August 11, 2024
To God be the glory, a true Omoluabi of our time, Group Managing Director of Sahara Group, board Chairman of Ikeja Electric, and Chairman AXA Mansard Insurance Plc, Dr Kola Adesina MFR FNSE is now in the league of sexagenarian. Diamond jubilee is undoubtedly a milestone worth celebrating.
It is also incontrovertible that Yorubas pride themselves in the Omoluabi code, which embodies courage, hard work, humility and respect. An Omoluabi is literally a person of honor who believes in hard work and gives to the community in deeds and in action. Above all, an Omoluwabi is a person of integrity and intelligence. Africa’s non-lettered’ elders’ are repositories of valuable primary knowledge. As can be observed from this analysis, an Omoluabi is not necessarily exclusively a Yoruba stuff, but rather a persona of all who embodies these sterling qualities and that is who Dr Kola Adesina is.
Born August 12, 1964, Adesina remains one of the illustrious Yoruba icons whose fatherly disposition, characterised by warmth and compassion, has left a lasting impact on many Nigerians. His commitment to the welfare and well-being of Nigerians is commendable. He has over the years become a symbol of hope and inspiration to many. In all the spheres of his business life, Adesina has demonstrated doggedness, audacity, focus, hard work, innovation and acuity, among other sterling qualities which have been the driving forces behind his resounding success.
He is cherished for his highly diversified professional background; at Sahara Group, he directed many initiatives, including nation-wide strategic management of the supply chain of fuel to the Emergency Power Plant of the defunct National Electricity Power Authority, led the Majestic Oil delegation on the acquisition of the Sierra Leone Refinery, managed the crude oil contract of the Group in Cote D’Ivoire, became the Director of Infrastructure, responsible for the acquisition of strategic assets in Africa.
As one with experience that traverses various fields of human endeavours, it excites him to flow with the trend and to promote national interest, socio-economically, most recently, precisely on Wednesday, March 27, 2024, President Bola Tinubu GCFR made him a key member of the Presidential Economic Coordination Council comprising himself (President), the Vice President, Senate President and the Chairman of the Nigerian Governors Forum among over 25 others.
Dr Adesina also served as a member of the Presidential Committee on the Accelerated Expansion of the Electricity Infrastructure in Nigeria, which culminated in the unbundling of PHCN successor companies. He combines his years of management and business diplomacy experience into creating and executing innovative strategies for governments across sub Saharan Africa in the energy sector. This man is a sought after resource person on energy-related issues, especially the power sector in Africa and a frontline speaker at conferences across the globe.
The personal lifestyle of Kola Adesina is loudly low-profile and un-obstructive. He loves his privacy and family to the extent that he eschews partisan politics and non-essential socializing. He is deeply devout of his close-knit family. To this extent, he is a complete enigma.
In spite of deliberate efforts to remain very private, the many acts of Dr Kola Adesina’s philanthropies are too big to be hushed. For instance, how can you hide the fact that an individual is committed to granting annual scholarships running into hundreds of millions per annum for indigent but brilliant students? He is passionate about empowering young people and takes great pride in mentoring youths to seek creative ways of galvanising their energies for sustained excellence and productivity. He is a pan-Africanist and avowed promoter of the Pan African dream of regional integration and trade.
His humble disposition has endeared him to many, as he has consistently shown care and concern for Nigerians’ well-being. His kindness and compassion have touched countless lives, making him a beacon of hope and support for the nation.
There is a straight and narrow but assured path to success, which parents, leaders and governments should deliberately begin to inculcate is our youths and future leaders, if truly ‘the labours of our heroes past, shall never be in vain!’ Nigeria must begin to deliberately identify, codify and inculcate the effigies of heroes such as Dr Kola Adesina into our community spaces, living spaces and social media, in place of the get-rich-quick-or-die-trying ones that litter our public domains.
On this note, I humbly join others to celebrate this iconic technocrat on the auspicious occasion of his 60th birthday anniversary. May God bless you more in all your earthly endeavors and may you continue to fulfill your destiny in good health, long life and with abiding fulfillment without regret. Congratulations sir!
*Ajibulu is an online publisher, social media influencer, infopreneur, and communication consultant, he writes from Abuja.
