Your Excellencies, my Lord spiritual and temporal. On behalf of myself and the entire members of the Board of Trustees, Hallmarks of Labour Foundation, it is with a sense of mission that I welcome you warmly to our special twin celebrations – the 17th Anniversary of the Foundation and the conferment of Role Model Awards to deserving Great Nigerians.
With other protocols duly observed, we are grateful to His Excellency, Chief Eleazer Chukwuemeka Anyaoku, GCVO, CON, HLR our Special Guest of Honour and Professor Mrs. Grace Alele Williams our Chairman of this special occasion, both of them are distinguished Nigerian and worthy Role Model of Hallmarks of Labour Foundation.  We also appreciate the esteemed presence of you, our guests and award winners, without whom there would be no celebration. Thank you for honouring our invitation
to rejoice with us.

Set up in 1996 with a mission to change the mind-set of Nigerians and awaken in us the spirit of nationalism and hard work, the Foundation strongly advocates that success through positive efforts is most fulfilling and rewarding. The project, Hallmarks of Labour has indeed come a long way these past 17 years, with exemplary achievements in its wake. Being well aware of the extremely short life-spans of several NGOs in our society, it is noteworthy that this Foundation is steadily heading for its second decade of active involvement in societal development.

The Foundation’s journey has also been greatly facilitated by the unwavering commitment and concrete support of our partners:  Mobil Producing Nigeria, Northwest Oil & Gas Limited, and Mahogany Limited.
You are great partners.

As we congratulate our award winners for their deserved honours, it is pertinent to inform you that the various categories went through the mill of due process – from the nominations through the screenings to the final selections. Presenting them to you today is without reservations, and in the established tradition of Hallmarks of Labour Role Model Awards.

As we commence this historic programme, we wish you a memorable experience.
God bless you.