The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Winners Golden Bet and other conglomerate, Hon (Dr.) Osuolale Idowu Obasa has bagged the Lagos Panorama SDG Grassroots Distinguished COVID-19 Award for 2020 for his humanitarian support to residents of Lagos state during COVID-19 lockdown last year.
The pioneer Executive Chairman of Onigbongbo LCDA, was presented with the Distinguished COVID-19 Response Award by Tayo Aderinola, Publisher/Editor, Lagos Panorama, in the business mogul’s Winners Golden Bet Office, in Seriki-Aro area of Ikeja, Lagos on Thursday.
In his presentation remark Aderinola who is also the President of Community Media Practitioners Association of Nigeria (COMPASS) stated that “the Editorial Board of the widely read sociopolitical magazine and online news platform in our effort to promote the universal Sustainable Development Goals decided to recognize and award dedication and zeal by outstanding individuals and organizations in a series of awards to celebrate excellence by trailblazers in aspects of grass-root sustainable development.
“Sir, your charitable support before, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown were well appreciated by our Editorial Board, your benevolence which include and not limited to the sponsoring of Isolation centers and distribution of food palliatives to the benefit of residents Seriki-Aro environs and other Lagosians “.
“Hence, we elected to present this award, as our little way of expressing gratitude and in recognition for your good gesture to Lagosians, you’re sincerely appreciated”.
The business tycoon in his acceptance response expressed his appreciation to the Lagos Panorama crew and noted that the award will spur him to do more.
He asserted that “basically whatever little that we are able to do, we considered to be basic responsibility from time to time, but gestures like this, first and foremost, constitute a feedback for us, that whatever we did, must have been noticed and appreciated”
“Secondly, that feedback also spurs us on to believing that we are on the right track, to strive to do more in future”.
He philosophically deposited that “the fabric of society is woven around different kinds of actors, role players, and different kinds of actions, events, those are all the things that come together, that are woven together into the fabric of the society”.
“We think we are just one of those threads that are used in weaving together the fabric of this environment. In that regard we’ll strive to continue to play our own little role, whenever we are able to do so”.
“For us, actually, is a pleasure to have an opportunity to be able to do those things, one way or the other, in spite of all difficulties, because we know that it’s not possible for government to be able to do everything, it’s not even possible for government to be able to know everything that the people need, or is It necessary for government to do all of those things if we able to assist ourselves”.
“This is where we live, I always say to people that you spend more time in office environment than we spend at home. The large portion of time we spend at home, we spend sleeping. You come to the office you spend about eight hours, we spend most of your active time of the day in the office, while most of the time we spend at home, we spend relaxing”.
“So when you look at that, it means that your environment where you work account for a larger portion of how you’ve lived, then whatever you can do to affect that environment positively, it might be what you call enlightened self-interest. It’s in our interest”.
“Thank you very much for appreciating me and I am inspired” the chattered accountant cum economist and chairman of business conglomerate expressed his gratitude to Lagos Panorama for the recognition and award.
Since he quit office as Chairman of Onigbongbo LCDA in 2011, Obasa has remained relatively quiet, contrary to the expectations of many who saw him as one of the few bright lights in the politics of the state.
Since then, private business, rather than politics, has taken much, if not all of his time.
The award presentation also offers the opportunity to seek the opinion of the social activist on the deteriorating state of the insecurity in the country.
PLEASE READ DETAILS OF THIS INTERVIEW TOMMOROW ON FACING FACT, THE LAGOS PANORAMA INTERVIEW SEGMENT
