By Uche Amunike
It is a sad time for both the United States of America and the world at large, as former America’s Secretary of State, General Colin Powell bows out to death. This is even as former Special Adviser to Ex-President George W. Bush on Science and Technology, Engr Emeka Ken Nwabueze mourns Powell.
In a statement which was made available to journalists in Awka, Anambra state, Nwabueze described the late scribe as his mentor and hero with abundant legacies and expressed his shock as he did not imagine or expect such sad news.
He explained that he had the pleasure of meeting Powell twice while he was still serving in the White House as Special Adviser to the Ex-President of the USA, George W. Bush.
Even as Nwabueze mourns Powell, he explained in a statement, that he named his first son Colin after the US scribe. He cast his mine back to the first time he met Powell as they exchanged handshakes, saying that his smile and brotherly look at that time encouraged him to be more confident than he was in himself.
The former Presidential Adviser, who is also a High Chief at the Ogidi Ancient kingdom in Idemili Local Government Area of Anambra state, expressed his pain and admitted that Powell will surely be missed but that he took solace in the knowledge that his legacies will live on.
As Nwabueze mourns Powell, people who had the opportunity to come in contact with him also mourn him, the world over, including his former boss, George W. Bush and former President of Nigeria, Goodluck Jonathan.
Powell was the first black American Secretary of State whose leadership in various Republican administrations helped to shape American foreign policy in the last years of the 20th century and the early years of the 21st. He died from complications from COVID-19 according to his family on their Facebook page on Monday.
Former President George Bush, on his part, described Powell as a great public servant starting with his time as a soldier during the Vietnam war. He stated that many presidents relied on General Powell’s counsel and experience at the time.
Powell, he said, was National Security Adviser under President Reagan, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under his father and President Clinton and later to be the Secretary of State during his administration. He described him as a favourite of presidents which fetched him the Presidential Medal of Freedom on two occasions, adding that he was highly respected both at home and abroad. He described him as a family man and a friend, while expressing his condolences to the family.
Former President Goodluck Jonathan also paid tributes to the late Powell, describing him as a renowned United States public servant and great leader who made an impact and left indelible footprints in the sands of time. He added that Powell’s stellar military career paved the way for other African Americans to excel, adding that he articulated a new paradigm shift in military action engagement.
Powell died at 84.
