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Nwizu, Immigration boss, is dead
...FG to fly corpse home
DANIEL IDONOR, Abuja
A dark cloud descended on the
nation’s public service yesterday with the confirmation of the death of
Nigeria’s first female Comptroller-General (CG) of the Nigeria Immigration
Service (NIS), Lady Uzoamaka Nwizu.
Chief Press Secretary (CPS) in the Federal Ministry of
Internal Affairs, Mr. E.D. Nelson told Daily Champion in Abuja yesterday that
Lady Nwizu, who headed the NIS for four years, passed on last Friday.
According to him, the CG died at a
hospital in the United States of America (USA).
Lady Nwizu fought a dogged battle with
death spanning her tenure as she was early in the tenure smitten by a strange
illness which was said to have paralysed her, a development some NIS staff
alleged was the handiwork of unnamed forces strongly opposed to her.
The Anambra State-born Immigration boss,
who had a brilliant career stretching to about 30 years in the servcice,
thereafter battled with a spate of ailments.
Mr. Nelson said the Internal Affairs
Ministry was yet to issue an official statement on the CG’s demise saying the
initial official report from Lady Nwisu’s family members who accompnied her
abroad for medicaltreatment, was still being awaited by Internal Affairs
Minister, Dr Iyorchice Ayu.
The late Lady Nwizu was born on September
21, 1949 in Ogbuwike, Oyi local government area of Anambra State.
She started her academic pursuit at (MS
Primary School, Umudioka ((1956-1961), Anglican Girls Secondary School, Enugu
(1962-1966), University of Hawaii, Honolulu United States (1971-72), University
of Vermont, Burlington, also in USA, (1972-74) and the University of Ibadan from
1992-1994.
She held a Bachelor of Arts (B.A) degree
in Geography from the University of Vermont and a Master’s of Business
Administration (MBA) from the University of Ibadan.
Lady Nwizu joined the NIS on August 2,
1974 and rose through the ranks to become Comptroller-General.
Between 1974 and 1980, she was incharge of
visa at the visa entry permit counter, processing of visa applications and
general administration and supervision of staff of the department.
In 1980, as a Chief Superintendent of
Immigration (CSI), she was posted to the Diplomatic Service as Immigrations
Attache, Nigeria Deputy High Commission, Liverpool, London.
Between 1991 and 1995, the deceased served
the country as zonal co-ordinator of zone ‘F’ of the NIS, comprising six states
of Ondo, Ogun, Oyo Osun, Edo and Delta.
In 1995, she was promoted Deputy
Comptroller General (DCG) and appointed Special Assistant, Immigration Matters,
to the Minister for Internal Affairs.
The late Lady Nwizu had handled
responsibilities including the issue of visa and processing of Nigeria
diplomatic and official passports and issuance of visas to foreign diplomats
accredited to Nigeria.
She also re-organised the passport office
in 1996 and played a leading role in the Ministerial Task Force on the
sanitation of the Business Division, Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Her appointment in 1999 as CG of NIS took her to the peak
of the service and marked the high point of her career with President Olusegun
Obasanjo shruggling off intense opposition in some quarters to hand her the job
and describing her as one of the finest in the public service.
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