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Blessed Beyond Measures: Life and Times of Nze Simeon Soludo
By Christian ABURIME
In 1939, at the tender age of eight, Simeon embarked on a transformative journey, departing his home for Onitsha.
Under the tutelage of his kinsman, Mr. Joseph Anyaonu, he apprenticed as a trader for seven formative years. It was a period etched with hardship and tribulation, a grooming in resilience amidst adversity.
In the face of challenges of life and tests of fate, a beacon of change emerged when, in 1943 at the age of 12, Simeon found solace and guidance within the folds of the Boy Scouts Movement at the Holy Ghost Catholic Parish in Onitsha.
Here, he imbibed the essence of Spartan discipline through rigorous drills and partook actively in expeditions and benevolent endeavours. The Scouts Movement became an enduring sanctuary, endowing him with essential survival skills that fortified his spirit through the trials and tribulations that lay ahead.
By 1946, Simeon returned to his village to embark on a new chapter: marriage. The subsequent year, however, marked a pivotal turn. Driven by a quest for purpose, he ventured to Port Harcourt in the company of Mr. Lawrence Okpala-Ibejekwe.
Despite being merely 16, uneducated, and lacking formal skills, he secured employment at the Shell Petroleum Development Company as an office assistant. A couple of years later, in 1948, destiny saw him journeying to Siroko in Ondo State to toil as a sawyer alongside Mr. Gilbert Afuzobugwu.
Amidst the laborious task of felling trees and fashioning timber for export, Simeon encountered the harsh lessons of life’s toil and hardship. Tragedy struck in the same year with the sudden demise of his father, Soludo, plunging the 17-year-old Simeon into the abyss of grief.
The weight of this loss bore heavily upon his young shoulders, cushioned only by the support of his step-mother, Obele, and the venerable guardian, Akuano.
After laying his father to rest, Simeon resumed work as a sawyer and joined the Sawyers Association in 1949, continuing his journey of self-sufficiency.
However, it was in 1953, while in Ilesha under the guidance of the Late Daniel Ike, that he received a tumultuous mix of news. His wife, Mgbafor, welcomed a son named Ikechukwu (later christened Emmanuel) while the passing of Akuano left a profound void in his life.
The years unfolded with Simeon’s nomadic journey: from Omanenu in Rivers State where he plied his trade as a sawyer before venturing into the hospitality industry by establishing a restaurant in 1956.
That was also the year that his wife, Mgbafor, gave birth to a baby girl named Paulina, followed by another baby boy, Silas, two years later in 1958.
Unfortunately, however, both Paulina and Silas died in their infancy.
Meanwhile, the restaurant business venture that Simeon had established at Omanenu, which initially promised riches swiftly crumbled in 1959.
The years 1956 to 1959 were years of despair, punctuated with losses and graded afflictions.
Hope dawned anew with the birth of his second surviving son, Charles Chukwuma, (former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the current Governor of Anambra State) in July 1960, coinciding with an opportunity at the Nigerian Cement Company, Nigercem Nkalagu.
His association with a French company during his Port Harcourt days facilitated this job offer. Despite an invitation to France, Simeon declined, anchored by familial responsibilities.
His role in the Civil Engineering Department commenced in 1960, later confirmed in June 1965, while his third surviving son, Ogochukwu, entered the world in 1964. Pastor Dr. Ogochukwu Soludo is currently the General Missions Director of African Missionary Empowerment Network (AMEN) as well as the Initiator and Chairman of Advanced Development Solutions Initiative (ADSI) Multipurpose Cooperative Society Limited.
*To be continued…*
*_Credits: Materials and pictures support by Pastor (Dr) Ogochukwu Soludo_*
The David Mark-led faction of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) has approached the Court of Appeal to challenge the Federal High Court judgement that removed its leadership.
The opposition party also disclosed that it had filed an application seeking a stay of execution of the judgement pending the hearing and determination of its appeal.
The party made this known in a statement on Friday, November 6, adding that it had formally notified the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of the legal steps taken,
The appeal is against the judgement delivered by the Federal High Court in Abuja on November 5, 2026, in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1619/2025, involving Hon. Nafiu Bala Gombe and the ADC.
The party urged INEC to refrain from taking any further action on the matter until the Court of Appeal has considered the case.
It argued that the application for a stay of execution was yet to be decided and that the electoral commission should not take any step that could affect the outcome of the appeal.
According to the ADC, it expects INEC to respect the ongoing legal process and allow the appellate court to hear the matter before making any decision connected to the judgement.
The statement partly read, “The ADC is exercising its lawful right to appeal. The judgement is now being challenged before a higher court, and the legal process must be allowed to run its course.
“We expect INEC to uphold the law and take full account of the pending proceedings before making any consequential decisions.”
The party also urged its members and supporters to remain calm, insisting that the court judgement would not stop its political activities.
It said its campaigns would continue while it explored all available legal options to defend its position.
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The Federal High Court in Abuja has nullified the leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) led by Senator David Mark, declaring the caretaker committee that oversaw the party’s affairs illegal and invalidating all decisions taken by the committee.
The judgment, delivered on Thursday by Justice Peter Lifu, also affects the presidential primary that produced former Vice President Atiku Abubakar as the ADC’s flag bearer for the 2027 general elections.
Atiku, whose name had earlier been published by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as the party’s presidential candidate, had already selected former Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, as his running mate.
The ruling followed a suit instituted by Nafiu Bala Gombe, a former National Deputy Chairman (North-East) of the ADC, who challenged the process through which the David Mark-led leadership assumed control of the party.
Gombe argued that following the resignation of the party’s former National Chairman, Chief Ralph Nwosu, he was constitutionally entitled to take over the leadership.
He consequently asked the court to invalidate all actions undertaken by the Mark-led leadership and restrain Senator Mark and Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola from presenting themselves as the party’s National Chairman and National Secretary, respectively.
The plaintiff maintained that their emergence violated the ADC constitution and relevant provisions of the Electoral Act.
In suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1819/2025, the ADC, INEC, Senator David Mark, Aregbesola and Chief Ralph Nwosu were listed as defendants.
Justice Lifu upheld Gombe’s claims and granted the reliefs sought, effectively invalidating the authority of the caretaker committee and decisions taken under its leadership.
The verdict is expected to trigger fresh political uncertainty within the ADC, particularly over Atiku’s presidential ambition and the party’s preparations for the January 16, 2027 presidential election.
However, the party has vowed to challenge the judgment at the appellate court.
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