Former Nigeria goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama, ex-Super Eagles winger Finidi George and coach Stanley Eguma are on the 11-man shortlist for Sports Personality of the Year at the second South-South Media and Entertainment Awards.
The ceremony is scheduled for Port Harcourt on Sunday, December 6, with sporting figures among nominees across 25 award categories.
Quick facts
- Venue: Aztech Arcum Event Centre, 77 Ken Saro-Wiwa Road, formerly known as Stadium Road.
- Red-carpet arrivals begin at 5pm, with the main programme starting at 6pm.
- The event is expected to last two hours and 15 minutes.
- Frank Edoho, presenter of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, will serve as master of ceremonies.
- The theme is: “Celebrating Impact, Recognizing Excellence.”
Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori and Bayelsa State Governor Douye Diri are set to receive honours during the awards night. TAJ Bank and Globus Bank will be presented with special recognitions.
Nollywood actors Sam Dede and Monalisa Chinda are also due to be honoured at the Port Harcourt event.
The awards cover individuals, institutions and organisations from Rivers, Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Edo and Delta states. Categories span a range of sectors, including sport, business, media, entertainment, education and hospitality.
SSMEA president Sammy Wejinya said the initiative was created to encourage stronger standards and better service across different industries.
“Our activities extend across nearly every area of the economy, from revenue collection and sport to healthcare, entertainment, banking and academia,” Wejinya said.
The awards were launched in 2024 under the name Rivers State Media and Entertainment Awards. The inaugural edition took place at Hotel Presidential in Port Harcourt.
Enyeama, Finidi and Eguma are joined in the Sports Personality of the Year race by Onoriode Oborevwori, Yusuf Ali, Bassey Akpan, Edidiong Umoafia, Agnes Atsu, Etta Lawrence Itanya, Barr. Chris Green and Fred Newton.
Other headline awards include Man of the Year, Woman of the Year, Bank of the Year and Academic Don of the Year.
Further categories include Young Person of the Year, School of the Year, Male and Female Media Personality of the Year, Brand of the Year, Company of the Year and Investor of the Year.
The remaining honours cover Media Organisation of the Year, Gym of the Year, Night Club of the Year, All Star Club of the Year, Hotel of the Year, Social Media Influencer of the Year, Construction Company of the Year, Shopping Mall of the Year, Tertiary Institution of the Year, Oil and Gas Company of the Year, Real Estate Company of the Year and Restaurant of the Year.
