Former Agriculture Minister Audu Ogbeh Dies At 78

A former Nigerian Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Audu Ogbeh, is dead.

According to his family, he died peacefully on Saturday, August 9, 2025.

Ogbeh, the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) between 2001 and 2005, played national politics beyond his state of origin in Benue, North Central Nigeria, where he was deputy speaker of the state’s House of Assembly from 1979 to 1982.

He was the agriculture minister from November 2015 to May 2019 during the first term of former President Muhammadu Buhari, who died on July 13, 2025.

Ogbeh was true to his views and was unsparing in his criticisms of the policies and actions of the government, though critics faulted his handling of Nigeria’s food security during his time as agriculture minister.

Already, condolences have started pouring in over the passing of one of the elder statesmen produced by the no

In a statement on Saturday, Tinubu condoled with the government and people of Benue State on the

Tinubu acknowledged “Ogbeh’s intellectual contributions to policy formulation and his articulation of practical solutions to complex national challenges”.

“Chief Audu Ogbeh was a patriot whose wisdom, dedication, and pursuit of progress left an indelible mark on Nigeria’s political landscape. He was always ready with facts and figures to support his propositions.

“The nation will sorely miss his insightful perspectives and wealth of experience,” Tinubu said in a statement by his aide Bayo Onanuga.

Also, former President Olusegun Obasanjo described the late minister as a peace-loving, unassuming, committed patriot and a firm believer in democracy and participatory governance.

He said the former PDP leader was “a man whose political career stretched from the military era through the present democratic dispensation”.

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“Chief Audu Ogbeh will be missed for his unwavering commitment to politics, governance and democracy, as he made significant contributions to the re-establishment of democracy in Nigeria.

“His place will be very difficult to fill within his community, the state, the party and the nation,” he said.