by Chi Ibe

Today, the former president of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) and author, Dr. Festus Iyayi died in a car crash in Lokoja. Whilst he is known for fiery statements, he was a lot more than just an ASUU advocate. Herewith 5 things you should know about him

1.    His brilliance was first recorded by the public in 1968 after he gradated from Government College Ughelli. He was a zonal winner in a Kennedy Essay Competition organised by the United States Embassy in Nigeria.

[Just in: Former ASUU president dies in crash]

2.    He received his Masters Degree in in Industrial Economics from the Kiev Institute of Economics, in the former USSR and then his Ph.D from the University of Bradford, England.

3.    Passionate about country, he returned to Benin in 1980, and became a lecturer in the Department of Business Administration at the University of Benin.

4.    He became president of ASUU in 1986. He was later removed from his position as a member of the faculty.

5.    In 1988, when the union was banned, he was detained.

6.    In that  same year, he won the Commonwealth Prize for Literature for his book Heroes.

7.    His published books include The Contract, Awaiting Court Martial and Violence, for which he was most popular and a poignant work about the moral, economic and political violence unleashed on a poor, jobless Nigerian in his 20s, Idemudia.

May his soul rest in peace.