By Jide Ajani

Were Anyim not educated but  restricted to his rusty village of Ishiagu, Ivo Local Government Area, LGA, of Ebonyi State, he would have been a very good story under the  moonlight. With a voice which is at variance with his massive Sum ho-wrestler frame, Anyim’s attribute as a good story teller made it easy for him, as Senate President, to warm up to the rambunctious former President Olusegun Obasanjo; just as the same attribute endeared him to his colleagues in the Senate at a time a certain banana peel could create a domestic accident.

In the last three months starting from December 2012, that same attribute of story telling has seen Anyim, Nigeria’s Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF, hold a variety of audiences spell-bound.  His message:  Nigeria’s Centenary celebrations.
Explaining every detail in the Centenary Project Document, Anyim could just as well recite every sentence in the document.

In spite of his very tight schedule as SGF, the added responsibility of co-ordinating the centenary activities makes it very incumbent on him to deliver for a nation of 165million people.

Anyim, who turns 52 in 48hours, met with stakeholders across the socio-economic and political spectrum between December 2012 and January 2013, discussing, sensitising and explaining the broad objectives of the centenary celebrations.

In private and in public, Anyim insists that “the centenary celebrations is about you and I; about generations yet unborn, about our country Nigeria.  It is not about any individual or any government.  It is about this nation and what we can use this 100year-celebration to re-ignite”.

During the launch of the logo and torch penultimate Monday inside Aso Rock Presidential Villa, Anyim said the celebration is not only desirable but imperative because of the landmark the country has recorded in the last one hundred years since its amalgamation. According to the SGF the celebration should offer Nigerians and Nigeria an opportunity to rejuvenate and have faith in their country and its potentials. He said the ceremony would be used to replace pessimism with optimism to make the country rise above its challenges.

SGF, Senator Pius Anyim

Senator Anyim’s message was re-echoed by other dignitaries present at the ceremony.

According to former Head of State Yakubu Gowon who had the unique opportunity of presiding over the country during its most trying moments, “Nigeria is a unique nation, a nation of diverse, strong and hard working people” that has remained united despite the challenges that it had faced in the past and was still facing.

Anyim’s abiding faith, which is total dependence on God, is expected to see him through in the coming months even as some criticise government’s rationale for the celebrations.

His appointment as SGF, which was one of the very first by President Jonathan, was described as a right choice. Being a former Senate President during whose leadership a sense of stability was restored to that chamber of the National Assembly – after the internecine battle among senators from the south east zone – and one of the very first politicians to call the then Umaru Musa Yar’Adua cabal to order, demanding that power be handed over to Jonathan who was then in forced limbo, Anyim again earned incremental respect for himself – this, coming after a botched attempt to become national chairman of the PDP in 2008.

His office at the Shehu Shagari Complex near the National Assembly in the Three Arms’ Zone area of the Federal Capital City, FCT, Abuja, is a beehive of activities.

From ministers to directors-general and other heads of parastatals, Anyim is a permanently busy man.  He applies himself wholly to the task for the day which takes precedence over every other thing.  If you refer to him as a work addict, you may not be far from the truth.  After every Executive Council of the Federation, EXCOF, meeting, he does not necessarily return to the office immediately.

This is because as SGF, he sits in almost all meetings of the government; he is permitted the luxury of having representation made in just a few, very few instances.

For those who work with him, they say he makes up his mind easily, given that he thinks fast and can be pro-active in most cases.  He has energy.  For an individual who loves to swim, he should.  But there is something inescapably funny when you visualise an Anyim, with his massive frame, in the pool – but you do not expect him to attempt a spring-board dive.

Anyim enjoys a very cordial relationship with Mr. President who is said to have so much confidence in him and is convinced that he is loyal and committed to his success.

He has a wife and three kids and he is a shy person.

Anyim loves his village of Ishiagu; he goes home regularly when he has the time.
Can we, therefore, call him a village man?  May be!

With his massive frame and as he celebrates his 52nd birthday, Anyim’s main concern today is how to deliver a wonderful centenary celebrations that can serve as a precursor to greater things in Nigeria today and for centuries to come.

Senator (Dr.) Anyim Pius Anyim, GCON, is a devout Christian. His marriage to Chioma Blessing Anyim, also a lawyer, is blessed with a daughter and two sons. Anyim’s leisure interests are farming, meeting people, swimming, reading and community service.
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