Kelechi Onuzuruike

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The Right Honorable
Kelechi Onuzuruike
(KSC)
Member of the Abia State House of Assembly
for Umuahia North constituency
In office
2015–2023
Preceded byEmeka Ejiogu
Personal details
Born
Kelechi Chiadikobi Onuzuruike

(1976-02-19) February 19, 1976 (age 48)
Abia State
CitizenshipNigerian
Political partyPeople's Democratic Party (PDP) (2017 - Date)
Other political
affiliations
Education
Alma mater
OccupationPolitician
Committees
  • Committee on Environment (chairperson)
  • Committee on Appropriation
  • Committee on Finance
  • Committee on Agriculture
  • Committee on Transport
  • Committee on Public Utilities and Water Resources
  • Committee on Health and Women Affairs
  • Committee on Education[1]
  • Investigation Committee on the operations of Abia State University and Abia State College of Education (Technical)
  • Investigation Committee on the Paris Club Refund[2]
Deputy Chief Whip

Kelechi Onuzuruike (born 19 February 1976) is a Nigerian politician.[3] He is the Former Deputy Chief Whip of the Abia State House of Assembly. He formerly represented Umuahia North state constituency in the Abia State House of Assembly.[4]

Background and education[edit]

Onuzuruike is a native of the Nkwoegwu Ohuhu clan in Umuahia North, Abia State, Nigeria. He has one elder brother, Chief Chima Onuzuruike.[5] After completing his secondary education at Ascension Junior Seminary, he obtained a Law degree from Abia State University, and later pursued a postgraduate diploma in Business Management at the London School of Business and Management. He continued his academic journey at the University of Chichester in the United Kingdom, where he earned a Master of Business Administration (MBA).[citation needed]

He is one of the Knights of St Columba of the Anglican Church in Nigeria.

Political career[edit]

Onuzuruike was executive assistant on special duties to the Governor of Imo State, Rochas Okorocha from 2012 to 2014.[6] He was then elected under the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in 2015 to represent Umuahia North state constituency in the 6th Abia State House of Assembly.[7] In 2016, a Federal High court in Umuahia nullified the election of Onuzuruike.[8] The court declared that Sunday Ajero was the validly elected candidate of APGA for the constituency.[9] Ajero had challenged Onuzuruike's candidacy, claiming that he emerged through a parallel primary.[10] However Onuzurike went on to complete his term and was re-elected for a second term in 2019.

In 2017, he switched parties, leaving APGA and joining the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).[11] In 2019, he alongside the Umuahia North Local Government chairman raised concerns over the flooding of ravaged several houses, businesses and farmlands in the Amaogwugwu community in his constituency.[4] He also expressed surprise over the flooding because it was not predicted by the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency and was worried about the implications of the disaster on the health and hygiene of both the people and the affected area.

Onuzuruike suggested that governorship zoning be ditched in Abia State and suffered criticisms from several quarters for his utterances.[12][13]

He was the Abia State House of Assembly Committee Chairman of Environment when he decried the poor state of sanitation in major towns in the states of Umuahia, Aba and Ohafia and summoned the Abia State Protection Agency (ASEPA) General Manager before the house.[14] This directly led to the sacking of the environmental agency boss by the state Governor Okezie Ikpeazu for incompetence.[15] Onuzurike has sponsored bills on establishing an environmental trust fund in Abia State and making Agricultural Science a module in secondary schools. He has also raised urgent matters, such as compelling ASEPA to fulfill its mandate of cleaning the environment. He was appointed as a member of the committee with the responsibility of scrutinizing the financial activities and utilization of both the revenue generated by Abia State College of Education (Technical) (ASCETA) and Abia State University (ABSU), as well as the monthly subventions provided by the state government.[16] He joined the Abia State Assembly to condemn Fulani Herdsmen's killings of Ukwa citizens and Abia people.[17] He also railed against the unacceptable state of the topography of Ohuhu (which is in his constituency) because of erosion ravaging the land.[18] He also proposed a bill to stop the indiscriminate use and duplication of license plates meant for government officials by unauthorized persons, urging that its proliferation should be curbed, its production stopped and those already in circulation be mopped up.[19]

He participated in the PDP primaries, where the party's flag bearer for the Ikwuano/Umuahia North/Umuahia South Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives for the 2023 general elections was to be determined.[20][21] He lost to Chinedum Orji, the incumbent Speaker of the Abia House of Assembly.[22][23] He was appointed as the Director of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National Youth Campaign Council for Abia State, leading the PDP's youth wing in the state during the 2023 general election campaign and mobilizing young people to support the PDP's presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, in order to secure a victory for the party.[24]

Kelechi Onuzuruike congratulated Governor Okezie Ikpeazu on being awarded Governor of the year for SME Development 2021 by the New Telegraph in Lagos, describing it as well-deserved.[25]

Philanthropy[edit]

In 2022, he donated the money for two years' house rent to Mr. and Mrs. Chibuzor Ikwunze who had lost their four children to food poisoning after eating some pieces of suya.[26] In the same year, he and a few others contributed to buy the PDP governorship nomination form for Lucky Igbokwe.[27][28] He joined well-to-do members of his Ohuhu clan to donate relief materials to the downtrodden in his community during the COVID-19 lockdown. The materials included foodstuffs and protective material.[29]

References[edit]

  1. ^ https://dailytrust.com/abia-speaker-inaugurates-committees-charges-members-not-to-succumb-to-blackmail/
  2. ^ https://independent.ng/house-of-assembly-sets-up-committee-to-investigate-alleged-abia-paris-club-refund-misapplication/
  3. ^ Emeruwa, Chijindu (2021-02-24). "Abia lawmaker calls for urgent attention on erosion menace". Daily Post (Nigeria). Retrieved 2023-03-29.
  4. ^ a b "LG boss, lawmaker lament flooding in Umuahia". The Punch. 2019-10-25. Retrieved 2023-03-29.
  5. ^ "Breaking: PDP Lawmaker Kelechi Onuzuirike's Immediate Elder Brother, Chima, joins Emenike-led APC Faction in Abia". Global Times Nigeria. 2 February 2022. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  6. ^ https://www.stelladimokokorkus.com/2013/08/check-out-list-of-new-appointees-in-imo.html?m=1
  7. ^ "Abia INEC gives out certificates of return to elected house members". The Nation (Nigeria). 2 May 2015. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  8. ^ Okoro, Boniface (12 May 2016). "Court sacks APGA lawmaker for emerging through fake primary". News Express Nigeria. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  9. ^ Babalola, Popoola (2016-05-13). "Court sacks Abia lawmaker for emerging through unauthentic party primary -". The Eagle Online. Retrieved 2023-03-29.
  10. ^ "Court sacks Abia lawmaker for emerging through unauthentic party primary". Vanguard (Nigeria). 12 May 2016. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  11. ^ https://newscritic.com.ng/2021/06/20/hon-kelechi-onuzuruike-presents-scorecard-assures-constituents-of-effective-representation-amidst-massive-defections-to-pdp/
  12. ^ Nwosu, Uche (1 March 2021). "Abia 2023: Governorship Seat Now Open To All Three Zones, Says Assembly Deputy Chief Whip". Independent Nigeria. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  13. ^ "2023: Fresh rumbles over Abia Charter of Equity". The Nation (Nigeria). 28 March 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  14. ^ Ada, Ada (2018-07-29). "Sanitation in Abia: ASEPA must wake up – Hon. Kelechi". Daily Times (Nigeria). Retrieved 2023-03-29.
  15. ^ "Ikpeazu sacks ASEPA GM 48hours after House of Assembly summons". The Nation (Nigeria). 11 December 2021. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  16. ^ "Revenue Leakages: Abia Assembly to investigate ABSU, AbiaPoly, BCA, others". Vanguard (Nigeria). 2 July 2019. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  17. ^ gloriaabiakam (2022-06-23). "Abia Assembly Condemns Attacks on Ukwa Indigenes". Federal Ministry of Information and Culture (Nigeria) Official Website. Retrieved 2023-03-29.
  18. ^ https://dailypost.ng/2021/02/24/abia-lawmaker-calls-for-urgent-attention-on-erosion-menace/
  19. ^ https://dailypost.ng/2021/06/18/assembly-moves-to-halt-indiscriminate-use-of-govt-number-plates-in-abia/?amp=1
  20. ^ "2023: Abia Speaker wins PDP's ticket for House of Reps poll". The Guardian (Nigeria). 2022-05-23. Retrieved 2023-03-29.
  21. ^ "2023: Abia Speaker wins PDP's ticket for House of Reps". Premium Times. Retrieved 2023-03-29.
  22. ^ "Abia speaker wins PDP Reps ticket". The Sun (Nigeria). 2022-05-24. Retrieved 2023-03-29.
  23. ^ "Chinedum Orji, Abia speaker, clinches PDP house of reps ticket". TheCable. 2022-05-22. Retrieved 2023-03-29.
  24. ^ "2023: Rt Hon Kelechi Onuzuruike Emerges Abia State Coordinator PDP National Youth Campaign Council - News Critic". 2022-11-03. Retrieved 2023-03-29.
  25. ^ https://dailypost.ng/2021/11/23/gov-ikpeazu-improved-small-medium-scale-businesses-in-abia-pdp-chieftain-onuzuruike/
  26. ^ "Abia Speaker Gifts Car, Automatic Employment to Couple Who Lost 4 Children at Once in". igberetvnews.com. Retrieved 2023-03-29.
  27. ^ Rapheal (2022-04-06). "Friends buy Abia PDP guber forms for Igbokwe". The Sun (Nigeria). Retrieved 2023-03-29.
  28. ^ "Lucky Igbokwe Declares for Abia Guber". This Day. Retrieved 2023-03-29.
  29. ^ "COVID-19: Abia Lawmaker, Onuzuruike, donates relief materials to community". Vanguard (Nigeria). 6 April 2020. Retrieved 30 March 2023.
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