Chukwuma Innocent

For years to come, the Easter celebration marking the death and ascension of Jesus Christ will ring differently for the Chukwumas.

On Saturday, April 3, 2021, Innocent Chukwuma was diagnosed with an aggressive form of blood cancer, acute myeloid leukaemia, AML. He died on Saturday, April 3, 2021.

Before the diagnosis earlier symptoms had been diagnosed as food poisoning. To begin remediation of the medical condition, he was scheduled for a chemotherapy session the next day. Unfortunately, he died that Holy Saturday. The sad news of his death was announced by a close friend, Edetaen Ojo, executive director of the Media Rights Agenda.

“With profound shock and sadness, I regret to inform you that Innocent Chukwuma passed away a few hours ago, in the evening of April 3. May his soul rest in peace,”

Edetaen Ojo. Photo: mfwa.org. 

According to Harvard Medical School, AML occurs when primitive blood-forming cells called myeloblasts reproduce without developing into normal blood cells. These immature myeloblasts crowd the blood marrow and interfere with the formation of normal blood cells, leading to anaemia, a condition where an individual doesn’t have enough red blood cells.

Although rare, AML is generally a disease of older people and uncommon to occur in people below 45

Innocent Chukwuma, who hails from Mbaise local government in Imo state, was from a humble background and was orphaned early in life. Resilient, he successfully gained admission into the University of Nigeria, where he studied religious studies in the eighties.

Entrance of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. Photo: Nigerian Scholars
. 

Obtaining a degree was not the only objective he had. On the student union front, he was active, joining campaigns against the repressive military government, and amassing a good popularity level amongst his peers.

His quest for social justice was unrivalled. He even risked getting rusticated from the university for protesting the autocratic government that was prevalent in the eighties. In a quick twist of fate, he fought his way to freedom after pointing out the school authority’s double standards of organising a freedom rally for South African civil activist Nelson Mandela who had just been released that year (1990) while in the same breath silencing students protesting against the Nigerian government. The university revoked its decision.

Leaving the tertiary institution in 1991, he joined the staff of the Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO) during his National Youth Service in 1992. CLO is a human rights organisation led then by Olisa Agbakoba, a human rights activist and lawyer.

After winning the Reebok Human Rights Award in 1996 at age 30, he used the prize money to establish the Centre for Law Enforcement of Education in Nigeria (CLEEN) Foundation in 1998 to promote public safety, security, and accessible justice in West Africa. The foundation marked the place where he broke new grounds in Police reform in Nigeria. The organisation became the first African non-governmental organisation to be awarded the MacArthur Foundation Award for Creative and Effective Institutions.

In 2013, he joined the Ford Foundation West African office in Lagos. He left the foundation in February 2021.

Josephine Effah-Chukwuma. Photo: Twitter. 

Married to Josephine Effah-Chukwma, a development specialist and advocate against domestic violence, the union produced three daughters: Chidinma, Amarachi and Nkechi.

Following his death, eulogies of his endeavours continue to pour in, with the presidency, describing him as a credible voice of transparency.

Before his death, Chukwuma took matters of his health seriously. Both of his parents died of cardiovascular degeneration. He discovered he had similar health conditions and spared no resources in managing his cardiovascular and high blood pressure diagnosis.

Although he is known for his many achievements in the human rights space, he is much more to his immediate family. Shortly after his death, Josephine mustered the courage to express her grief.

“Saturday, April 3, 2021, I lost my best friend, my soulmate and brother, Innocent C. Chukwuma, to acute myeloid leukaemia, AML,” Josephine wrote in a LinkedIn post. “What started as a mild case of food poisoning on February 26, metamorphosed to an AML diagnosis on Good Friday, April 2, and died on Saturday, April 3.”

“Yes, I have been hit. Am I shaken? Yes, to my foundation. Is my faith in God shaken? No. I thank you all for the numerous calls and messages; I cannot reply to you now, as I am still trying to process what has happened to me. My children and I need your prayers. Our iroko has fallen.”

Other prominent Nigerians have also paid tributes.

Describing his pleasant personality, Okechukwu Nwanguma, a longtime friend of Chukwuma wrote:

“In his success, he was humble and never distanced himself from his old friends. He was an activist par excellence, principled, passionate, courageous and ingenious. He was a visionary and strategic thinker, left-handed and extremely gifted. He was also compassionate and inspiring.”

Rommy Mom, a lawyer, says “I cannot pretend to be of the Innocent Chukwuma breed that fought the military junta from campus to activism with badges and relics of what that generation of activists suffered or went through in birthing democracy.”

Samson Itodo, the founder of YIAGA, spoke on the legacy he leaves behind.

“Innocent was a man of the people and a man for the people. The world has lost a humanist, an intellectual, and a decent man. His legacy is forever etched in our hearts, and his immortality will be reflected in our continuous fight against injustice and inequality.”

Innocent Chukwuma. Photo: Premium Times. 

Chukwuma also served as a member of the boards of many global non-profits and initiatives against crime and violence including the International Centre for the Prevention of Crime (ICPC), African Policing Civilian Oversight Forum (APCOF), Open Society Global Criminal Justice Fund, and the Africa Advisory Council of Human Rights Watch.

Various sources quote the deceased to be 55 years.