NewStats: 3,259,339 , 8,169,850 topics. Date: Saturday, 24 May 2025 at 06:08 PM ro5i

A TECHNOCRAT AND PASTOR

Tamunotonye Dele Cole fondly called *TDC* , was Born in Port Harcourt, Rivers State on January 15th,1967.
He is the son of former managing director of the Daily Times Newspaper and former Ambassador of Nigeria to Brazil, *Pa Patrick Dele Cole* .

*Tonye* attended Corona School, Victoria Island and later King’s College, Lagos before proceeding to King’s School, Ely, Cambridgeshire, United Kingdom.

He is a merit honours graduate of architecture, an alumnus of the University of Lagos, Harvard Business School’s advanced management programme and Universidade de Brasilia, Brazil.

*TDC* is an *Author* , *Motivational Speaker* , *Ordained Minister of the Gospel* , *Entrepreneur* and *firm believer* in Africa’s inherent greatness.

He has traveled vastly delivering numerous papers to African youths. He is a regular columnist for THISDAY Style and the author of Morning Reflections, an inspirational devotional.

*TDC* worked as an architect for frontline Brazilian architectural firm GrupoQuartro SA in Goiania Brazil between _1990-1992_ , where he was involved in the design and implementation of the urban planning and city development of Palmas, the capital city of the newly created state of Tocantins. The city of Palmas was designed as a ‘green fields’ project and built up from scratch.
Amongst the projects he worked on in Palmas were the State Ministry of Justice HQ and the City Hall.

Upon his return to Nigeria, *TDC* was recruited in 1993 as the Director of Operations EMSA S.A., a Brazilian civil engineering company, the 7th largest engineering firm in Brazil that was awarded World Bank-financed water projects for Lagos State Water Corporation. He was responsible for incorporating and setting up the Nigerian office, recruiting the local staff and managing the office. The company, in a t venture with Sakamori Limited successfully executed three World Bank sponsored contracts valued at $58m and one ADB sponsored contract for Anambra State Water Corporation valued at $15m.

In 1996, *TDC* , in partnership with his friends, Tope Shonubi and Ade Odunsi, founded the Sahara Energy Resource Limited and became its Group Executive Director and co-founder.

Sahara Energy started out as an oil and gas company whose core business at the time was the trading of excess fuel from the Port Harcourt and Warri refineries.
This was followed by diversification into storage depot and vessel ownership. He built depots in Lagos, Onne and Abuja with a combined capacity of 55,000 metric tones and a fleet of five vessels moving products across West Africa.

With a combination of hard-work and dogged determination not to be a middleman in the transactions, Sahara Energy established itself as a credible trading house within three years of conception, with a respectable trading line from a first class international bank, BNP Paribas.
Today, Sahara Energy is a major employer of labour with a staff strength of over 400 people, upstream assets comprising of nine blocks, 87 one deep water block in Ghana and deeply in developing the domestic gas infrastructure.

Under his watch as the Co-founder and Group Executive Director of Sahara Group, the company has many landmark achievements. The most recent of Sahara Group’s intervention is the *Food Africa project* which seeks to pilot an innovative approach aimed at revamping the food sector to create new jobs for young people, increase farmers’ revenues, improve productivity, enhance nutrition and reduce food loss through more sustainable production practices. The project which has Kaduna State as the pilot location is being driven by Sahara Group, the Kaduna State government, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Fund (UNSDG-F) and UN Goodwill Ambassadors, brothers Joan, Josep and Jordi Roca of Restaurant El Celler can Roca, ranked among the best chefs of the world.

Recently, Sahara unveiled its extrapreneurship platform to reach *12 million beneficiaries* in the next four years through platforms that find, create and connect young extrapreneurs in emerging markets. Rivers State will no doubt benefit immensely from this platform.

His ion for *youth development* and giving back to the less-privileged led to the establishment of his foundation, the *Nehemiah Youth Empowerment Initiative* .

Through the *Nehemiah Youth Empowerment Initiative* , *Cole* regularly s other foundations like the *Down Syndrome Society* , *Slum2School Foundation* , and *Bethesda School for the Blind* . He also serves on the advisory boards of various youth focused charities such as *Africa 2.0 Foundation* and *Sapinda Rainbow Foundation* .

Owing to his desire to save life through effective sanitary and health intervention scheme, *TDC* has led *Sahara Foundation* in the execution of several projects including the provision of borehole for clean water across Nigeria in conjunction with the *Carter Foundation* . This specifically was to ensure guinea worm eradication.

These programmes focused on providing clean water, encouraging proper hygiene and sanitation amongst communities and primary school pupils. The Foundation also launched the Inclusive *Education Project for Persons living with Disabilities* partnering with *Cedar Seed Foundation* to provide scholarships to one hundred beneficiaries, who also received wheelchairs, elbow crutches, guide canes, hearing aids, walking sticks and sunglasses to drive cross-sectorial collaboration. This is made possible by connecting the right people and organisations towards providing sustainable solutions to global social problems.

*TDC* is also an active member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Advisory Council for Energy, member, World Economic Forum’s Partnering Against Corruption Initiative (PACI) amongst others.

Furthermore, in recognition of the role his company has played in shaping indigenous involvement in the African energy sector. He was appointed to the United Nation Sustainable Development Fund’s(SDG-F) private sector advisory group. He serves as a board member for several organisations such as Atlas Mara, Bloomberg TV Africa, Nigeria Shippers Council, Enactus Nigeria and Digital Jewels amongst others.
*Cole* won a Lifetime Achievement Award from the United Kingdom Oil and Gas Council in 2017.

With his humanitarian services, the Youth, the less-privileged, helpless mothers & children, orphanages and the entire *Rivers State* will greatly benefit from his istration as a *Governor* .

~ *Clifford Bariton Zeal*
Publicity Secretary
All Progressives Congress
Khana LGA.

Not APC and isn't he yoruba??

stop dreaming

I've been opportuned to meet this man one on one and I must say, that he's such a gentleman ..
He speaks softly and puts his self down to your level when conversing with you .

He would make a good leader .

And I pray to God almighty to give me the kind of G-wagon he cruises because that ride is just madt .

I pray he wins.

IamAirforce1:
I've been opportuned to meet this man one on one and I must say, that he's such a gentleman ..
He speaks softly and puts his self down to your level when conversing with you .

He would make a good leader .

And I pray to God almighty to give me the kind of G-wagon he cruises because that ride is just madt .

I pray he wins.

Where did you see him

9cent:


Where did you see him

I'm on Nairaland with you , doesn't mean I'm on the same level with you .

IamAirforce1:


I'm on Nairaland with you , doesn't mean I'm on the same level with you .

Guy, he just asked you a simple question,.. don't you know his level may be higher than yours.

EzeOnyembo:

Guy, he just asked you a simple question,.. don't you know his level may be higher than yours.

You may be right .

I promise to retract my statement and apologize publicly .

Buhari himself knows Wike is untouchable, so who the Eff is Ameachi

What about Dakuku, the shoulderless dude? How will they make the already tense Rivers APC not to explode?

I call it time wasting. APC is a shit.

Now APC is getting serious with business....

tot is Tonye Princewill

He boasts a much better CV than wike the thug.

So amaechi's interest is greater than d interest of d rivers electorate?
jobbers

ahaika23:
What about Dakuku, the shoulderless dude? How will they make the already tense Rivers APC not to explode?

This shows that you are not well informed . Dakuku already as a juicy appointment with the fedaral govt

God father has spoken(Amaechi see your life).Lifeless people

Tonye is visionary smart and God fearing but APC is the wrong party for this ambition

Bro, 2019 Wike go slay Pastor two seconds sef.

We are Rivers state, We are PDP.

Like say election For naija na by qualification and cv I for win incumbent president

Wike has commissioned more project than any governor in Nigeria, in fact ther was a day he commissioned 26 projects in one day, ONE DAY.
Why does APC want him out of office?
Is he not performing?

Dreamkiller:
Wike has commissioned more project than any governor in Nigeria, in fact ther was a day he commissioned 26 projects in one day, ONE DAY.
Why does APC want him out of office?
Is he not performing?

APC wants the oil rich state as well

MrJanuzaj:
A TECHNOCRAT AND PASTOR

Tamunotonye Dele Cole fondly called *TDC* , was Born in Port Harcourt, Rivers State on January 15th,1967.
He is the son of former managing director of the Daily Times Newspaper and former Ambassador of Nigeria to Brazil, *Pa Patrick Dele Cole* .

*Tonye* attended Corona School, Victoria Island and later King’s College, Lagos before proceeding to King’s School, Ely, Cambridgeshire, United Kingdom.

He is a merit honours graduate of architecture, an alumnus of the University of Lagos, Harvard Business School’s advanced management programme and Universidade de Brasilia, Brazil.

*TDC* is an *Author* , *Motivational Speaker* , *Ordained Minister of the Gospel* , *Entrepreneur* and *firm believer* in Africa’s inherent greatness.

He has traveled vastly delivering numerous papers to African youths. He is a regular columnist for THISDAY Style and the author of Morning Reflections, an inspirational devotional.

*TDC* worked as an architect for frontline Brazilian architectural firm GrupoQuartro SA in Goiania Brazil between _1990-1992_ , where he was involved in the design and implementation of the urban planning and city development of Palmas, the capital city of the newly created state of Tocantins. The city of Palmas was designed as a ‘green fields’ project and built up from scratch.
Amongst the projects he worked on in Palmas were the State Ministry of Justice HQ and the City Hall.

Upon his return to Nigeria, *TDC* was recruited in 1993 as the Director of Operations EMSA S.A., a Brazilian civil engineering company, the 7th largest engineering firm in Brazil that was awarded World Bank-financed water projects for Lagos State Water Corporation. He was responsible for incorporating and setting up the Nigerian office, recruiting the local staff and managing the office. The company, in a t venture with Sakamori Limited successfully executed three World Bank sponsored contracts valued at $58m and one ADB sponsored contract for Anambra State Water Corporation valued at $15m.

In 1996, *TDC* , in partnership with his friends, Tope Shonubi and Ade Odunsi, founded the Sahara Energy Resource Limited and became its Group Executive Director and co-founder.

Sahara Energy started out as an oil and gas company whose core business at the time was the trading of excess fuel from the Port Harcourt and Warri refineries.
This was followed by diversification into storage depot and vessel ownership. He built depots in Lagos, Onne and Abuja with a combined capacity of 55,000 metric tones and a fleet of five vessels moving products across West Africa.

With a combination of hard-work and dogged determination not to be a middleman in the transactions, Sahara Energy established itself as a credible trading house within three years of conception, with a respectable trading line from a first class international bank, BNP Paribas.
Today, Sahara Energy is a major employer of labour with a staff strength of over 400 people, upstream assets comprising of nine blocks, 87 one deep water block in Ghana and deeply in developing the domestic gas infrastructure.

Under his watch as the Co-founder and Group Executive Director of Sahara Group, the company has many landmark achievements. The most recent of Sahara Group’s intervention is the *Food Africa project* which seeks to pilot an innovative approach aimed at revamping the food sector to create new jobs for young people, increase farmers’ revenues, improve productivity, enhance nutrition and reduce food loss through more sustainable production practices. The project which has Kaduna State as the pilot location is being driven by Sahara Group, the Kaduna State government, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Fund (UNSDG-F) and UN Goodwill Ambassadors, brothers Joan, Josep and Jordi Roca of Restaurant El Celler can Roca, ranked among the best chefs of the world.

Recently, Sahara unveiled its extrapreneurship platform to reach *12 million beneficiaries* in the next four years through platforms that find, create and connect young extrapreneurs in emerging markets. Rivers State will no doubt benefit immensely from this platform.

His ion for *youth development* and giving back to the less-privileged led to the establishment of his foundation, the *Nehemiah Youth Empowerment Initiative* .

Through the *Nehemiah Youth Empowerment Initiative* , *Cole* regularly s other foundations like the *Down Syndrome Society* , *Slum2School Foundation* , and *Bethesda School for the Blind* . He also serves on the advisory boards of various youth focused charities such as *Africa 2.0 Foundation* and *Sapinda Rainbow Foundation* .

Owing to his desire to save life through effective sanitary and health intervention scheme, *TDC* has led *Sahara Foundation* in the execution of several projects including the provision of borehole for clean water across Nigeria in conjunction with the *Carter Foundation* . This specifically was to ensure guinea worm eradication.

These programmes focused on providing clean water, encouraging proper hygiene and sanitation amongst communities and primary school pupils. The Foundation also launched the Inclusive *Education Project for Persons living with Disabilities* partnering with *Cedar Seed Foundation* to provide scholarships to one hundred beneficiaries, who also received wheelchairs, elbow crutches, guide canes, hearing aids, walking sticks and sunglasses to drive cross-sectorial collaboration. This is made possible by connecting the right people and organisations towards providing sustainable solutions to global social problems.

*TDC* is also an active member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Advisory Council for Energy, member, World Economic Forum’s Partnering Against Corruption Initiative (PACI) amongst others.

Furthermore, in recognition of the role his company has played in shaping indigenous involvement in the African energy sector. He was appointed to the United Nation Sustainable Development Fund’s(SDG-F) private sector advisory group. He serves as a board member for several organisations such as Atlas Mara, Bloomberg TV Africa, Nigeria Shippers Council, Enactus Nigeria and Digital Jewels amongst others.
*Cole* won a Lifetime Achievement Award from the United Kingdom Oil and Gas Council in 2017.

With his humanitarian services, the Youth, the less-privileged, helpless mothers & children, orphanages and the entire *Rivers State* will greatly benefit from his istration as a *Governor* .

~ *Clifford Bariton Zeal*
Publicity Secretary
All Progressives Congress
Khana LGA.

NonsoWow:
He boasts a much better CV than wike the thug.

Thugs always wins in Nigerian politics.

HE MAY TRY HIS LUCK IN 2023... FOR NOW WIKE WE KNOW.