Former Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Audu Ogbeh, died on Saturday aged 78.
Key facts about the late elder statesman:
Birth
Audu Innocent Ogbeh was born in Otukpo on 28 July 1947 to Pa Ejembi Ogbeh and Madam Egbi Ogbeh (née Odinya), both from Efugo-Otukpa in present-day Ogbadibo Local Government Area, Benue State.
Education
He attended King’s College, Lagos, obtaining his Higher School Certificate in 1968, before proceeding to Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, in 1969. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in French in 1972, then went to the University of Toulouse, France, where he gained a Master’s degree in French literature in 1974.
French Teacher
After his first degree, Ogbeh became a teaching assistant at the Institute of Education, Ahmadu Bello University, overseeing French language teaching in northern states. In 1977, following his Master’s, he headed the Department of Languages, Arts and Social Sciences at Murtala College of Arts, Science and Technology until 1979.
Political Career
In 1979, Ogbeh was elected to the Benue State House of Assembly, becoming Deputy Speaker until February 1982. That year, President Shehu Shagari appointed him Minister of Communications, later reassigning him as Minister of Steel Development in 1983 until the 31 December coup.
He returned to national politics as Minister of Agriculture from November 2015 to May 2019 during President Muhammadu Buhari’s first term.
Farming
A lifelong farmer, Ogbeh established rice mills, cashew plantations and poultry farms.
PDP Chairman
He served as National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party from 2001 to 2005, later joining the Action Congress of Nigeria, which merged into the All Progressives Congress.