Ebie pays tribute to late Pa Edwin Clark, a true Nigerian Icon

Stanley Ihedigbo

Chairman, Governing Board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NNDC),Mr. Chiedu Ebie, has mourned the passage of a foremost Niger Delta leader and Nationalist, Chief Edwin Clark, saying that he was a compassionate advocate for democracy, social justice, and national restructuring, who dedicated his life to these causes over several decades.

In a statement signed by the Media Aide to the Chairman, NDDC, Mr. Jerome-Mario Utomi, Ebie condoled with the family noting that though he lived a glorious and fulfilling life and typifies a patriot who unflinchingly contributed immensely to nation-building, yet, his passage at the present moment of our nationhood remains a colossal loss to the people of the Ijaw nation, Niger Deltans and Nigerians as a whole.

Ebie, a Delta State former Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education and later, Secretary to the State Government described the late Pa Clark as a man of many parts and a farsighted leader who will be remembered for his tremendous contributions to governance, education, regional advocacy, enduring impact especially through the institutions he built and the causes he championed, and his legacies.

“As a teacher, lawyer, humanist, philanthropist, and Commissioner for Education in the Mid-Western Region from 1968 to 1971, and later as Commissioner for Finance and Establishment in the defunct Midwestern Region between 1972 and 1975, the Kiagbodo, Delta State born late Pa Clark impacted his world and left his mark in the sands of history’’.

During this period, he served with my late father, Professor John Ebie, whose portfolio was Health in the same cabinet. It is with nostalgia that I recall this period when our families melted together.”

‘’In retirement, he was never tired as his love for a united Nigeria and the quest for a significantly developed Niger Delta region propelled him, with his development minded colleagues, to birth so many groups aimed at promoting transparency, accountability, and good governance at all levels of government in Nigeria’’.

While the statement observes that as a philanthropist, Pa Clark reportedly founded the Edwin Clark Foundation, which focuses on supporting education and social development, contributing to the upliftment of many communities and individuals, Mr. Ebie stressed that in line with promoting human capital development, the Niger Delta leader established Edwin Clark University, Kiagbodo, Delta State in 2015 aimed at providing higher education opportunities in his home state and the nation in general.

The entire Niger Delta Region, on the one hand, and Governing Board, Management, and staff of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), will surely miss his fatherly advice.

On behalf of my family, members of the Governing Board, and Management of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), It is my prayer that God grants him eternal rest and gives his family the fortitude to bear this huge and irreparable loss, Ebie prayed.