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The tenure of Betty Anyanwu-Akeredolu as the First Lady of Ondo state will be etched in the memory of the residents. Mrs. Akeredolu who always regarded herself as an activist, recently completed her final official duties by meeting with the members of the Ondo State House of Assembly.

It was the first meeting with the lawmakers after President Bola Tinubu resolved the political imbroglio in the state. The Assembly was already divided over the political crisis.

At the meeting, Mrs. Akeredolu urged the Ondo Assembly to unite and work in the interest of the state.

Her words: “I want you all to cooperate and operate as brothers and sisters. It is a good thing that necessary constitutional provisions are operative as we now have an Acting Governor in place. The hitches of the last few months notwithstanding, I am here to encourage you to do your best to ensure that the state moves forward.

“As a very vital arm of the government, I have invited you for a ‘meet and greet’, to interact with you and encourage after a fairly long interval. It’s a time that we all would agree has been turbulent. My concern, however, is that we should United and be ready to move forward. It is important that you keep doing your best in the interest of the state so that this administration can end on a good note.”

Many politicians saw her meeting with the lawmakers as a ploy to mobilise support for her husband. This was because she was viewed to have great political influence on her husband. In an interview, Mrs. Akeredolu said her husband never consulted her in making key decisions. Mrs. Akeredolu was viewed in Ondo as more of a politician than a wife.

A breast cancer survivor, Mrs. Akeredolu founded the Breast Cancer Association of Nigeria (BRECAN) an NGO through which she mobilises support for breast cancer victims as well as carries out advocacy for breast and cervical cancer prevention. As Ondo’s First Lady, Mrs. Akeredolu introduced several initiatives to support and empower women and the girl child. She introduced the Forum of Wives of Ondo State Officials (FOWOSO) and Be More.

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Fondly called the digital First Lady, her greatest desire was for her husband to build a world-class cancer treatment centre in the state. This dream did not come to fruition as her husband, Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu died of cancer.

According to her, “It is one legacy I would like this Arakunrin administration to leave behind because when you know what breast cancer patients go through you will that the cancer treatment centre is something that is imperative. They can have their surgery and chemotherapy but they don’t have the radiotherapy machine. They have to go to Ibadan, Lagos, Abuja. It is terrible. When they think about this, they opt to die in their house.

“If you have all the protocols in cancer treatment you will be there closer and accessible. The proposal is for the centre to the sited in Owo. Some people had reasoned that it is a federal hospital but it is Ondo people that will be treated. It is good to have people who are knowledgeable in making decisions in certain areas.

“If I wasn’t there to let them know this is workable, you begin to see this unnecessary friction. I am delighted that the CMD then understood. FMC will be upgraded. You will have more people coming to Ondo State. That is medical tourism. It brings development to the area. Arakunrin is bent on it.”

“However, through Be More boot camp that was launched in 2017, Mrs. Akeredolu has empowered many female students in secondary schools. The girls were trained on ICT, and solar technology as well as breast cancer and cervical cancer education.”

Speaking on how she changed Ondo women, she said: “The wives of the political appointee are on a step ahead in the social ladder by their husband’s position. Many of them didn’t know that. I tried to let them know they could use that position to bring about change in their immediate community. Initially, there was resistance.

When I got here, the pré occupation of most Ondo women especially those politicians was rice, beans, Ankara and transport money that is not more than N1000 or N500 and they were happy. They will come to the government house and clap and go. I started but there was resistance. There were attacks and campaigns of calumny.

They said it was not done like that and started comparing me with other First Ladies but I told them those First Ladies are analogue. I am a digital First Lady. I am happy today that I was not wrong in the decision. I continued despite all the criticism. When I got here, they didn’t own a smartphone but today I do not think there are any of those women who do not own a smartphone because we are on WhatsApp. That is self-improvement and self-advancement. We started talking about what the women can do to improve their income. One of the reasons women face subjugation is lack of money. They lack economic power.

A woman should be able to have a source of income. Why fold your arms and expect every kobo to come from your husband? It is erroneous for anybody to believe that if your wife has economic power, it will lead to disrespect. It is not true. It makes the marriage work. The man will live longer. If your wife has a source of income even if it is feeding she takes care of it. We need to educate our men to understand these things. We started with the training of Ondo women in different skills. They began to realise their potential. I know two of them who bought a car because of the skill acquisition in shoe making and bag making. We are very proud of them. Those doing make-up and tying gele, are making money in their communities. We didn’t just train them we also gave them the tools. Those of them responsible enough have put good use of what they learnt. We even gave out hundreds of grinding machines.”

On where Ondo women would be in 2023 when she will be leaving office, she said, I am a public health professional. I deal with figures. I have always had a bigger picture for women. I believe women can be more. I believe there are hidden potentials in women that society fails to exploit. We will discover and then let them excel.

There is a remarkable improvement in Ondo State women’s self-awareness. This self-awareness of the environment is what I didn’t see when I got here. I met little awareness. They were not empowered. That self-awareness is very critical for our women to rise and we are on the right path. I never gave up when everybody descended on me. 

They told me it is their husband who leads while they saw me as the one leading my husband. It was funny because I was pointing out the truth and how we can build a better society. Today many of them are aspiring from the grassroots. I told them they need to be at the table to make decisions. You cannot be outside clapping and singing. You cannot make any effect.”