ACCEPTANCE SPEECH OF MR. EDWIN IGBITI ON THE OCCASION OF HIS INVESTITURE AS THE 51ST PRESIDENT OF THE CHARTERED INSURANCE INSTITUTE OF NIGERIA ON JULY 15TH 2022 HELD AT THE LAGOS CONTINENTAL HOTEL, VICTORIA ISLAND, LAGOS
PROTOCOLS
Today is indeed epochal and special for me. I give all glory to God Almighty for the gift of life and His grace to witness this day. God’s blessings and goodness have been abundant in my life and I cannot thank Him enough for His glory upon my life. To Him alone be all the glory, honour and adoration for ever and ever, Amen.
I am humbled and honoured to be invested as the 51st President of the Chartered Insurance Institute of Nigeria by the Governing Council. This is a great honour and expression of trust by the members of the Governing Council in particular and all the members of the Institute as a whole and I do not take this trust lightly. As I stand before you today, I want to assure you that I will serve the Institute to the best of my abilities and work to sustain the legacies of my predecessors and the aspirations of the founding Fathers of the Institute.
Distinguished members of the Governing Council, our esteemed Elders and Guests, your presence at this occasion is most appreciated and I am full of gratitude for this support and expression of love and trust.
I particularly wish to salute my predecessor Sir (Dr.) Muftau O. Oyegunle and other Past Presidents for the exemplary roles they played in the Institute, while I look forward to sharing in their experiences as I proceed on this audacious journey.
My heart is indeed full of gratitude because my sojourn through life has immensely been blessed by God who gave me men and women that played significant roles in bringing me to where I am today. I am forever indebted to my parents who laid the foundation for my success through their trainings, sacrifices, love and support for my dreams to be actualized. I cherish and value the foundation of hardwork, diligence and humility you inculcated in me.
My appreciation goes to Phoenix Insurance Company where I began my professional journey into the Insurance Industry as an Underwriting Trainee. However, my greatest gratitude goes to the Chairman of this Occasion – Chief (Dr.) Oladele Fajemirokun, who gave me the opportunity to work and serve in different capacities in AIICO Insurance Plc for several years, where I garnered valuable and outstanding managerial and strategic leadership skills.
Sir, I pray that God will continue to bless all that is yours and reward you abundantly (Amen). I equally acknowledge Niger Insurance Plc for the honour to serve. My sincere appreciation goes to everyone, who in one way or the other contributed to my successful career in the insurance industry. I say thank you all.
I understand the responsibilities this office confers on me especially, in an increasingly dynamic world, characterized by uncertainty and volatility as evidenced with the advent of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Consequently, we all must adapt and flow with the new order occasioned by the disruptions to our business and personal life leading to the fast digilisation that made the world global village where information and innovation travel at a rapid speed.
We, in the Insurance Industry and Institute, must continue to be at the frontiers of these technological innovations and trends in order to thrive and drive impact our endeavours and ventures. It is in this light that the theme and focus of my tenure will be BUILDING A SUSTAINABLE LEGACY.
The choice of the theme was borne out of the need for continuity to sustain and build on the works of Past Presidents of the Institute. This will guarantee that despite current global uncertainties, the Institute will continue to meet the needs and aspirations of its members. Against this backdrop, my Presidency is going to unlock the potential of this approach by focusing on a (3) three-point agenda as briefly outlined below:
- Digital Reinforcement of Institute’s Operations.
- Insurance Awareness for all – Grassroot, Youths and Insuring Public.
- Infrastructural Development.
- Digital Reinforcement of the Institute:
- Completion of the E-library project.
- Commencement of E-Examinations.
- Active Presence and Use of ALL Available Social Media Platforms.
- Insurance Awareness for all– Grassroot, Youths and Insuring Public:
- Positive Upscaling of the Quiz for Secondary Schools to National Limelight.
- Distribution of Insurance Textbooks to Secondary Schools and effective coordination of the train-the-trainer program for insurance secondary school teachers.
- Deepening and Consolidating Youth Empowerment and Mentorship Initiatives.
- Infrastructural Development:
- Renovating the Lagos Street Building to acceptable standards.
- Getting Necessary Approvals and Clearance from the Lagos State Government to Resume the Building of the Victoria Island Project.
- Significantly Increasing the building fund as would be agreed with the Building Committee.
Indeed, efforts have been made by my predecessors to revamp the digital operations of the Institute. However, we need to continuously upgrade and innovate our processes to deliver excellent customer experiences and members’ satisfaction.
My projection is that my tenure as President of the CIIN will facilitate the transformation of the CIIN Secretariat with the state-of-the-art facilities that would stimulate digital operations and processes, enhance excellent work culture which results in quality customer experiences in all our deliverables. Smart Technologies and digital solutions would be deployed to achieve this together with a viable business model.
Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, the recent developments in the world in general and in Nigeria in particular demands strong partnership to move the profession and the industry forward and this can only be successfully executed collectively. The Institute has many programmes in place aimed at creating insurance awreness and training members to be world class insurance professionals, but I cannot achieve the success on my own. Hence, I want to seize this opportunity to appeal to you for your support to help drive the Institute to lofty heights.
Ladies and Gentlemen, before I round off my speech, I would like to draw our attention to the socio-economic situation in our dear country, Nigeria. The need to curb the menace of insecurity and other crimes require that we collaborate with all tiers of government with the aim of re-emphasising the essence of insurance as the infrastructural pillar for the growth and development of country. Distinguished Professional Colleagues, I implore you to collaborate with me in this new dispensation as the task ahead calls for teamwork and effective collaboration.
I cannot end my speech without expressing my sincere gratitude to the Commissioner for Insurance, Mr. O. S. Thomas, all Past Presidents and other members of the Governing Council and my friends for their unwavering support.
My profuse thanks go to all the sponsors of my investiture ceremony. I am humbled by the magnitude of love and well-wishes from all of you, both corporate and individual. Your financial support is unprecedented, and I pray that God in His infinite mercies will shower you with unequalled blessings.
I wish to thank the Investiture Committee Chairman, Lady Isioma Chukwuma, Sub-Committees Chairmen, Members of the Sub-Committees, the Director-General, Mrs. Abimbola Tiamiyu, and everyone that contributed to the success of this ceremony.
My deepest appreciation goes to my family, my beautiful and ever supportive wife and children. You are part of the reasons why I am who I am today. Thank you for your perseverance, understanding and encouragement all through the years.
I thank the Gentlemen of the press who are well represented here for the good publicity given to today’s event as well as all industry programmes.
Finally, I thank you all for your attention and taking time off your very busy schedules to honour me and our great Institute at this investiture ceremony. Do enjoy the rest of the evening with us and may God bless you all.
- EDWIN IGBITI, FIIN
PRESIDENT/CHAIRMAN OF COUNCIL
CHARTERED INSURANCE INSTITUTE OF NIGERIA
