Adieu, Prof Dora Akunyili

Tomorrow and the whole of this weekend will witness
the funeral obsequies of a great Nigerian, an
amazon and uncommon public servant, whose
exploits in the past fourteen years were unlike any
other ever witnessed in our shores. Professor
Dorothy Nkem Akunyili, within this span of time,
became a household name not only in Nigeria but
also in the wider world where her war against fake
food and drugs was acclaimed, with many awards
and honours. Even before she was appointed as
the Director
General of the National Agency for Food and Drugs
Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Akunyili, a
pharmacist and academic, made the news when
she returned unspent funds to the defunct
Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF), where she served as
the South East Zonal Secretary. On assumption of
office at NAFDAC, Akunyili confronted the
entrenched mafia of fake drug importers and
miraculously escaped assassination on two
occasions. Her eight-year tenure in the Agency
made Nigeria a reference point in the global war
against fake drugs, for which she missed being
nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize very
narrowly in 2007.
When she was appointed Minister for Information
and National Orientation, Dora Akunyili launched a
campaign to rebrand Nigeria and Nigerians and
soldiered on with it even in the face of fierce
criticisms. It is to her credit that Nigeria is now
sloganeered as “Good People, Great Nation”.
One of the most profound contributions of this
great
woman was her brave clamour for the right things
to be done when a pall of secrecy was cast over
the
true situation of the health of former President
Umaru Yar’ Adua. She insisted on full disclosure,
and courted the displeasure of Yar’ Adua’s inner
cabinet. She was one of those whose actions
moved the hands of the establishment to allow
then Vice President Goodluck Jonathan assume
full power and save the nation from an impasse
that
could have triggered another military intervention.
Even when she was already ill, Dora Akunyili still
answered the call to serve Nigeria as a Delegate
to the defunct National Conference, until she had to
be
flown abroad for medical attention where she gave
up.
In her 59 years of action-packed life of service
and exemplary leadership, Dora Akunyili
demonstrated
great leadership skills and showed that women,
when given towering challenges, have the
capacity
to produce results. She was very visible and
audible, and left bold footprints of achievement
wherever she went.
As the nation joins her family, friends and
associates to mourn this woman of substance, we
join in celebrating her and holding her up as a
shining example, especially for the women and
youth, with the lesson that gender is never a
barrier
to greatness.
We pray for her eternal rest in the Lord.