10th of December 2021 was the celebration of the 10th anniversary of Inspiring Woman Series, and one of the highlights of the day was the presentation of awards. One of the awardees and only male among the 10 was the Chairman of Heirs Holdings, United Bank Of Africa Plc, Transcorp Plc and Founder, The Tony Elumelu Foundation, Tony O. Elumelu, C.O.N. He was awarded the Inspiring Woman Series ‘He For She’ award for supporting women businesses. Although he could not attend, we were honoured to present the award to him at his office.
Anyone who knows TOE (As he is called by many) knows that his schedules are tight, with back-to-back meetings and various international functions calling for his attention. To be given an opportunity to present his award to him one-on-one was a big deal and we were not going to take it likely.
Once we got the confirmation, we knew going late was not going to be on our agenda. From when his executive assistant called to find out where we were by 3:30pm only to find out we were just by the corner, it was easy to tell from his response that we were not ready to take any chances.
We got to the beautiful Heirs Holdings office and were warmly welcomed even from the gate. After exchanging pleasantries, the gateman asked “Are you Madam Kemi Ajumobi?” “Is she in trouble?” I teased, and we had a good laugh.
He politely ushered us into the reception. We were later ushered to the waiting room by the receptionist whose smile made us feel at home.
Read also: Inspiring Woman Series – The journey so far
In a few minutes, his Executive Assistant, Omosefe Agwoje was with us. Now here is the part that really impressed me. Beyond ensuring we all had our masks on from the gate, Omosefe informed us we were going to undertake a COVID-19 test. “TOE is a ‘national treasure’, his life and those around him must be preserved” I muttered beneath my breath. “Nice, I love the fact that this is being done. There are companies that are just okay with guests wearing masks and sanitising their hands, but to go this way is commendable” I said to Omosefe. One after the other, my team and I took the test and we all tested negative.
By the time we were done, the Group Director, Corporate Communications, UBA Foundation and United Bank for Africa Plc, Bola Atta; Director, Partnerships & Communications, The Tony Elumelu Foundation, Somachi Chris-Asoluka and CEO, Tony Elumelu Foundation, Ifeyinwa Ugochukwu arrived. We all took our seats and waited and in a few minutes, the Chairman arrived.
He greeted us all and I gave the brief of why we came. After which he was shown a video by four women on his team who were celebrating him for receiving the Inspiring Woman Series ‘He For She’ award.
The video was to be shown before the award was to be presented to him on the 10th of December 2021, but because he wasn’t able to make it, we decided to not only come to present the award but to show the video too.
The video had the President and Group Chief Executive Officer of Transnational Corporation of Nigeria, Owen Omogiafo; MD/CEO of Transcorp Hotels Plc, Dupe Olusola; Director, Partnerships & Communications, The Tony Elumelu Foundation, Somachi Chris-Asoluka and Founder of Mamamoni, a FinTech social enterprise that provides financial services to rural and poor women in Africa, Nkem Okocha.
He was obviously shocked because he did not see that coming. It was truly inspiring to hear them all say the words of commendation.
After the video, he expressed his heartfelt gratitude and commended BusinessDay for a job well done.
Off we went to another part of the building to present him his award and also the gift we had for him courtesy Morin O, a leather brand company taking Africa to the world. It was truly an amazing experience.
Once again, we celebrate TOE for supporting women businesses and giving women opportunities to soar in his companies, not just because they are women but because they qualify and they deserve it. Here is to greater years of continuous impact and the grace to do more!
