By Nsan Ndoma-Neji, Calabar
All is now set, as the Akparabong Parish of the Ogoja Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church of Nigeria, PCN, honours 20 eminent personalities with award of honour for their selfless/ humanitarian service to humanity.
The Chairman.of the Anniversary Planning Committee, Elder Dr Henry Tiku Takon, stated this while answering questions from our correspondent, in company of the Secretary of the PCN 25th Anniversary Award/Planning Committee, the Very Rev. Breedvelt Bassey Awara, yesterday in Calabar.
Tiku averred that the award of honour to be bestowed on the eminent personalities would spur recipients of the award of honour to do more in the area of rendering selfless service to mankind.
He said, “In line with our tradition of giving recognition to men and women of proven integrity, who may have aided many to rise to their peak in their areas of human endeavours, the award of honour to be bestowed on the recipients is not because they got breakthroughs in their areas of human endeavours, or distinguished themselves in their areas of human endeavours, but because their names are associated with rendering selfless services to humanity.”
Those to be honoured at the anniversary include: a philanthropist, interventionist, renowned lawyer Barr. Tawo Eja Tawo, SAN, among several others.
Among the eminent personalities to be honoured posthumously is a veteran late politician, who was a one-time member of House of Representatives in 1954, and farmer, late Elder Prince R Nkim Takon, late astute leader and paramount ruler of former Ikom, Etung and Boki local government areas, LGAs, Minen Ojong Ndoma-Egba.
Other recipients of the posthumous award include: late Elder James Takim Ojong, first Elder Commissioner of Akparabong stock in the greater Ikom Presbyterian Church in the 1970s.
Tiku stated that the anniversary ceremony will be chaired by an Abuja-based legal practitioner, Barr Abang Odok, and will also be co-chaired by a reputable/versatile engineer, Chief (Dr) Amba Ndoma–Egba.
He added, “We are fully prepared to give posthumous award to some distinguished personalities, even though they are gone to live with their creator, their names are still written in the sand of time, given the track record they left behind.”
Giving an insight to the silver jubilee celebration, the Secretary of the Planning Committee maintained that activities for the anniversary celebration shall kick-off on Friday January 27, 2023, with prayers and fasting, symposia, health talk, raffle draw and end with a thanksgiving service at PCN church on Sunday.
Tiku commended the administrator in charge of the parish, Very Rev. Awara, for joining hands with other church stakeholders to drive the process, and assured the people of a successful anniversary celebration.
