•R-L: Sir and Mrs. Alex Akinyele with Mr Reginald Ihejiahi, MD, Fidelity Bank •Dr Doris Fisher (left) with Ambassador I. Hekaipe Ajuru, Nigeria’s former Ambassador to Ukraine. •Mr Che (left) and Mr Gu, Managing Director CWAY(Nig) Ltd •R-L: Gov. Theodore Orji of Abia State, Mrs Louisa Ayonote representing Governor Ikedi Ohakim of Imo State, Gov. Rotimi Amaechi and his wife. •Deputy Director/Special Asst. to the Governor CBN, Ugochukwu A. Okoroafor (left) and Deputy Managing Director, The Sun, Mr Dimgba Igwe •Onyeka Onwenu (right) with the Managing Director, The Sun, Mr Mike Awoyinfa (left) with his deputy, Mr Dimgba Igwe •Ushers at the event.

Anambra State Governor, Mr Peter Obi, beamed with smile as he accepted the diadem for The Sun Man of the Year award at the weekend. “I thank God for using Governor Amaechi and myself for reforming Nigerian politics,” he said. “I thank the judiciary, and I thank the media.”

“Law and order and justice are the foundation of any free society,” he continued, regretting that the nation is wasting precious time and resources contesting results of the last general elections because due process and fair play were jettisoned for the selfish ambition of a few. “We have over 2,000 seats being contested at the tribunal,” he noted.

“That is why this award is important. Due process is the problem of Nigeria. Let’s all build a better Nigeria. If the rule of law and order, and conducting free elections is all Yar’Adua could achieve in four years, he will be a great man. Anambra State became a place where lunatics took asylum with the backing of the FG. And all we’ve been doing is sending the lunatics back to the real asylum where they belong. And we will do it”.

Obi regretted that in the last eight years, not one new borehole was sunk in Anambra, and the few amenities that were there before were burnt down under the supervision of the federal government. He challenged state governors to really live up to their titles by behaving excellently and living exemplary lives all the time.

He also explained why he shunned ostentatious lifestyle. “It is true that I don’t stay at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja. I live at Rockview owned by Young Shall Grow, an Anambra man, who pays his tax in Anambra. Mr Hilton doesn’t pay any tax to me, so why should I stay in his hotel?”

According to him, every item used today in the Government House is made in Anambra State. “If they say they need leather furniture and you can’t buy good leather in Anambra, I will say, Ok, you may sit on the floor till somebody learns how to make leather in Anambra State. It is the people’s money.”

The governor challenged Nigerians to rededicate themselves to building a better society. “The society we’re building today will take its revenge on our children tomorrow. Let us examine ourselves,” he counselled.

This is a celebration of tenacity – Gov Orji

Governor Theodore Orji, in his brief speech, gave glory to God for righting the wrongs done by man.
“Today, we are celebrating the judiciary and the tenacity of my brother governors,” he said. “But we also lament injustice and man’s inhumanity to man. We are also lamenting the evil of dictatorship, imposition of self will against the corporate will of the people.

My brother Governors, Obi and Amaechi, had a bad deal, but mine was more serious than yours. You were free to challenge your case in court. But when all the allegations were levelled against me, they were not satisfied. They now bundled me into detention to send me out of circulation, so that I don’t campaign.

But as God would have it, I rotated and vegetated in the four walls of detention, and won the election. By the grace of God, I am today the governor of God’s own state. Abia State is number one in everything.

I want to invite everyone to Abia State to come and see for yourself. I want to tell everyone in position of authority that Nigeria belongs to all of us, and that whatever we do, let God be our guide.”

These 2 governors are positively stubborn. We need more of such – Akunyili

She strutted on the dais like a queen. Professor Dora Akunyili, Director-General of the National Agency for Foods, Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC) gazed round the Diamond hall venue of The Sun Man of the Year awards as her dark blouse twinkled under the evening light.
“It’s, indeed, a great honour for me to preside over this epoch-making event”, she said, even as she praised the organization for initiating such noble awards which celebrate the virtues of hard work, courage, determination, excellence, diligence, transparency and integrity.

“Such celebration of success has a multiplier effect,” she noted. “When hard work and integrity are not celebrated, corruption is promoted. I thank you for initiating and sustaining the awards. It is most remarkable.”

To Akunyili, the awardees, Governors Peter Obi of Anambra and Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers, have come to represent hope that Nigeria’s budding democracy can survive. According to her, that the judiciary at the very top found the courage to unwaveringly uphold justice and equity at all costs indicate that all hope is not lost.

“Nigerians were spellbound by the justice of these incorruptible six men and one woman,” she said. Obi and Amaechi’s victories, she asserted, were a telling commitment of the judiciary to the development of the country.

The NAFDAC strong woman recalled that she too had some raw deals in the hands of the judiciary. According to her, the masterminds of the assassination attempt on her in 2003 are still walking the streets, intimidating witnesses and their families. “They are walking like free men after four years of the attack.

If I could be denied justice with my visibility in the society, how much more the less privileged? You can, therefore, understand my joy at what we are witnessing today.It is an answered prayer for most of us. With the new trend from the top of the judiciary, we can all hope for the Nigeria of our dreams.

I have hope in Nigeria,” she affirmed, as thunderous applause reverberated across the hall.
According to the woman, since Obi and Amaechi were committed Christians who totally believe in God, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that God took over their battles and gave them victory.

“They are both young and good looking,” she said. “They are both positively stubborn and we desperately need more of such people if we are to build the Nigeria of our dreams. They are bold and courageous. They did not resort to hooliganism and lawlessness, but chose rather to pursue due process and rule of law to their logical conclusion”.
Kenya, she observed, wouldn’t have been burning if the people had allowed the rule of law to prevail in their country.”

The NAFDAC boss recalled that Obi, who she fondly called “my governor, my husband and my son”, hardly stays in expensive hotels, preferring instead to stay in cheaper ones. She, however, described him as coming from a privileged background, with his parents among the richest couples of their days.

“He might be frugal, but he’s always prepared to give for a just cause.”

Of Amaechi, Akunyili commended his humility and for treading the path of peace. “He’s a man who combines politics and academics. That he was the longest serving speaker of a state legislature in Nigeria shows his ability to lead his colleagues. “This is also a day to celebrate President Yar’Adua who has kept his words on the rule of law,” she said.

Akunyili also praised The Sun newspapers for initiating the awards. “NAFDAC wholeheartedly identifies with your laudable initiatives and bold moves to retrieve our lost cultural values of honesty, integrity and stewardship. Without doubt, you have been the Voice of the Nation”, she stated.

Our traducers need to seek God’s forgiveness – Amaechi

To Rivers State Governor, Mr Rotimi Amaechi, his emergence as governor has shown that no human being can be God. “God has used the judiciary to let the world know that there’s God,” he said in a sober tone.

His words: “Our traducers were playing God. And just as we seek forgiveness from the people that we may have wronged, let these people seek God’s forgiveness.”

He was not done. “Some say it’s the desire to control the resources of Rivers State that led the echelons at the centre to supplant the will of the people. ‘Corruption’ became a veritable tool to hack me down.

To achieve their aim, they completely ignored the rule of law and chose instead to establish the rule of man. All that matters was their inordinate desires, not the good of our state or Nigeria and certainly God did not feature in their calculation. Rule of law is governance by the law. No man is above the law. Either is any man God.”

According to Amaechi, he decided to go to the judiciary “to strengthen my K-leg, by law”.
“The judiciary, true to its constitutional roles, confronted the issues and established the rule of law. By so doing, they took the centre stage by nurturing the growth of Nigerian democracy. That is why I’m dedicating this award, not to my wife and family, but to God and the judiciary. It is to celebrate the Rivers man, woman and child.”

The governor regretted that Rivers State, which has played a pivotal role in the economic development of Nigeria, has had a raw deal in the hands of the federal authorities. “Those who came before us have agitated for a more equitable share of the resources, and for which our farmlands and our water have been devastated. We shall continue this agitation because it is just.

I have faith in the fairness of Nigerians. I hope and pray that you all who gathered here today will join us in the struggle for an equitable share of the resources which we give to the Nigerian nation. However, violence must not be seen as a tool for this struggle.

Finally, let me tell you that God, the judiciary and this award has placed an extra burden on Governor Obi and I. To obey the law, to govern by the rule of law, and the fear of God. We have become governors by the grace of God. We must, therefore, deliver on our promises. Our lot must be on the side of the people at all times. By the time we are done, let the people declare that we left them better than we met them, we cannot afford to fail.”

The governor praised The Sun for honouring him even as he declared that he did not contribute one kobo to The Sun for the programme. He solicited support for President Umaru Yar’Adua, who he described as “a shining example of a practitioner of the rule of law and transparent democracy.”

I doff my hat for Supreme Court Justices – Soludo

Central bank governor, Professor Chukwuma Soludo, was full of praises to The Sun for keeping faith with the award and urged the newspaper to keep it up.

He charged: “Keep identifying men and women of substance, who are helping to redefine and ensure the emergence of a new Nigeria. This is a historic moment. And we are celebrating the new Nigeria that is emerging. They are metaphors in the celebration of what is emerging as a new Nigeria.”
Soludo paid special tribute to President Yar’Adua for making rule of law and justice the fulcrum of his administration.

“We are also celebrating the judiciary”, he said. “I pay tribute to the incorruptible justices of the Supreme Court. For them to have given these landmark judgements in spite of the pressures they must have undergone is very commendable, which gives all of us hope that a new Nigeria is in the making. It is early morning on creation day.”

He described Obi and Amaechi, as shining examples to the youths. “If this generation does not save Nigeria, then who will,” he asked, even as he praised both honourees for sharing the virtues of tenacity, doggedness and conviction that is worthy of emulation.

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•Senator Osita Izunaso, Chairman, Senate Committee on Gas (left) with Senator Hassan Mohammed. •SSA to Anambra Governor, Chief Mrs Uju Okeke (left) with Co-ordinator LAP, Mrs Stella Orojiafor •Barrister Chizoba Omeokachie (left) and Onyeka Owenu

By TOPE ADEBOBOYE

They streamed-in in droves, exultant men and women donning dresses of varied colours. From far and near they came, young and old, male and female, big shots from different sectors of the economy. On Saturday, Ikoyi, that usually conservative abode of the elite, wore a convivial garb. It was at this year’s edition of The Sun Man of the Year awards held, with pomp and ceremony, at the prestigious Golden Gate Restaurant.

At the event, the awardees, Rivers State Governor, Rt. Honourable Rotimi Amaechi, and his Anambra State counterpart, Mr Peter Obi, glittered like two big stars dominating an effervescent firmament.
From early in the evening, it was conspicuous that Ikoyi was about witnessing something positively atypical.

Outside the venue, assorted cars jostled for parking space in the restaurant’s car park and on adjoining streets. Men in dark suits, in bright tuxedos, in flowing kaftans and other traditional apparels, and women attired in long evening gowns, all came out of their cars and trooped inside the Diamond Hall. At the entrance, portraits of the men of the moment welcomed you, even as traditional drummers and flutists went to and fro, enlivening the area with their melodies.

But it was inside the hall that the beauty of the evening was made manifest. Assorted balloons sparkled in white, pink and red on the walls, and fabrics of similar hues dazzled from the ceiling. From speakers dotting the walls and others mounted here and there, soothing music slowly oozed, as some staffers of The Sun, in branded red T-shirts, white baseball caps and black pants ensured that nothing went amiss.

A live band, led by an energetic lady in light green blouse and brown trousers, dished out scintillating sounds. Top class comedians, Julius Agwu and Gbenga Adeyinka 1, enlivened the occasion, keeping the guests mirthful with banters and jokes. Female ushers in brownish Ankara fabrics attended to every guest.

The Sun Man of the Year award is an annual tradition of the newspaper, a credible platform for honouring men and women of distinction. It started in 2003, with the honour going the way of Dr Mike Adenuga, whose telecommunication company, Globacom, pioneered the per-second billing innovation in the GSM sector. The following year, the crown was worn by Professor Chukwuma Soludo, the Central Bank Governor, for initiating a new banking order in the country. Erstwhile chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, took the diadem in 2005.

He was honoured for his uncommon fervour in the fight against corruption. And in 2006, former Education Minister and now a Vice President at the World Bank, Mrs Obiageli Ezekwesili, was garlanded for her courageous reform in the education sector.

Roll-call
The event paraded bigwigs from different spheres. Beside Obi and Amaechi who came with their wives to personally receive their diadems, Abia State Governor, Chief Theodore Orji, was there. Lagos State Governor, Mr Babatunde Fashola (SAN), was represented by the state Commissioner for Information, Mr Opeyemi Bamidele. Governor Ikedim Ohakim of Imo State was represented by his aide, Louisa Ayonote. Among the guests were the Chairman of the National Agency for Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Professor Dora Akunyili (who also chaired the occasion) Professor Chukuma Soludo, who wore The Sun Man of the Year crown in 2005; the Chairman of the All Peoples Grand Alliance (APGA), Chief Victor Umeh; Mr Reginald Ihejiahi, CEO, Fidelity Bank; the former Information Minister, and later, Chairman, National Sports Commission, Chief Alex Akinyele; the former deputy speaker of the House of Representatives, Prince Chibudom Nwuche; the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Tonye Harry; his Ogun State counterpart, Mrs Titi Oseni; the former Rivers State governor, Chief Rufus Ada-George, one-time minister, Alabo Graham-Douglas; the chairman of Intercontinental Bank, Dr Raymond Obieri; the former governor of Ogun State, Chief Olusegun Osoba, the former governor of Cross River State, Mr Donald Duke; veteran journalist, Chief Duro Onabule, the former president of the Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria (PMAN), top musician and actress, Onyeka Onwenu, Chief Tony Okoroji, foremost literary scholar and writer, Professor Olu Obafemi, and a host of other distinguished individuals from the corporate world.

The occasion also had in attendance top management staff and senior editors of The Sun, Nigeria’s highest selling newspaper. Led by the Managing Director/Editor-in- Chief, Mike Awoyinfa, and Deputy Managing Director/Deputy Editor-in-Chief, Dimgba Igwe. The team included: Tony Onyima, Executive Director, Operations; Paul Onyia, Marketing Director; Femi Adesina, Editor, Daily; Steve Nwosu, Editor, Saturday; Dr Amanze Obi, Chairman, Editorial Board; Eric Osagie, Editor, Northern Operations; Louis Odion, Shola Oshunkeye, General Editor; Mrs Neta Nwosu, AGM, Business Development; Patrick Enilama, Human Resources Manager, among others.

Enter the awardees
At 6.38pm, Governor Amaechi strolled into the hall, accompanied by his wife, Judith, and a retinue of aides and friends. Looking radiant in his dark suit, yellowish shirt and striped tie, he walked in leisurely paces, acknowledging greetings from the crowd, even as the cameras clicked away. He was led to his seat by members of the top echelon of The Sun team.

A half-hour later, his co-honouree, Peter Obi, also sauntered in, his pretty wife by his side. Obi, beaming with smiles in his dark Igbo attire, also waved to the guests who greeted his entrance with a long applause.

On the high table where she quietly sat, chairperson of the day, Dora Akunyili, looked quite youthful, resplendent in her dark glittering blouse, and black skirt.

Welcoming the guests
The event formally took off precisely at 7.14pm, with a welcome address by The Sun MD, Mr Mike Awoyinfa. Describing the night as one of history, he said with pride that even angels in their heavenly abode would applaud the newspaper for picking Amaechi and Obi as joint winners of the Man of the Year award.

“We are giving the award to two Nigerian governors, who stood up to fight and fight until their stolen mandates were restored at the apex court of justice,” said The Sun boss, who saluted the honourees’ tenacity and strong belief in the Nigeria’s judicial system.

Hear him: “We are giving this year’s award to two men who helped restore our faith in our judiciary, through their unflinching faith and belief in the apparatus of justice. We are giving this Man of the Year award to two men who helped reposition our Supreme Court and changed the perception that anybody could be bribed to pervert the cause of justice.” He expressed hopes that future elections in the country would be devoid of fraud, and that rule of law would reign supreme across the nation even as he prayed that the country would never go the way of Kenya where electoral fraud has led to anarchy.

Following Awoyinfa’s address was the chairman’s speech. A loud ovation greeted Dora Akunyili as she took the microphone. She congratulated the newspaper for what she called its five years of robust journalism, even as she claimed The Sun has always aligned with NAFDAC in its war against fake drugs. She particularly praised the newspaper for initiating the Man of the Year award which she said has helped in retrieving the nation’s lost cultural values of honesty, integrity and stewardship.

“Without doubt, you have been the Voice of the Nation”, she asserted.

Akunyili praised the nation’s judiciary for upholding the rule of law and for giving hope to millions of Nigerians. She also praised Obi and Amaechi for their tenacity and positive stubbornness which earned them their deserved victory, even as she urged the duo to let their victories and honour motivate them to relentlessly serve their people. A resounding applause from time to time interrupted the speech. And as it ended, a prolonged ovation escorted her back to her seat on the high table.

Wide appeal of the nation’s voice
Soon, it was the turn of The Sun’s Director of Marketing, Paul Onyia, to present his company’s score sheet to the guests. And to show that The Sun’s rating as the market leader in the nation’s print journalism industry is no ruse, Onyia employed empirical, verifiable statistics provided by the Mediafacts Nigeria/West Africa as well as the report of the Research and Marketing Services Ltd (RMS) to show his gripped audience that The Sun leads the market all over Nigeria, with towering presence in all the geo-political zones.

For instance, the newspaper carries 34% of readership in Nigeria which placed it in the leadership position. In Lagos, The Sun scored 32 per cent. In the South-East, the newspaper has a whopping 41% of the market, with The Vanguard coming a distant second with 21%. In the North-East, The Sun leads with 30%, while in the North- Central, it has a 35%. For the North-West, the percentage held by the Voice of the Nation is 27%. Readership of the newspaper, Onyia further proved, cuts across the upwardly mobile class, with the young and middle-aged, educated, urban, middle and upper-middle income earner, male and female Nigerians and Nigeria residents making The Sun a must read on daily basis.

Affirmed Onyia: “The Sun is the best choice for advertisers of products and services of general nature and semi specialized. The Sun has the widest spread of readership in Nigeria with presence in every geo-political zone in the country. The Sun has very strong presence in Lagos and is most readers’ first choice. The Sun has the largest share of consumers’ mind (87%). That indicates the newspaper most readers are conscious and aware of.”

And awardees step out
Deputy Managing Director and Deputy Editor-in-Chief of the newspaper, Mr Dimgba Igwe, who read the citation of the honourees, started with Amaechi’s. Igwe recalled how the governor won the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship primaries in Rivers State on December 14, 2006. His name had in fact been sent to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as the party’s candidate in the election. It was, however, substituted by the party with that of Celestine Omehia, who never contested the primaries. The party cited purported indictment by the EFCC for his replacement.

The soft-spoken man, however, remained resolute in the face of sundry intimidations and vague threats. He approached the courts, and for months, the case progressed slowly, sometimes frustratingly. Many Nigerians were pleasantly surprised in October last year when, in a landmark judgement, the nation’s apex court ruled that Amaechi was unjustifiably substituted and ordered that he be sworn in as Rivers State governor immediately.

“Amaechi, whose exemplary and rigorous pursuit of justice, under the rule of law, brought about the ruling that has restored faith and confidence in our judiciary as the hope of the ordinary Nigerian, is the toast of the moment,” enthused Igwe. “ He thus showed himself as a rare breed, a man of uncommon doggedness and tenacity of purpose. A politician who has demonstrated a firm and resolute commitment to the pursuit of justice in the face of reprehensible repression by a monstrous party machinery. An unyielding and unfaltering faith in the rule of law and the ability of the courts to protect the rights of ordinary Nigerians through dispensation of substantial justice.”

About 8.38pm, Amaechi accompanied by his lovely wife, walked briskly onto the podium to receive his plaque from Awoyinfa and Igwe, supported by former Ogun State govenor, Chief Segun Osoba. Cameras clicked away as the guests rose with a loud ovation to appreciate the joint winner of the prestigious award.

In his response, Amaechi thanked The Sun for honouring him, even as he declared that his victory at the court was an affirmation by God that no individual could play God. He lamented that the Nigerian state has short-changed his state in the share of resources and disclosed that the agitation for justice would continue. He, however, cautioned against the use of violence and rascality. “Violence must not be seen as a tool for this struggle”, he urged. The award, said the governor, was dedicated to God and to the judiciary.

Immediately after, Governor Obi with his wife was ‘summoned’ to the podium to receive his diadem. His citation was also read by Mr Igwe, who described Obi’s name as a testimony to the triumph of the will and the reward of the excellent spirit.
According to him, Obi elevated politics from the base level of shenanigans, subterfuges, brigandage and naked brutality to a level of beauty, integrity and refinement.

Indeed, Obi had won the 2003 election in Anambra State. He was, however, robbed as the victory was handed to the PDP. It took him nearly three years to reclaim that mandate after the Supreme Court ordered that he be sworn in. But his battles were not over. Soon after he mounted the saddle, Obi was purportedly impeached by the PDP dominated legislature. He went back to the courts, and eventually got justice. Again, to the judiciary he went, asking the court to declare that his term started when he took the oath of office. And eventually, the Supreme Court, in a landmark judgement, granted his request. The new ‘governor’, Andy Uba, was sacked and Obi stepped back into office.

“The significance of Obi’s trial and triumph transcends time and space”, observed The Sun’s DMD. “It goes beyond his immediate Anambra State, just as it goes beyond today. His personal triumphs have become a veritable symbol of the nation’s liberation from political predators and hooligans who had held the nation under their evil thrall. For instance, Obi’s judicial battle has forever settled the issue of tenure of governors or the president. With his success in that regard, at no time shall we expect that elections to all government houses in the country will be held the same day, except in the unlikely truncation of our democracy. This is a milestone in the annals of Nigerian political history that would definitely deepen our much traduced federalism.”

At 8.58pm, The Sun’s MD, Awoyinfa presented the golden plaque to the Anambra State Governor.
Responding to the award, Obi reflected on his battles before and after his emergence as governor and regretted that due process and the rule of law hardly featured at the nation’s highest echelon of governance in the last eight years. He urged Nigerians to rededicate themselves to the virtues of nation building, so as to leave some good legacy for the coming generation. “The society we’re building today will take its revenge on our children”, he warned. And like his colleague, Obi also dedicated his award to God and the Supreme Court.
Support

Indeed, the night was one of sundry testimonies. To give support to his fellow governors was the Abia State Governor, Chief Theodore Orji. In a short speech, Orji, spotting a cute bluish suit, took time out to recall his own travails. He noted that while Obi and Amaechi were able to fight their battles in relative freedom, he wasn’t that lucky, as he was hurled into detention. “But I rotated and vegetated in the four walls of detention, and today, by the grace of God, I am the governor of God’s own state,” he reflected.

To the governor of the Central Bank, Professor Charles Chukwuma Soludo, the justices of the Supreme Court who gave the landmark judgements have given Nigerians hope that a new nation is in the making. “It is early morning on creation day,” he mused. He thanked The Sun newspaper for keeping faith with the award and solicited support for President Yar’Adua who, he noted, had made the rule of law and justice the fulcrum of his administration.

About 9.40, the vote of thanks was given by The Sun’s Executive Director, Operations, Mr Tony Onyima, who expressed the newspaper’s gratitude to the awardees, their friends and, indeed, every guest for gracing the occasion, and for making the night a success. He wished the guests a safe trip back to their various destinations.

And as Julius Agwu and Gbenga Adeyinka 1 started thrilling the audience to a fresh dose of rib-crackers, the guests started filing to the buffet table to savour the sumptuous foods and exquisite drinks.