after a long battle against lungs cancer. Senate president, David Mark, has described late Senator Chukwumerije as a national hero, who was pan- Nigerian in all ramifications.

Mark, who said this when he paid a condolence visit to the family of the deceased at his house in Abuja, said the late Senator was a nationalist and an unrepentant crusader for the respect for human rights and rule of law.

He pointed out that late Chukwumerije was an astute, firm, fearless and a voice for the voiceless, adding that he was an advocate of the masses who stood for justice, equity and fairness to all.

He also announced that the Senate has set up a burial committee to liaise with the family in order to give him a befitting burial.

The Senate President stated that Chukwumerije was an intellectual of very high standing, as well as a parliamentarian per excellence who contributed immensely for the success of the 5th, 6th and 7th Senate.

Senator Chukwumerije, he stressed, was a patriot in every sense of it saying “he left a positive legacy that the family, Abia state and the nation can always be proud of.”

Responding on behalf of the family, the eldest son of the late Senator, Chidi Chukwumerije, noted that his father was a great
nationalist who love Nigeria.

“My father was a voice for the voiceless and a defender of the oppressed. He was a true Nigeria and a proud son of Africa. His works in the Senate meant many things to him because that was the theatre where he articulated his dream for a better nation”, Chidi stated.

Meanwhile, the family of the deceased lawmaker has fixed 22nd of next month as burial date for him at his country home in Iguodo Isuochi, Abia state, after funeral service at Wesley Cathedral Methodist Church.

A letter signed by the eldest child of the deceased, Che Chidi Chukwumerije, and read on the floor of the senate yesterday by the
Senate President, revealed that the burial Programme will start with a night of tributes on Wednesday, 20th May at his residence in Abuja, to be followed by wake- keep on Thursday, 21st May at his family compound in Ngodo-Isuochi, Abia state.