Young Heroes: Trailing The Recipients of the IIDA AwardS

There is no doubt that this country is blessed with children and youths that still possess a strong nature of duty and service to their families and country and for this singular reason, they need to be recognized and celebrated to encourage others in heroism and patriotism.

In light of this, Dufil Prima Foods Plc decided to commit financially and in other ways and this gave birth to the Indomie Independence Day Award for Heroes. This was eight years ago and Dufil has remained committed as ever and they hope to keep on going for as long as possible. The award is geared towards recognizing children between the ages of 1 and 15 who have exhibited extraordinary acts of heroism in the face of danger or societal challenges. So far, the IIDA initiative has been able to positively impact the lives of about 24 Nigerian children who have shown exemplary courage. The heroic feats of these children will go down in the annals of history and hopefully provide inspiration for others.

This year, the award was held in Lagos and was graced by top government officials, captains of industries, traditional rulers, members of the diplomatic corps, celebrities as well as students who commended Dufil Prima Foods as well as Indomie Noodles for its enviable, far reaching and impactful Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative – combing the entire country and bringing out outstanding children heroes who probably would have gone unsung and unappreciated.

The first edition which was in 2008 saw Razak Omolade, Dorcas Ayodele and Khalil Bala take home first, second and third positions respectively. The following year was no different as Detimbir Chia, Wembly Uchenna and Chukwudi Ibobo took the top three positions as reward for their various acts of bravery and courage. The year 2010 saw Umar Mariam, Treasure Obasi and Sarah Oladele were the recipients of the highly competitive and prestigious award for that year. Mariam’s story was particularly touching and reverberated with everyone present as she was born armless but saw herself as a normal human and not a liability.