You can’t ignore these 10 awardees of national honours
Written by Theophilus Abbah   
Sunday, 16 September 2012 05:03

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Jelani Aliyu
Boyish, lively and smiling, Jelani breezed into  Media Trust Ltd’s office last Friday, few hours after he flew into the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja from the United States. It was not the flight that excited him. It is the honour that will be conferred on him by President Goodluck Jonathan on Monday, September 17, 2012.  Jelani’s name appeared as number 136 on the national honours list published last week by government. He will receive an award of the Member of the Order of the Federal Republic (MFR) for his ingenuity. This young lad, who had a diploma from Nigeria, is making waves in Europe and America as a car designer. His story can be interesting.

With the exception of one or two names that featured on our ‘unusual lives’, the story of several others resembles that of Jelani. For instance, Professor Olufunmilayo Falusi Olopade distinguished herself for her commitment to the prevention of breast cancer among African women. She has made discoveries. So genuine that the United States government has appointed her as a member of its cancer prevention board. Also, Professor Adenike Abosie was selfless, devoting her life to the cause of fighting blindness in the north, from Ahmadu Bello University Zaria to the National Eye Centre in Kaduna. Her products are professors today. From the South East comes Chief David Nnochironye Onyenweaku, who committed his life to cocoa farming since he was a teenager. Today, he is the best cocoa farmer in Nigeria, and Abia State government cannot ignore him. Though barely educated, he is an employer of labour and has left a legacy for his children, who are now managing the cocoa plantation.
 

This is not to say the national honours have not lost its lustre, because over the years it has attracted a lot of criticisms. A measure established via the National Honors Act No. 5 of 1964 to recognise Nigerians who have distinguished themselves in various endeavours has since been bastardised, because dishonourable Nigerians have been conferred with such honours. Perhaps, this is because of the selection procedure. The ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) sees this award as a way of rewarding its members who have been ‘loyal.’ A case in point in this year’s award is the story of the deputy governor of Taraba State, Alhaji Sani Abubakar Danladi, who is on line to receive the fourth highest award, the Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON). His government in Taraba State has served him an impeachment notice, alleging that he had been engaged in some dishonourable activities.  He is of the PDP and may have been nominated either by his governor or the party.

Some recipients are nominated from among the business class, regardless of their integrity, while those who are lucky to hold some political positions are automatically conferred with some of the honours. For instance, the GCFR and GCON are bestowed on former Presidents and Vice President. The GCON is awarded to the Chief Justice of Nigeria and the Senate President, while the CON is awarded to Justices of the Supreme Court of Nigeria.

As long as these awards will be conferred on Nigerians, so also will they continue to attract criticisms. The side effect of it, therefore, is that some of those who merit the awards and are duly nominated may have their happiness contaminated by the indiscretion of those who choose awardees. This is why it is very vital for government officials to be circumspect in carrying out this national service.

Jelani Aliyu:  Doing Nigeria proud as a young car designer

He is a master at what he does. He designs cars. And he is Jelani Aliyu, the Nigerian prodigy who designed the Chevrolet Volt, a state-of-the-art electric car, for General Motors.

Next week, President Goodluck Jonathan will confer a national honour of Member of the Order of the Federal Republic (MFR) on this extremely talented Nigerian, who has blazed the trail for African engineers in the global field of automobile design.

Considered by many to be the super star of the General Motors renaissance, Aliyu’s chronicle is an exceptionally brilliant true Nigerian story.

Born in 1966 in Kaduna into the family of Alhaji Haidar Aliyu, a public servant from Sokoto State, Jelani Aliyu studied at Capital School, Sokoto before going to Federal Government College in the same town. He graduated in 1983 and received an award for Best in Technical Drawing. He then studied design at two other tertiary institutions in Nigeria before moving to the United States. He received his diploma in Architecture from Birnin Kebbi Polytechnic in 1988, where he was recognized as the Best Student. He had a brief stint at the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, where he initially planned to study architecture, but later got a scholarship from the Sokoto State government to study in the US. In 1990, Aliyu moved to Detroit, Michigan to enroll at the College for Creative Studies where he received his degree in automobile design in 1994 before beginning his career with the design staff of General Motors. He worked on the Buick Rendezvous and was the lead exterior designer of the Pontiac G6. He also worked on the Astra with General Motors’ Opel Division in Germany in 1999. During his studies he received two awards from Ford Motor Company and Michelin, US.

Indeed, Aliyu recorded a major breakthrough in the automotive industry, with the design of “Chevy Volt”, described as an “American Revolution.” It was made possible by the brilliance of a Nigerian genius after a 10-month marathon sprint to bring the Volt to reality.

A statement issued by the US-based world`s largest automaker at the unveiling of its product in 2007 stated: “GM`s most electrifying advanced technology vehicle is the Chevrolet Volt concept, a battery-powered, extended-range electric passenger vehicle. It uses a gas engine to create additional electricity. The technology behind the Volt concept, GM`s E-flex System, allows electricity to be produced from gasoline, ethanol, bio-diesel or hydrogen, helping to provide a global solution to diversifying transportation energy sources.”

According to GM, the marathon started with tough competition amongst eight designers and their concepts that were developed in two short months, with 7 of the 8 scale model concepts reviewed and eliminated.  But “Aliyu`s model design incorporates many design elements to complement the electric technology driving the car as well as his love of nature and the ergonomics of a vehicle one can enjoy nature in”.

The soft-spoken, unassuming Aliyu explained during an exclusive interview with Sunday Trust his love and long-standing relationship with art and design, stressing that he started drawing as a toddler.

“Well, I started drawing as far back as I can remember, I have been drawing probably since I was able to pick up a pencil and hold a paper. I started drawing things, people, cars and anything around me. And I got a lot of support from my parents, my brother. I know that my father and brother whenever they would travel away they buy a lot of magazines and other materials that helped me and helped my imagination.”

As often is the case, Aliyu, 46, reiterates the need for young people not to accept dispiriting limitations on their dreams.

“The key to success is to understand what your talent is and do all you can to develop it. Secondly, try to identify people in your family, in your community that can help you get there. Really, put all your effort on things you are good at...The things you are not so good at let someone cover that area, so that together each person will play his or her role to bring the society or the nation up. But concentrate on what you are good at, usually it is the things that you find yourself wanting to do without anybody pushing you to do them. And then never give up, no matter what he challenges are,” he said.

On the national award to be conferred on him soon by the President, Aliyu uttered: “The way I see it this is an award not just on an individual, but it was recognition of a story that began a long time ago. So, this is a culmination of a story that began quite awhile back. It was an award to my family and all the people that have contributed to making it possible for me to have come this far.”

- Ismaila Lere & Sanusi Hamidu Babagoro


Angya: First Tiv Lady to bag PhD and V- C Benue State Varsity

Professor Charity Ashimem Angya is one of the few females among the long list of those designated to receive this year’s national honour tomorrow.  She will be conferred with the Order of the Niger (OON) award. Today, the buck stops on her desk, being Vice-Chancellor of Benue State University, Makurdi. Professor Angya is the first female chief executive of the institution. She also scored first as the foremost woman of Tiv extraction to bag a doctoral degree.

Her journey to educational stardom began at the NKST Primary School, Gboko in 1968 after her birth into the family of Pa and Ma Gideon Pever Ge in the commercial town of Gboko on January 5, 1963. Young Angya completed her secondary education in 1979 and proceeded to the University of Jos to acquire a degree in Theatre Arts between 1979 and 1983. In 1985, after completing the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), she continued her educational pursuit by enrolling for a Master’s degree in Theatre Arts at the University of Ibadan. In 1988, she was awarded a doctoral degree of the University of Ibadan after three rigorous years of studies and research. She became the first Tiv woman to bag a PhD.

In between her academic endeavour, she engaged in employment as a lecturer.  She worked as a part-time lecturer, teaching assistant and graduate assistant in the University of Ibadan between 1985 and 1987. Professor Angya also lectured in the University of Calabar in the Department of Theatre Arts until 1990. She was appointed as a senior lecturer in the Benue State University’s Theatre Arts Department in 1993 and rose steadily through the ranks to become an Associate Professor, and later as a professor, before her appointment as the Vice chancellor of the state-owned citadel of learning in 2010.

Commenting on the honour being bestowed on her by the federal government, a lecturer in the Department of Sociology at the Benue State University, James Aan, commended her efforts in transforming the institution within a short period of coming on board.

Aan said, “She deserves the national honour. She is a role model to many people, even to us, men. She is very composed; she knows Nigeria very well and knows how to go about her business to get results. I can tell you, that’s why we are here today.”

The lecturer expressed optimism that the honour would go a long way to spur the younger generation of ladies to do challenging jobs.

Another female lecturer in the Department of Psychology, Mrs Chinelo Ogwuche, told our correspondent that Angya had successfully restructured the university’s environment to a befitting standard.

“She has changed the face of this environment since she came on board. The things we see now were not there before. Through her efforts, more lecture halls have been built; toilets have been constructed for students; roads have also been constructed within the campus and the girls hostel now wears a new look, among others,” Ogwuche stated.

Also speaking, a final year student in the Mass Communication Department, Attah Ede, noted that he was impressed by the performances of the Vice Chancellor since she came on board.

According to Ede, Angya has succeeded where her male counterpart who held the office before her could not: “She has done what other male V-Cs before her could not do. You could see her handiwork right from the entrance gate. You will see new structures all over the campus. Cultism is dead and a forgotten issue now, just as the rigour of manual registration has been eliminated,  to give way for easy online registration,” he opined.

Corroborating Ede’s view, Charity Okpe of the Political Science Department said Professor Angya had displayed a motherly attitude in her quest to transform the institution, adding that the woman deserved the national honour for bringing sanity to the university community.

Nonetheless, Angya, a mother of five children, is happily married to a legal luminary, Barrister Paul Angya and holds a pet title of Tiv culture “Wan Amududu u Tiv,”  interpreted to mean an elegant and well-endowed endomorphic figure.

- Hope Abah, Makurdi

 

Onyeishi: A bus conductor who now owns Peace Mass Transit


One of the many distinguished Nigerians to receive this year’s national award, has described the Member, Order of the Niger (MON) award to be given to him as a “call to more national service.”

the Chairman/Chief Executive of Peace Mass Transit Limited, Chief Samuel Maduka Onyeishi, who spoke in an exclusive chat with Sunday Trust inside his Emene, Enugu office last Wednesday before leaving for Abuja, said the MON award is a mark of recognition by the federal government.

“The MON award is a call for more service and I’m happy that government has finally remembered us. And I’m also happy that, at last, things are being done on merit -  that someone is being  nominated and given national honour without even anybody talking to you previously about it.  It’s a good development in our country. I thank God for that,” he told our reporter.

Onyeishi used to be a bus conductor, way back in the 1980s after he completed his secondary school education, before going into full-time motor transport business. Now he’s an employer of over 4,000 workers.

According to him, his transport company currently has in its fleet more than 2,000 buses that convey over 24 million passengers in a year.  The transporter narrated his life’s story, beginning from his humble background soon after his father passed on when he was just 13 years old.

“I was a bus conductor in the early 1980s after I finished my secondary school education. I was a bus driver and spare parts dealer in the early 1990s. And in bid to further my education, I returned to the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) to study in 1994. As a student, I used my savings from my motor spare parts business in Kano to buy two buses. I was driving between 1994 till 1998, and I stopped driving when I had about 15 buses.

“And after my university education in 1999, I concentrated on the road transport business and one thing led to another; in 2005, I had about 500 buses, and today by God’s grace, we have over 2,000 and over 4,000 workers and we are at present in 26 states of the federation with about 34 terminals.

“We move about two million passengers every month which is about 24 million passengers in a year, and we have about seven other affiliated companies, although they are independent and they are in Nigeria and in China.

“My father died early during my first year in the secondary school, and I was the first out of seven children. So we suffered lack in my family. In the bid to help my mother and to support my younger ones, I started working early in life, and I became used to working. Our mother had to take us to a church in search of protection because when you lose your husband and your first child is about 13 years, you have a lot of issues.

“Since then I’ve kept working, and today, I have known nothing more than work. And God has been so faithful. God has blessed me. He has secured my business and given me good health. I’m married and I also have seven children now. I think we are still working and making exploits in new areas, and God is still blessing us.”


ON WHAT DRIVES ME ON:

Well, the first thing was to support my mother and secondly, I decided to eliminate poverty from my home and around me. But what is driving me today is that I had seen myself as a man being favoured by God, and I think God didn’t do it just because of me. I believe He did it because of me and those around me. So, my effort now is to keep the business going so that I can keep on taking care of those that God has given to me. I have about 4,000 staff, and it’s no longer about me; it’s now about us. There are a lot of people to take care of, and I also enjoy employing people. I am happy when I create jobs.

Yes. I have the Peace Foundation. Samuel Maduka Onyishi West African Enterprises Foundation. We give scholarship to about 100 undergraduates every year. And we have also started businesses for other people who are not in any way related to us, and things like that. I am also into sports programmes, church programmes and so on.

By the special grace of God, I am also an evangelist; God said I should speak about him where ever I go to. I said but I didn’t go to a Bible School; He said, no; wherever you go to, if you don’t know what to say, tell them what I have done in your life. People call me evangelist and God said I should be talking about Him, and so I have no choice.

But beyond all these, a certain transporter in Enugu who pleaded anonymity criticised Onyeishi for asking young men (drivers) to put their lives on “firing line” by engaging them through the hire purchase system of running his transport organisation. “When you engage a driver and give him a deadline when to deliver the cost of buying the vehicle, you are not being fair to such driver; you are only toying with the driver’s life which has no replacement,” said the transporter.

However, Miss Chika Ani, who said she is studying in one of the tertiary institutions in Enugu on the scholarship foundation of Onyeishi, prayed God to always bless and protect her benefactor. “I can’t say much but that the prayers of the saints are helping the young transporter,” she remarked. “If all wealthy people in Nigeria will emulate him, then poverty will reduce meaningfully in this part of the country,” she said.

-  Tony Adibe, Enugu

 

Abiose: A commitment to the prevention of blindness in the North and beyond

Professor Adenike Abiose, who is being given a national honours award has a long history in the North. Professor of Ophthalmology at Ahmadu Bello University, she was also the Director of the National Eye Centre in Kaduna. Apart from being a lecturer, she has been involved in the work of the Nigerian National Blindness Prevention Programme, National Onchocerciasis Control Programme, the Onchocerciaisis Control Programme in West Africa, the African Programme for Onchocerciasis Control and the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness.

In 2003, she was awarded the Mectizan honours for her commitment to onchocerciasis control at the national and international level. She graduated in Medicine from the University of Ibadan in 1967, was admitted a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh in1974 and Fellow of the West African College of Surgeons in 1975. She has been the chair of the Neglected Tropical Diseases Committee of the Federal Ministry of Health in Nigeria.

Dr Abdullahi Mohammed, a Consultant Pathologist and Associate Professor at the Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital (ABUTH), Shika, Zaria and ABUTH’s Chairman, Medical Advisory Committee (CMAC), which is equivalent to Assistant Chief Medical Director, paid a glowing tribute to Professor Abiose.

In an interview with Sunday Trust, Dr Mohammed said he had known Professor Adenike Abiose personally because she was one of the lecturers that taught him during his undergraduate days at ABU.

“Yes, of course, I know her. She was my lecturer at ABU. I know that she worked in ABU in the early 1980s and she diligently served for over 25 years. I know her to be a nice person who is simple and hardworking. In fact, I know she made a lot of contributions to the growth of ABU, especially the Ophthalmology Department.

“I know that she has trained over 2,000 students at the undergraduate level, apart from those she trained at postgraduate level. I know she trained many doctors to become consultants. In fact, most of us that she trained are now at the ranks of professors. Therefore, her contributions to development of humanity are enormous and most of us are still reaping the benefits of her training,” Dr Mohammed said.

Apart from training of students, Dr Mohammed said Professor Abiose has left a legacy at the Ophthalmology Department of ABUTH, which is still being used by doctors and students.

“She set up the once famous Guinness Eye Clinic, with the help of some people. It was formerly sited at the ABUTH, Kaduna. It was a famous eye clinic and I know she worked hard in developing that clinic to become one of the best in Nigeria, if not the best. When ABUTH was moved to Shika, it moved along with the clinic, but it was transformed to the Ophthalmology Department and it is still there, serving both patients and students.

“In fact, that woman has contributed a lot to the development of the medical profession in the North to the extent that one would begin to think whether she is a northerner. This is to further tell you the type of person she is. For now, I know she is one of the leading eye doctors in Nigeria and Africa. For me, she deserves this national honour on merit and in my own opinion the honour was long overdue,” Dr Mohammed said.

- Isa Sa’idu, Kaduna


Olopade: Fighting to put a smile on faces breast-cancer victims


Dr Olufunmilayo Olopade was born in 1957. She earned fame as a highly-skilled haematology oncologist with proven expertise in cancer risk assessment. She is a member of American National Cancer Advisory Board.

She conducts comprehensive evaluations of family history and other risk factors for patients in the Cancer Risk Clinic. Once she identifies a person at high risk, Dr Olopade designs an individualized prevention plan that may include periodic screening, preventative drugs or other options for risk reduction. She is the director of the Center for Clinical Cancer Genetics at the University of Chicago Medical Center, where she has been on the faculty since 1991.

She is married to Christopher Olopade (a physician), they have three children.

In 2005, she partnered with colleagues in Nigeria, Senegal and North America to compare the tumors of hundreds of breast cancer patients of African and European descent. The study found, among other things, that the African women’s tumours don’t depend on estrogens to grow and will not respond to drugs such as Tamoxifen. This groundbreaking report, along with her years of research, earned Dr Olopade a $500.000 MacArthur Foundation award, known as a genius grant. Her work has confirmed that breast cancer isn’t a one-size-fits all disease.

Olufunmilayo Olopade received an M. D. (1980) from the University of Ibadan, and served as a medical officer at the Nigerian Navy Hospital. She completed an internship and residency (1986) at the Cook County Hospital, Chicago, and trained in haematology and Humanncology as a postdoctoral fellow (1987-1991) at the University of Chicago.

During the 1990s, cancer specialist Olufunmilayo Olopade became perplexed when she realized that breast cancer tended to hit women of African descent earlier—and harder—than their United States and European counterparts. Since then, Olopade has dedicated her career to finding out why in hopes of discovering a cure. Along the way, Olopade has made many groundbreaking discoveries about the disease and in 2005 was awarded a $500,000 MacArthur Foundation “genius grant” to continue her research.

Speaking to Kelli Whitlock Burton of Medicine on the Midway, Olopade discussed her drive to find out more about the disease. “Part of our work as scientists is not only to study biology and science, but also to engage society. If we can’t translate our research to help people, then why are we doing the work?”

The fifth of six children, Olufunmilayo Falusi Olopade was born in1957 in Nigeria. The future physician-scientist, known to friends as Funmi (pronounced FOON-me), was the daughter of an Anglican minister. Doctors were scarce in the Nigerian villages where Olopade was raised so her parents decided that one of their children should become a doctor; Olopade was the first to express any interest. After earning her medical degree in 1980 from Nigeria’s University of Ibadan, Olopade worked as a medical officer at the Nigerian Navy Hospital in Lagos to fulfill her country’s requirement that university-educated young adults put in a year’s service with the National Youth Service Corps.

Olopade then relocated to the United States to complete an internship and residency at Chicago’s Cook County Hospital, where she ended up chief resident in 1986. Olopade left the hospital in 1987 to study hematology and oncology as a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Chicago. Meanwhile, a military coup had overthrown the Nigerian government, so she decided to stay in the United States. In 1991, she joined the University of Chicago faculty as an assistant professor in hematology and oncology.

Along the way, Olopade married fellow physician Christopher Sola Olopade, whose specialty is treating asthma and sleep disorders. They have two daughters and a son. They live in the Hyde Park-Kenwood neighborhood near the University of Chicago.

In 2006, she was first recipient of the American Association for Cancer Research’s Minorities in Cancer Research-Jane Cooke Wright Lectureship. The award is given to an outstanding scientist who has made “meritorious contributions to the field of cancer research and who has, through leadership or by example, furthered the advancement of minority investigators in cancer research.

- Culled from the website of Transparency for Nigeria


Onyenweaku: Honour for the best cocoa producer in Nigeria


Chief David Onyeweaku started his cocoa business as a teenager, when he found a cocoa nursery plantation in his amazon plantation of Abia State. As a result of his resilience, he receive assistance from the state’s Ministry of Agriculture who gave him some farm inputs, including tractors.

Sunday Trust gathered that Chief Onyenweaku, now in his 80s, was born in Ahieke Iboku in UmuahaNorth Local Government Area of Abia State. He went into full-scale commercial farming while in his 30s. Due to his achievements in the business, cocoa farmers who have no capacity to manage their farms contract then out to him for an annual fee. A very religious man, Chief Onyenweaku is a devoted member of the Faith Tabernacle Church in his Ibeku clan in Abia State.  Now that age is not on his side, one of his sons, Mr Uche Onyenweaku, has taken over his father’s trade in order to sustain the efforts the aged man has made. He’s popular in the Federal Ministry of Agriculture as the Best Cocoa Farmer in Nigeria.

According to Abia State Government, which made comments on the award being given to the cocoa veteran, Chief Onyenweaku has made the State proud with his 30 metres tonnes of cocoa harvest recently. It is for this reason that the Abia State Government nominated him for the national honour award.

The Chief Press Secretary to Abia State Governor, Mr Ugochukwu Onyewika told Sunday Trust that Chief Onyenweaku’s farm has created employment for many youths, as much as the farm is a source of revenue for the South-East State government.

The CPS said further that the state government had continued to support the farm complex, and vowed that the government would not relent in its effort to assist those involved in food production in Abia State.

Hardworking Onyenweaku lost his wife last year. Not very social, he keeps to himself. On the other side, his cocoa produce, known as the amazon specie, is in high demand in Nigeria and beyond.  On Monday he will became a Member of the Federal Republic (MFR).

- Alozie Ogbonna, Umuahia

 

Okonkwo – Honour for a distinguished preacher

Dr Mike Okonkwo was born on September 6, 1945 to the family of Pa and Ma Okonkwo of Ogbunike in Oyi Local Government Area of Anambra State. He started his primary education at Salvation Army Primary School Enugu, but later moved to Ijero Baptist Primary School in Ebute Metta, Lagos. He however completed his primary education at St. Marks Primary School, Offa in Kwara State. He started his secondary education at Mayflower College, Ikenne and completed it at Merchants of Light Grammar School, Oba Anambra State in 1963.

Dr Mike Okonkwo joined the Nigerian Ports Authority in 1964 where he worked only for 3 months before crossing over to the banking industry with African Continental Bank (ACB) with the mind of making a career in banking. He was a pioneer member of staff of the Martins street branch, Lagos from 1964 to 1966. Dr Mike Okonkwo was deployed to the eastern branch of ACB during the civil war, which eventually interrupted his banking career.

During the war, he underwent the military training but had no opportunity to practice what he had learnt because the war ended the very night he was deployed to the warfront. After the war, he continued with his banking career at the Ogbete road branch of ACB where he was a pioneer staff.

Dr Mike Okonkwo had an encounter with Jesus in November 1970 and for the 1st time, he started attending Church services regularly in the United Church of Christ, (UCC) which has her headquarters in Enugu. The call of God upon his life was evident and so he was ordained into the ministry in 1971. He took up his first pastoral responsibility in Lagos in November 1972 with UCC. He was released as an Evangelist on the 20th of June 1976 and was instrumental in establishing most branches of the Church in Lagos.

He served faithfully in UCC under the leadership of Apostle Egbo from 1971 to 1980. It became obvious due to circumstances beyond his control that he had to leave UCC, because God has a plan for his life.  The Redeemed Evangelical Mission, TREM was founded on the 4th of January, 1981.

In 1980, Dr Mike Okonkwo received a certificate of license from International Deliverance Churches, Dallas, Texas. In 1981, he graduated with a diploma degree from the Morris Cerullo School of Ministry, San Diego, California, USA. By 1982, he earned diploma with International Bible Institute and Seminary, Orlando, Florida. The same year, he bagged a Bachelor of Bible Theology in the same university. The Covington Theological Seminary, Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia, USA gave him a waiver for Masters Degree and he went in for a Doctorate degree program in Divinity which he successfully completed and was conferred with Doctor of Divinity degree with all rights and privileges pertaining thereto. In 1984, the Board of Directors of International Bible Institute, Orlando, Florida, USA, upon recommendation by the Faculty conferred on him a Doctor of Letters Degree. In 1987, the United Christian International Bible Institute, Cleveland, Tennessee, USA awarded him a Doctor of Divinity certificate.

Dr Mike Okonkwo is a holder of the ordination certificate and the certificate of fellowship of World Ministry Fellowship Shreveport, Louisiana, USA. He is also a holder of ordination certificate from the National Christian Fellowship Conference, (NCFC) USA, the Church of God Mission International Nigeria, United Christian Church & Ministerial Association, USA. On Monday, he will be conferred with the national honour of Member of the Federal Republic (MFR).

Culled from the Redeemed Evangelical Mission (TREM)

 

Danladi: Receiving an honour with mixed feelings

Alhaji Sani Danladi Abubakar the current Deputy Governor of Taraba State will receive the fourth highest honour in Nigeria on Monday. That is the Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON). However, he will be receiving this honour with mixed feelings. This is because the Taraba State House of Assembly has served him impeachment notice bordering on allegations of misuse of funds. For instance, it is alleged that he diverted the Federal Government/World Bank Millennium Development Goals (MDGs projects meant for the state to Yagai Academy, his own private school in Jalingo. Also contained in the impeachment notice are allegations that solar power stree lights and motorised boreholes were situated in the Yagai Academy, thereby denying the other underprivileged people of Taraba State the opportunity to benefit from those projects.

Among the allegations are that he may have used his office to acquire a large expanse of land to build the Yagai Academy and other multi-million naira business ventures, including Yagai water, Yagai printing press and Yagai Restaurant. According to the lawmakers in Taraba State, the lawmaker’s salaries would not be able to accommodate so much business ventures.

It is believed that Alhaji Danladi was nominated for this award by Governor Danbaba Suntai. Perhaps, the deputy governor’s current travail may be political, and may border on loyalty to the party of his principal. However, this brings to question the integrity of the award, which is bestowed, not based on genuine achievements, but another honour for the boys.

 

Augie: From Deputy Governor to District Head

Alhaji Muhammed Sani Aliyu Augie, in his early seventies, was a career civil servant in the then North-Western state comprising of Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara states before joining politics to become the first democratically elected deputy governor during former military President Ibrahim Babangida’s NRC/SDP experimental democracy. On Monday he will be conferred with the national honours award of the Order of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (OFR).

With the ouster of civilian governors, following the June 12 crisis and subsequent Chief Ernest Shonekan’s interim government, Augie was saved the crunch of the labour market. He was given the traditional title of district head of Augie, with the title of Lamnen Augie. He was yet again pushed by the wind of succession to the position of Kundudan Kabi, the deputy to the present Emir of Argungu, Alhaji Samaila Muhammed Mera in whose council he stands as the senior councillor. He will be bestowed with the OFR on Monday.

-Sanusi Hamidu Babagoro


Mohammed Indimi…A man with midas touch

A suave and reputable businessman, Alhaji Mohammed Indimi is a Nigerian success story. He is known to be one the richest men in Africa.

Born in Maiduguri, Borno State in August 1948, Alhaji Indimi, a self-made multi-billionaire, is the founder and Chairman of Oriental Energy Resources Limited. He is a humanitarian and a philanthropist.

Though little is known about his background in western education, Indimi started his career early in life and was able to carve a niche for himself in the business world. Today, he sits on the board of several multinational companies encompassing all sectors of the economy and is a notable presence in the international business arena. He has over 20 years’ experience in the Nigerian Upstream Oil and Gas sector.

His business flagship, Oriental Energy Resources, currently has three offshore Nigerian oil and gas projects with daily production of 35,000 barrels.

In an interview he granted the Voice of America (VOA) Hausa Service in November last year, which he gave a rare insight into his life and career, Alhaji Indimi attributed his accomplishments to sheer providence, hard work and perseverance.

“I have always been a businessman. I have never been to school before, but I thank Allah for His mercies, everything that one gets in this world he’s destined to obtain it,” he said.

As the Chairman of M & W Pump Nigeria Limited, which has partnered with MWI Corp of Deerfield Beach, Florida, Alhaji Indimi is spearheading the introduction of new technology into oil exploitation and operation in the country.

“This new technology is called Mobile Production Unit and it’s a ship specifically designed to scoop oil from the wells and refine it and transport it to an oil tanker. It has the capacity of refining up to two million barrels a day.

“You see, instead of bringing ships to the ports and paying huge sums as demurrage as we use to do before, now with this technology we are able to avoid detention or delay of a cargo carrier due to its loading or unloading process,” he said in the 20-minute interview.

The Maiduguri-based head of diversified conglomerate with interests in oil, transportation and construction also hinted that he would soon diversify into agriculture.

“Of course, I will soon start large-scale farming. It’s imperative,” declared.

The 65-year-old Indimi who started oil business over 20 years ago has eight of his over twenty children working with him at Oriental Energy Resources.

Although, Indimi is notably close to Nigeria’s political establishment and has been a business ally of former US President George Bush, he has ruled himself out of partisan politics.

Indimi has received numerous awards as well as honorary doctorate degrees from notable Universities in Nigeria, Ireland and the United States. He will be conferred with the OFR on Monday.

- Ismaila Lere

 culled from sunday trust