Nigerian corporate leaders showered tributes on the founder of the defunct Diamond Bank, Dr. Paschal Gabriel Dozie (PGD) as they remembered his lifetime as one dedicated to service to humanity and country in undiluted integrity and humility.
Speaking virtually at the “Night of Tributes” in honour of late Dozie, the Director General of World Trade Organisation (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, said that Dozie would be remembered for his genius in starting an enduring financial institution, Diamond Bank, that made his name.
Okonjo-Iweala said: “He was a quietly persistent character and I think that everyone will remember him for that. He spoke passionately about events and spoke out in the way that matters to him about the way our country is run. “I will remember him very fondly. We will remember him forever in our hearts. May his soul rest in peace!”
Speaking in the same vein, the Chairman of MTN Nigeria, Dr. Ernest Ndukwe, said that Dozie was a seasoned economist, an accomplished banker and the founding chairman at MTN Nigeria.
Ndukwe said that Dozie dared to imagine the mobile revolution and digital transformation of our nation.
He said: “Where others hesitated, he moved on with conviction to be counted as one of those that made that dream a reality. Where others saw risks, he saw significant opportunity. Indeed, Dr. Dozie was a quite visionary. He was never the loudest voice in the room. He didn’t chase the spotlights but when he spoke we listened because behind every word muttered was depth, insight and a lifetime of wisdom.
“He was a man of integrity especially in a world where shortcuts often tempt the bold. Paschal never compromised.”
The Chairman of Access Holdings, Mr. Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, said that Dozie was a very modest man that said to him “just call me Paschal” in his first meeting with him.
According to Imoukhuede, Dozie chose Diamond because he wanted all to sparkle and made millions to sparkle, adding that he was “the quintessential branding expert and the quintessential communication guru.
“In many aspect of my life I have taken a cue in the things Dozie chose to do,” adding that “progressive growth and development of a nation and people are done when you have shoulders of giants to stand on.”
In his tribute, the Chairman of Geometric Power Limited, Professor Bart Nnaji, recalled that his first meeting with Dozie was in the early 1990s when they members of the Vision 2010 that was set up to provide a strategic direction for Nigeria to become a higher medium income nation by 2010.
Nnaji, a former Minister of Power, said that although some credible sources attributed to Dozie the idea of Vision 2010 but noted that Dozie never took the credit. “He was self-effacing. He was a rare and unassuming being who the Almighty God has used to touch multiple across the globe and changed development history of our dear nation positively.”
The Managing Director of Nigeria Exchange Group, Mr. Temi Popola, eulogized Dozie’s life as one that was very purposely lived.
“He was a builder of institutions. He was a pioneer. He was someone who envisioned a better future for generations yet unborn. He reminded me severally that leadership without services is hollow and success without integrity is ultimately failure,” he said.
The Vice Chancellor of Pan Atlantic University (PAU), Professor Enase Okenedo, said that Dozie’s life was characterized by selfless services, especially to the LBS and the PAU.
Okenedo said; “Service at the LBS and the university was really service. At PAU it is unpaid service. For Dozie to dedicate over 25 years of his life in service to the LBS and the university was no mean fit, bringing to bear the very best of corporate governance.
“His life really was a legacy of service and he really believed that service was not drawn from place of power but from the place of humility,” she said.
