National Wire About Nigerians, Nigerian Business and Other Stories
Excellence, it has been said, is not a single act, but a habit. For some people who epitomize excellence – at least in the eyes of their fellow men and women – it is a habit that has been cultivated over the course of many years, even a lifetime. Elder Anthony Okafor Obiajulu is one of such people.
At age 74, it can be said that the successes and triumphs that have attended his illustrious life-journey and his endeavours till date were not the products of a sudden flight or a single masterstroke, but that of a lifetime of diligent effort and a steady progression upon the ladder of success and greatness. His is a life of courage and single-minded determination in the face of overwhelming odds, a commitment to best practices and an unswerving faith in the providence of a wise, loving and faithful God.
Born without the proverbial silver spoon, the young Anthony made his dogged way to the pinnacle of the destiny he knew his potentials and capacity for hard work entitled him to, in a manner that now serves as an inspiration to others – especially the coming generations.
It is a life that began on the 12th of December 1948, when a baby boy was born into the family of Mr. Mathias Obiajulu and Mrs. Janet Obiajulu, who hailed from the community of Anam in Anambra State of Nigeria. Anthony was the fourth child of his parents. His early education began at the Saint Gregory’s Primary School in his hometown, Anam and ended at the Saint Kelvin Primary School in the community of Nza Ozubulu in Ekwusigo LGA of Anambra State. At the time, primary school usually culminated in what was then known as Standard 6.
Standard 6 effectively marked the end of formal education for young Anthony Obiajulu. But it began a lifetime of entrepreneurship, starting from his apprenticeship in the city of Aba, in what is today’s Abia State, to which he traveled in 1965. This was during the period of economic recovery in the aftermath of the Nigerian Civil War. While there he was attached to a spare parts store.
Obiajulu’s stay in Aba was however, short-lived as he returned to Nza Ozubulu in 1967, to begin a business in palm produce, which he oabtained from the Ada Palm Estate, and sold in retail. He also put the lessons of his apprenticeship in spare parts to good use, as he sourced spare parts from around various neighborhoods in Ozubulu and Nnobi for sale in Onitsha. These enterprises were in addition to his activities in farming, fishing and hunting before, during and after the civil war.
Never one to rest in his oars, Elder Obiajulu’s restless entrepreneurial spirit constantly sought new outlets for its full expression. After a 3-month stint in the transport business in which he plied the Onitsha to Lagos route, he returned to Anam to take up rice farming – but this time with the aim of raising capital for a more robust venture in the motor spare parts business. In the space of one year, he was back in Onitsha, armed with some capital and a fierce determination to make a go of it once again. Unfortunately, however, it was soon apparent to him that he had grossly underestimated the capital intensive nature of the spare parts business; the venture soon failed.
Anthony Obiajulu’s next port of call was Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial nerve-centre, to which where he journeyed in 1973 in search of greener pastures after the less than satisfactory outcomes of his previous ventures.
His break eventually came when he started a motor spare parts business which he registered two years after his arrival in Lagos, under the name TONY BROS. Ten years later, he changed the company’s name to A. O. OBIAJULU & SONS LIMITED.
Thanks to Elder Obiajulu’s entrepreneurial acumen, his strong work ethic and his knowledge of the spare parts business, A. O. Obiajulu & Sons grew into a household name, both locally and internationally in the procurement and sale of spare parts for heavy duty vehicles and trucks, as well as construction equipment, among others.
Not satisfied with merely procuring and selling these items, the company later stepped up its value chain with the fabrication and sale of various equipment from 1989 onwards, to which it added the fabrication and sale of truck parts such as tipper buckets – while still importing and selling caterpillar and other heavy-duty equipment. The company later invested in Chinese trucks and trailer bodies with the steady expansion of its portfolio.
But even as he established his indelible footprints in the spare parts and mechanical equipment business, Elder Anthony Okafor Obiajulu never lost right of his passion for farming. On the contrary, his newfound success and growing affluence gave him the freedom to embrace this passion to the fullest – but this time, instead of retreating to the obscurity of his hometown, he located his farming in Lagos, his base, as well as in neighbouring Ogun State.
Having proved his mettle in business by dint of hard work, iron discipline, a refusal to be daunted by challenges and setbacks, and an eye for opportunities, it came time for Obiajulu (or Elder, as he is fondly called by his admirers) to take a step away from the hurly-burly and the adventure of business and begin to savour the rest of his life journey on the slow lane.
A longstanding member of the Ozubulu Christian Fellowship in Lagos, the septuagenarian is now using his retirement to re-engage fully with his social and spiritual essence. Thanks to his renewed commitment, and to the lessons he had learnt from his business ventures, he is well placed to impart valuable life lessons to young people within his sphere of influence – in both spirituality and business entrepreneurship. He holds regular counseling and mentorship sessions with a wide cross section of youths in his church and beyond.
An active player in the affairs of his family, his community and his church, Elder Anthony Obiajulu was chosen as Chairman of the Nza Family Association while in his early 30s and went on to serve for a total of 14 years – a testimony to his mettle and the trust his people placed in him. Other positions which he served in were Vice-Chairman, and then Chairman, of the Lagos Branch of the Family Association for over six years. His profile was further boosted when he became the Chairman of the Ozubulu Development Union (ODU) during which period his administration was able to acquire a piece of land for the construction of the Ozubulu Civic Centre in Lagos – a building which stands today as a proud monument to tenacity, a sense of purpose and commitment to the general good.
No wonder, then, that at the end of his stewardship as Chairman of both the Nza Family Association and the Ozubulu Development Union, his grateful kinsmen and compatriots voted to name Elder Anthony Okafor Obiajulu THE BEST SERVED CHAIRMAN. It is a thoroughly well-deserved honour.
His fidelity to the Body of Christ is no less remarkable, nor is his labour in the Lord’s vineyard any less involving. From the beginning of his immersion in the things of God back in 1993, Elder Anthony Okafor Obiajulu has embarked on a spiritual journey in association with a number of Christian organisations – an odyssey that has now culminated in his present engagement with the Deeper Life Bible Church, where he now worships and serves his Creator and his community of brethren and fellow-believers.
A widower, Elder Obiajulu was married to Mrs. Ifeoma A. Glad Obiajulu (of blessed and beloved memory) with whom he had six children and a host of grandchildren.
*Story by Folake Sokoya
