Talented Nigerian actor, Damola Olatunji has been allegedly detained at the Area P Police Command, Abesan, Iyana Ipaja area of Lagos State.
The Nollywood actor announced the development, in an SOS message sent out on Monday.
Olatunji in the message wrote, “They are detaining me at Area P, police station for standing up for the bike man.”
The popular actor had confronted a police officer for allegedly slapping his personal assistant at Abule Egba on Monday.
According to Olatunji, the issue with the police officers started after he asked them to release a motorcycle seized from a rider.
The actor during an Instagram live video could be seen accusing officers of the Nigerian police of extorting the public and “making life difficult for everyone.”
A police officer could be seen trying to hide his face from the camera as the actor recorded the incident, Olatunji, however, has deleted the video from his page.
Presidential Spokesman, Garba Shehu, has said that the fight against insurgency and banditry will be won with the use of drones and other technological equipment.
Speaking on Monday during an appearance on the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), Shehu said the equipment will be provided by the Turkish government.
According to Shehu, some of the military support and equipment will be given free of charge to the country while others will be paid for by the Nigerian government.
He stated that this is one of the things discussed at the third edition of the Turkey-Africa Partnership Summit in Istanbul over the weekend.
Shehu asserted that Nigeria will be working with Turkey on the provision of military support by 2022, adding that the Turkish military will not be coming to Nigeria.
He said: “Turkey has gained a lot of respect globally in the last 10 years. As a military power, as a producer of military equipment, and as an influencer globally, Turkey’s role in Iraq and Syria was decisive in the defeat of ISIS. If Lybia induces a rate of stability today, it is the account of Turkey braving it and challenging the big powers there.
“In Azerbaijan, you saw what happened. We are not in any way thinking that Turkey’s military would be in the country. We are a very proud country and actually, this has not happened before and it is not likely to happen. But it is the technology that everyone is using to fight crime.
“The president of Turkey said ‘we will come along with you; we will support you’. So, going forward, we hope that as we are going into the new year in January, we will expect some establishment people from their defence so that we can now concretely sign onto what to do.
“We expect that they will give us military support and equipment that we may not have to pay for; some we will pay for. But we went to get Turkey to seek support, especially their technology in dealing with the situation of insecurity.
“The deployment of drones is the game-changer in other regions and Libya. It is the deployment of even phone technologies and ICT skills that most countries in the world are using to combat crimes. We are not doing much of that in this country, so we expect that we will make advances in that regard.”
THAT THERE MAY BE JUSTICE FOR KEREN AKPAGHER By Ambrose Omoregie
Last week, the Nigerian Police conducted an autopsy on the body of the Late Sylvester Omoroni of Dowen College. The body was thereafter released to the family for burial while the Police would continue with its investigation.
The autopsy was said to have been witnessed by the family of the deceased, families of the students accused of the act of bullying as well as the police and State Ministry of Health officials. Autopsy, as is known all over the world, is the first and most basic legal pointer in investigating cause of death.
Remarkably all the parties in the Omoroni case are maintaining a commendable level of maturity and keen determination to cooperate and support the police investigation and ensure that the rule of law is allowed to operate unhindered, even as each party wants justice served.
It would be recalled that the Late Sylvester Omoroni was a JSS 2 student of Dowen College who was alleged to have been bullied by some fellow students in what later led to the death of the youngster. Thanks to the video released by the Omoroni family, the whole nation was able to listen to the disclosure by Sylvester on how he was bullied. Public sentiments was built on, at least, a foundation of verifiable disclosure.
Sadly, there is another case- the case of Keren Akpagher, the late student of Premiere Academy, Abuja- which also is being investigated by the police but appears to have become, of late, an agenda for serving a purpose beyond seeking justice for the dead.
As in the Omoroni case, the police had conducted an autopsy in July on the corpse of Keren Akpagher in the presence of all the parties involved in the case. Customarily, the result of the autopsy would have been read to the parties while police would continue its investigation.
Thankfully, the BBC has done a story – https://bbc.com/pidgin/tori-59453675 – in which it featured a screenshot of the said autopsy report. The cause of death is there for all to see.
Though the police has not publicly released the autopsy report and full report of its investigation, the BBC report has helped the public with a sneak preview of the autopsy report.
In spite of this public knowledge, the mother of Keren Akpagher, edged on by a fledgling body known as the Coalition of Gender Based Violence Responders, has continued to canvas a claim not supported by any autopsy report in a move that appears geared towards rousing public anger against the school and the entire police investigation process.
The matter is being investigated by the Inspector General of Police, at the request of Keren’s mother who requested that the investigation be transferred from the FCT Police to the IGP. That request was granted. The school was not known to have opposed it. The IGP table is the highest echelon of the police system. That is where the case is currently. It is, therefore, baffling that the same person that requested investigation to be transferred to a specific head of an institution would not allow the investigation to run its course but would rather seek to truncate it.
Could there have been two separate autopsy done on the corpse of the late Keren Akpagher? Was there another autopsy report known only to the mother and not to the other parties to the case, including the police?
Keren Akpagher’s mother and the NGO promoting her case in the court of public opinion need to be more forthcoming. To date, they have not shown the world the autopsy report upon which their claim of Keren’s death derives from. They have not shown the world a single audio or video recording of Keren’s confession or disclosure to them before she died to back the outlandish claims being pushed in the media. The Akpagher family, it should be stated, does not fit the profile of a rustic, illiterate and unintelligent family that would not understand how vital it is to get a weighty disclosure such as rape of their only daughter down on tape, audio or video.
There is also another baffling question of why Keren’s mother and the NGO would choose to rouse the social media against the school in what appears as seeking to build enough army of angry, misinformed people that could be mobilized to get the school shut down and/or vandalized at all cost? Why choose public incitement against another party in a case you are involved and that is under investigation? What is the Law Court for?
Curiously, throughout the various activities and undertakings of the group, there has been no single call on the police to speed up its investigation or release its reports. If truly, the aim is to get justice for the departed, why is the group not talking of occupying the Police Headquarters? Or, putting pressure on the public to get the IGP to act faster in the matter? Why, instead, is the talk about occupying the properties and residences of the owners of the school and their other businesses?
On the contrary, why is it only the school that has been calling on the police to publicly release the autopsy and investigation reports? To date, the school said, between August and December, it wrote the Police three times, pleading for the public release of the autopsy report and report of investigation in the case.
Why has Keren’s mother not made this her first demand, in the true spirit of seeking justice?
Recent photos of Nigeria’s first lady, Aisha Buhari has sparked controversy on social media, as Nigerians claim she is expecting a child.
In one of the photos making the rounds on social media, Aisha was spotted alongside her husband, while being surrounded by security officials.
One of the security officials was carrying her handbag, as the first lady who rocked a yellow lace kaftan seemed pregnant.
She wore a black shawl draped over what appeared like a baby bump, which she placed her right hand on.
Another image showed the couple inside a plane. A zoom-in on Aisha’s physical look revealed a full face like that of a pregnant woman, different from her usual robust look.
Aisha Buhari has been away from the public for months. Before her daughter’s wedding in September 2020, she was out of the country for a couple of months and there were claims she had relocated to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.
Bandit kingpin, Bello Turji has reportedly written a letter to President Muhammadu Buhari, the Governor of Zamfara State, Bello Matawalle and the Emir of Shinkafi.
According to Turji, he would like to meet with traditional and religious leaders in the country, adding that Islamic cleric, Ahmad Gumi, should be part of the meeting.
The bandit leader described Gumi as the one who understands bandits.
The letter which was shared by the bandit reads, “We are grateful to God who has given us this opportunity to bring this message to the Emir of Shinkafi, through the Governor of Zamfara state, Alh Mohammed Bello Matawalle (Braden Maradun) and to the President Mohammed Buhari.
“This is a letter (originally written in Hausa as seen below) from Mohammed Bello Turji Kachalla, the one we all know about.
“Having said that, I want the Emir of Shinkafi, the governor of Zamfara and the president, to look up to Allah and his Prophet.
“The purpose of this letter is as follows: 1. The killings of people going on which is not being publicised, the killings by bandits, herdsmen, kidnapping for ransom and even by security agents are our making. All these will come to an end by the grace of Allah. The government will have to play its part to ensure that this is achieved. As long as ethnicity and tribalism are eliminated, we need to all remain as one big family and forgive one another as Allah commands.
“2. Your highness, we would like to have a sit down with the traditional rulers in this country and also the religious leaders. If this is done, I Mohammed Bello Turji Kachalla, will make sure to disarm all my men and hand over all our arms to the government of Nigeria. As long as the government promises to take care of us the way it is taking care of the rest of the country and stop the stigmatisation of my people.
“3. Your highness, I want to assure you that we are not in contention with the government of Nigeria and we do not want any other country apart from this, we are not seeking the power of any kind, rather the ugly things we Fulanis are facing in this country have pushed us to react the way we do and made us want to defend ourselves to the detriment of the peace of the nation.
“4. Your highness, we are not thieves and we don’t mean to harm anyone. This letter is not borne out of deception and we would not want to be deceived.
“Everything should be done in transparency for Allah’s sake and the sake of the peace of our nation. So we can go back to the way we were in the past. We should all be law-abiding and allow the security agents to do their job and punish anyone found wanting. No form of arms would be seen with anyone except in the hands of the security agents as it’s supposed to be.
“5. Your highness, this is our last request. Just as we said earlier, we will like to make sure that all traditional rulers and all our Muslim leaders, most especially Sheikh Ahmad Abubakar Gumi, to be present at this meeting. This is because he is the only one who understands us and he has been paying us visits to sympathize with us. He has been preaching to us and we have seen the effectiveness of his messages in our lives. We only want the peaceful existence of everyone in this country.
“May Allah give us all the strength to keep these promises without fail.
“This letter is from Mohammed Bello Turji Kachalla.”
President Muhammadu Buhari will take a final decision on assenting to the Electoral Act 2010 (Amendment) Bill soon, the Presidency has said.
Naija News reports that presidential spokesman, Garba Shehu, made this known on Sunday in an interview on a programme on Channels Television.
Shehu stated that even though the president has not made his decision known on the electoral bill, the Nigerian leader is conscious of his responsibilities.
He argued that President Buhari will consider the interest of Nigerians before signing the bill and has been duly advised on the advantages and disadvantages of his assent to the bill.
The presidential spokesman, therefore, said President Buhari will send a privileged communication to the National Assembly after signing the bill into law.
Shehu refused to confirm if the President will send the communication before Tuesday when the lawmakers would sit for the last time this year or after their recess in January.
He, however, said that Presidency will not want to offend the National Assembly if details of the communication were announced.
Shehu said, “What I can tell you is that the President is conscious of his responsibilities in this regard. He has been adequately briefed on the pros and the cons of such a signature and the implications for the nation.
“Is there a decision by Mr President as we speak? I cannot tell you…I don’t know because if the President decides upon completion of all his consultations, usually, he will be sending a privileged communication to the National Assembly. And once that communication is privileged, it is only received by the National Assembly and on the floors of the Senate and the House of Representatives, the Speaker or Senate President will read to members.
“My assumption is that when they come back, we probably will be hearing from them.”
The advertising industry in Nigeria: Maximising the post-COVID reality – Seyi Tinubu
Since the launch of the first news outlet in Nigeria in 1859, Nigeria’s advertising industry has grown to become a flourishing self-sustaining ecosystem valued at a whopping 425 million U.S. dollars as of 2017 and a projected foreseeable exponential growth in the coming years as a result of the dominance of internet revenue. While many other industries are gradually recovering and working to bounce back from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, this economic powerhouse is set to remain on an upward trajectory Post-covid.
Amidst several months of grounded airplanes, closed churches and empty streets, several countries and global economies have experienced the shock waves of the COVID-19 pandemic. From real estate to finance and healthcare – especially healthcare – almost every sector of the economy has been touched in one way or another. One industry, however, has remained unshaken, resilient, withstanding all the knocks and shocks and continuing to thrive despite oppositions – advertising.
This is not to say that commercial advertising did not experience its fair share of economic downturn, even taking a significant plunge during the pandemic year. In fact, many brands reordered their priorities entirely, choosing to engage in COVID-19 awareness campaigns across social media. Some others took to leveraging collaborations with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) as well as the government to consolidate efforts and flatten the curve of COVID-19 spread, and provide relief packages to vulnerable target groups within the society – although, in hindsight, this may have been a strategic move to ensure that brands are projected positively continuously.
In any case, the advertising industry globally is fast rising back to pre-pandemic levels and even experiencing exponential growth— a vast contrast from the diminishing returns that it had begun to experience a few years back — and the reason is not far-fetched. Several factors are responsible for this drastic turn of events. Firstly, it goes without saying that advertising thrives on consumer behavior. And if there’s one thing we can be certain about post-pandemic, it’s that consumer behavior has changed significantly. What thriving and innovative advertising companies did during the pandemic was to change with the times and seasons that consumers were in. This meant changing from regular TV and radio advertising to digital advertising. This switch was to align with the fact that consumers spent more time at home in front of screens. Commuting time was allocated to binge-watching videos online, and as a result, digital reigned supreme.
Today, COVID-19 has definitely expedited the process of transforming legacy marketing structures and practices for the digital economy. In Nigeria especially, the pandemic served as an exponential accelerator for connected TV and E-commerce marketing- which though were already in place, were struggling to gain widespread popularity. By dwelling more on social media and direct response selling, retailers were able to sell their goods to a wider audience due to shifting consumer behavior to online trade channels, thereby promoting the growth of Nigeria’s e-commerce industry.
This wasn’t the case in the last decade. Just a few years back, advertisers in Nigeria spent a large chunk of their time, effort and resources trying to encourage consumers to buy something they haven’t seen or tried on. Brands across all industries struggled to use the power of their online presence to engage potential customers and drive them down the marketing funnel through video adverts, blogs, email newsletters, or other types of digital lead generation activities. Even before the pandemic, converting that online presence to actual sales was a difficult feat.
However, COVID-19 has drastically altered the rules of the game.
With the pandemic keeping everyone at home, time spent on convincing was less, and many more consumers became more inclined to buy things and use services they needed online. As a result, several mega-companies across Nigeria took advantage of this, leaving advertisers no choice but to keep up with the times, spending about $350 million on advertising and marketing. Whilst there was no dominant sector, the likes of telecommunications giant MTN and beverage colossus, Nigerian Breweries led the table as the highest spenders in the year.
The influencer niche is one area that has been cemented fully into the world of advertising. If there’s one thing that took the internet by storm in 2020, it was influencers. With the rise of social media, apps like TikTok, Instagram and Facebook (Now Meta) became entertainment hotspots for millennials and Gen Zs, more and more people rose to the influencer status, making the position crucial to Nigeria’s advertising industry. In fact, a survey carried out by the Nigeria Influencer Marketing Report (NIMReport) revealed that over 30% of advertisers now value influencer marketing as part of their marketing strategy.
Although we are no longer in the heat of the pandemic, it is incontrovertible that the pandemic brought a lasting shift to Nigeria’s advertising ecosphere. We may have coined the term “post-covid era”, but in actual fact, the pandemic has ushered us into a new age, a new season that we may never return from. This means that the bar has permanently risen for advertising agencies and businesses across Nigeria as consumers are now holding them to higher standards. What they demand nowadays are tactful and mindful marketing strategies. They’re no longer asking if you have what they want but rather expect you to have what they want.
To navigate this new terrain, advertising in Nigeria will need to be more data and technology focused, with advertisers working to integrate some form of artificial intelligence or machine learning into the mix. With the right data, advertising companies will be fully equipped to create the right consumer experiences across one or more dimensions of the four Cs of marketing: Commerce, Community, Content, and Convenience. Rather than a one-size-fits-all approach to these four areas, consumers require a more personalized experience.
Experts such as PWC have predicted that Nigeria’s entertainment market is poised to reach $10.8 billion (N4.4 trillion) in 2023, having reached $4.5 billion in 2018. With the interconnectedness of advertising and entertainment and the recent tactic of presenting advertising as entertainment, it is imperative that relevant stakeholders properly harness the immense benefits available for the advertising sector. This can be done in several ways, with collaboration being paramount. Partnerships between sectoral groups in marketing and communications will expand the advertising landscape of the Nigerian market and will bring world-class advertising opportunities and a broader reach to the target audience, clients and agencies. Advertisers Association of Nigeria (ADVAN), Media Independent Practitioners of Nigeria (MIPAN), Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria (AAAN), Broadcasting Organizations of Nigeria (BON) and other Industry leaders should consolidate their cooperations expertise on growth-focused activities that will cause the advertising industry to skyrocket in the coming years.
The pandemic has undoubtedly elevated the status of advertising and marketing, with both taking their rightful places as drivers of digital transformation, a key leader of the customer experience journey, and the voice of the consumer — all of which are of utmost importance to C-suite executives. This means that advertising now has the opportunity to seize an ongoing critical role in high-level dialogue and decision-making processes, thereby driving the company’s broader objectives and innovation agenda.
For brands willing to be creative and experimental with their advertising strategies, the post-COVID-19 reality is a unique moment to aim for higher market share.
Seyi Tinubu is a Nigerian entrepreneur. Seyi is the Chairman/CEO of Loatsad Promomedia and a member of the advertising practitioners council of Nigeria
Karen Akpagher And Premiere Academy: The “Truth” They Are Trying To Bury By Noah Christopher
Nearly six months ago, Premiere Academy entered media spotlight when news broke that one of its students, Karen Happuch Akpagher, had died in a hospital in Abuja. The news of the death of the 14-year old diabetics’ patient which occurred on 22nd June, 2021 soon became a hot issue as several media stories authoritatively claimed she was raped to death, sodomized and forced into an oath of secrecy to booth.
Expectedly, the Nigerian Police, first through the FCT Police Command and, later, the Office of the Inspector General of Police, promptly commenced investigations into the matter same June, leading to an autopsy conducted in July. Several other government agencies such as the Ministry of Education, the Directorate of Quality Assurance, National Human Rights Commission and a few other external bodies also waded into the case by conducting probes and investigations on diverse scales and to cover different angles. The Premiere Academy PTA and Board also conducted internal investigations. However, despite all the probes, answer to the key question of Who/What killed Karen has not been found. Interestingly, none of these probes has indicted the school or led to halting its operation.
Perhaps, tired of waiting for official police reports on the autopsy and investigation and seeking to prevent the issue from being swept into silence, Lemmy Ughegbe, an Abuja based journalist, human rights activist and school proprietor instantly activated his NGO, Coalition of Gender Based Violence Responders, to promote the cause of championing justice for Karen Akpagher. With Karen’s mother by his side, Lemmy Ughegbe and GBV Responders have launched a coordinated multi-pronged advocacy spanning media and political institutions, with the aim of getting the death of Karen hanged on Premiere Academy. The evidence, according to the media interventions by the group, is a report allegedly issued to the Akpagher family by Queen’s Hospital, Abuja that said decomposed condom particles were found in the late teenager’s genital, in addition to dead spermatozoa. No audio or video recording of the victim accusing the school or any staff of raping or sexually molesting her; no notation on rape or sexual molestation in the victim’s diary (from which a few media stories have lifted entries); no conclusive report from the autopsy witnessed by all parties and supervised by the police; no report from the police or any private investigator has surfaced to back the claim of rape to date.
Perverting Cause of Justice…
In what appears like frustration by failure of the coordinated campaign to nudge the relevant state and non-state institutions into a mob-styled condemnation of the school, the GBV Responders has further accused the school of blocking the Akpagher family from getting justice. The coordinated social media campaign to push this viewpoint claimed because the owner of the school is a highly connected Nigerian, he was using his connection to obstruct justice for Karen. However, to accuse a school that has opened its doors to and provided its officials for not less than sixteen (16) investigations, invitations, probes and interviews on this Karen matter by several interested bodies from June 25th to December 9th of persecuting the cause of justice seems unfair. Curiously, a check at the school revealed that the GBV Responders that has been championing this claim was one of the NGOs that visited the school on July 3rd to conduct an investigation. Others that have also visited the school, apart from the Police, include the Federal Competition & Consumer Protection Council (2nd July), Directorate of Quality Assurance, FCT Headquarters (2nd July), NAPPS, FCT Chapter (9th July), Abuja Municipal Area Council (9th July), Federal Ministry of Education (8th October), Association of Nigerian Female Students, FCT Chapter (22nd July), NANS, FCT Chapter (22nd July) and FCIID (Severally between 9th November and 9th December).
None of the visitors has accused the school of non-cooperation or obstructing investigation. This may be what has prompted the school to continue to declare that it has nothing to hide and would always welcome every noble effort made to get to the bottom of this sad event.
In trying to prove its innocence and disprove the charge of perverting the cause of justice, the school said it has written three letters to the police pleading for the public release of the autopsy report and report of investigation in the case. From copies sighted, the first letter dated 27th August, 2021 was addressed to the FCT Police Command while two other letters dated 1st December, 2021 and 6th December, 2021 respectively were addressed to the Inspector General of Police. While the police acknowledged receipt of the three letters, it has not responded to any of them or granted the school’s prayer. It is doubtful if the school’s action fits the charge of obstructing the cause of justice
Twisting The Story To Fit A Purpose…
It appears in order to get the school hanged for the allegation of rape, efforts had to be made to show that Karen left the school premises on the 19th June in “serious pains and barely able to walk” (to quote a respected columnist and social commentator who has weighed in on the matter) when she went home, never to return to the school.
Facts are sacred. So, here are a few incontrovertible facts our investigation turned up on how Karen left the school campus on the fateful day.
First, she was picked from school by her mother in person (together with an uncle of hers who had always been coming to pick and drop her on the mother’s instruction). She walked out of the school gate unaided, carrying her luggage to meet her mother. Her mother received her; they rode in the same vehicle and was taken home by her mother. It is doubtful that if she was in pains and unable to walk or manifesting any sign of unwell, the mother would not make immediate contact with the school and/or take her straight to the hospital. But, the mother drove with her from the school without any complaint and they went home together.
Moreover, she was at home with the mother from 19th to 21st when the mother said she developed a health crisis that made her to be taken to the hospital IMMEDIATELY on the 21st.
School’s CCTV clips on You Tube (https://youtu.be/hqOa2jg_Ym8) shows Karen in school from 17th June to the moment she exited school on the 19th. Before leaving school, she went to see an ophthalmologist outside the school, on the mother’s instruction, same 19th June. School’s academic record also shows she wrote CA tests on Friday, 18th June.
Could a 14-year old have been so super human to hide her pains effortlessly and appear bubbly while undertaking all the multiple tasks that filled her day in the manner the late Karen did?
The late Karen, it should be recalled, was a Diabetics’ patient constantly under strict health watch. She had been diagnosed to be diabetic since age nine years.
DNA As A Way Pointer…
The House of Representatives has directed that DNA test be conducted on all male staff of Premiere Academy, to fish out the alleged rape culprit. While the directive is commendable, our investigation shows that there is need to even cast the net wider in view of certain peculiarities uncovered about the Akpagher family environment.
For instance, it was discovered that Karen has two elder brothers who were also students of same Premiere Academy with her. While one graduated in 2020, the other was still a student in the school until after the unfortunate event.
She also has a custodian uncle who, it was discovered, was always going to pick and drop her in school. Unconfirmed report said this uncle organised a birthday party for Karen and some of her friends in a restaurant in town on April 10th to mark her 14th birthday. The uncle, it was further learnt, took her to the party.
It was also learnt that the same uncle picked only Karen from school during the id-el-fitri break on 12th May while leaving his brother behind to observe the break in school. This, from investigation, was found to be a departure from the regular practice of picking and dropping both students together.
Upon further probe, it was discovered that while the said Salah break was meant to end on 16th May, Karen was only returned to the school by her uncle on 23rd May, clear 7 days after resumption.
She was to die one month later; allegedly from a rape incident whose features, according to her mother and GBV Responders, left decayed condom particles in her genitals.
With the late Karen surrounded by two brothers who have their other male friends visiting the Akpagher home as well as an uncle who was found to have been mostly responsible for picking and dropping her in school, it is only fair and commonsensical to look way beyond the school in order to unravel the question of who could have raped the teenager, if indeed she was raped.
Justice Begins With Disclosures…
For justice to be done and seen to be done in the case of Karen Akpagher, the police needs to release the autopsy and investigations reports. So many questions begging for answers may remain unresolved until the Police reports are released. According to a cross section of analysts’ opinion, all parties in the case – the Akpagher family, GBV Responders and Premiere Academy – should jointly and individually put pressure on the police to do the needful rather than continue to throw mud around and promote wild, unfounded accusations. Unless the mud throwing is designed to achieve an end that the larger public does not yet know.
How God’s grace kept us throughout 2021 – Speaker Obasa
The Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Mudashiru Obasa, has urged Nigerians not to despair but be thankful to God for His grace.
According to Dr. Obasa, it was only the grace of God that has kept Nigeria and Nigerians till December 2021 despite the many challenges the country and her citizens have had to face within the year.
The Speaker said this on Thursday at an end of the year thanksgiving and Christmas outreach organised for staff of the Lagos State House of Assembly and their wards at the Assembly complex.
He explained that the House had every reason to thank God for the year because of the successes it recorded in legislative activities including in the passage of bills, motions and resolutions that are meant to improve living, peace and happiness among the residents of the state.
“I will sing praises because, together with my colleagues, members of staff of this Assembly and my team at the Office of the Speaker, we recorded huge successes in terms of legislative activities this year,” Obasa said.
Concerning ‘Abundant Grace’, the theme of the thanksgiving, Speaker Obasa noted that the Bible is replete with verses emphasising the grace of God upon individuals which make them victorious each time they have to face some of the challenges of living.
In his sermon, Prophet (Dr) Samuel Kayode Abiara, the General Evangelist Worldwide of the Christ Apostolic Church (CAC), who was the guest minister, emphasised the need for Nigerians to be closer to God at all times.
It was indeed an evening of praise, worship, music and dance as a Nigerian leading pharmaceutical company, Emzor Pharmaceutical Industries Limited marked it’s annual end of year thanksgiving event to bring the year 2021 business to a close on Sunday in Lagos.
Welcoming the guests to the event appropriately tagged ‘a Season of Gratitude’, the Founder and Group Managing Director (GMD) of the company, Dr. Stella Okoli, OON, said it’s the tradition of the company at the end of every year, to thank God, give gratitude to Him, because He is the owner of everything. “He owns Emzor and He has taken Emzor this far.” She declared.
The GMD went further to thank the management team, members of staff of the company, all Nigerians as well as everyone that are part of the company’s success stories saying; “we appreciate your love and unflinching support for our company and your patronage of our wide range of quality pharmaceutical products throughout the years. You have lifted our spirit and strengthened our feet for the journey in the years ahead.”
Speaking further, Okoli said; “this is the 17th edition of the annual event, we thank God for His mercy, love and kindness and we know we wouldn’t be here celebrating today without special people like you. You have shown without doubt that Emzor holds a special place in your heart and you have demonstrated your fellowship with us in giving thanks to God for his kindness and mercy.”
In the same vein, in his opening remarks, the Chairman, Board of Directors of the company, Emeka Okoli, who attended the event virtually said they need to give glory to God, emphasizing that “despite the global economic challenges, the company has continued to wax stronger. And most especially, in the outgoing year, the company has opened new grounds and made more positive impacts in the lives of the people.”
In his sermon, the Guest Minister at the event, Pastor Remi Oluboba of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Lagos Province 36, said “the best way to appreciate God is to praise Him and show gratitude for His kindness.
Speaking from the book of Psalms, the clergyman said; God’s instruction is to “enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise: to be thankful unto Him, and to bless His name.”
Some of the highlights of the event were goodwill messages from a good number of dignitaries present at the event, which included Mopa Esuga, Chief of Party, US Phamacopeia, Patrick Lukulay from Sierra Leone among others. There was also the cutting of the anniversary cake as well as the Long Service Awards and Recognition of 95 members of staff of the company who have spent good number of years with the company ranging from 10 to 35 years.
Introducing the awardees, the company’s Head of Human Resources, Ego Onuoha said “the company is appreciating and rewarding them for their loyalty. They are the main reason behind the progress and trailblazing achievements of the company. It is always our tradition to appreciate the workforce. We see them as the reason for the company’s existence.”
In her closing remarks at the event which had on the bandstand, a gospel singer, Bidemi Olaoba, who ensured that the event is filled with right dose of music and dance; the company’s Executive Director, Uzoma Ezeuke, said; “we shall continue to thank God. He is the one that have made everything possible for us at Emzor.”
