………..describe him as a Pan- Nigerian
By Ignatius Okorocha
Former President of the Senate, Senator David Mark has described the death of Second Republic Minister of Power and Steel ,Dr. Paul Iorpuu Unongo as a huge loss to the nation.
Reacting to the death of the elder statesman , Senator Mark stated that Nigeria and Benue State in particular have lost a political giant and mentor who stood to be counted when it mattered .
He recalled the role of Pa Unongo in the political evolution of Nigeria as the pioneer National Secretary of Nigeria Peoples Party (NPP) led by the first Nigerian President Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe otherwise called the Zikist movement .
According to Senator Mark : “As a minister of the Federal Republic, Pa Unongo demonstrated enormous capacity in leadership and contributed to the socio- political and economic development of Nigeria .
“ Pa Unongo was a leader without boundaries because he took the entire country as his constituency.
“We shall miss his political sagacity, oratory prowess , frank and Patriotic disposition to national issues. He called a spade its rightful name no matter whose ox was gored”.
Senator Mark added that Pa Unongo was an emancipator of sort because he stood for the oppressed and the down trodden.
Whether his goal in that respect was achieved or not, the former Senate helmsman noted that Pa Unongo craved for a society of equal opportunities for all irrespective of tribe or religion.
He enjoined the government and people of Benue State to take solace in the fact that Pa Unongo left good legacies and positive footprints in the sand of time .
Mark prayed that God grants the deceased eternal rest .
Similarly, President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, has sent his condolences to the family of a former minister of Steel Development, Paul Unongo, who died on Tuesday.
Lawan also condoled with the government and people of Benue State on the passing of the illustrious political leader.
“A former Chairman of the Northern Elders Forum, Paul Unongo was an elderstatesman and a committed nationalist both in words and in deed.
“He was a principled and irrepressible politician, who had clear positions on national issues and was outspoken on what he believed in through his political life.
“The former minister of Steel Development will be remembered for his contributions to good governance and political development of Nigeria,” Lawan says.
The Senate President prayed God Almighty to grant those that he left behind the fortitude to bear his loss and to grant his soul eternal rest.
