SPEECH DELIVERED BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE NIGERIAN COUNCIL OF REGISTERED INSURANCE BROKERS, DR (MRS.) BOLA ONIGBOGI, FCIB AT THE SEPTEMBER 2021 EDITION OF NCRIB MEMBERS’ EVENING HELD ON WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2021 IN LAGOS
•Distinguished members of the NCRIB Governing Board
•The Managing Director and top management of Unitrust Insurance Company
•Our Guest Speaker
•All our guests
•Gentlemen of the Press
•Ladies and Gentlemen
It is my great privilege and honour to welcome you all to September 2021 edition of NCRIB Members’ Evening being hosted by Unitrust Insurance Company. Incidentally, today is the first day in the last quarter of the year 2021, so I wish to welcome you into a new month and wish you all the best in this last quarter of the year. This event provides me unique opportunity to express my gratitude, first of all, to God Almighty, and also to you all, my professional colleagues, for your staunch support since the commencement of my tenure, barely two years ago. In spite of the daunted challenges that we all faced, I am glad to inform you that the bar of progressive records of the Council had been elevated to such an enviable height.
I must put on records that the last two years has been eventful and challenging; bothering primarily on the global economy occasioned by the deadly Covid-19 pandemic. We went through it, but praise to God Almighty, we are here today to tell the story of how we scaled through.
I must express my appreciation for the confidence, support and cooperation that I enjoyed from you since my emergence as the second female and 20th President of the Council. May I appreciate members of the Management Committee, the Governing Board and all Registered Insurance Brokers under the aegis of the NCRIB.
At the wake of this administration, we took a strong position that the Council’s image needs to be projected to the lime light in such a way that no one should mistake our Profession to mean a Stock Broker. Although, I reckon that it could be better, and that the Council could be more efficient in terms of service delivery and value addition – this we pursued vigorously through various strategies that was deployed by the team.
The task of leading our Council and sustaining the finest legacies of professionalism and adherence to ethics envisaged by our founding fathers, has been rewarding; as with your support we have modestly turned some of the perceived obstacles to stepping stones for success. I am persuaded beyond reasonable doubts that the herculean tasks of ensuring that ours is an enviable profession has been sustained and in the finest tradition of the NCRIB’s structure, that image projection will continue unabatedly until everyone can identify with Insurance Brokers for all their Insurances.
Once again, I like to congratulate Mr. John ijerheime and his team from Unitrust Insurance Company for your success stories so far. I am assuring you that your profile and account would soar after this meeting. At the appropriate time, the Management team of Unitrust Insurance Company will be called upon to address this august gathering to apprise us with feats recorded by the company and areas where it needs our support as Brokers.
NATIONAL CONFERENCE AND ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
I am most delighted to inform you that preparation towards 2021 National Insurance Brokers Conference & Exhibition and the Annual General Meeting of our Council is on course. In our tradition, the Conference and the AGM would be held in this particular hall, T.A Braithwaite Event Hall. The Governing Board of our Council, at the meeting held earlier today, ratified Monday, October 18, 2021 for the Annual General Meeting and Wednesday, October 20, 2021 for the National Insurance Brokers Conference and Exhibition.
The Secretariat and the Events Organizing Committee are now dotting the I’s and crossing the T’s to ensure a very successful outing. Interestingly, the event will climax with the Investiture of the 21st President of the Council in the person of our diligent and brilliant current Deputy President, Barr. Rotimi Edu, mni. I believe that the in-coming President is seriously warming up to take our Council to greater heights. Investiture of Barr Edu will be held at Marriott Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos on Thursday October 21, 2021.
In my capacity, as the current President of the Council, I like to solicit your support for a successful investiture of Barr. Edu. In no distance time, the Secretariat will open the registration portal for the Conference. May I implore you all to register online to enable us make adequate preparation for all delegates. For emphasis, registration for 2021 Conference will strictly be online registration. I implore you to take advantage, as soon as the portal is opened.
2021 AIO CONFERENCE
It is no more news that the 47th Annual African Insurance Organisation Conference and General Assembly would be held in Lagos, Nigeria. The event is billed for September 4 – 8, 2021. I like to encourage distinguished members to take advantage of the proximity to attend the Conference. The highlight of the event will be the installation of Mr. Tope Smart, immediate past chairman of Nigerian Insurers Association (NIA) as the President of the Organisation.
STRATEGIC VISITATIONS AND CONFERMENT OF AMBASSADORIAL STATUS
In continuation with the actualization of our policy thrust and in view of the need to effectively collaborate with opinion moulders, the Council has continued to connect with strategic stakeholders. It will be recalled that the Council engaged the likes of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, the Osun State Governor, Alhaji Gboyega Oyetola, FCIB, the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja II, and conferred on them, the status of NCRIB Ambassadors. I am most pleased to state that the Council has further conferred the NCRIB Ambassadorial Status on another first class traditional ruler, Emir of Kano, Alhaji Aminu Ado Bayero. Through the visit to the Palace of the Emir and Kano major market, we used the opportunity to apprise audience of the importance of Insurance as well as sensitised them with the advantages derivable from utilizing insurance brokers for all their Insurance transactions.
INTELLECTUAL DEVELOPMENT AND MENTORSHIP
Realizing that the greatest asset that any regime or organisation could bequeath its professional members is to pay considerable attention to human capital development. This current administration vowed to pay significant attention to the promotion and growth of the Council’s members and younger insurance broking professionals through a well-articulated training and mentorship programmes. We deliberately designed trainings and activities that eventually exposed them to the nitty-gritty of insurance broking profession. The most recent of this was the maiden edition of NCRIB Non-CEOs Associate Empowerment Series. We will continue to doggedly pursue the desire to have members trained.
CONCULSION
No doubt, we recorded some modest level of success in the last two years of this administration, but not without a few challenges which we conquered with wisdom and understanding. However, we inculcated good attitude and morally sound responses to situations. We deployed technology innovatively within the uncontrollable constraints such as COVID-19 and ensured that we did all what was there to be done in the right order.
Distinguished colleagues, there is a saying that for everything that has a beginning surely must have an end as I like to place on record that this will be the last Members’ Evening that will be held under my watch as the President of the Council. It has been a very exciting moment serving you as President. I will also continue to relish the fond memories of your love, support and cooperation as I will soon join the proud seats of distinguished past Presidents of our noble Council.
May I also conclude by appreciating once again, Unitrust Insurance Company for opting to host this event which has reaffirmed the company’s position as a leading Insurance Brokers-friendly underwriter in Nigeria.
Thank you all and God bless.
Do have a splendid evening.
BOLA ONIGBOGI, FCIB
PRESIDENT AND CHAIRMAN, GOVERNING BOARD
