The elder and famous statesman Chief Tony Anenih has passed on after a brief illness on Sunday, 28th October 2018, according to the family.
Chief Anenih died Sunday afternoon at Cedarcrest Hospital Abuja. He was 85 years old.
The deceased family released a statement praising the retired
police officer and politician, saying he served “God and humanity with
commitment.”
The statement, which was signed by Tony Anenih Jr, said the late octogenarian “enjoyed God’s uncommon grace while alive.”
In a reaction to the eternal loss, the Speaker of the Federal House of Representatives Mr. Yakubu Dogara who released a statement as signed by his media personnel, Turaki Hassan,
described Chief Anenih as “great mobiliser and a reputable nationalist who,
all through his life, believed in, worked and prompted peace and unity
in Nigeria.”
“We have lost a father, counsellor, leader par excellence and a patriot who gave his all for the unity of this country.
“He was a distinguished and exemplary officer while he served in the
Nigerian Police until his retirement as Deputy Commissioner of Police.”
The speaker said Mr Anenih “played politics without bitterness right
from the days of the defunct National Party of Nigeria, NPN in the
second republic to the then Social Democratic Party, SDP and later the
People’s Democratic Party, PDP where he served as the Board of Trustees
chairman, leaving indelible marks in the management of the party”.
Also, an All Progressives Congress (APC) leader, Mr. Bola Tinubu described the deceased as a leader who was resolutely committed to the unity and
cohesion of the country.
He said in a statement by his Media Officer that: “Chief Anenih was a
foremost politician and elder-stateman. He was resolutely committed to
the unity and cohesion of this country. He worked for the upliftment of
his Uromi hometown and Edo State, as he worked for the growth and
development of Nigeria.
“A politician of immense repute. He gave so much to party politics and democracy in the country.
As one of the founding fathers of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), he
played a key role in the country’s resurgent democracy. It was no
surprise that he later emerged the Chairman, Board of Trustees of the PDP.
“Our path crossed in the Social Democratic Party where he was our
national chairman. I recall that he was an energetic politician who
played politics with all that he was imbued with.
“I commiserate with his family. I pray that they find the strength
and courage to live without their patriarch. I also commiserate with
Governor Godwin Obaseki and the government and people of Edo State”.
It would be recalled that before his exit, Chief Anenih voluntarily retired from active and partisan politics. A gesture that was received by teeming Nigerians with mixed feelings.
The statement from the Anenih family reads as follows:
OUR PATRIARCH, CHIEF ANTHONY AKHAKON ANENIH, PASSES ON
With a heavy heart and total submission to the will of the Almighty
God, the family of Chief Anthony Akhakon Anenih, CFR, the Iyasele of
Esanland, announces his passing on to glory today, Sunday, October 28,
2018 after a brief illness.
Aged 85, Chief Anthony Akhakon Anenih, is survived by many children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.
A beloved patriarch, he enjoyed God’s uncommon grace while alive.
He served God and humanity with commitment. He also served his fatherland to the best of his ability.
We will all sorely miss him. But his legacies live on.
Burial arrangements by the family will be announced subsequently.
Signed:
Mr. Anthony Anenih, Junior
For the family
