December 15, 2011 made it one year after the elder statesman, Chief Anthony Enahoro,died peacefully at his residence in Benin City, at the age of 86.

Born on July 22, 1923 in Uromi in Edo State, Enahoro was a leading member of the movement that struggled for the country’s independence. He plunged into  politics at the age of 19, as a student leader at Kings College, Lagos. He proved very early in life that he was primarily interested in the progress and development of humanity.

In search of his political goals, he teamed up with the sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo and other politicians of like-mind to form the Action Group (AG), which was launched in Owo in the present Ondo State in 1951.

When in 1954, the party formed the government of the defunct Western Nigeria with Chief Awolowo as the first premier, Enahoro, at 31, was the youngest member in his cabinet, holding the office of the Regional Minister for Home Affairs and Information

It was a great privilege and respect for hardwork that he participated in all the constitutional conferences that preceded Nigeria’s independence between 1946 and 1960. He had always maintained without fear of any challenge that what Nigerian nationalists fought for was a federal system of government, and not a unitary system, as imposed by the military.

In the 1980s and 1990s when the military started turning the country into a unitarian entity, Enahoro became one of the most virulent critics of military rule. He was the foundation Chairman of the Movement for National Reformation (MNR) when the body was formed in 1992. Following the cancellation of the 1993 presidential election and the seizure of power by late General Sani Abacha, Enahoro joined other Nigerian patriots, intellectuals, civil rights and pro-democracy activists to form the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) as co-chairman, leading a democratic opposition against the Abacha regime. On General Abacha’s death in 1998 and General Abdusalami Abubakar assuming power, the late elder statesman cautioned true politicians against participating in elections without a people’s constitution.

He was the chairman of the national conference organised by the Pro-National Conference Organisation (PRONACO) between 2005 and 2007 in Lagos. The conference produced a draft constitution for Nigeria.

One of Enahoro’s last public activity was on July 22, 2009, at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife where he delivered a public lecture to mark Chief Awolowo’s birthday. In the lecture entitled: The Legacy of Chief Awolowo, Enahoro, an unrepentant believer in true federalism, said, “It is only when the different nations in Nigeria can determine their structures, economically, socially, politically and spiritually that they can live together, develop themselves, and  fight corruption;” they are his last words on marble. He added:

“History, the sage says, remembers only three persons, the states man, the philosopher and the Poet and Chief Awolowo is all three put together. He was my great compatriot, leader, counselor and a prophet. The story of how I came to know Chief Obafemi Awolowo has been told many times, on so many occasions that there will be no need to delve into further repetition here. For the purpose of clarity, however, it is important to say that I came in contact with Chief Awolowo early in my political life as a journalist with a nationalist motivation.”

According to Enahoro, Awolowo is better remembered for the efficient manner he administered the affairs of the Western Region as the first premier. The welfare schemes of free education; free medical services for children under 18 years; the Co-operative system, the Home Economic Training  programme for women; the Agriculture Extension programme for local farmers: the Information/ Radio-vision network; the first Television station in Africa, south of the Sahara: the construction of the Liberty Stadium; construction and efficient maintenance  of a network of roads in Western Nigeria were some of the landmark activities that made the region a model to other regions.