C M Y K 14 — Vanguard, TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2021 A protégé’s outpouring in tribute to Pat Utomi @ 65 By UBONG ESSIEN ONE moment he’s addressing a group of youths seeking inspiration and the next moment he’s off to the airport to catch a flight to speak to a senior management team, only to thereafter be on his way to listen to a group of widows with barely time to catch enough rest for the next day’s class at the Lagos Business School. Then add the endless media appearances and unending smattering into politics and civil society causes. This is how Pat Utomi’s life runs, typically. Call him a ‘Master Dabbler’ and you won’t be wrong. With the unending penchant to foray into virtually every human sector, Pat Utomi continues his quest for his holy grail couched in the terminology he ever so fondly bandies as ‘the common good’. Utomi’s propensity for contribution to virtually every sector of national life is phenomenal. His sheer capacity to possibly be all things to all people and the ease with which he so often fits into various contexts is nothing short of a gifting. It is difficult to aggregate, let alone try to quantify, the contributions of Professor Utomi to the Nigerian project. From business to education to religion to entertainment to politics to social reengineering, Pat Utomi easily passes for the quintessential generalist. This modern day scholar continues to defy time by sustaining an exceptional sense of national relevance for over four decades. Meeting Pat Utomi was purely providence. My late uncle and mentor, Capt Ufot Udo Ekong of the then Nigeria Airways, in his bid to push me firmly into my entrepreneurial calling of publishing and motivational speaking figured it out. He reasoned that if I was truly serious about not getting a job and striking it out on my own, having just completed my NYSC, then Pat Utomi should be one great person to meet. So, as he was wont to do, he gave me his business card with a note – after all he was a captain and no one was going to turn him down. Upon arriving the Lagos Business School that fateful December 19, 2001, I met the place a near grave yard only to be disappointed by the security staff who informed me that the school had closed for the Christmas and New Year holidays and I would have to return in January. God would appear to have other plans. Barely two minutes after walking away dejected, I heard a shout from one of the security staff running to catch up with me only to tell me that surprisingly, Pat Utomi had just driven into the premises to pick up some papers he forgot to pack for work during the holidays. I wasn’t going to let this pass me by as I raced <strong>back</strong> to the LBS Patito has a contribution for almost every aspect of national life and this is what perhaps makes him an interviewer’s delight premises to hand him the note from my uncle. The rest is history too long to recount within this space. I would go on to interview and feature him in the Achiever’s Manual and he in return would ask me to stick around for various projects both at work and at home, thus transforming me into both protégé and understudy. Before long, he had smuggled me into his famed flagship programme, Patito’s Gang, first as an observer and thereafter a full induction as a gang member. He even went a step further to ask me to create a version of the programme for more youthful gang members known then as Patito’s Gang Phase 2 which featured a host of his other protégés such as Taiwo Akerele who would go on to become Chief of Staff to the Edo State Governor, Linus Okorie of GOTNI, Fela Durotoye who ran for president recently, Dr. Elevis Ukpaka, Niyi Adesanya, amongst several others. As a ‘Generalist’ of our time, Patito has a contribution for almost every aspect of national life and this is what perhaps makes him an interviewer’s delight. Like him or hate him, the man clearly has the uncanny capacity to be all things to all people. From industry to •Prof. Pat Utomi industry, nobody plays the shapeshifter better than Pat Utomi. And from location to location, I have yet to find a Nigerian with as much a footprint given his ever-ready disposition to get up and go practically everywhere. This is clearly one aspect of his life that I deliberately chose to not nip into. Pat Utomi has been criticized for having his hand in many pies, yet many can’t seem to make out how he manages to stay relevant to an ever expanding spectrum of groups and stakeholders. Criticized by some for having his fingers in many pots, the Utomi brand has nonetheless held up quite well. He has managed to participate in his many and varied pursuits without being stretched thin – he continues to have something to offer whenever called upon and with genuine willingness. Apparently, his stock has continued to rise. Not many can boast of so much dabbling without the existential consequence of a tradeoff. For some of us close enough who have tried to encourage him to slow down in a bid to manage him out of this ‘madness’, we have failed most woefully, painfully realising that the best solution is to simply let him be. After all, Patito, as he is fondly called, is a gift that keeps on giving. Upon reflection about why he is such a moving target, I think I have managed to come to the realisation that it comes down to service and a deep personal quest for, in his words, ‘immortality’. What will the next generation think of my role? Was I just part of the numbers or did I speak up or raise others? Did I change society or was I complicit by looking the other way? These are the questions he battles with daily. How about his imperfections? Sure, he has them aplenty for he is human after all. Admirably, he is very often the first to own up to them. In this era of sycophancy, this tribute does not seek to sing out all tunes in praise of Pat Utomi. He very often opens up about his weaknesses and oversights in a rather relaxed manner of one embracing such inadequacies and with a willingness to just keep trudging on. Contrary to misconceptions in some quarters, the Pat Utomi I know never plays the self-righteous card. There is a running joke in my family whenever I call my mother and ask how my dad is doing. She always responds with ‘which of them?’ The Black one or the ‘Oyinbo’ one? Such was the extent of his influence that even my parents couldn’t but attest. Little wonder during my wife’s birthday in August 2016 at my residence, my father (now late) on sighting Patito embraced him joyfully while uttering the words: ‘thank you for finishing the work I started on this boy’. In the end, the best way to judge a leader is by their contributions. Some leaders are considered eccentric, others egocentric, Pat Utomi is ‘other-centric’. In my almost two decades as his protégé and understudy I have watched him consistently and unhesitatingly give of himself in service to others. Prof Utomi has served more than he has been served. Service to others is part of his DNA. This is what drives him – To Serve is to Live. I have watched him take many, train them and table them as near equals and without strings attached. A lot of what I am and where I am today, I owe to this Godsend. Prof, I am truly proud to call you my mentor. Here’s wishing you a truly happy 65th birthday and continued service to humanity. •Essien, CSP, West Africa’s only certified speaking professional is currently the Special Assistant on Communication and Strategy to the Director-General of NIMASA. TRIBUTE Fayemi: Celebrating a soldier of peace at 56 By YINKA OYEBODE IN one of his most recent interviews with a national daily, Governor Kayode Fayemi was asked to state for the record, who between former Lagos State governor, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and former governor of Ekiti State, Otunba Niyi Adebayo, brought him into partisan politics. The intention of the reporter was two-fold: First, to further the debate on the topic, which had been generating interest on social media for about a month. Second, to get a fresh angle to the story, exclusively for his newspaper. The question was neatly wrapped as a follow up question and should naturally provide him the opportunity to go full blast - to give credit to one above the other. But Governor Fayemi calmly threw the question <strong>back</strong> at the reporter: “What does it matter who brought me into partisan politics?” adding: “The point is that I am in partisan politics. I benefitted from the tutelage of both elders that you mentioned.” He stated further that he had the privilege of working with both leaders and other leaders at different times and levels on development projects, emphasising, however, that both have been quite supportive of his rise to political prominence. "And I owe them a lot for bringing me into the partisan political space,” he said. That calm answer did a lot to calm down the reporter who realised that a screaming headline he had envisaged was no longer possible. That is quintessential Kayode Fayemi, a man who holds a doctorate in War Studies but believes in the biblical injunction of doing everything possible to live peaceably with all men, as contained in the Biblical Letter to the Romans. A leader who believes that public office is not a popularity contest but an avenue to impact positively on the lives of the people. He believes that no development can be achieved in a rancorous environment. Thus, his actions and policies are targeted at ensuring development that is sustainable with emphasis on peace building as a v i t a l ingredient. Regarded as an emissary of peace, JKF, as he is fondly called, Fayemi believes that public office is not a popularity contest but an avenue to impact positively on the lives of the people demonstrated his statesmanship and penchant for peace and social justice when he accepted the outcome of the June 21 governorship election in Ekiti State in 2014, where he lost his re-election bid in a controversial manner. That was the very first time a sitting governor would readily concede an electoral defeat and bow out gloriously. It was a sacrifice he had to make to avert a major crisis that could have arisen as a result of the highly compromised electoral result. He was emphatic in his appeal for calm, stressing that his ambition was not worth the life of a single Ekiti person. His reputation as a lover and promoter of peace has been on the rise since then, making him the number one choice for conflict resolution with outstanding results. The need to make peace a precursor to development made him initiate policies that addressed some inequalities and lop-sidedness in the mining sector during his stint as Minister of Mines and Steel Development between 2015 and 2018. Key among these was the win-win approach he engineered to address the contentious issue of land ownership. Through the right mix of policy, advocacy and consultation with the people, the exclusive right of the Federal Government on minerals and mining was retained, but a creative way was found for the States to be able to benefit from the resources in their domain, while the host communities also get their deserved compensation. As the Governor of Ekiti State, Fayemi’s annual town hall meetings across the 16 local governments to get the people’s contributions to the yearly budget has been hailed as a model that has enhanced peace, progress and prosperity within the state. This is even as the creation of new local council development areas as well as granting of autonomy to some communities are seen as strategic peace initiatives aimed at fostering good neighbourliness. His ability to bring together adherents of different faiths and people of diverse ethnic groupings in the state has also earned Ekiti State the reputation as one of the most peaceful states to live and do business. Under his watch as governor, the vulnerable in the state are protected through legislations such as the Child Rights law, Gender Based Violence law, among others. Governor Fayemi has also extended this peaceful approach to knotty issues to other sister states, where he has deployed his peace building skills to stem hostility. The recent intervention in the herders versus Ondo State Government issue, his intervention in the alleged demolition of a mosque which was becoming a major crisis in Rivers State in 2019, and several others only point at his avowed belief that it is always better to jawjaw than to war-war. Regarded as a consummate intellectual in government, Fayemi’s strength lies in his ability to initiate and pursue peace processes to logical conclusion and finding creative ways to ensure every peaceful step taken is trailed by sustainable development. Among his first meetings as Chairman of the Nigeria •Gov Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State Governors’ Forum, NGF, where he wears the toga of a trusted mediator, was with top officials of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, to consider ways to strengthen transparency and accountability in the oil sector and address the dwindling trend in federation revenues. As noted by NGF Director General, A.B Okauru, Governor Fayemi followed up this with meetings with the Joint Tax Board and the Federal Inland Revenue Service, Customs, Federal Road Safety Corps and other agencies to raise a common front to solve the revenue crisis in the country. With Fayemi at the helm of affairs at NGF, the forum became a “problem solving group”, what with several interventions that have helped to crack many knotty issues of socio-economic and political significance. And like Ralph Waldo Emerson, American essayist, lecturer, philosopher, and poet who led the transcendentalist movement of the mid- 19th century, said: “Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” For Fayemi, going where there seems to be no path is a familiar pastime. And leaving a trail- an impact, a legacy comes to him naturally. He combines integrity, creativity and sincerity with passion for excellence and development. JKF stated this much in one of his books: Reclaiming The Trust. He admits that what he has brought into governance is the kind of trust that is based on and compels competence, openness, concern and reliability. “Trust is a public good; we cannot do great things collectively without trust. But trust has to be earned,” he stresses. As JKF turns 56 today, the question is no longer about what he is capable of doing as a leader and peace maker. For he has been able to demonstrate his capability as an imaginative, innovative and diplomatic leader. Rather, the question will be about what he would not do as a leader as many believe that his past has adequately prepared him for the present and the future. Born on February 9, 1965, John Kayode Fayemi received his first degree in History and Politics from the University of Lagos in 1985, a Master’s degree in International Relations from the University of Ife, Ile-Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University), in 1987 and a doctorate in War Studies from the King’s College, University of London, UK in 1993. He was inaugurated as Governor of Ekiti State on October 16, 2010. Continues online:www.vanguardngr.com •Oyebode, Chief Press Secretary to Governor Kayode Fayemi, wrote from Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State
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