Adenuga, others deserve national honours – Presidency (for corruption)

Posted by admin Goodluck Jonathan (2010-present), Presidency Tuesday, September 11th, 2012

The Presidency on Tuesday responded to criticisms of the list of 2012 national honours awards, saying none of the 149 honourees had been found wanting in any aspect of their lives.

The list which has Globacom Chairman, Chief Mike Adenuga, as recipient of the highest honour, Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger, was released on Sunday.

But the Nigeria Labour Congress, the Trade Union Congress, opposition parties and lawyers on Monday said some of the recipients lacked credibility.

The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe, however, called on those querying the list to mention any of the awardees not fit to be honoured.

Okupe specifically defended the conferment of GCON on Adenuga.

He said, “We must be able to celebrate the likes of Adenuga, who has brought succour to Nigerians with the establishment of Globacom.

“Nigerians are proud of the company, which though is competing with foreign companies, is doing very well.

“His many businesses are employers of labour. He has not done badly and he deserves the award, like the other 148 Nigerians.”

Just as Okupe spoke, Afenifere leader, Chief Reuben Fasoranti; renowned constitutional lawyer, Itse Sagay; and a Lagos-based lawyer, Jiti Ogunye, described the honours list as “laughable.”

They argued that many of those who names are on the list were “undeserving” of the award.

Fasoranti, in an interview with our correspondent in Akure, Ondo State, said “the national awards are supposed to be given to those with high level of integrity.”

He added, “I am surprised that some individuals with questionable business deals made the list.

“To avoid this type of national embarrassment in future, the Presidency should constitute a committee of credible personalities to look into such list. If this had been done, the panel would have advised the President(Dr. Goodluck Jonathan) to drop some of the people who made the list.

“The moment our leaders drop the usual Nigerian factor, the better our society will be.”

Sagay said but for a former Supreme Court judge, Justice Kayode Eso, and few others whose names are on the list, the inclusion of the other recipients showed that the national honours were now being conferred on “undisciplined political class” in the country.

He said, “The national award system lost its credibility long ago. People don’t have confidence in it anymore. The award is given to undisciplined political class. They give the award to them, though there are few exceptions like Justice Eso,

“I wonder how they could give GCON to some people and give CFR to Justice Eso. Justice Eso is one of the greatest Nigerians God ever created. Why didn’t they give Eso the GCON which is the highest award? It shows how perverse and upside down our value system is. The award system is a joke; it is laughable.”

Ogunye said the list was a confirmation that conferment of national honours in the country “means nothing.”

According to him, it (confirmation) portrays Nigeria, which is still grappling with the scourge of corruption and killings, as an irresponsible nation.”

“Nigerians last year condemned the quality and quantity of the honourees. The government has by this list replicated last year’s list. It shows the government is insensitive and does not give a damn about what the people say,” he added.

The National Chairman, Progressives Action Congress, Chief Charles Nwodo, called on the Federal Government to review the criteria for the awards.

Nwodo told the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja, that the awards needed to conform to global best practices.

“It should be a motivation for patriotism; it should not be seen as exclusive reserve for a class of citizens but coveted gift for all who have distinguished themselves in words, thoughts and deeds,” he added.

-Punchwp_posts