By Brown Chimezie
• Ugochukwu (2nd right) and others at the event
The Catholic Archbishop of Lagos State, Most Revd. Alfred Adewale Martins, at the weekend celebrated the immediate past president of International Market Association Electronics (IMAE), Alaba, Lagos, Evangelist Paulinus Ugochukwu, who turned 50 years old.
Represented by Rev. Kingsley Oyewole at the thanksgiving Mass, Holy Family Catholic Church Festac Town, Lagos, Martins said: “As we have gathered today, we must not lose sight of the fact that it is the power of commitment and dedication that has transformed him from an ordinary man to an extra-ordinary man.
“God has raised him to the pinnacle of business and leadership because he is a product of humility, integrity, and God fearing.
“When you lift God up, He would bring you up. That is what has happened to Ugochukwu. He always puts God first in whatever he is doing, and God, in turn, is also raising him up.
“As we are celebrating his 50th birthday today, we pray that God will spare his life so that he will continue to celebrate in good health and happiness.”
Ugochukwu expressed gratitude to God for His goodness in his life: “I deeply appreciate what God has done in my life. I was born into an idolatry family. My father was the chief priest of my town for more than 25 years.
“Before my encounter with Jesus Christ, I was worshipping idol with my father. But in 1995, my father died and I was converted to Christianity after encountering Jesus Christ. My father started serving the idol at the age of 25, but he died at 54 years.
“I love God so much, but before I became 25 years old, I already had an encounter. I didn’t have access to the word of God. So when I had the encounter with God, He instructed that I should serve Him, and He would bless me.
“In the beginning, it was so tough, with a lot of persecution. But I was able to surmount the challenges and survived. Today, I can happily say that a lot of people have had their lives and finances transformed through me. I give God all the glory.”
In his contribution, the president of IMAE president, Chief Camilus Amajuoji, said: “The traders in Alaba International are here in our numbers to celebrate the 50 years birthday of Evangelist Ugochukwu popularly known as Sound Prince. When he was the president, I was the vice chairman. I took over from him and I can say that he is a very good leader.
“When he was in office, he brought a lot of transformation and a laid a lot of foundations, which I am working on now. Government is a continuum, so I continued from where he stopped.
“The mantra of my administration is The New Face of Alaba. Some of the road maps that he laid helped achieve the objective sooner rather than later. I am happy for him. He is my leader, I pray that God will continue to lead, guide and protect him.
I, the president general of Alaba International Amalgamated Council of Sectional heads, on behalf of all the traders in Alaba International Market Ojo Alaba, are wishing him many more years of good health and happiness.”