THE birthday of any living being is usually significant as it is a day that marks  the birth of such individual who in turn spiritually give thanks to his or her creator for being alive to witness another year added to his or her years. On the other hand,  the day is also used to reflect on activities and achievements of such a person.

That is the case of a young and very amiable gentleman, a lawyer and a  politician  who today by the special grace of Almighty God is the special  adviser to the Governor of Delta State, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, on legal matters. This unassuming patriot, a Christian of the Catholic faith and who is humble to a fault, is Andrew Osernedua Odum.

As he clocked forty years recently, there is no doubt that Odum  has carved a niche for himself not only in the law profession but in other areas of human endeavours.

His profound interpretation of the law, commitment to duty and the overall zeal to ensure success in spite of all odds, has singled out this great son of Onicha-Ugbo in Aniocha North Local Government Area of Delta State as an icon of repute. Odum in his continued zeal to take his immediate community to stardom politically contested election through the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and won with landslide victory to emerge as Councillor representing Ward Two of Aniocha North Local Government Council Area.

During the period, his creativity and outstanding performance at the council went a long way in attracting meaningful socio-economic development to the entire ward and beyond. A distinguished personality, Odum’s pronouncements centre on transparency both at government and in the cultivation of a competitive process in public procurement.

His apostolic zeal at the delivery of the law both in private practice as a one time chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association Asaba  Branch or as Secretary, Transition Committee of Aniocha North Local Government Council and now in government, lifts him to the level of an economic missionary and one that is concerned about a societal progress which is only achievable through openness.

At  age  40,  Barr. A.O. Odum, as he is often addressed among his  colleagues, is not necessarily the regular Nigerian. He may not also qualify as the irregular; maybe the unusual Nigerian will be a better description. The regular Nigerian is the one interested in sustaining the age-old perception of the citizen as being representative of all things bad.

Many of these border on how one man can circumvent the rule to cheat on the other. It borders on the so-called smartness which drives one to exceed the point where the right of others should start. They concern corruption, nepotism, greed, avarice and prebendal profiteering.

For the likes of Odum, those things add no value to life and its contents.  A close look and investigation carried out by this writer on the person of Odum revealed without reservation that he has always raised qualitative points in his drives not just to fulfill a passion, but to belong to good side of history as the ultimate judge of men.

A one-time legal adviser to his party, the PDP, in Aniocha North Local Government Area,  in the opinion of this writer, he is one Nigerian who has brought his vocation to bear on his calling to serve his father land.

From a humble beginning, Andrew Odum started his primary education at the Aniemeke Primary School ,Onicha-Ugbo, secondary at the St. Pius Grammar School also in Onicha-Ugbo and the University of Nigeria Nsukka, UNN, where he graduated LL.B (Hons), BL (Nigeria Law School)  and obtained his LLM degree(University of Benin, Uniben) and rose to become member, General Council of Bar; member, planning committee(Bar leaders summit on the future of the MBA); member, Institute of Chartered Mediators and Conciliators (Nigeria); member International Bar Association, IBA; member, project steering committee on the establishment of the Delta State Multi-Door Court; member, Koko Free Trade Zone Programme Board, among other achievements.

This feat coupled with his exemplary character and unassuming posture has continued to yield positive results as Odum, in spite of his accumulated busy schedule, takes time off to harp on the need for youths to engage in meaningful ventures to better themselves and their immediate environment.

Odum, who is married to his beautiful wife Felicia Ngozi and blessed with four lovely children, has as his hobby singing, teaching and as a choir master, he conducts sacred music.

As he attains this age of 40, this writer joins his parents, sisters/brothers, relations, friends and well-wishers and, of course, political associates and legal colleagues in wishing him many happy, healthy and fruitful years ahead.

Mr. EMMA FEJOKWU, a  media analyst, wrote from Asaba , Delta State.