BY Idris Shehu
President Muhammadu Buhari has presented national honours to 447 Nigerians and friends of the country.
The 2022 National Honours Award Investiture took place at the International Conference Centre in Abuja on Tuesday.
The recipients were awarded the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON), Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (CFR) and Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON).
Some of the recipients present at the event are Jim Ovia, chairman of Zenith Bank; Herbert Wigwe, Access Bank CEO, and Mike Ozekhome, a senior advocate of Nigeria (SAN).
Others are Mele Kyari, managing director of Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited; Nduka Obaigbena, founder of ThisDay and Arise Media Group, and Samson Ayokunle, former chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN).
Abba Kyari, the former chief of staff to the president, received a posthumous CFR award which was presented to his daughter.
Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo and Ibrahim Gambari, the president’s chief of staff, were also present at the event.
Last weekend, in a leaked list seen by TheCable, a total of 437 persons were nominated by the federal government to receive national honours.
TheCable had reported that the leaked list was inundated with inconsistencies, errors, and the absence of notable names.
Former Senate President Bukola Saraki was missing from the list while Kayode Fayemi, governor of Ekiti, was nominated to be awarded commander of the order of the Niger (CON) — an honour he was bestowed by the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan.
Also, Bayo Ogunlesi, founder of Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), was erroneously described as the owner of Gatwick Airport.
Amid the controversy, TheCable reported that the federal government was set to release an amended list to correct the errors and other inconsistencies.
In the final list, 447 persons were nominated while Fayemi was excluded and Saraki was still left out.
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