PERSON OF THE YEAR

THE great milestones of history often come at a huge price. It sucks the best out of you. Smiles disappear. Emotions take flight. It consumes you. But in the end, you become an exemplar of sacrifice, of forbearance, of service. It leaves in your wake a legend of greatness, the well worn path of the select few whose efforts have brought civilization thus far; who have deeply affected society, and made the world a better place. It runs counter to the human instinct which seeks to keep hope alive, to survive adversity at any cost. Instead, it takes the unnatural course of willingly resigning to certain fate, becoming the fabled sacrificial lamb, dying so that others may live. This doesn't happen often; it occurs once in a long, long time.

And this was the story of one woman's unflinching commitment to her professional calling, her burning desire to help others out of their pains, and an ability to literally hand life back to the dying. It was the story of Stella Ameyo Adadevoh, 58. She was the Physician who turned the hand of death from Nigeria. She had admitted into her hospital in Lagos, one Patrick Sawyer, the Liberia man who came into Nigeria with the deadly Ebola disease. She wouldn't budge to pressure or succumb to threats and blackmail, but insisted on not allowing the patient onto the streets of Lagos. That singular action staved off what could have become a pandemic of unimaginable proportions. In the process, she did what over-paid public relations consultants could never have done for Nigeria: she ensured that Nigeria received wide acclaim from all over the world, and that it became a pointer to other nations on how to handle a deadly plague. Her action probably saved lives in their thousands. But in the end, she took the hit for all Nigerians. And then, she died. On August 19, 2014.

Dr. Adadevoh, free spirited, simple, aways happy, would never have contemplated of herself as a heroine. She would have laughed off such a prospect. But she has in death become  a Nigerian legend. And the usually debate-prone Editorial Board of The Guardian, had no hesitation in posthumously recognizing Dr. Stella Ameyo Adadevoh as this newspaper's Person Of The Year 2014. The story of this remarkable woman is told by Dr. Odion Akhaine and Dr. Tony Okeregbe, members of the Board.