(i) IGBINEDION IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR

Gabriel Osawaru Igbinedion resigned from the Nigeria Police Force in 1963. This decision might have been motivated by a number of factors, the first of which had to do with the poor pay in the Force that could no longer sustain him and his family. Moreover, service in the Nigeria Police Force did not quite satisfy the enthusiasm of the young Igbinedion. There were few serious challenges and the decision-taking process was such that initiatives from the lower ranks were hardly entertained. For any ambitious young man, and in this case for young Igbinedion with a mission, the Nigeria Police Force did not seem quite the right place. Additionally, his marriage to Miss Kiernan appeared to have influenced his decision in that it introduced fresh challenges and opportunities into his life. He had to quit, and his marriage of 1962 facilitated the decision of 1963.

(ii) THE LEVENTIS MOTORS COMPANY LIMITED

Osawaru Igbinedion's first port of call in the private sector was the Leventis Motors Company, where he was appointed Sales Representative for the distribution of Mercedes Benz cars and lorries. He worked hard and excelled in his new job resulting in his being asked to organise and operate the company's area sales office of the newly created Mid-west Region early in 1964. Back to Benin City his home base, Igbinedion utilised to advantage, his understanding of the area bringing the new branch into prominence in less than two years. He operated the sales department of the company from the sitting room of his house on Exemption Avenue in Oliha Quarters of Benin City; from where he moved to hired quarters on Ikpoba Slope in 1965. By 1966, Leventis Motors took the leadership from Armels Transport Company Limited, as the principal distributors of Mercedez Benz cars and lorries in the then Mid-west state and Osawaru Igbinedion had been promoted the Sales Manager.

A former classmate of his at the Benin Baptist School who has remained a close associate till date disclosed in an interview that "one of Mr. Igbinedion's sales strategies was to convince a customer to buy, or in most cases persuade a customer to purchase, a Leventis product even when such a customer was not quite ready for it. At the end the customer, not wanting to let himself down, would be forced to pay and by so doing add one more feather to the Sales Manager's business cap". Another strategy of his was to encourage the Government to buy Mercedes cars and lorries for its functionaries. This led to increase in sales. These strategies helped to promote the activities of the Leventis Company and project Mr. Igbinedion as an astute businessman, as well as to challenge top management staff of the company to greater productivity. On the other hand, the rise and successes of Igbinedion within a short time in the establishment was seen as a threat to some of the senior staff. It was at this point that Igbinedion, having identified his entrepreneurial ability, decided to end the foreign monopoly in the Nigerian motor industry by pioneering an indigenous motor company. The final break came in 1968.

(iii) MID-MOTORS NIGERIA LIMITED

The year 1968 marked a significant turning point in the business endeavours of Mr. Igbinedion. On leaving Leventis Motors Company Limited, he established his own Motor distribution outfit, Mid-Motors (Nigeria) Limited which was the first indigenous motor company in the country. The Mid-Motors company formed the foundation stone of Igbinedion's business empire, the Okada Group of Companies which today comprises several business ventures including aviation, shipping, banking, education, soft drink manufacturing, hospital and medical research, agriculture, holiday resort development, radio and TV communi­cations and oil exploration. It will take several books to cover effectively each of the business ventures; as each in its own right is a large enterprise. Some references to the prominent ones will suffice for a biography of this nature.

The same year, 1968, the first indigenous motor distribution company in Nigeria, the Mid-Motors Nigeria Company Limited began to market Japanese built Hino vehicles and Polish manufactured Nedion Fiat cars in the country. The business deal was preceded by an agreement between the Mid-Motors Company and the Japanese Hino Motor Factory of Tokyo, giving Mid-Motors the sole distribution rights in Nigeria. From motor vehicle distribution, Mr. Igbinedion went into vehicle assembly. In June 1972, Mid-Motors commissioned a £3 million (three million pounds) assembly plant with a capacity to assemble 16 Hino trucks weekly, and within six months it assembled some 400 trucks and tipper lorries. The company which started with an initial investment capital of £2,500 (two thousand, five hundred pounds) in November 1968 had by June 1971 a share capital of £1.3 million.

The Managing Director of the new company, Mr. Igbinedion, made it a point of duty to send his employees annually on six month attachment training with the Hino Company Tokyo, Japan, in order to sustain a good crop of trained personnel for the new company. Moreover, as part of his business tactics, Mr. Igbinedion seized every available opportunity to advertise the products of his company to the public. He took delight in organising motor exhibitions for businessmen and other likely consumers of Hino vehicles. Participants at the 13th annual conference of the Association of West African Surgeons in Benin City in 1973 were beneficiaries of such exhibition.

Mr. Igbinedion used the opportunity to acquaint the delegates from

Chief Salubi, Midwest State Commissioner for Works and Transport about to cut the tape to declare the Mid-Motors (Nig.) Ltd. workshop open. Second from right are Mr and Mrs Gabriel Igbinedion, Managing Director of Mid-Motors and invitees, who attended the official opening. Also present were the children of the Managing Director, Peter and Okunozee

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:: BUSINESS AT A GLANCE

CONCLUSION

This website has attempted to unfold Chief Osawaru Igbinedion from the cradle to manhood and from a humble beginning to a position of enermous affluence...READ ON