It was a moment of encomium for Vice President Yemi Osinbajo as prominent personalities gathered at a book launch in his honour during which he said leaders owe the citizenry the duty and responsibility of selfless service.
This, according to him, is because public service is a lifelong enterprise that deserves commitment.
He said this Monday at the virtual launch and unveiling of the book: “Osinbajo Strides: Defining Moments of an Innovative Leader.”
While expressing gratitude to authors of the book, Osinbajo said: “On behalf of Dolly, my dear wife, my family, and the OVP team, I thank you all, and I dedicate this book to the people of our country to whom we always owe the duty and responsibility of selfless service.”
The foreword to the 29-chapter book was written by former Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar (rtd).
The ‘PYO Collective’ was put together by 25 journalists and writers including Richard Akinnola, Azu Ishiekwene, Garba Mohammed, Donu Kogbara, Etim Etim, Arukaino Umukoro, Sadiq Abdullateef, Fatima Mamman-Daura, James Akpandem, Mustapha Ogunsakin, Dayo Akintobi, Dr. Wale Adeduro, Columba Ogah, Haruna Abdullahi and Temilade Okesanjo.
Others are Olaolu Beckley, Jude Zoho, Oreoluwa Ogunbiyi, Vitalis Obidiaghaa, Seun Bisuga, Seyi Gesinde, Faith Dafe-Joseph, Muritala Ayinla, Abimbola Olaniyan and Ibrahim Bature.
A former editor of The Guardian Newspapers, Mr. Jahman Anikulapo, was the book’s editorial consultant.
The day of encomium was started by President Muhammadu Buhari, who was represented by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. Boss Mustapha, as the father of the day, with former Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon (Rtd) as chair.
Also in attendance were Chairman of the Nigerian Governors Forum and Sokoto state Governor Aminu Tambuwal, Plateau state Governor Samuel Lalong, Akwa Ibom state Governor Udom Emmanuel, Prince Dapo Abiodun of Ogun state, his Nasarawa counterpart who was represented by Deputy Governor Dr Musa Akabe.
Speaking at the event, Mustapha said: “One thing that is admirable about the vice president is his passion for excellence in everything that he is involved with. Besides all of his official engagements as VP, we all saw this attribute exhibited by him right from the campaigns, how he ensured that the right things were done. We cannot thank you enough, sir.
“Prof Osinbajo is a passionate man, I believe that it is his passion that has helped us to drive youth engagement and employment, and their desire to participate in MSMEs.
Another thing I want to talk about is Prof. Osinbajo’s concern for social interventions that he was championing.
The TraderMoni, MarketMoni and all those other interventions were informed by his desire and concern for the social welfare and empowerment of the ordinary citizens of this country.
“Prof. Yemi Osinbajo is a God-fearing man, he is conscientious, he is deliberate and he holds his values very high. His principles and actions are always informed by his Godly heritage and he will never, for whatever considerations, give up that heritage and do anything otherwise that would call to question his faith and his belief.”
Osinbajo speaks
Addressing the virtual audience, Vice President Osinbajo said: “First let me thank the Almighty God for the privilege of life and the opportunity to serve. I must also thank a role model and all-time mentor to millions, the Chair of this book launch, General Yakubu Gowon, GCFR, thank you for the incredible privilege of your company today, and I am deeply grateful to you for doing me this honour.
“Let me also thank former President General Abdulsalami Abubakar for the great honour done to me by the very generous comments he made in the foreword to this book.”
“Public service for all of us who love this nation and its peoples unconditionally only terminates when we die. Our country deserves our commitment and service. And I commend you all, compatriots in the public service, especially those who are not public servants, and social activists for your steadfastness through the years.
“As we march on towards a new Nigeria, we must not give up. So, I would want us to leave this event with a paraphrase of what Chimamanda said a few moments ago “we who love this country must not give up because love is persistent,” he said.
He also recalled his journey as the nation’s number two man, saying “I am deeply grateful to my team of advisers, and assistants and the strong civil service team that supported me these many years.”
Gowon extols virtues
Addressing the gathering, General Gowon described Osinbajo as a leader who brought a collaborative approach to governance.
The former Head of State said: “Vice President Osinbajo is known for his collaborative approach to governance which has enabled him to work effectively with different stakeholders in achieving common goals.
As you all know, Vice President Osinbajo has been at the forefront of ground-breaking initiatives that have transformed Nigeria’s economy and its people.
“The Vice President has always exhibited a passion for innovation and commitment to the development of Nigeria. Prof. Osinbajo is one of the most effective vice presidents Nigeria has ever had. And that is why I said congratulations to this government. The vice president has put in a lot of effort with the kind of work he’s done.”
Speaking at the occasion on behalf of his colleague-governors, Governor Tambuwal described the VP as a bridge builder and worthy leader.
Also speaking, Governor of Ogun State, Prince Dapo Abiodun, acknowledged that the VP was “a completely detribalized Nigerian and the ‘Omoluabi’ poster boy of the current Yoruba generation.”
Sanusi
Extolling the VP’s virtues, Similarly, former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor, His Royal Highness Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, described him as one who “represents a perfect picture of what an ideal Nigerian leader should look like.”
Sanusi said: “I have seen first-hand his concern for the poor people of the country, the question of malnutrition and infant mortality, his commitment, year after year, to see improvements in the structure and the funding and the processes of the institution and I do hope that the work he has done would begin to see light in the near future.”
“Osinbajo is an intellectual, he is someone I will sit with and debate, and as you know, I have been very critical of some of the policies of the government, and he will debate. And he had the ability as we all know, to accept a superior argument.
“Sometimes, he will explain why it cannot be done, sometimes he will explain that it is something he agrees with but he knows would take time to fix, sometimes he would outrightly not accept and would agree to disagree.
“Osinbajo has this picture of a man who has the quality of a leader we need or how a leader should be. As Acting President, he gave us insight into how he would rule this country as President,” he said.
Book review
Reviewing the book, a famous author, Chimamanda Adichie, eulogized Osinbajo whom he described as a great person and inspirational leader.
She said: “The essence of this book comes from a diverse range of writers and they are all very different in style. But they all have a kind of organic enthusiasm to them. You read them with a sense of reading pieces written by people who actually wanted to write them.
“And so, it feels to me that this book is a labour of love, and the fact that it is a labour of love says something about the subject, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo.
It speaks to the humane and human quality that he has, the ability to bring diverse people together and it is also evident in the team that he has worked with the Vice President and I had the good fortune of meeting some of them.”
