The Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, has described Professor Nnenna Oti, the vice-chancellor of the Federal University of Technology, Owerri, FUTO, as a living example of excellence and patriotism.
Prof. Oti was the Independent National Electoral Commission’s Returning Officer during the Abia State governorship election who reportedly rejected financial inducements and withstood threats and intimidations to manipulate the result of the March 18 polls.
The traditional ruler and monarch of the Yoruba kingdom of Ile-Ife took to Twitter on Thursday to celebrate Prof. Oti following their brief meeting at the Sam Mbakwe International Airport in Owerri, Imo State.
According to the monarch, the educator “epitomises the voice and intellectual reasoning that are embedded in an African woman” and is a “beacon of truth and one of the voices of reason”.
His eulogy partly reads: “Prof. Mrs Nnenna Oti embraces cutting-edge research, and she is one of the pillars of our educational culture, dispensing and breeding decades of human intellectual talent. Significantly, she epitomises the finest and most dedicated intellectual culture of our beautiful nation. She signifies centuries of cutting-edge scholasticism, the foundation of which our great forefathers laid.
“Her records are exceptional because she embodies the intellectual innovation of the twenty-first century and facilitates the “exchange of new inventions” that are solving and proposing solutions to our nation’s challenges. Her work and value reflect the beauty of our young women, youth institutions, and the Obidients epic movement.
“Fundamentally, our greatest resource capital as a nation is our women, who are keenly and immensely nurturing with all dedication our imperfect nation to perfection. Professor Nnenna Oti exemplifies their world and our untapped richness.
“What a treasure Professor Nenna is! She adorned democracy with patriotism in the recently concluded governorship election in Abia State, which produced Dr Alex Otti of the Labour Party. She demonstrates that there exists in each of us the capacity for great courage.
“Despite tremendous lobbying and financial inducement, she gave democracy a new meaning as the returning officer by standing for equity, fairness, and righteousness, and declared Dr Alex Otti the winner. Her purity of heart will continue to be a healing thread for our country. I’d like our nation to join me in celebrating Prof. Mrs Nnenna Oti.
“Obidients, please join me in celebrating this impeccable woman all the way! She is a living example of excellence and patriotism, and I will forever celebrate her on the throne of my forebears, Oduduwa.”
