President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has described outgoing Nigerian Ambassador Her Excellency Chief Chigozie F. Obi-Nnadozie as an ‘Astute Diplomat and Daughter of Africa’ for her exceptional work during her tour of duty in the country.

“We have gathered to bid farewell to an astute diplomat and a daughter of Africa, Her Excellency Madam Chigozie F. Obi-Nnadozie, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Federal Republic of Nigeria who ends her tour of duty which has imparted in a most positive manner relations between Liberia and Nigeria,” she stressed.  

According to an Executive Mansion release, the Liberian Chief Executive made the remarks at a Farwell Reception and Investiture Ceremony hosted in honor of Outgoing Nigerian Ambassador, Chief Chigozie F. Obi-Nnadozie by the Liberian government at the C. Cecil Dennis, Jr. Auditorium on Thursday, January 14, 2016.

As Grand Master of the Order of Distinction, President Sirleaf admitted the outgoing Nigerian Ambassador to Liberia into the Order of the Star of Africa with the Grade if Commander.

Earlier, Ambassador Obi-Nnadozie was gowned and named Paramount Chief Lango Lappaye for her outstanding contribution during her tour of duty in the Liberia. Performing the gowning ceremony, Acting Minister of Internal Affairs, Stephen Neufville, praised the outgoing Nigerian Ambassador for her many contributions to Liberia. 

President Sirleaf said Liberia remains grateful to her for tackling the excellent bilateral tasks and trade cooperation between the two countries and for the role Nigeria played in the fight against the deadly Ebola virus disease in Liberia. She thanked the Ambassador Obi-Nnadozie and the people of Nigeria for their demonstration of brotherly African solidarity extended to Liberia.

Speaking about some of Ambassador Obi-Nnadozie’s achievements during her tenure, the Liberian leader highlighted the long-standing friendly ties between the two countries which have enabled successful technical and economic cooperation in the areas of mining, geology agriculture, education, health and mobilizing resources, among others – all geared towards enhancing and accelerating Liberia’s recovery process.

President Sirleaf also pointed to Nigeria’s assistance in providing US$2 million and the deployment of 200 medical practitioners to help combat the deadly Ebola virus disease, the training of Liberian Foreign Service diplomats as well as education efforts which have made an impact in human capacity building for Liberia.

She also indicated that she was very pleased with Chief Ambassador Obi-Ndnadozie for her support which witness an exciting period of growth and development through increase technical and economic cooperation. 

The Liberian leader hoped that the outgoing Nigerian Ambassador take with her warm memories of her time in Liberia, the challenges the country overcame, and the progress both countries made together. “Carry with you the good wishes of the Government and people of Liberia,” she said.

For her part, Ambassador Obi-Ndnadozie said she was delighted over the warm reception and cooperation as well as hospitality accorded her by President Sirleaf, the Government and people of Liberia over the past three and half years of duty here.

She pointed out the generosity of the Liberian national spirit that is also manifested in its endowments as a historically strong vanguard Africanist force, which are eloquently personified in no less a persona than President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf.

She said the relationship between the two countries defies traditional or conventional institutional definitions stressing their essences cannot be measured in two dimensional appreciations such as in terms of trade or political interactions as traditional observers are wont to do adding, “In my sojourn here, I have discovered the very deep roots of our filial affinities that go back to even the early decades of Liberia’s emergence as a sovereign State,” the outgoing Nigerian Ambassador stressed.

Chief Ndnadozie furthered that the early appreciation of this concrete reality has been the axiomatic underpinning of her conduct, both in formal circumstances and also in less formal situations.

She however noted that this has meant that the umbilical cord that ties Liberia and Nigeria together as a people could not and should not be expressed in mere statistics; but pointed out that the outcome has been the often spontaneous flurry of consultations on burning bilateral, sub-regional and continental issues between Villa and the Executive Mansion.

The ceremony was graced by Vice President Joseph N. Boakai, Chief Justice Francis Korpor and senior government officials as well as members of the diplomatic corps, amongst others.