Nollywood actress Chioma Chukwuka-Akpotha has announced the death of her father, Leonard Ndukaife Chukwuka, 13 years after the loss of her mother.
The actress announced the death in an Instagram post on Friday, saying she struggled to find the words to share the news after keeping it private while processing her grief.
“My beloved father, Leonard Ndukaife Chukwuka, has gone to be with the Lord,” she wrote.
Chukwuka said the loss was particularly painful because her father was now the second of her parents she had lost, leaving her without either parent.
“I lost my mother 13 years ago, and now that my father is gone, the thought that I have neither parent here anymore breaks my heart in a way I cannot fully explain. So na only me bayi?” she wrote.
She described her late father as “my daddy, papa’m, obara’m, my comfort” and said she was grateful that he lived long enough to see his children and grandchildren.
The actress said the family had hoped he would also meet his great-grandchildren.
Reflecting on the loss, she said the passing of a parent remains painful regardless of how many years they have spent together.
“No matter how many years we are given with a parent, we still want one more conversation, one more embrace, one more day,” she wrote.
Chukwuka said she was particularly grateful for the moments she shared with her father, especially towards the end of his life.
She appealed to the public to keep her, her siblings and the entire Chukwuka family in their prayers as they mourned the loss.
The actress said the family would announce details of her father’s funeral when they were ready.
She concluded her tribute by bidding farewell to her father, whom she described as the “Olowo of Ikate.”
“Rest well, Olowo of Ikate, my father. I will always love you,” she wrote.
Chukwuka is an award-winning Nollywood actress who began her professional acting career in the early 2000s and won the Africa Movie Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role in 2007.
