Chukwudozie: A Salute to Dexterity and Humility

Chukwudozie: A Salute to Dexterity and Humility

- By Ingram Osigwe

As pregnancy is insuppressible so is a good man; his good works, his kind and large heart. This assertion finds meaning in Chief (Sir) Daniel Chukwudozie's life trajectory. This shrewd industrialist wears no air and exudes non; he is as simple as air itself. He exudes a calm ambience that belies his war chest, yet the more he tries to remain unassuming by avoiding the spotlight, the more his selfless service to humanity and God; his kind and golden heart lay him bare and drag him to the public arena for recognition.

This way, avalanche of unsolicited awards and honours from individuals, corporate organizations, religious bodies and academic institutions have come his way. Last year for example, the University of Calabar singled him out for honour in recognition of his strides in the corporate world and contribution to the economic growth of the country. The citadel of learning had conferred on him an Honorary Doctorate Degree.

This year, Nigeria’s premier indigenous University, the University of Nigeria, Nsukka(UNN), had no problem spotting the gold fish in its hiding place. Yes, Chukwudozie is a gold fish, and a big one for that matter. And just as he could not hide from UNICAL, he was an easy prey for UNN. The University is saying, hey, this man, our cap fits on your head and you must wear it as a mark of honour and recognition of your tireless effort to uplift your country and fellow countrymen.

Hence, come December 1st, 2018, the serene university town of Nsukka will be agog as friends, well-wishers and business associates of Dozie pour in there to identify with one of their own as UNN confers Honorary Doctorate Degree on this Corporate Czar who sits atop a multi-billion Dollars conglomerate.

Chukwudozie is an unassuming young man who mingles with the lowly and the downtrodden without discrimination, he is workaholic, a business czar, corporate tiger and sits atop multi-billion dollars investments spanning several interests. He is a tested industrialist and an achiever-a job creator, an employer of labour and a philanthropist.

Dr. Chukwudozie has indeed made a huge, indelible mark in the Oil and Gas sector of the economy. His contributions to the economic growth of his fatherland is undeniable.

It is therefore no surprise that UNN fished him out for honour. Surely, Chief (Sir) Daniel Chukwudozie, Chairman of Dozzy Oil and Gas will be the cynosure of all eyes on December 1st at the UNN as he stands shoulder high to be honoured by that prestigious citadel of learning east of the Niger.

UNN's decision to honour Chukwudozie confirms that awards and honours he has received in the past, including The Authority Icon Award by Authority Newspaper, were well deserved. Essentially, besides The Authority Icon award, UNICAL and UNN's conferments on Chukwudozie, the Oil and Gas magnet has in his award collections, the Industrialist of the year award from Grassroots Newspapers Publishers Association, the most respected Nigerian CEO award (2010) by This Day Newspaper among others.

Chukwudozie’s rise to the top was not a one-step movement. It was a humble beginning for a humble man. The inter play of factors that would established him as one of Nigeria’s reputable captains of industry shaped his principle and philosophy of life and business-humility, honesty and hard work. His unassuming nature and infectious humility explain why he does not trumpet his numerous philanthropist gestures. One these philanthropist acts was the construction and handover of a magnificent three storey school building to St. James Anglican Church, Awada, Onitsha.

Having lost his father at a young age, vicissitude and obfuscation became the family’s companion as his poor mother toiled to raise him and his siblings. But the young Chukwudozie would not allow poverty to limit him. He thus forcefully brushed aside vagaries of life to embrace hard work, and then reaped subsequent strings success in the business arena. Starting off as a trader in 1982, through the dint of hard work and resilience, Chukwudozie nurtured and expanded his trade, transforming it into a limited liability company under the name, Dozzy Nigeria Limited.

At inception the nascent company was concerned only with the importation of belt and general goods from Europe and Asia. A shrewd businessman, Chukwudozie later diversified leading to Dozzy becoming a conglomerate with Subsidiaries-Specialty Oil company Nigeria Limited, Dozzy Plastic Industries Limited, Dozzy Oil and Gas Limited, Guttroff Gas Limited.

The Dozzy Group is also into Lubricant, Oxygen and industrial gas production, industrial automotive, household as well as high precision plastic products, wigs/artificial hair attachment production among others. The Dozzy conglomerate also has interest in Real Estate, Logistics and hospitality.

The Oil and Gas sector of the Group came on stream in 1994 with the incorporation of Dozzy Oil and Gas. The sector has grown to become the Group’s flagship. Dozzy Oil and Gas operation is anchored on four areas: Blending, distribution, industrial Gas and Liquefied Petroleum Gas. Dozzy Oil and Gas depots are well entrenched in Nigeria’s three strategic, main port cities of Lagos, Port Harcourt and Calabar. Dozzy Oil and Gas is determined to meet Nigeria’s energy needs and this why the company’s combined capacity of oil storage will be 200,000 metric tons when fully installed.

Chukwudozie enthuses about his company’s success story: “It takes a serious patriotic group in the present circumstances to build a petroleum product storage depot that is capable of handling 120 million liters of assorted petroleum products at once. We are happy the facility which we built in Calabar has helped to address the attendant high prices of petroleum products in most of the South South, South east and parts of Northern Nigeria”

Dozzy Oil and Gas’ sister company, Specialty Oil, is into blending of base oil into different brands. With a state of the art and fully installed blending plant at Onitsha, Anambra state, the company has the capacity to blend 48 million litres of oil on continuous shift production roster.

Chukwudozie exudes patriotic fervor. Having tasted poverty and deprivation, the Dozzy Group boss goes about doing good-putting smiles on the faces of his fellow country men and women through philanthropist gestures and job creation. For example, he has over 300 skilled and unskilled combined workforces on his payroll in Dozzy Oil and Gas. The combined total workforce of the conglomerate stands at about 2,000.

Chukwudozie believes that mentoring culture, suitable team, unique and reliable product and service delivery channels, conformity of product and service with international and national standard policy of giving back to the host communities and the society result in business success as well as impacts on society”

Married to Lady Ada Chukwudozie, a Chemical Engineer and a publisher, the Dozzy Group boss hails from Okija in Ihiala Local Government Area of Anambra State. Chukwudozie is one of illustrious sons of Okija that have put the community on world map by executing many high profile people-oriented infrastructural projects.

The Chukwudozies, though super rich, are not slaves to wealth. Rather, as devout Christians, they put God first in everything they do. They are of the view that each individual, including the rich could encounter problem money cannot solve but God has all solutions to all problems.

As he stands before a sea of academics, family members, friends and well-wishers to receive UNN's honorary academic laurel, many agree that for a man with a large, kind and generous heart; a silent achiever and a blessing to humanity, his community, Okija and fatherland, Nigeria, the conferment of Honorary Doctorate Degree (Honouris Causa) is a fitting recognition. Wear, the cap, Akudo, it fits and custom- made for you! Congratulation.

######
Mr. Ingram Adichie Osigwe; arpa
MD/CEO Fullpage International Communications Limited.