Fanfare as ADR society awards professional, business excellence

It was a celebration of excellence among professionals within the public and private sector on Wednesday evening when the Alternative Dispute Resolution Society (ADR) of Nigeria, celebrated people who had made a mark in their chosen field at Premier Hotels in Ibadan. YEJIDE GBENGA-OGUNDARE and PELUMI AKINOLA reports that the event was a star studded occasion which was not only but also educative as people were taught the rudiments of ADR practice.

Some people hold the belief that whenever there are more than three lawyers in a gathering, the environment will not be conducive to fun and entertainment as they are seen as people who are always conservative especially when they appear in their usual attire; suits, this however was not the situation on Wednesday when lawyers in their multitude converged with other professionals to celebrate the first edition of the annual Business Excellence Award/Dinner of the ADR Society, Nigeria.

Indeed, the award was a colourful event that witnessed the participation of various professional bodies, media professionals and people from various walks of life and it was to celebrate excellence and encourage diligence among professionals with the aim of encouraging amicable settlements of issues in all fields.

The event which was compeered by BethZion Venture not only had a lot of side attractions but also had a lecture titled, Driving dispute out of court into the ADR forum: is it a one-way street and an award of excellence as well as induction to the roll of honours of the ADR society.

The event was chaired by the Attorney General and Commissioner of Justice in Oyo state, Mr. Seun Abimbola who was represented by two directors; Mrs. Bimpe Lakojo and Mr Tunji Thomas while the Managing Director of the University Press Plc, Mr Samuel Kolawole represented by Mr Aina Balogun was the special guest of honour.

There was an induction ceremony led by Mr Henry Adegbuyi a patron and Chairman of Body of Fellows of the ADR Society which is a group of senior members of the business and professional sectors who were selected based on their qualification and experiences as well as commitment to the ADR ethos, principles and practice.

The main function of the body is to foster collaboration between industries and ADR society in the areas of campaigns, raising awareness and commitment of their colleagues to training and development in dispute resolution at the highest level of devotion.

Those that joined the body of ADR fellows on Wednesday were Prince G.A. Adebayo, the Executive Director of Finance at the University Press Plc and Mrs Tola Ajayi, the Managing Director of Premier Hotel, Ibadan while the award of business excellence went to five other people.

Princess M.B. Amusan Ogunaike, President of the Ibadan Chamber of Commerce and Industry got the award of Woman of Excellence in Commerce and Industry; Prince G.A. Adebayo got the award of man of Excellence in Business and Finance, Mrs Yemisi Abimbola, Partner at Prime Solicitors, Ibadan and wife of the Oyo state Attorney General got the award of Woman of Excellence in Law and ADR while Mrs Tola Adeniyi, MD, premier Hotels got the award of Woman of Excellence in Hospitality.

Other awardees include Yejide Gbenga-Ogundare from Nigerian Tribune who got the award of Woman of Excellence in ADR, Law and Justice Reporting, Ademola Adeniji of Naija FM who got the award of Man of Excellence in Legal and ADr Broadcasting (radio) and |Ronke Ige of the JDPC who got award of Woman of Excellence in Peace and Justice Building.

In his lecture on whether ADR was a one way street which was an interactive session, Chief Kole Ojo, ther Chairman of ADR society Nigeria, pointed out the fact that for ADr to be effective, it must be a collaborative effort with all parties in every sector showing commitment to the cause.

He urged everyone especially lawyers to be upfront in telling their clients the truth so that the court will stop being congested with unmeritorious suits filed before it by many that are cantankerous and are only in court to punish others.

According to him, stakeholders need to collaborate and lawyers need to wake up to the reality that ADR is the new way as the landscape is changing  and remember that ADR in all its facets; arbitration, mediation and negotiation had been part of the culture of every society since time immemorial.

And as the ADR gospel continues to spread, the ADR society which is the first and leading professional network of people involved in dispute resolution services in Nigeria continues to seek peoples collaboration in ensuring most civil matters get resolved without wasting the time of court