The payoff line made famous during this period in America was ‘Be like Mike’. We all wanted to be like Mike even if our chosen sports or means of exercise was limited to a game of chequers on a lazy Sunday afternoon.
There is never a prize for dreaming big but there is always something to be said for those who achieve such dreams.
Michael Niyi Adenuga jnr is fast becoming an enigma in today’s Nigeria. With the unique silence of a raging bull he develops a Teflon-coated outer skin while he creeps into our homes like a thief in the night.
When we consider a truly Nigerian brand, without the trimmings of association with a known foreign brand, without the obvious visibility of a looming bigger company behind it, a brand established from careful thought and positioned to compete, there are few in Nigeria that can stand on their own.
Globacom and the GLO brand stands out and sometimes all on its own.
Today, six years after launch, Globacom introduces the world’s first underwater optic fibre cable that has been solely built by one company rather than a consortium. 10,000 kilometers all under water, providing the opportunity for great advancement in technology and telecommunications for the country in the main and much of West Africa too.
To the ordinary man on the streets, this may mean nothing. To purveyors, professionals and aficionados of technology and telecommunications, this is quite some achievement.
The Bull, Otunba, Dr., the Don, Bel Air, the Guru or any other name Mike Adenuga jnr has been called, quietly rages on and on. I think he should be renamed the Energizer Bunny.
So what is the trouble with Mike?
Mike Adenuga jnr failed to make the Forbes List as a Nigerian or even African.
Mike Adenuga jnr failed woefully to make the list of Nigeria’s 200 biggest debtors.
Most importantly, Mike Adenuga jnr failed to grab the headlines of Nigerian newspapers with the arrival of GLO 1.
This is a country where the negative record-breakers consistently grab our attention while the positive achievers and achievements take a back seat. This is indicative of the psyche of the country and her people.
While there is a stampede by elephants for infamy, other Nigerians like Mike, silently move the nation forward without the accompaniment of the Horns Section of the Heavens.
Who really cares about this step forward in telecommunications? We are probably more interested in how many baths Cecilia Ibru has had since her frolicking with the EFCC and her fellow campers.
I am sure Mike Adenuga jnr has his own personal problems and who hasn’t? Afterall, when the Hunters came calling, the Bull went scampering over the fence and like a ghost in the night, shooo! He was gone! Right now, in business, I would rather have his own issues than mine.
The question is, have we become so battered emotionally that, when achievements that may positively impact millions of Nigerians do take place, we fail to notice or acknowledge such?
Otherwise, has the level of understanding borne out of education and enlightenment dropped so low that progressive achievements are not noticeable or even understood?
Competitors in the telecommunications industry understand quite alright. Globacom is about to corner the largest and fastest growing telecommunications market in the world. If added to this is the crumpled but still useful prize of NITEL, the future of the industry speaks for itself.
Mike Adenuga jnr is about to supplant himself in every household, office and commercial building in Nigeria as Dangote has done with commodities. If you cannot live without a medium of communications plugged somewhere near you, then take a closer look, Mike Adenuga jnr will be there.
The various arguments have been made before. The source of Mike Adenuga’s startup support remains an issue based on conjecture. Quite irrelevant, if you ask me. There have been many more who had the same opportunities and made nothing of them. That in itself makes easy pickings of any counter-arguments.
We have had many years of governance in the Science and Technology and Telecommunications sphere. Huge budgets and plans yet to be executed 40-something years down the line.
The truth is, what Globacom and Mike Adenuga jnr have done is not rocket science. It is a blueprint which exists elsewhere and has been adapted and modified to suit our country. Who asked for the re-invention of the wheel? In this instance copying and modifying does not amount to exam malpractice.
The trouble with Nigeria’s vast number of Mike Adenugas is that they will not put themselves forward to lead the country. They are probably hampered by the notion that leadership is not designed for Nigerians of ability, knowledge and good intentions.
Give me 50 Mike Adenugas of any tribe, sex, religion, state and areas of expertise, add 15 years of commitment to high standards and success in a modified and accountable system. What do you think would emerge?
30 years ago the United Arab Emirates UAE did not exist but for a few camel-racing nomads. 20 years ago Dubai had only one modern building sitting mindlessly in the Arabian desert.
In a country of 150 million, there are many silent raging bulls. Who will step up to the plate? The beast in the meantime is outgrowing the cage and her people are afraid she might become a failed state.
For me Globacon is one of the Best of Nigeria given all considerations. Little surprise that Mike Adenuga jnr comes from a state of the federation that recorded numerous ‘firsts’ in Nigeria.
It will fascinating to see how the industry changes, with trembling competitors and a price war that will benefit the consumer ultimately.
I don’t know what Mike Adenuga jnr drinks for breakfast, or if indeed he has breakfast, but if he cares to share it and if I am to have another son, the chorus in my house shall be ‘Be like Mike’. Big fat ifs to all of that.
What do you think
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