Minister of Transport and former governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi has described the death of Captain Elechi Amadi as a huge loss to Africa and African literary community.
“I was shocked and broke down when I got the sad news of the death of one of our great minds, one of our very best, Captain Elechi Amadi. He was particularly close to me. His death has left a huge vacuum. The Late Captain, was a literary guru, he stood tall and contributed to the growth and development of Rivers State. His death is a monumental loss to the Ikwerre people, Rivers people, Nigeria and the literary community,” he said.
Author of The Concubine, Amadi died on Wednesday June 29 at the age of 82 years at his home town, Aluu, Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
In a condolence message, Governor of Rivers State, Wike Nyesom said that Captain Amadi’s contributions to the development of the nation were legendary, emphasising how his literary works promoted Rivers State, Niger Delta and the country.
Chairman of Rivers State chapter of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), Felix Obuah also said the good works of the late literary guru, Amadi would be a great compensation to his world, while consoling Rivers State and the immediate family on the loss.
He recalled the immense contributions of the late sage to the growth and development of education in Rivers State and the country while he served as Education Commissioner and the State Scholarship Board respectively.
Meanwhile, the President, Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA), Denja Abdullahi has said the elderstatesman would be missed for his rare skill as a foremost literary mentor in Africa.
“Elechi Amadi is one member of the first generation of Nigerian writers who remained steadfast in mentoring the talents of generations of writers that came after and associated with them freely without airs. We salute his pedigree and pay homage to the factors that created the quintessential Elechi Amadi, the patriot, humanist, delightful storyteller and complete gentleman. We honour his legacy and pray to have him reincarnated in the emerging crop of writers in the country,” he said.
Though he was well known for his novel, The Concubine, other books written by him include The Great Ponds (novel); Sunset in Biafra (war diary); Isiburu (play); Peppersoup and The Road; Dancer of Johannesburg (play); The Slave (novel); The Woman of Calabar (play); Ethics in Nigerian Culture (philosophy) among others.
Amadi was abducted by unknown gunmen on January 5, 2009 but was later released 23 hours later.
He served in the Nigerian Army, during the Nigerian Civil War, and retired at the rank of Captain.
A graduate of Physics and Mathematics from the University of Ibadan (1959), Amadi was billed to be at an annual book reading programme organised in Port Harcourt by Total Exploration and Production on the day he died but was represented by his wife, Preye, due to his ill health.
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