A Vanguard Night Of Celebration, Entertainment & Fun

It is not very often you have such a galaxy of eminent Nigerians under one roof.
  
But courtesy of the Vanguard Personality Of The Year Awards, a roll call of some of Nigeria’s finest personalities, the crème de la crème of society and indeed Nigerians of all walks of life, were on hand to play their part in the history making process of celebrating in a special way a select breed of what Vanguard aptly called The Torchbearers, eleven men and a woman acknowledged as shining lights in the evolving Nigerian project.
Together they made the highly publicised event an unforgettable night of celebration and entertainment. To say the occasion lived up to its envisaged billing will certainly be an understatement. Reason being that it was a colourful extravaganza of personality celebration, cultural and musical entertainment that was at once all fulfilling and intoxicating, leaving all present feeling a bit heady at the end of it all. From the opening sessions of introductions and acknowledgments to speeches, musical and other performance interludes, captive audience had more than enough to cheer and engage its attention.

 Indeed there was no dull moment as each session of the entire programme spoke volumes of the palpable excitement engendered. It all began with the Sharp Band which set the stage for what to expect by reeling out soulful songs and evergreen hits that easily conjured nostalgic feelings. Many in the audience enthusiastically sang along while the performances lasted. The cultural performances also did not fail to elicit appreciative applauses from the audience. Of particular note was an all women cultural group that came at the instance of High Chief John Nwosu, the Eze Ndigbo of Mushin, Lagos, aka Obieziokwu 1 of Mushin. 

They came to identify with and celebrate one of The Torchbearers, Dr Alex Ekwueme, Second Republic Vice President of Nigeria. Clad in befitting traditional attires, the women led by Ndidi Acholonu drummed, sang and danced enthusiastically in honour of a man they loudly chorused deserved to be celebrated. Their singing and dancing intensified when Ekwueme was called out to receive his award. Another cultural troupe from the Northern part of the country also took its turn to thrill the gathering with its performance. This it did with great aplomb. Several other musical performances followed in intermittent sequence. Mention must also be made of one of the comperes, Helen Paul aka Tatafo who was at her funny, comical best in entertaining the audience with her rib-cracking jokes. Perhaps she was only outdone in this regard by ace stand up comedian, Kofi, whose repertoire of jokes sent the audience into sustained laughter. The audience reciprocated with long-drawn applause. Even some of the award recipients also demonstrated their comical talents. Of particular mention are the Comrade Governor of Edo State, Adams Oshiomhole, Ogun State governor, Ibikunle Amosun, and Zenith Bank Chairman, Jim Ovia. Former Ogun State governor, Chief Segun Osoba and his bosom friend and Vanguard Publisher, Sam Amuka, also treated the audience with a measure of wisecracks and jokes when called up upon to present awards.