Tunde Thomas
Former President of Ghana, Dr. John Mahama, and former Chairman, All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, have been announced as winners of the 2018 Zik Prize in political leadership. Making the announcement in Lagos, a member of the Advisory Board, Public Policy Research and Analysis Centre, Prof. Pat Utomi, said Mahama and Odigie-Oyegun emerged winners as a result of their invaluable contributions in different fields of human endeavours.
According to him, “Mahama made history as the first president of Ghana to hand over power to the opposition, and not only that, his political activism has seen him serve in various capacities across the broad spectrum of Ghana politics. On Odigie-Oyegun, his pro-democracy activism, conduct, and actions have marked him out as an outstanding political leader.”
Winners in other categories include Akwa-Ibom State governor, Mr Emmanuel Udom, and his Niger State counterpart, Alhaji Sanni-Bello who won Zik Prize in Good Governance.; Pastor Shyngle Wigwe, former Director-General, of the Nigeria Television Authority, the Zik Prize in Public service, while Minister of State, Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu; Ekiti State First Lady, Mrs. Bisi Adeleye-Fayemi won the 2018 Zik Prize in Humanitarian Leadership. While declaring that the annual Zik Prize in Leadership Awards, instituted 24 years ago, in honour of the First President of Nigeria, Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe, was set up to encourage and nurture leadership on the African continent, and in the Diaspora, Prof. Utomi added that the awards was set up as an embodiment of the leadership values that Dr. Azikiwe represented.