The Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume; former President of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Dr Akinwumi Adesina; and 28 others have been listed for recognition as Nigeria’s heroes, according to the Daily Times of Nigeria (DTN).
The disclosure comes after the newspaper earlier announced a separate category featuring current and former presidents and other distinguished Nigerians, while the Times Heroes Award category focuses on individuals whose contributions to national development cut across public service, politics, business, entrepreneurship and other sectors.
Chairman of the DTN@100 Heroes Awards Council, Bolaji Okusaga, disclosed the names while speaking with journalists in Abuja yesterday, ahead of the award ceremony scheduled for Thursday.
Okusaga said about 30 Nigerians would be honoured in the first batch, with subsequent ceremonies expected to produce the remaining honourees under the centenary award cycle, which is expected to climax in June 2027.
He said about six to seven governors would be recognised alongside public servants, lawmakers, private-sector leaders, entrepreneurs and Nigerians whose activities have had national or global impact.
Akume, according to him, would be recognised for his public service career spanning several decades, including his tenure as governor of Benue State, his years in the Senate and his current position as SGF.
Adesina, a former President of the AfDB, is to receive the Global Impact Award and is expected to deliver the keynote address at the ceremony.
Okusaga said the selection process was not restricted to political office holders, explaining that nominees were subjected to a process involving nominations, engagement with candidates, and physical verification of claims about their achievements.
“Daily Times could not have done this because for you to be a news platform, you need news makers. So we are awarding news makers over the course of the last 100 years, with particular emphasis on the last 10 years, who have added to Nigeria as a nation,” he said.
He said nominees who did not make the first batch could still be considered in subsequent rounds, adding that the recognition would extend to the judiciary, legislature, security agencies, traditional institutions and other sectors.
Among those also listed for recognition is Senator Ahmed Wadada, while other Nigerians whose contributions have enriched the country are expected to feature in subsequent categories.
Beyond the awards, Okusaga said the 100 Nigerians eventually selected under the centenary programme would be documented in the Nigeria Grand Book, a historical record of the country’s development from 1914 through independence and the post-independence era.
Reflecting on the history of the newspaper, he said the Daily Times played a role in Nigeria’s independence struggle and subsequent national development, including its contribution to the establishment of the Nigerian Stock Exchange.
He also recalled the newspaper’s investment in education and its pioneering of the Evening Times, which provided more frequent news updates before the emergence of the internet and the current 24-hour news cycle.
Okusaga said the centenary also offered the newspaper an opportunity to examine how it could respond to changing patterns of news consumption and the evolving media environment.
The Daily Times, which began publication in 1926, is marking its 100th anniversary with a series of activities culminating in the DTN@100 Heroes Awards ceremony in Abuja.
