NATIONAL HONOURS ROLL CALL

On the Occasion of the Conferment of Honours

Abuja, 18 December, 2001

I salute and welcome you all to this occasion where we once again recognise and honour all those who have distinguished themselves with exemplary service to our society. Let me invite you all to join me in heartily congratulating our eminent recipients of the 2001 National Honours Award.

On this occasion of our Administration’s second honours list, I would like to commend all Nigerians who have contributed to the work of the selection committee in doing what we promised to do last year, namely: to consistently and systematically conduct the process of award on the basis of thorough criteria that pick out deserving men and women who qualify to enter our national Book of Honours. In other words, we wanted to return honour to the Honours List. And I am glad to note that we have been doing that.

Ladies and Gentlemen, the recipients are men and women from different works of life who have distinguished themselves in their respective callings, and made input - qualitatively and quantitatively - into our national development process. The recipients are also deemed to be individuals whose lives exemplify the embodiment of those values that are fundamental to the structure of progressive and enduring civilised society.

Nations that have toiled and risen to great heights have been able to do so, and sustain their positions of pre-eminence, because their developmental process have been anchored on shared values, which in turn has enabled them to maintain internal cohesion. Such shared vision and unity of purpose have served as propelling mechanism for them to move forward as a community, to build the kind of society they want to live in today, and to fashion that society which they wish to bequeath to their children.

The saying that the way you live tomorrow depends on how you live today is applicable to the society, in that the attainment of our vision of the society, now and in the future, is dependent on the sacrifices that we, as a people, are prepared to make at any given moment. Thus we owe it to ourselves and to future generations to obey the moral imperative that our efforts in dealing with the challenges of progress and development should impact meaningfully on the quality of life of the Nigerian society. The responsibility for developing Nigeria ultimately rest on our shoulders. Needless to say that it is neither wise nor realistic to expect others to come and develop our society for us without us being at the vanguard of such development. No society in history has achieved greatness in that fashion. Others may have ideas that inspire us, but we must be the architects of our fate and destiny.

Thus, the stimuli which will motivate and mobilise us to assiduously strive to attain greater heights can only come from the inspiration provided us by the illustrious examples of the sons and daughters of this country, whose efforts are rooted on such non-negotiable values as integrity, honesty, tolerance, hard work, pursuit of excellence, respect for our traditional family values, and patriotism.

And thus, we are glad to note that the Eminent Recipients of the Year 2001 National Honours have, in their respective work settings and larger communities, demonstrated beyond the requirements of the call of duty, such noble ideals as:

►          extending a hand of fellowship to the less privileged,

►          generating employment opportunities,

►          taking the initiative to provide basic amenities to their communities,

►          exhibiting tolerance and accommodation in the context of the exigencies of life in a multi-cultural society,

►          upholding the tenets of the rule of law despite all odds, and in the face of all allurement,

►          showing exemplary self-discipline, honesty, industry, pursuit of excellence and patriotism.

It is the manifestation of these qualities in the lives and activities of these men and women, when taken together, that form the kernel of the substance on which people-centred development could - and should - be based.

With these qualities in the character of all Awardees, past and present, we will always be reminded of the cardinal truth that no material development of the society will endure unless it is established on moral, ethical and spiritual foundation.

Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, it is these qualities that we celebrate today, with the conferment of our National Honours on the Year 2001 Awardees.

As we in Nigeria take on the challenges of development within the global village of today, Nigerians look up to the Eminent Recipients of the 2001 National Awards, as with their predecessors, to continue to guide and inspire them with consistent demonstration of those exemplary leadership qualities, that have marked them out, yesterday, today, and will record them for posterity in the Book of Honours.

It is our sincere hope that the sterling qualities in the daily lives of these eminent men and women will be a source of inspiration and guidance for Nigerians to rededicate and commit themselves to task of building Nigeria into the great nation of our dreams and aspiration.

I thank you. And may God bless you all.