Tribute@ITRealms:
Today, Wednesday, 7th June,2017 marks the third year remembrance anniversary of Prof. Dora Akunyili, writes Chris Uruakpa.
To many, she was an icon, to others she was a source of
inspiration. Prof. Dora Akunyili was a brilliant pharmacist, pharmacologist, an
erudite scholar, a seasoned administrator, a visionary leader, an embodiment of
grace, a woman of substance, unequalled character who brought respect and glory
to the nation.
She was fearless, proactive and was a role model to a lot of
Nigerians. A physical embodiment of what it means to truly serve and honour the
people who entrusted you with power.
Akunyili rose to the corridors of power through a
combination of sheer honesty and by dint of hard work. Even from a distance, one
could sense her commitment and share in her dream.
Like a star in the dark firmament, she was the shining star
that could not be shut out. When she started her job as the Director-General of
National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), she
trawled drugs market, hospitals and clinics, and she was horrified at what she
discovered. From Idumota to Onitsha and Kano open market distribution channels,
Prof. Dora Akunyili went to the "den of counterfeiters" and made
known to them that it would not be business as usual, advising them all to look
for alternatives means of survival.
I must say here that before she held sway at NAFDAC, hospitals
in the country used fake and contaminated drugs, surgeons used fake adrenalin
to re-start the heart, and anesthetists gave sub-strength muscle relaxant to
patients in their operating theatres. When the public saw the dragons she
slayed, counterfeiters fought back.
They burnt some NAFDAC offices, she suffered two
assassination attempts and also threatened to kill her children. She chalked up
points for Nigeria globally and redeemed her image. Akunyili was everything.
She was fearless, incorruptible, bold and principled. She was a patriot, a
nationalist and a completely detribalized Nigerian.
At a time when her mates were chasing the mundane, the woman
with the simple Ankara fabric worked very hard to stamp her feet. Akunyili
seemed to have her time cut out for her in public service. Her birth in Makurdi
made her a Pan-Nigerian. There was no Igbo, Hausa or Yoruba, for her there was
only one Nigeria.
Going down memory lane, I remember when she broke down and
said tearfully "fake drugs have been used to massacre innocent lives and
it is a crime against humanity". We can protect ourselves against AIDS, but
we can do nothing against a deadly drug.
For the records, Akunyili a consummate and passionate
regulator will remain a regulator extraordinaire in the annals of the nation.
On a day like this, Nigerians still remember the late Prof. Dora
Akunyili and miss her in the defiant moments when she stood her ground resolute
in her faith, commitment and purpose. Nigerians are still singing her praises.
Dora, you lived and worked like no mere mortal, but we are
all mortals. In an environment steeped in corruption, it was not an easy road.
Conclusively, we remember Prof. Dora today with a great
sense of fulfilment for a life well lived. A life of service to humanity. Prof.
Dora, we won't forget you.
May her soul and the souls of all the faithful departed
through the mercy of God continue to rest in peace, Amen.
Chris Urukpa/GEE
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%20with%20friends%20at%20the%20Kitty.jpeg "L—R: Mr. Innocent C. Ike (3rd left) with friends at the Kitty")
