Shalina Healthcare, a Pan-Africa pharmaceutical company, has reiterated its unwavering commitment to the development of Nigerian youths, by creating innovative platforms to integrate their efforts into the building of a new Nigeria.
The pharmaceutical company reaffirmed this on Friday at the presentation of prizes to the grand winners of the Ibucap Pain-Free Naija Challenge, an initiative of Shalina Healthcare and an online contest, portraying a pain-free Nigeria, held at the Shalina Head Office, Lagos.
Speaking at the event, an excited Arun Raj,vice-president and chief commercial officer of Shalina West Africa, applauded the efforts of the contestants, adding that their commitment, dedication and resilient spirits have made them to stay in the country, even while others are leaving in droves in the name of ‘japa syndrome’.
While thanking the young Nigerians for trusting and identifying with the company’s brands, he urged them to shun social vices and become ambassadors of change by making positive differences, adding that Shalina as a company believe so much in the future of Africa, especially Nigeria.
His words: “Amidst the current economic challenges, Shalina is committed to making quality and affordable medicine available in Nigeria. And most especially in giving the teeming Nigerian youths opportunities to develop their potentials using the platform of the company”.
According to Chiuba Nwaosu, brand manager, Analgesics and Antimalarial Portfolio, Shalina Healthcare “Ibucap Pain-Free Naija challenge, is an online contest which had participants making their videos in different ways emphasising that whatever happens to them ‘Ibucap’ is their dependable companion”.
Speaking on the contest, Nwaosu said: “We the organisers were overwhelmed with the spirit and creativity of Nigerian youths to the extent that we found it difficult to prune down the initial 150 entries down to the final 10. Even after the final 10, it was difficult to pick the best because they all gave their best, so it is best to say they are all winners”, he said.
In her speech at the event, Ibucap brand ambassador, a Nigerian dancer and choreographer, Kafayat Shafau popularly known as Kaffy, expressed her satisfaction with the process and commended the company for its initiative saying; “Shalina's belief in the Nigerian dream is unprecedented. If a foreign brand can have so much belief and so much hope in a better Nigeria, the bigger challenge is for Nigerians to look inward and see what they are not seeing”.
Addressing the winners, Kaffy noted that the challenge has exposed them to the waiting hand of the world, adding that there are so many talents in the country waiting to be harvested to manifest.
She added that beyond the monetary reward, the contestants have already gifted themselves the gift of courage and hope, adding that Nigeria Youth have resilient spirit and can survive anything.
Announcing the winners, Pharm Olugbenga Obaparusi, brand manager, Cardiovascular portfolio, disclosed that Season 3 had a 23-year-old Anambra State-Born content creator, Emeka Emmanuel Ikechukwu, with an entry name, @dance_esticks won the Grand Prize of 1 million naira, while 21-year-old Johnson Joshua, with entry name, @Josh_walkz and Sodiq Aribidesi, with entry name, @aribidesi_sodiq, emerged first and second runners up, winning N500,000 and N200,000 respectively.
