If only Saddam Hussain had listened to the advice of President His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan to step down in time to avert war, the deposed Iraqi leader would still have had his family intact.

More importantly, Iraqis wouldn't have suffered the painful transition they are going through now.

This was said by Mohammed Al Gergawi, chairman of the Dubai Development and Investment Authority (DDIA), in his tribute to Sheikh Zayed.

"If only Saddam had listened to Sheikh Zayed, the present problems in Iraq would have been avoided," said Gergawi during the opening of an exhibition of rare snapshots – including photographs of the UAE's first onshore oil rig – that visually chronicles the country's progress.

Sheikh Zayed, the father of modern UAE and a moderating voice in the Arab world, became the ruler of Abu Dhabi on August 6, 1966, and later president of the seven "Trucial States" on December 2, 1972.

Before the recent Iraq war, Sheikh Zayed suggested that Saddam quit as Iraqi president and go into exile with his family to avert the likelihood of a U.S.-Anglo military invasion.

Some 80 large-format photographs taken by Noor Ali Rashid, a UAE royal photographer for over three decades, are on display at the Hyatt Regency Dubai as part of the Accession Day celebrations.

The collection includes rare snaps of the skyline of Dubai and Abu Dhabi before the era of air-conditioners, with the signature "barjeel" (wind tower) in the mud-and-brick structures rising no more than a few storeys high.

"A picture paints a thousand words... in 1972, when I was in third grade, the tallest structure in Deira where I grew up was the nine-storey-high Sheikha Latifa Building," recalled Gergawi.

"Well, Dubai's skyline saw rapid changes in a few years. I wonder what my kids are thinking whenever they see the Emirates Towers today."

One of the pictures shows the UAE leader in simple bedouin garb and sandals conferring with the leaders of the other emirates which decided to become part of the seven-member Federation in 1972.

"Everybody knows what Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid have done for the UAE. We are grateful to them and their brother rulers," said Noor Ali Rashid while explaining his photographs taken during Sheikh Zayed's first Accession Day.

Five books depicting the history of the UAE seen through the lens of Noor Ali Rashid have been published, including the best-selling Sheikh Zayed: Life and Times, which Motivate Publishing has reprinted thrice in one year.

"These pictures allow us to better appreciate the work done by our leaders and the people behind them. Our generation really feels blessed to have lived in this era. That's the essence of the Accession Day celebrations," commented Saeed Al Naboodah, chief executive officer of the Dubai Shopping Festival and Dubai Summer Surprises.

Meanwhile, 13,000 people attended Accession Day celebration held at Modesh Fun City where children presented the biggest greeting card to Sheikh Zayed to express their love to the visionary leader.