Managing Director, Transerve Disc Technologies Limited, Pastor Cyprian Orakpo, has said Nigeria, could still reach the top and become a cynosure in the comity of nations, inspite of its current challenges.
He stated that the country could still become a preferred destination for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), regardless of its economic issues, and insecurity, in some parts of the country.
He spoke to journalists in Lagos on Wednesday on the sidelines of the public presentation of his book: ‘Journey To The Top.’
Orakpo, currently the Pastor in charge of the Redeemed Christian Church Of God (RCCG), Lagos Province 19, Strong Tower Sanctuary, Ogudu, Lagos, explained that the book has basic principles that when applied would enable an individual, organisation and even a country to reach to the top.
Orakpo said: “Top actually means a desirable place, a place of fulfillment, a place of satisfaction and a place of joy, a place of dominion and victory. You will not be in doubt when you reach there. There is nobody who does not desire to reach the Top.
“God has ordained everybody to reach the top, the top of his or he4 life, the top of his or her marriage, and the top of his or her business. God has also ordained nations to reach their various tops, what ever that top is. Nigeria can reach her top in so many years. It is not a rocket science. There are many things that Nigeria can do well to get to her ordained destiny.
“It begins with leadership. Leadership can set the tone. Leadership can show commitment and more responsibility. Leadership can show more accountability. Leadership can be more sensitive to what people are going through. These are some of the principles I shared in the book.
“The first principle I shared in the book was that top is a desirable place in life. God ordained everyone to reach the top. In fact top is the only place that God wishes for us when He said in Deut 28:13 “And the LORD shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be ABOVE ONLY”. So you must first and foremost believe that top is the will of God, desirable and possible. Top is not as congested as the bottom. There is enough space at the top for any person who will dare to apply these principles.
“Secondly, I talked about the principle of visioning in reaching the Top. My company’s vision was to be the best value creator for all the stakeholders. By stakeholders, we mean the staff, vendors, the regulators, the banks, the community where we operate. And of course stakeholders include the board and the directors of the company.”
He added, “Nigeria, as a nation, can reach her top by also having a vision to be the best value creator for her citizens. The best value creator for her citizens in such a way that the government will become citizen-centric, such that the citizens will be the centre of all the programmes and policies. The vision of the country can be that the country will be run so efficiently that no Nigeria will desire the citizenship of another country.
“The citizens of Nigeria in other words can’t find a better country than Nigeria because our government has become the best value creator for her citizens. Be it in education, science, technology, communication, financial services, power supply etc. For example, if it is education, students from Nigeria will be able to compete with any educational system in any other country of the world. If it is science, technology, communication, Infrastructure, power supply, we will be comparable anywhere in the world.
“So Journey to the top is not not a rocket science. Things can work in Nigeria. How can we be talking about 3,000 or 4,000MW of power after 23 years of this present democratic dispensation. It is totally unacceptable. And there are so many other things that one can do better.
“Top actually means a desirable place, a place of fulfillment, a place of satisfaction and a place of joy, a place of dominion and victory. You will not be in doubt when you reach there. There is nobody who does not desire to reach the Top.
“God has ordained everybody to reach the top, the top of his or her life, the top of his or her marriage, and the top of his or her business. God has also ordained nations to reach their various tops, what ever that top is. Nigeria can reach her top in so many years. It is not a rocket science. There are many things that Nigeria can do well to get to her ordained destiny.
“It begins with leadership. Leadership can set the tone. Leadership can show commitment and more responsibility. Leadership can show more accountability. Leadership can be more sensitive to what people are going through. These are some of the principles I shared in the book.”
Orakpo further said, “The first principle I shared in the book was that top is a desirable place in life. God ordained everyone to reach the top In fact top is the only place that God wishes for us when He said in Deut 28:13 “And the LORD shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be ABOVE ONLY”. So you must first and foremost believe that top is the will of God, desirable and possible. Top is not as congested as the bottom. There is enough space at the top for any person who will dare to apply these principles.
“Secondly, I talked about the principle of visioning in reaching the Top. My company’s vision was to be the best value creator for all the stakeholders. By stakeholders, we mean the staff, vendors, the regulators, the banks, the community where we operate. And of course stakeholders include the board and the directors of the company.
“Nigeria, as a nation, can reach her top by also having a vision to be the best value creator for her citizens. The best value creator for her citizens in such a way that the government will become citizen-centric, such that the citizens will be the centre of all the programmes and policies. The vision of the country can be that the country will be run so efficiently that no Nigeria will desire the citizenship of another country. The citizens of Nigeria in other words can’t find a better country than Nigeria because our government has become the best value creator for her citizens. Be it in education, science, technology, communication, financial services, power supply etc. For example, if it is education, students from Nigeria will be able to compete with any educational system in any other country of the world. If it is science, technology, communication, Infrastructure, power supply, we will be comparable anywhere in the world.
“So Journey to the top is not not a rocket science. Things can work in Nigeria. How can we be talking about 3,000 or 4 000mw of power after 23 years of this present democratic dispensation. It is totally unacceptable. And there are so many other things that one can do better.
“Inflation is a situation where much money is chasing fewer goods. The unification of exchange rates, the removal of subsidies, the unbridled printing of naira, and unaccountable borrowing from central bank by federal government (Ways and Means) are the recent cause of inflationary pressures. To bring down inflation, we must produce more than we import, stop printing of money, reduce or eliminate corruption, encourage saving, invest in infrastructures and other long term projects etc.”
He added,“I have been wanting to write a book to chronicle some principles that I unknowingly deployed, that I believe got me to where I am today. So that others can be in better control of their lives to determine where they want to be, either at the top or at the bottom. Achieving success in life is predictable. There are certain things which if you do, you will likely be successful. But there are certain things which if you also do not do, you can not succeed in life.
“My wife has a bosom friend, Pastor Ngozi Okure, a prolific writer who has written 30 books. She is a missionary and wife of the Country Coordinator of the RCCG Mission in Venezuela, Pastor David Okure. She came to see me sometime in 2022 at the church which I was pastoring then, the RCCG, Peace Assembly, Victoria Island Lagos. She said that she followed my teachings on Journey to the Top both on site and online and decided to transcribe it into a book. I immediately concluded that God surely wanted me to write this book. So I fleshed up the book a little more, added a few more explanations and testimonies and Bible passages, and the book was birthed.
“It was not as if I learnt all these principles. Some were learnt of course but most of them were just sheer providence that I stumbled into them and began to practise them. It was later when I went to Lagos Business School that I began to read about some of them. I was like, this is what I have been doing all along unknowingly. I, therefore, felt that I should put it in a book as a legacy for my generation and to assist anybody who is determined to reach the top of his life, career, marriage or vocation.”
Vice Chairman, Famfa Oil Limited, Apostle Folorunso Alakija, urged Nigerians not to despair and not to give up.
She advised them to keep being diligent, industrious, and having faith in God, adding that they will succeed.
She said,”It is obvious that Pastor Orakpo is a man of many parts. To get to this level in his life, he has experienced so many things and he has put those experiences in this book. It is a life journey. He has made it to this height.
The book is lessons of life and how to ensure that as many people as possible are encouraged, to always push through and not to stop at whatever they find themselves and it is what you put into it, that you will get out of life. So never give up, hang in there, make sure you keep on working and you will get to the top. That is the message. The book talks about different things about life, marriage, business, God, name it, it is there. It is a book for everybody, whether you are a student or a grandma.”
Founder/Chief Executive Officer, Premium Trust Bank Limited, Mr Emmanuel Efe Emefienim, urged people to display intergrity and work, hard, adding that getting to the top is deliberate.
He said,”The requirements to making it to the top are the things encapsulated in the book. People should know that getting to the top is deliberate. It does not happen by accident. Once you are able to pay the price, you will get to the top.”
