Personality in Focus
NANTA: The Defining Moments and Quest for Mentorship
By Frank Meke
National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies ( Nanta) is about 47 years old, going to 48. The Association has contributed immensely to the history and growth of Nigerian travel and the tourism industry and does not gloat about it.
And until the brick breakers came to the Nigerian tourism space, nanta rightly held a board position in the making of Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation ( now Nigerian Tourism Development Authority).
Its two-legged operational importance in the tourism and aviation sector justifiably confered it the wisdom to share and contribute its knowledge, expertise, and support to growing need to reposition Nigerian tourism and the travel( transport)content in the aviation industry.
The founding fathers of Nigeria tourism, from its birth as Nigeria Tourism Authority, to Nigeria Tourism Board to Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation ( Ntdc), were supportive of the growth of nanta and during its trying moments, decreed and like the supreme Court judges, pulled away the rugs from self seeking spoilers who wanted to cause a slipt of the association.
These were during its dramatic and formative years in the early seventies, a development that foreclosed such divisive tendencies and through progressive constitutional righteousness, the association blossomed into greatness, stronger and open to new ideas and character.
Talking about character, whoever emerged as president of this iconic association, tends to define its character, deliveries, interventions, and growth or failings.
I will possibly dwell on a few of the presidents of this association that I knew closely and covered their times as a journalist. Their character of selflessness, boldness, and courage in the face of threats to their private businesses is beyond pedestrian definition and understanding.
And of these lots, I will mention and share the character models of Olufemi Adefope, Teresa Ezobi( now ojo), Soji Amusan, Dayo Adeola, Ahmed zabadne, Munzali Dantata, Bankole Bernard and Mrs Susan Akporiaye.
It’s important to highlight that the association leadership is usually dominated by men,and often takes to supersonic flight when women take over, and theirs is a challenge not only to engendering new business offerings but a zealous search for the best of nanta tomorrow.
I will come to the two women ceiling breakers in nanta later. Femi Adefope, in his days, was a daytime terror to foreign airlines. For each of the obnoxious policies which these foreign airlines subjected nanta members to, Adefope will scream blue murder, shot from the hips, and as a trained forensic expert, his clinical deployment of confrontational legalism, puts the unrelenting and domineering foreign carriers in disarray.
He was courted and hated at the same time, and he maintained an open door to the tourism media. He was always available to share his dream for nanta. Adefope avoided the temptation to remain in power beyond his call and worked hard to Unite nanta, and today, he is the octopus of the aviation downstream sector, where he runs his business with grit and wisdom. He indeed shaped the position and deliveries of nanta in his very unapologetic combative image. His menties, a story for another day.
Munzali Dantata brought fortunes to nanta leadership. He was then young, rich, and ambitious. A scion of the famous Dantata family of kano, Munzali Dantata, was a very patient and caring leader. He was during his time out in nanta, a General Sales Agent for Saudia, the national carrier of oil rich Saudi Arabia.
Munzali Dantata spent his fortunes on nanta, in a single-minded effort to change its image and also bring it into national tourism economic space. Though tolerated by the usual noisy and egocentric lagos cum South West nanta members due to his peace seeking outreach to foreign airlines, Munzali Dantata toned down nanta’s combative facade to suit his worldview.
Then came the fire spitting, fearless and courageous Tereza Ojo ( ezeobi). Her special advisers were Femi Adefope, Olu Ogunsulire, and Babatunde Akala. I had this feeling that these three musketeers dragged her into nanta leadership.
Tereza was graceful and richly connected. Her Tess Travel is the official travel implant in most foreign embassies, and she was big, I mean very big, in cultural tourism promotion. She filled the grounds of the kano Durbar festival with a chartered plane filled with foreigners and brought Ogun state into the limelight as a domestic tourism destination. As the then President of Nigeria Cycling Federation , Tereza Ezeobi ( Ojo) pushed forward the tourism content in that sport genre into national reckoning. The spoilers of Nigerian Airways hated her guts as she boldly confronted their thieving hands in honey pot the airline and at one of such heated meeting at the office of then Minister of Aviation located around Tafawa Balewa Square, she had to be smuggled out through the minister’s back door to avoid the raging Nigerian Airways leadership who could not tolerate her righteous indignation.
Tereza was a thunderstorm. If Adefope is known to shot from the hips, Tereza was the master snipper, all for the sake of nanta’s better tomorrow.
Soji Amusan is a disciplinarian to the core. Trained by the German lufthansa Airlines, he brought a new training and retraining culture to nanta membership. He took on nanta survival expectations with clinical precision, preferring to reason with nanta publics, particularly the foreign airlines rather than being combative. He led from the position of knowledge and education to the dynamic processes in the emerging world of travel as a trade. Today, some nanta members own aviation schools as a result of the campaign by Soji Amusan.
Ahmed zabadne is a Nigerian of Lebanese parentage. He spent fortunes trying to rubber stamp his business orientation background in nanta. He was collaborative and sought to have nanta members expand their reach beyond trade on airlines’ inventories. Ahmed zabadne is a born hospitality caregiver and operator despite being a travel trade professional. He was a jolly good fellow who loved Nigeria.
Dayo Adeola is subtle but with a huge appetite for deliveries. He built the three storey nanta secretariat on Ikorodu Road and a great mobilizer of men and resources. He will out spend others in the quest to transform nanta and also mentor young persons in collaborative ecosystem that clearly marked him out as a godfather to many trading their way to success. His trademark of competence and visionary commitment still speaks volume in nanta circles. Is he bound by his promises? One must learn to wrestle like Jacob to catch Adeola off guard.
Bankole Bernard is a pursuer of history and legacy. Young, stubborn, and fearless, Bankole Bernard tried to change the narratives of nanta and brokered efforts to gain back nanta’s board membership of ntdc, which the new pharaoh at ntda insisted to ambush out of fear of the powerful reach of nanta in both aviation and tourism space.
He also worked hard at getting nanta a focal constitutional authority and brought the association some political inroads, partnering to honour game changers in the industry. Energetic and confident, he fought internal schism and selflessly flew the nanta flag. He nearly lost his life in the untiring effort to leave his name in the nanta records of achievers. Some say he is arrogant and irritant, yes to many people who do not bother to study his character. He can trump a suprise change, and that makes him a highly misunderstood enigma.
Mrs Susan Akporiaye went through the tough lines of the nanta leadership structure to emerge as president. She confronted the covid pandemic and gave some lifeline to most struggling nanta members during the early days of global travel uncertainty. That pandemic period truly defined her willpower. Nanta nearly collapsed but she held strong, very strong, putting her critics on wrong footing. I will repeat that Susan Akporiaye is strong, bold, and beautiful inside more than mere physical eyes can see.
Her commitment and self drive opened the flood gate of new and old members of nanta , who now took their future into their own hands. She spoke courage and sold inspiration.
She is a Nigeria’s new tourism diva, steering nanta to other streams of income in the very dynamic and collaborative travel and tourism industry.
She has successfully shaped the nanta dream of tomorrow, frontal with foreign airlines, shadow boxed them into a corner, with same Adefope and Tereza Ojo punchy style.
She consults with wisdom but takes responsibility where others shiver in fear. Susan Akporiaye revealed and sustained the Tereza Ojo tourism goal agenda for nanta members and, above all, a dedicated and sacrificial mentor to the young and upcoming nanta members, many who rejoice at her leadership which has engaged and inspired them to rediscover their talents and strength. From South Africa, Kenya, Namibia, and London, nanta leads in promoting Nigeria tourism, even in tech start-ups.
By mid next year, a chapter in nanta history will be closed, and another opened. Susan Akporiaye has opened the gates for the nanta young persons to raise their heads and voice to give nanta sustainable leadership growth narratives, and so we say Amen and rejoice that nanta is on the match, greater and stronger because a true leader emerged. Will this trend gain sustained traction? We watch and pray!
A Board Member of Lagos State Security Trust Fund (LSSTF), Dr. Ayo Ogunsan, has been honoured with membership status of the Centre for African Social and Economic Transformation (CASET), University of the West of England, United Kingdom.
The recognition is coming on the heels of Ogunsan’s indefatigable commitment and unrelenting advocacy and support for quality education across all levels.
Dr. Ogunsan’s unflinching interest in education glaringly shows in his active participation as Board Member of Center for Digital Humanities (CEDHUL) in Nigeria’s frontline university, University of Lagos; as Chairman of AKEM Foundation, a nonprofit which has provided millions of naira within two (2) years to support schools and NGOs who provide education access for free to children in underserved communities in Nigeria; and in several individual sponsorships to ensure that the future is brighter for children. His personal story of prominence polished out of adversity continues to propel him forward.
This commitment is well-captured in the letter of Jo Midgley, the Deputy Vice Chancellor and the Registrar of the University of the West of England, UK who communicated the news of the appointment to the advisory board.
The academic, Jo Midgley highlighted about Dr. Ogunsan, ‘Your extensive experience and contributions to Africa’s higher education sector through training university leaders and teaching personnel, as well as your Board Membership of the Centre for Digital Humanities at the University of Lagos, Nigeria will make you an invaluable member of our CASET’s Advisory Board.’
‘As a Board member, you will play a crucial role in shaping CASET’s strategic direction, providing high-level support and guidance on stakeholder engagement strategies and knowledge dissemination efforts, helping to foster impactful collaborations and partnerships, and ensuring that the Centre’s initiatives align with the evolving needs of Africa’s social and economic landscape’, the letter stated about the expectations for the technocrat Ogunsan.
The higher institution, University of the West of England, United Kingdom also added the reason for appointing Dr. Ayo Ogunsan as Member of the Advisory Board of our Centre for African Social and Economic Transformation (CASET). They noted that they are guided by the University’s ethos of enterprise and collaboration, thus ‘the Centre is dedicated to empowering individuals and communities in Africa through strategic partnerships and transformative education and training programmes, research, evidence-based policymaking, social and cultural engagement geared towards finding practical solutions to regional social and economic challenges.’
‘We will be honoured to have you as part of our highly respected and esteemed group of experts and thought leaders.’
Midgley added that the Advisory Board convenes annually, with meetings held virtually and occasionally in person at the University of the West of England UK or in Africa where feasible.
He noted that Ogunsan’s insights and participation would be instrumental in helping CASET to achieve its mission of fostering transformative social and economic change through capacity building, research priorities, evidence-based policy and innovation.
The Registral said that Advisory Board Members were not employees of the University including CASET adding that his term as a board member would commence in June 2025 and run for a renewable period of three years on a non-remuneration basis.
“Renewal of board membership is subject to members’ continuing support, integrity and commitment to always being a good ambassador in advancing CASET’s mission.
“We will be honoured to have you as part of our highly respected and esteemed group of experts and thought leaders.
“We also appreciate your willingness to contribute to our mission and look forward to your valuable contribution to advancing CASET’s vision for transformative change in Africa,” he said in the letter.
It was gathered that Ogunasn is a prominent figure in the education sector, his expertise spans entrepreneurs hip, security management, and education, and he is widely acknowledged for his visionary leadership and unwavering commitment to excellence.
Source: Trek Africa
Robert Francis Prevost, the first pope from the United States, has a history of missionary work in Peru but also a keen grasp of the inner workings of the Church.
The new Leo XIV, a Chicago native, was entrusted by his predecessor Francis, to head the powerful Dicastery for Bishops, charged with advising the pontiff on new bishop appointments.
The sign of confidence from Francis speaks to Prevost’s commitment as a missionary in Peru to the “peripheries” – overlooked areas far from Rome prioritised by Francis – and his reputation as a bridge-builder and moderate within the Curia.
The 69-year-old Archbishop-Bishop emeritus of Chiclayo, Peru, was made a cardinal by Francis in 2023 after being named Prefect of the Dicastery, one of the Vatican’s most important departments — and a post that introduced him to all key players in the Church.
Vatican watchers had given Prevost the highest chances among the group of US cardinals of being pope, given his pastoral bent, global view and ability to navigate the central bureaucracy.
Italian newspaper, La Repubblica, called him “the least American of the Americans” for his soft-spoken touch.
His strong grounding in canon law has also been seen as reassuring to more conservative cardinals seeking a greater focus on Theology.
Following Francis’s death, Prevost said there was “still so much to do” in the work of the Church.
“We can’t stop, we can’t turn back. We have to see how the Holy Spirit wants the Church to be today and tomorrow, because today’s world, in which the Church lives, is not the same as the world of ten or 20 years ago,” he told Vatican News last month.
“The message is always the same: proclaim Jesus Christ, proclaim the Gospel, but the way to reach today’s people, young people, the poor, politicians, is different,” he said.
Born on September 14, 1955, in Chicago, Prevost attended a Minor Seminary of the Order of St Augustine in St Louis as a novice before graduating from Philadelphia’s Villanova University, an Augustinian institution, with a degree in Mathematics.
After receiving a masters degree in divinity from Chicago’s Catholic Theological Union in 1982, and a doctorate decree in canon law in Rome, the polyglot joined the Augustinians in Peru in 1985 for the first of his decade-long missions in that country.
Returning to Chicago in 1999, he was made provincial prior of the Augustinians in the US Midwest and later the prior general of the order throughout the world.
But he returned to Peru in 2014 when Francis appointed him as apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Chiclayo in the country’s north.
Nearly a decade later, Prevost’s appointment in 2023 as head of the Dicastery came after Canadian Cardinal Marc Ouellet was accused of sexually assaulting a woman and resigned for age reasons.
The Vatican later dropped the case against Ouellet for insufficient evidence.
Prevost also serves as president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America.
Ghana’s President John Dramani Mahama has celebrated Globacom Chairman, Dr. Mike Adenuga Jr., on his 72nd birthday. He joins President Bola Ahmed Tinubu who had on Tuesday released a statement celebrating the astute businessman.
The two leaders praised Dr. Adenuga for his remarkable contributions to the growth of both countries, their people and the economy.
President Mahama described the business icon’s life as an “illustrious example of vision, resistance and extraordinary performance”.
His Nigerian counterpart said Dr. Adenuga’s life and extraordinary achievements are evidence of the power of vision and resilience.
Congratulating Dr. Adenuga, President Mahama said, “he not only built enduring businesses but also contributed significantly to the socio-economic advancement of our continent.”
Similarly, President Tinubu said Adenuga’s humility and hard work allowed him to succeed in banking, communications, oil and gas. “Through determination and hard work, he built businesses that have created thousands of jobs for our people,” President Tinubu said.
According to the President, Globacom’s ingenuity in disrupting the billing template in the telecoms industry remains a point for which Nigerians are always grateful to Dr Adenuga for expanding telephony and digital access to millions of Nigerians.
The President noted that Conoil has become a proof that indigenous companies can compete with international oil companies to promote energy independence and the security of the country.
