dora transcription

7/18/2019 Dora Transcription

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President Jonathan:

She served as information and communication minister. And I

know some of us who are still in cabinet now, myself, the vice

president, labaran the current minister of information, architect

sada, emeka the labour minister, the minister of petroleum

resources, the minister of health, professor chukwu and the

minister of the fct, bala, we all are in the same cabinet. But some

of you did not meet her in cabinet. But denitely as a !i"erian,

some of you may know her a little ore than us who worked with

her. And havin" served as a member of the e#ecutive council, it$s

only proper that we use today$s council as a moment of tribute.

So we$ll properly document the statements we are makin" and it

should be properly typed. Secretary to "ovenrmnt, I hope your

poepole will be recordin" the statement so that at the end of the

day it will be part of the council document we will convey to the

family when labaran will speak and forally move a motion. So let

me rst open for comments for those who have one or two

think"s to say about her. %embers of cabinet, you are free.

&hank you, your e#cellency mr. president, your e#cellency, mr.

vice president, and members of council. It$s really a very sad time

for us as we remember our sistyer, professor dora akunyili. I knew

dora when she was d" of nafdac durin" the second obasan'o

administration. And I "ot to know her (uite well as a woman of

passion, a wom,an of strwe"nth, a woman of conviction who

fou"ht really hard to make sure that fake dru"s, both those who

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sell them and those who manufacture them, as much a thin" of

the past as possible. She spoke and worked with passion because

her own sister had died from consumin" fake dru"s. And as a

pharmacist and pharmacolo"ist, she knew the impact of this on

the lives of ordinary !i"erians. I tihink durin" her time, nafdac

was consistently voted as the best a"ency of "overnment. And it$s

because of the dili"ence and e#cellence with which she worked.

*e kept contact with each other afer. And as recently as march or

april this year, she ws in my o+ce a couple of times workin" as a

consultant for dd and some other or"aniations and was full ofplans and full of ener"y despite her situation. -ora was a

committed mother of si#, a devoted wife. And I think we should

remember all her accomplishments, all her children are very

accomplished. And she a had a very supportive spouse. So I pay

tribute to her as a wife, a mother, a top cicil servant, a passionate

nationale of !i"eria and a devoted supporter of her state, and an

e#cellent !i"erian woman who so many people looked up to. %ay

her soul rst in peace.

All:

Amen.

&hank you, your e#cellency, mr. president, your e#cellency, the

vice president, council collea"ues. %r. president, the demise of

professor akunyili is indeed a "reat loss not 'ust to her family but

to us and all !i"erians. %r. president, it does not matter how for

lon" or how far back you knew professor dora. nce you meet

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and know each other, it$s like you$ve known her forever. She$s one

person whose personality immediately impacts on you. 0verybody

to professor akunyili is 1brother2. *hoever you are. And she

meant it. 3er attitude towards you was always portrayed by the

word she called 1brother2. And she was such a patriot, such a

"ood !i"erian. 4ou$d always want to learn from her how to be a

"ood citien of this country. She had passion fro this country. She

had "reat love for the people of this country. &his was clearly

shown in her works at nafdac even at the e#pense of her own life.

She was no t willin" to step back in what she believed is for the"ood of this country. She worked so assiduously. But sometimes

those close to her and know her very well tend to fear for her,

there was no "oin" back on what she believed in. she thou"ht her

life was for !i"eria. I$m sure fro those that are very keen on

lookin" at some of the reviews that were done on her life, it has

clearly shown why and how she "ot the passion for this country.

She was an e#tremely intelli"ent person that believed she "ot all

the support she re(uired rom this country and "ot it. And felt so

indebted to this country that she was not willin" to slow down on

anythin" that she believed was for the "ood of this country. She

had such an attitude to work that there was no person who would

not want to learn from her attitude to work. As a minister I had

had course to deliver a messa"e to her at one time. And

coincidently it happened in three consecutive days. And all the

time I put a call to her at about ten o$clock in the evenin", she

was behind her desk in the o+ce. And if you asked, 1wouldn$t you

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want to rest62 there would be no answer, 'ust say 1brother2 and

burst out lau"hin". &hat$s clearly the kind of person, mr.

president, that we are payin" tribute to. n the 7oor of the

council, everybody knows that no matter how "loomy a situation

was in council, professor akunyili had a way of bri"htenin" up

issues, very serious issues that tend to ne nau"hty in discussion,

put a word or two to it, you nd it a 88888.9. and everybody

will felel comfortable enou"h. She 'ust made everybody to lau"h

at a very serious issue. And then she would in a very intelli"ent

was, brin" out the stron" issues that needed to be looked at. Andat the end of the day, it$s only when you look deeper that you see

the tact with which professor akunyili approached issues.

uside o+ce, I kept contact her. She came to my o+ce (uite

re"ularly. And most of the time, she discussed issues with so

much concerns as if she was still behind her desk as minister of

information. She had that in;depth concern about whatever was

"oin" on. Sometimes actually stron" national issues would brin"

her to my o+ce and it would take (uite a moment discussin" and

tryin" to share ideas about how she felt or her advice on how

issues, more especially thin"s that related to one$s mandate in

the ministry. She came to my o+ce (uite a number of times to

discuss some of the issues to do with health haards in the minin"operations and so on. And she o<ered very important and stron"

reasons. &hat$s how concerned professor akunyili was to this

country and to the people of this country.

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4our 0#cellency, %r. President and %r. >ice President, my tribute

to professor akunyili is as a sister for she always referred to me as

a brother. And when I looked into her face, she really truly meant

it. And I thin"k this applies to almost everybody she came across.

Adieu professor, we really truly miss you.

&hank you, mr. president fro this opportunity.

President 'onathan:

&hank you. Professor nebo.

!ebo:

&hank you, your e#cellency. your e#cellency, mr. president, your

e#cellency, mr. vice president, council collea"ues, I met professor

akunyili far before I became vice chancellor of the university of

!i"eria and she became a professor durin" my tenure, early part

of my tenure as viec chancellor. your e#cellency, professor dora

akunyili was so very fortri"ht, so honest , so outspoken, so

dili"ent in any task that she laid her hands upon. She was a

woman of coura"e and it takes "odliness to possess the kind of

coura"e that professor akunyili had. She was coura"eous enou"h

to speak up at one of the darkest moments of our national

political history. She was e#tremely communicative and it wasalways easy to know her heart because professor dora would

speak her mind anytime anywhere. And even when you didn$t

a"ree with her, she would lau"h it away. She was a very reli"ious

woman and very very prayerful. &he last time I spoke with her,

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she asked that I continue to remember her in prayer with my wife.

And her husband said e#actly the same thin", 1Please, pray, pray,

pray for dora2. your e#cellency, the cold hands of death, the "rim

reaper, has taken away from us the woman who was very hopeful

in every situation that the best was yet to come. She rebranded

!i"eria as it were, a phrase that all of us have come to admire,

about her country, sellin" this country as a country of hope. A

country that is "reat. A people that are very "ood. -ora had an

electrifyin" personality and was very conversational. %uch of the

time, you would see dora prayin". She did nothin" that I knowabout that she didn$t rst pray and ask @od for "uidance. your

0#cellency, as a country, we$ve lost a "em. And it is our prayers

that our "racious @od, lovin" @od, who "ave !i"eria the "ift of

dora akuniyili, who "ave !i"eria such a woman of honour,

respected and revered all over the world, will "rant her family and

all of us the "race and fortitude to bear the loss.

%ay her soul rest in the bosom of our lord. &hank you, your

e#cellency.

President Jonathan:

&hank you. Barrister wo"u.

*o"u:

&hank you, your 0#cellency, %r. President. Professor -ora$s death

came as a hu"e shock to some of us who were her former

collea"ues. She was coura"eous, bold, honest and determined in



the dischar"e of whatever assi"nments wre "iven to her while she

was alive. 3er rare display of honesty while in the P& marked her

out for the appointment as d" !A-AC where she worked

tirelessly to end the fakin" of pharmaceutical dru"s, related

products and foods etc. while as d" of !A-AC, an attempt was

made on her life but she remained undeterred. *hile we were

collea"ues in the 0C, she remained fearless and coura"eous in

the dissemination of information and her popular pro'ect,

rebrandin" of !i"eria, was robust and loud. In /D)), -ora

resi"ned to contest the election into the senate in her nativeAnambra State, thou"h not successful but she lost with a few

votes with !"i"e. But what remains ever "reen was her

valedictory speech on departure from the 0C which was touchy.

She cried and wished our "reat party P-P success in /D)) while

she was even campai"nin" undr AP@A. She e(ually "ave her

support, messa"e of support for mr. president and prayed for his

success in the /D)) elctions. I e(ually met dora in /DD5 while she

was still d" nafdac durin" her dua"hter$s weddin" in far away

Ivory Coast. *e shared our di<erent visions for our "reat country.

*hile she was passionate about havin" a !i"eria that would be

free of charlatans, she was e(ually forceful in her place to rid

!i"eria of fake dru" makers. And her concern was that ma'ority of

these counterfeitin" a"ents were from a particular part of the

country where she came from. But she ree#amined unfaed. And

that led to the attack by some people on her life. &hereafter we

continued to share our views on various issues of national interest

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even up to the days of her sickness. *hile she was still in

hospital.

3er last appearance at the !ational Confab will remain indelible in

the minds and hearts of !i"erians, not 'ust because of her frail

look caused by debilitatin" cancer but for the epoch makin"

speech laced with a @reek proverb which says that 1A man who

plants a tree that will "row bi" and actually knows that he will not

be covered by that tree is a "reat man2. She went ahead to

eulo"ie %r. President for is coura"e to come up with the !ational

Confab idea and prayed that the country will reap and benet

from it. &hat marked her as a person who was even determined

even at the death bed to see a "ood !i"eria. -ora battled

counterfeiters, dishonest !i"erians and also the cancer that

rava"ed her coura"eously. &hou"h she is dead, her memories will

remain ever "reen in the minds of !i"erians and some of us who

were collea"ues with her. 3er impact will not be for"otten in a

hurry, either as an anti;dru" 888. )9.D5 or in her capacity as

minister of communication. ne thin" that keeps re;echoin" is

that when she went for the rst dia"nosis when she noticed the

"rowth, the story was told about how she went for a second

conrmation. And while at the second conrmation, she was told

that nothin" was wron" with her. But she was already paid aboutseventeen thousand dollars and another twelve thouosand fro the

sur"ry which she returned back to the state treasury and that

drew her closer to her boss then, "enerasl buhari, who was the

head of ptf. And that remains one act of -ora which marked her



out for returnin" money she did not spend. And there was no

person with her to know that she did not spend that money. And

that has remained the reference point in "overnance. I wish her

family and pray that her family, @od will "ive them the fortitude

to bear the looss . may her soul rsest in perfect peace. Amen.

President 'onathan:

&hank you. banikoro.

banikoro:

4our 0#cellency, %r. President, your 0#cellency, %r. >ice President,

members of the federal e#ecutive council, to me, -ora Akunyili

was a woman blessed with candle Fcan;doG, uncommon candle

Fcan;doG spirit. I knew her as d" nafdac and without any fear of

contradiction, we can all attest to the fact that she put up a 8.

/D./ perfomance as d" and if I can borrow the phrase of the

"overnor of akwa ibom, she put up an uncommon transformation

there. At the end of her second term as d" nafdac, she could have

continued. But as a woman with her eye on history, she opted to

step down and do somethin" di<erent from bein" d" of nafdac.

I "ot close to -ora whne she served as a director in /DDE durin"

the yar$aduH'onathan presidential campai"hn. And I coulndnt,

after observin" her from a close (uarter durin" that time, I coulnt

but tell her that 1If you continue with this kond of eal and

enthusiasm, you will end up a successful politician2. In her usual

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way she smiled and said 1%y brother, we are in it to"ether2. A

"reat woman, and above all, a woman of history.

&he last time I saw her, I didn$t even reco"nie her. It was when

the president declared the Confab opened. And I "reeted

somebody seated ne#t to her and I was walkin" away. And she

said, 1%y brother2. And I looked back, I saw her and I was almost

in tears. I moved close to her and I hu""ed her. And she said, 1%y

brother, it is well2. &hat was the last encounter I had with her.

%ay her soul rest in peace.

Another voice:

4our 0#cellency, %r. President, your 0#cellency, the >ice President,

and council collea"ues. %rs -ora Akunyili was indeed an amaon,

who contributed her (uota to the development of our dear nation.

ur past rst cross in /DDD when I served as an e#ecutive

member of the then petroleum trust fund with responsisility forpro'ect mana"mwent which included special pro'ect such as the

prevention of river blindness, the dru" revolvin" fund anti;venom

pro"rammes, amon" others. As you are all aware, she had 'ust

served at the P& at the time in the health department.

%r. president, over a year a"o, she visited the ministry of works to

identify with the spate of intervention by your administration inthe road sectyor and ur"ed us never to relent. A"ain she was

presnt durin" our stakeholders meetin" at the palace of the obi of

nitsha on the second ni"er brid"e pro'ect when she came in with

his e#cellency, peter obi, the then "overnor of Anambra State.

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And she had many pleasant thin"s to say about this

administration and the determination of %r. President to truly

deiver the second ni"er bri"de at the time. And she pleaded that

we should not disappoint the yearnin"ds of the people of the

South;0ast.

%r. president, dora Akunyili was a very passionate and devoted

public servant, alive to her responsibilities, particularly when she

served as the d" of nafdac, a period that earned her a number of

laurels, both locally and internationally. She brou"ht pride to our

nation throu"h her e<ective delivery of services to the "ood

people of our country.

%r. Presicent, today -ora akunyili is no more. She has "one the

way of all mortals. *e can only pray that @od in 3is innite

mercy, will have pity on her and may her "entle soul rst in perfect

peace.

All:

Amen.

nyebuchi:


council members. &he federal ministry of health feels a sense ofloss for the untimely demise of the former director;"eneral of the

national a"ency for food and dru" administration, Professor -ora

Akunyili. I am personally pained and devastated by the death of

tyhis outstandin" patriot who belived so much in the net

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"oodness of !i"erians. *hen I 'oined the federal e#ecutive council

in april, /D)D, it was her as minister of information and

communication that %r. president directed to formally present me

as the new minister of health to !i"erians. n that occasion, not

only did she wear her famous friendly mien, but she was so ea"er

to "ive me the initial "uidance and tried her best to ensure that I

settled in (uickly as minister in my 'ob. Amon"st my collea"ues

on the fedral e#evitive council, she was indeed amon" the closest

such that she took interest even in my personal and domestic

a<airs. 3er memos to council were also always si"hned as -!A,the initials of her names. And because she was in the health

sectyor, I usually 'oked to her that she was claimin" to be the

be"innin" of life. -!A bein" the basic unit of human life. In that

capacity, she served !i"eria well. And she had always served

!i"eria so well even in other capacities. 0ven as a lecturer at the

Colle"e of %edicine of the niversity of !i"eria and even very

recently as a dele"ate to the on"oin" !ational Conference. 3er

appointment as the director;"eneral of nafdac in April /DD) was

indeed a "ame chan"er and by dint of hard work, uncommon

personal commitment to duty, honesty and fearlessness, even in

the face of attempts on her life, she brou"ht !A-AC out of

relative obscurity into what has now become a household name

with the !A-AC number assumin" an iconic status in !i"eria

beyond. &he production, importation and circulation of fake,

substandard, adulterated and counterfeit dru"s and foods

dropped from well over si#ty percent when she assumed duty to

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si#teen percent at the time left that o+ce. &his was no mean

achievement. It was indeed revolutionary. And it$s to her credit

that the sta"e was set for %r. President$s own mantra for ero

tolerance for fake and counterfeit in !i"eria as part of the

&ransformation A"enda.

&here$s no doubt, 4our 0#cellency, that professor -ora Akunyili

was easily one of the most iconic "ures in the hundred years of

this country$s history. Professor -ora Akunyili remained

coura"eous even unto death. She continued to reassure me, her

friends and well wishers that all was well even as she battled

cancer. %r. President, please accept my condolences as well as

those of my family and the federal ministry of health. I wish to

also e#tend my deepest sympathy to her own family, her loved

ones numerous admirers, her community and the poelpe of

Anambra State. %ay her soul rest in peace.

All:

Amen.

Another voice:

&hank you, 4our 0#cellency. In "ivin" tribute to late -ora Akunyili,

I$d like to "et our indul"ence to cast our mind to what we have in

the !ational Strate"y for Public Service eforms under the

&ransformation A"enda. And one of the visions is the issue of

world class service, to deliver world calss service. %any may not

understand the meanin" of deliverin" world class service.

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*hen, your 0#cellency, the bureau of public service reforms was

reestablisheded, we did a work, a review work of all the strate"ies

and pro"rammes and service delivery initiatives of this

administration. And we (uickly came up with the top ten a"encies

of "overnment and ministries that deliver world class service. irst

amon" the a"encies of "ovenrmnt is nafdac. *e have nafdac. we

have the mana"ement of debt and econoy in the ministry of

nance as second. we have the securities and e#chan"e

commission services as third. P0!C! as four. &he department of

private;public;partnership in the federal ministry of power and thebureau enterprise as ve. &he department of a"ri;business in the

federal ministry of a"ric as si#K the department of hi"hways in the

federal ministry of works as sevenK the department responsible

for dams in the federal ministry of water resources as ei"htK and

two other a"encies which I couldn$t remember. But why I$m

mentionin" these is, the classication here is about world class

service. And the e#emplary character and the leadership

displayed by late professor dora akunyili made nafdac to top this

list that I$ve 'ust mentioned in deliverin" world class services.

*hat this means is that the service bein" rendered by nafdac is

e#actly the same if you viist similar a"ency in any part of the

world. And all the others that I mentioned are in that cate"ory. So

in the public service, 4our 0#cellency, we pride ourselves so much

in this achievements of the public servant who was "iven

responsibilities and duties and dili"ently delivered those services

to an a"ency that was moribund, an a"ency that was for"otten,

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an a"ency that no one believed could be repositioned, for it to top

in the !i"erian federation, an a"ency that delivers world class

service. ro these and all other achievements of professor dora

akunyili, the entire public service will "reatly miss her. %ay her

soul rest in peace.

All:

Amen.

Another voice:

&hank you, sir. 4our 0#cellency, %r. President, your 0#cellency, %r.

>ice President, dear council collea"ues. 4our 0#cellency, it is with

deep sense of loss that I talk about my dear sister, Professor -ora

Akunyili. I am most saddened because on the thirtieth of %ay, as I

arrived at 0nu"u airport on my way to attend a burial in my

villa"e, I "ot a te#t from her that she went into crisis and was

admitted at &urkish hospital, Abu'a. And that as soon as she

stabilied, she would be 7own abroad. I did everythin" for the rest

of the day to "tet her on phone. It was not possible. And by the

time I returned to Abu'a, she was already 7own out of the country.

4ou can only describe -ora at best as a reformer wherever she

was found. A true nationalist and an accomplished professional.

%ay her soul rest in peace.

All:

Amen.

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Another voice:


council members. I have only met professor -ora once in my

lifetime and at the airport some years a"o when somebody

introduced me to her. And I was overwhelmed with the charmin"

warmth and the free and honest discussions we had. I told her I

had wanted to meet with her for the "ood works she had been

doin" in !A-AC. Incidentally she had then left !A-AC. And we

had lively discussions and she left her indelible mark in my mind. I

would want to describe her as a "reat !i"erian woman that

brou"ht !A-AC to limeli"ht and saved millions of life. I will

therefore, say that I send my condolences to her family and the

entire nation and ask that her soul rest in perfect peace with the

Lord. &hat you, sir.

Another voice:

&hank you, %r. President, the >ice President, my council

collea"ues. 0ven thou"h I did not have an opportunity to interact

with Professor -ora Akunyili physically, but she was known to be a

(uintessential woman of virtue, a hi"hly detribalied !i"erian who

saved many lives when she held forth as the d", national dru" law

enforcement a"ency. She did her work dili"ently without fear or

favour to the e#tent that she escaped numerous assassination

attempts. 3er role at this period lead her to be a recipient of

mnany national and international awards and medals. *e cannot

but for"et her role when she served as the minister of

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communication where she held her head hi"h. &hose of us on the

streets will not for"et her patriotic roles even as she stood to

defend the constitution of this country durin" the time of our

ailin" late president mar 4ar$Adua. %ay @od "ive the nation, the

political associates and indeed the immediate family the fortitude

to bear this irreparable loss. %ay her soul rest in perfect peace.

&hank you.

Another voice:


council collea"ues. 4our 0#cellency, the passin" on of Professor

-ora Akunyili represents a dark moment in the life of this nation.

In life, professor Akunyili radiated condence and vibrancy. At

work professor Akunyili represented hard work, determination,

commitment and e#emplary patriotism. She represented hope for

the avera"e !i"erian in her pet brandin" of !i"eria as a country

of "ood people and a "reat nation. 3er patriotism knew no bounds

when she stepped on the toes of the fake dru" cartel even at the

risk of her life. She demonstrated e#emplary patriotism and even

in the "ht for life, she obeyed the clarion call of the nation by

delin" illness to attend the !ational Conference. 4our 0#cellency,

at the very crisis peak of Professor Akunyili$s illness, the family

put a call throu"h to me to say that if I didn$t intervene, the Indian

3i"h Commission was "oin" to deny Professor Akunyili visa to

travel to India. I (uickly responded, 4our 0#cellency, put a call

across to the 3i"h Commissioner who e#plained that if they could

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"et a plane that would take her strai"ht to India, he would "rant

the visa. &hirty minutes later, a friend of the family volunteered a

plane which took Professor Akunyili to India in the hope that she

would be brou"ht back alive. But the cold hands of death have

snatched away from us and !i"eria. ur prayer is that the dream

for with Akunyili fou"ht to rebrand !i"eria would not die in her

demise. And that @od in 3is innite mercy will "rant her "entle

soul a place in 3is bosom. &hank you, 4our 0#cellency.

President Jonathan:

&hank you. &he vice president will make his comment, I will make

my own comment, and the Information %inister will move a

motion to be seconded by *ater esources. >.P.

>ice president:

&hank you, %r. President Sir. Council members. 4our 0#cellency,

the death of Profssor -ora akunyili is a "reat loss not only to her

family but to this country in "eneral. She was a patriotic and

dedicated !i"erian. *hatever opportunity was "iven to her, she

made sure she e#celled and succeeded in achievin" that

ob'ective. -ora has left an indelible mark in !i"eria. nafdac is a

shinin" star institution fro this country and whn she was the

minister of information, she ensured that she developed a systemwhere this country would be rebranded. -espite many attempts

on her life, she continued to persist until she succeedd in ensurin"

that the issue of fake dru"s in !i"eria be addressed. It$s a "treat

loss and we continue to pray that Almi"hty @od "rant her peace

)



and "ive "entle soul to rest in perfect peace. ur sincere

condolences to %r. President and the country in "eneral. &hank

you, sir.

President Jonathan:

&hank you. &oday we$re sidcussin" late professor dora akunyili. All

of us know that the rsdt impression of dora when you met her

anywhere was seen in the way she dressed. She was a typical

!i"erian woman. 4ou$ll not mistake 8 no mistake about it. She

re7ected the tradition and culture of our people.

I rst met dora whne I was the deputy "overnor of Bayelsa State. I

think my "overnor travelled out of the country and the !ational

Council on 3ealt had their annuakl meetin"s in Bayelsa State. So I

went for the openin". &hen she was appointed the d" !afdac and

of course , she was doin" very well. And we were hust readin"

about her. *hen I went for the oepin", I thou"ht that she wasthere and I wanted to see her. But when I in(uired, she was not at

the openin". But I was told that she was to come in that evenin"

for the pro"ramme that was actually to state the followin" day.

&hen I told my commissioner for health then , our commissioner

for health, that if she came in that evenin", she should have

breakfast with me the followin" mornin". And she did at the

deputy "overnor$s lod"in" at 4ena"oa.

&he rst thin" -ora did was to condemn the bread on my

breakfast table, that the bread was not warm, and summoned all

my stewards then and admonished them that they had to warm

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the breakfast bread before we ate otherwise some moulds could

cause stomach upset. &hat was my rst interaction with -ora.

So you really see, it$s 'ust others have mentioned, we have read

from the papers. She was a very upri"ht woman, havin" worked

with her even in the cabinet when she came in as Information

%inister when I was the >ice President and later I took over. She

was a very coura"eous person and of course, activities in !A-AC

show that clearly -ora would want to do the ri"ht thin" no matter

who or 888888 *hen she was to be appointed as the d"

!A-AC, there were insinuations that most of the fake dru"

dealers were her countrymen and that she mi"ht not have the

coura"e to "ht. But she fou"ht "allantly, very very coura"eous.

-ora was a role model per e#cellence. &alk about a !i"erian

woman, she was a typical role model that I believe so many

youn" ladies will emulate. She made her mark clearly. In fact

people are commentin" every day.

As a %inister of Information, I believe thou"h she was "iven a bi"

mic, the impact she made in !A-AC was much more than that of

the %inister of Information. But one "reat thin" was her passion to

rebrand !i"eria. She worked very hard as she came up with the

1"ood people, "reat nation2. 0ven in the cabinet she showed her

coura"e and commitment to national service. I could say that she

was one amon" the top !i"erian women of noble character, what

maybe the Bible describes as a virtuous woman. It is not easy to

come by but -ora was denitely a virtuous woman.

/D



But today our sister -ora is no lon"er with us. And that is why we

are havin" this brief tribute session havin" served as a member of

the federal e#ecutive council. She is not with us but I believe this

is how @od wants it because @od saved her life from the deadly

bullets of evil men when she was in !A-AC. If @od did not will it,

3e could have saved her life from the stin" of cancer. So we can

only pray that the Almi"hty ather should "ive her immediate

family and all her close relatives the fortitude to bear this "reat

loss because she was a pleasant woman. 4ou would want to

continue to be discussin" with her even thou"h without knowin"that the time is "one. Let me also 'oin others to wish that

Almi"hty ather will continue to bless her. %ay her soul rest in

paece.

All:

Amen.

%aku:


distin"uished council collea"ues. Let me, in summariin" all the

e#pressions, condolences and tributes to our sister, our former

collea"ue, one of nieria$s most outstandin" public servants,

Professor -ora Akunyili, say that Professor -ora hit the !i"erianpublic ima"ination as a thunder in dry season immediately after

she was appointed the director;"eneral of nafdac. *ithin a year of

her appointment, she became a household word and name

around the country because she took on one of the most di+cult

/)



tasks of "htin" those who adulterate dru"s adnsell tehm as

poison to !i"erians. !ot only did she put her life on the line as

was witnessed when she escaped an assassination on her life, she

took the war to her home base of Anambra State where she

battled a number of the fake dru" producers and importers at

nischa and other parts of the country. 4ou would think that

because she was an Ibo woman, she would look thew other way.

But she took the war home because she wanted the best for her

people and the nation believin" that sanitiin" the dru" industry

would make easier for those who truly believe and invest in it tomake more money as the world would become a "lobal market for

those who produce (uality dru"s. 4our 0#cellency, I happen to one

of those in this cabinet that worked directly with late Professor

-ora !kem akunyili. *hen you "raciously appointed me as

minister of state in april /D)D, I was posted as a minister of state

to the federal ministry of information. And late professor dora was

my immediate boss. n assumption of o+ce, she took me as a

'unior brother. She placed me throu"h an orientation pro"ramme

to introduce me to the minister of information. And for the period

we worked to"eterh, she showed me "reat love and indeed

because of her ma"nanimity and spitir of team work, even as

minister of state, she permitted me to 'oinlt brief thepress after

federal e#ecutive councils. She wasn$t obli"ed to do this. But she

believed she needed to encoura"e her collea"ue and her brother.

and so she introduced me to the media. And each time she was

brien" the press, she would reserve some items for me to also

//



brief the press. I found that really very encoura"in" and it$s the

kind of spirit that we need when we work to"ether to encoura"e

each other, to "ive each other space to e#press ourselves. But

over and above this, as the mnister of information, she had her

pro"ramme, her pro'ect , the rebrand !i"eria pro'ect. &oday to her

cresit, the slo"an "ood popele "reat nation has become a national

slo"an. And contrary to reports, we have never stopped the

rebrandin" pro"ramme. *e have continued to fund the

department, the 'in"les concernin" the new brand for !i"eria

"ood people "rat nation continue to run on our national media.And today that slo"an has not only become a popular national

slo"an. *herever you "o in the world, youn" people, when you

mention !i"eria, they say "ood people, "reat nation. 0ven thou"h

terrorists and ne"ative politics have tarnished the ima"e thou"h

the blood that is spilled in some parts of the country, the !i"erian

spirit remains and our sister dora remains lar"e in our public

ima"ination.

4our 0#cellency, it is not "ettin" appointment that matters but

makin" impact when you "et it. And I believe -ora, as a

professor, she proved to be a very brilliant scholar, enrolled as

professor at an early sta"e in her academic career. Indded as a

public servant, from a director in the better life pro"ramme in herstate to her work with the P& and her rise to -@ !A-AC as well

as minister of information and communications, -ora was

outstandin" in her coura"e. She was outstandin" in makin" thin"s

happen. And I can say that today as we mourn her, she has

/5



emer"ed, not only as a model for !i"erian women, but as the

3ead of Service said, also she has indeed led nafdac to be a world

class a"ency which indeed is her contribution to then health and

development of our counry.

-ora, from my own recollections, your e#cellency, members of

council, was a very warm and freinly person. 0veryone here has

attested to the fact that whoever she met, she imparted positively

on that person$d life. She had a spirit8 whenever -ora was in a

place, you could see her impact. She in7uenced her environemt.

She attracted attention from those who lkes her and those who

didn$t even like her. 4ou could not deny her presence. In the rst

instance, she was brilliant and coura"eous. And that is the kind of

spirit that is re(uired to move thin"s forward and to make chan"e

in society.

Secondly, -ora was an e#ceedin"ly very beautiful woman. or

those of us who knew her, her beauty, her brilliance, her coura"e

and indeed her discipline and do""ed spitir to "ht throu"h her

course, made her to be a model for youn"er !i"erian women. And

wherever we went with -ora as %inister of Informaton, you could

see youn" "irls and even older women rushin" to her for

auto"raphs. Such was her impact on the ima"ination of our

nation. It is indeed a credit to her that even at the stat"e she was,

she was still willinfM" to serve this nation at the national

conference. *hen we met at the conference, we "reted and I saw

her, even at the low point when the disease of cancer had taken

/=



toll on her life, you could see the re in her eyes to make a

contribution to the development of this country. And even at that

point, her comments at the national conference, she was

attendin" until this crisis came and she had to move to India for

medical attention. In other words, she served !i"eria unto death.

She still died as a public servant makin" her contribution evenin

the face of health challen"es. Such was her commitment to our

country, such was her patriotism which we all here acknowled"e.

4our 0#cellency, %r. President and members of council, ni"eia has

lost one of africa$s brilliant women who have shown coura"e inpublic service at a time that the female "ender is need of people

that could stand up, you know, for them to be counted. But her

e#ample will not "o down with her because she has already left a

lot of impressions on the ima"ination of youn"er women and even

men in the life of this nation.

ne thin" you must "ive -ora was that she was very

cosmopolitan. *hen she launched her book, the colletion of her

work in nafdac, we had two former heads of state attendin".

@eneral @owon was there. Alha'i Shehu Sha"ari, former president

of !i"eria was there, virtually everyone you knew in this country

that was somebody attended -ora$s book launch. &hat showed

the level of connectivity she had, youknow, with the rest of thecountry. And that is what public servants must do ; reachin" out

to everybody to unite the nation. So 4our 0#cellency, I must, on

behalf of the federal ministry of information and also on behalf of

our colleahues in council, 4our 0#cellency, I wish to move a

/?



motion on behalf of all of us but special and deep condolences to

%r. President who continued with -ora as his minister and "ave

her every coura"e and support to succeed in the 'ob that was

"iven to her. And I know that she remained very loyal to %r.

President and to this "overnment and every opportunity she had,

she e#pressed her feelin"s about then "ood work we are doin" as

a team. So we condole you %r. President, because you are the

rst mourner in the case of the death of this our very brilliant

collea"ue and sister.

*e also, on behalf of collea"ues, want to move a motion of

condolence to the women of !i"eria. you know, they have lost

one of their "reates advocates and symbols in public service, in

politics, in academie. And we believe ttat she was such an

addition to our women. *e condole all nierian women for the loss

of Professor -ora Akunyili.

I also want to move of condolence to the !i"erian fashion

industry. -ora with our collea"ues here, particularly the CL0 have

promoted, in the course of their public service, what I would say,

a sense ; a national dressin" code N which emphasie the need to

patronie !i"erian fashion. ro all the time I knew -ora, I hardly

saw her in any other fashion order than !i"erian dresses. And this

has promoted our fashion. &his has encoura"ed youn"er people

to look inwards as they step out. 4ou could be more beautiful

when you dress !i"eria.

/



I also want to move a motion of condolence to the !i"erian

people for the loss of a model in public service and also the loss

of someone that loved this country and created a "reat brand for

us, "ood people, "reat nation. *e morun her as a people.

*e also e#press our condolences to the I"bo nation fro the loss of

a brilliant dau"hter, a mother, a housewife and someone that has

promotred that part of the country in our ima"ination.

*e also on behalf of council move a motion of condolences to her

family N her husband, her children Overy brilliant children, all of

them, her rst class children who have done so well for us as a

people and to her immediate family and e#tended family fro this

"reat loss.

4our 0#cellency, let me say that on behalf of all of us, we wish our

sister -ora eternal peace with the Lord. She was an e#emplary

catholic and chirstyian. She lived a life of fulllment and service.She was never somebody who held anythin" back. If she was

an"ry with you, she said so immediately. And after that when you

met her, you would never remember that you ever (uarreled with

her. &hat is the kind of spirit that this nation needs to reconcile

and move forward.

So 4our 0#cellency, on behalf of this council we condole thisnation, we condole you. %ay she ever be remembered for her

services to the nation. And may her noble soul rest in perfect

peace with the Lord.

/E



Sarah chekpe:


council collea"ues,I wish to second the motion that has 'ust been

moved by the 3onourable %inister of Information in respect of our

late sister and friend, Professor -ora Akunyili. She was a wife, as

we$ve been told, a mother, she was a sister, a nationalist and a

patriot. She was condent, she was hardworkin", she was

enthusiastic, she was passionate in all that she did and was a

professional pharmacist to the core. 3er appointment as d"

nafdac was a case of puttin" a s(ure pe" in a s(uare hole. I knew

her lon" before I met her throu"h my husband who is also a

pharmacist. And they shared one passion about the dru"s in

nieria. And they were researchin" and e#aminin" di<erent

batches of dru"s. It is thr"ouht their work that I "ot to know that

there were so many fake dru"s in !i"eria. and so when they

worked under P&, they did a lot of these researches and my

husband was always "oin" to collect batches of dru"s she had

sent fro analysis. So it wasn$t surprisin" when she was appointed

as -@ nafcd and she brou"ht that passion to the work and that

helped a lot of !i"erians. *e praise for the work she did then.

*hen she was nominated as minister, I know that a lot of her

friends and collea"ues desired that she would be appointed%inister of 3ealth so she would brin" to bear her passion, her

eal, her dedication and e#perience into the health secotr. But

that didn$t happen. 4et when she was assi"ned the Information

and Communication Portfolio, she took up the challen"e and

/



brou"ht all her e#perience and passion to bear in that assi"nment

and that$s how she came up with the campain" for "ood people,

"reat nation. She believed in !i"eria nad she worked for !i"eria

with her last breath. I think that is why she did not hesitate to

accept the nomination to serve as a dele"ate to the !ational

Conference inspite of her health challen"fes. Some other person

mi"ht have declined but she didn$t. and I$m sure when she was

7own to India, she would have had it at the back of her mind that

as soon as she "ot back, she would 'oin her other collea"ues at

the !ational Conference. But that is not to be now. 0#cept for nowthat we are payin" her this tribute, I had, like in the past one

week, operated in denial that she$s not "one. But now as we$ve all

spoken, it$s clear that her chapter is closed. But then the thin"s

she did will certainly outlive her. or me she was a role model in

public o+ce. She was full of life and touched everyone that she

came across and everyone that she worked with.

And so as we mourn her, we want to condole %r. President, we

condole the irst Lady, we condole other collea"ues in councilK we

condole her family and friends and the nation at lar"e. And pray

that her soul will rest in peace and that @od who is the Source of

all comfort will comfort her husband and her children and "rant

them peace beyond understandin". &hank you very much, 4our0#cellency.

President Jonathan:

/9



&hank you. *ith that motion and secondment, let me invite

members of council for a moment of silence

5D

dora transcription

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