IF VIRTUE is the fount of honour, then the National Think-Tank (NTT) is the fountainhead of the best among men. The non-profit, non-governmental organization (NGO), parades arguably the best brains in Nigeria. Little wonder two reputable members of the organization, Professors Bolaji Akinyemi and Steve Azaiki have been considered worthy of the prestigious national merit award.On Monday, November 14, the two illustrious sons of Nigeria will step out with several other distinguished citizens, to be conferred with honours by the President, Dr Goodluck Jonathan. While Akinyemi will be adorned with the medal of the Commander of the Federal Republic, CFR, Azaiki will wear that of the Officer of the Order of the Niger, OON. In a country, where role models are fast vanishing, the two academic giants will take their place in Nigeria's Hall of Fame. Akinyemi is the Chairman of the NTT while Azaiki is its National Coordinator.The NTT was founded by a group of articulate, well-informed young men and women in 2006. The group rose from the murky waters of Nigeria's political space with analytical minds and a determination to fashion out an agenda for the country through robust advocacy. Today, it is a reference point for those genuinely interested in national development, as it essentially serves as a melting point where Nigerians of vastly different political stripes and attainments unite to advance peace, progress and stability in the country till date.But metaphors hardly do justice to the NTT, nor do they thoroughly illustrate the true worth of sterling individuals in its assemblage, like Professors Akinyemi and Azaiki. Both men, like so many of their peers in the NTT, are no passive instruments in the affairs of the Nigerian state. Unarguably, they epitomize the crucial statesmanship and progressive capacities mandatory to the success of the Nigerian enterprise ' which establishes them as indispensable elements to the Nigerian project.Take Professor Azaiki for instance, few men are born with a will like his. The most impressive aspect of his ascendancy to the top is the manner in which he seeks and attains self-actualisation; like a champion. It's quite extraordinary. He just lets his records do the talking. Notwithstanding, Azaiki commands grace, excellence and a decent modicum of respect, which makes his investiture with the prestigious national merit award of the Officer of the Order of the Niger, OON, a honour well deserved.Azaiki defies adjectives. An astute administrator, academic and environmentalist, Azaiki, born on June 2, 1960 at Bebelebiri town in Yenagoa Local council area of the present Bayelsa state, is a man whose mind was set on his calling very early in life thus, his ability to make indelible footprints in the sands of time. With resounding success, he has distinguished himself as an excellent academic and administrator through his valuable contributions in academic and public service.So doing, he fosters the advancement of public good and the cause of the Nigeria project. A statesman of variegated and unfathomable talent and determination, Azaiki renders the most ornamental words insufficient to capture his mental and physical endowment. Among other traits, his dazzling penmanship and intellectual ability has been identified as 'excellent' times without number.In this vein, former Military Administrator of Bayelsa State, Lt. Col. Paul Edor Obi (Rtd), in his estimation of Azaiki, reckoned that, 'there are some people you meet in life that leave a permanent impression on you, and you cannot but thank God for having brought them your way. Prof. Azaiki is one of such people. In the little time he served under my administration in Bayelsa State as Commissioner for Agriculture, he proved himself to be adequately informed, and substantially exposed to the issue and problems of the Niger Delta. His depth of knowledge and quality of intelligence never fails to amaze me.'As an academic and public servant, Azaiki has exerted himself outstandingly and conscientiously. As a patriot, he affects a genuine and altruistic zeal to foster rapid progress in the country.However, Azaiki didn't attain his current status by sheer luck. It took him a lot of sacrifice, hard work, steadfastness in the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges and an insatiable drive to better his lot and that of his motherland. Following his education at Bishop Dimieari Grammar School, Yenagoa between 1974 and 1978 and Kaiama Grammar School, Kaiama, also in Bayelsa state between 1978 and 1979, he proceeded on scholarship to the prestigious Moldavian Agricultural Academy, Kishnev in 1980 and later, the Ukrainian Agricultural Academy in Kiev, all in the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republic, USSR where he obtained his Masters degree in Agronomy specializing in Plant Protection in 1986.On completion of his National Youth Service Corps, NYSC programme in Lagos in 1987, he returned to his former school, the Ukrainian Agricultural Academy in Kiev, Ukraine in 1988 and obtained a doctorate in Agriculture (Biological Science) in 1991. Azaiki also served as a lecturer in the Department of Psychology at the Ukrainian Agricultural Academy, Faculty of Plant Protection between 1988 and 1992.Azaiki is also a fellow, patron and member of various professional social, cultural and humanitarian organizations within and outside the country. He is a scholar with a robust passion for academic challenges hence his authorship of several books including; Inequities in Nigerian Politics; The Evil of Oil; Oil, Politics and Blood; Crises in the Niger Delta; Oil, Gas and the Nigerian Environment, among others.He is a visiting Professor to the Institute of International Studies in Ukraine where he specialises in conflicts in Africa. Only recently, the University of Port Harcourt appointed him as a fellow and Professor at its Institute of Petroleum Studies.He is the founder and president of the World Environmental Movement For Africa (WEMFA), now World Environmental Foundation for Africa; this has been involved in the development and protection of the African environment.He has contributed in no small measure to public discourse in the country. In this respect, he has written books and delivered lectures on a wide range of national issues highlighting their merits and demerits while proffering solutions to them.Indeed, Azaiki defies adjectives and his nobility outshines the frills of wanton embellishments. And that is a trait that establishes him in the league of extraordinary statesmen like Professor Bolaji Akinyemi. The latter, a Professor of Political Science is in fact, an admirable and active personification of the ever elusive Nigerian statesman.At his core, he is a deeply reserved and principled man. He is very honest about his convictions and would express them without reservations irrespective of the constitution of his audience. His radical views and beliefs about politics among other issues have distinguished him as one of Nigeria's most respected icons. His dogged fight for the soul of Nigeria against the authoritarian regimes of the past attests to this and confirms his belief that only demotrue development in the country.Born in January 4, 1942, the native of Ilesa, Osun State, obtained his doctorate degree from the prestigious Oxford University in 1969; an accomplishment he ably substantiated with much enviable academic and public service. He was an instructor in the Politics of the Developing Nations in the North Eastern University, Boston, Massachusetts; a Visiting Professor in African Studies at the DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana; a Visiting Professor of Political Science at the Kalamazoo College in Kalamazoo, Michigan. He has taught as Lecturer and Senior Lecturer in Political Science at the University of Ibadan and by 1975, had become the Director-General of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA), the nation's foreign policy development and formulation centre.As Director-General of the NIIA, he conceived of the idea of 'Dialogue' to broaden the base of foreign policy consultation. Thus he organised and presided over the Nigerian ' United States Dialogue (1978), Nigerian ' Soviet Dialogue (1978), Nigerian ' Chinese Dialogue (1979), Nigerian ' Scandinavian Dialogue (1980), Nigerian ' Brazilian Dialogue (1980), Dialogue on North ' South Dialogue with Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau (1981) and the Nigerian ' Chinese Dialogue (1982).While at the Institute, he was a Visiting Professor at the Graduate Institute of International Studies in Geneva in 1977; Visiting Professor at The Diplomacy Training Programme of the University of Nairobi, Kenya; Regent's Lecturer, University of California, Los Angeles, California in 1979. In 1983, he was appointed a Professor of Political Science by the University of Lagos, Nigeria and was also a Visiting Overseas Scholar at St. John's College, Cambridge in 1984.In 1985, he was appointed the Minister of External Affairs of the country. As Foreign Affairs Minister, he was involved in negotiating the cease-fire in the Chad ' Libyan crisis and the Mali ' Burkina Faso war. He conceived and moved the concept of the Concert of Medium of Powers, an idea which sought to bring together middle powers for the purpose of using their collective bargaining power to mediate disputes within the international system.He was the leader of the Nigerian Delegation to the United Nations Annual General Assembly Session, New York (1985); deputy leader of the Nigerian Delegation to the Commonwealth Summit, Bahamas (1985); leader of the Nigerian Delegation to the Organisation of African Unity, Council of Ministers Session (1986); deputy leader of the Nigerian Delegation to the Organisation of African Unity Heads of State and Government Summit (1986) and leader of the Nigerian Delegation to the Non ' Aligned Foreign Ministers Conference, Harare (1986), to mention a few.Akinyemi also introduced the Technical Aid Corps Scheme in bid to radically restructure the Nigerian foreign assistance programme and currently serves as an influential and founding member of Nigeria's National Think-Thank Project.Akinyemi is a prolific writer and has authored many books and contributed his publications to many reputable and recognised local and international journals. Both his rhetorical style and his ingrained disposition tend to educate rather than mislead.As the esteemed academic and statesman receive his Commander of the Federal Republic, CFR, award, it may not be enough to describe him, as the best thing to happen to the Nigerian polity in a long while. Both the youth and his peers yet seek a clearer picture of him, and they have a rich cache of his words, policies, public record and biography to shape their typically flattering interpretations.Without doubt, the lives and works of both Professors are the stuff the best of dreams are made of. Professors Azaiki and Akinyemi are undeniably wrought from that proverbial iconic and stately mould frantically affected by quite a few self-acclaimed statesmen and yet deficient in the bulk of their work and character. This makes them worthy recipients of Nigeria's most prestigious merit awards and indispensable agents of that progressive change, which had eluded Nigeria for so long.More fulfilling and prosperous years ahead to the venerable Professors and statesmen.Dr. Muhammed lives in Maryland, United States
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