Category: Glamour

Merit Obua is wife of the Chief Security Officer to President Goodluck Jonathan and patron of the World Fashion Organisation Africa in collaboration with Lexy Mojo-eyes led legendary Gold Limited. In this interview with Adetorera Idowu, the fashion enthusiast speaks on her plans for the Nigerian fashion industry and how she hopes to make the industry a world brand.

HOW has Nigeria’s involvement with the African Fashion Reception helped the image of the Nigerian fashion industry?

Our involvement in the African Fashion Reception organised by Legendary Gold Limited in collaboration with the World Fashion Organisation has opened up the opportunity for me to be honoured as patron of the World Fashion Organisation Africa, the only African so honoured. With my influence, Nigeria will be hosting for the first time, the African Fashion Reception. I strongly believe that the government of Nigeria will be fully involved because it will bring development and empower the youth. Another thing a lot of Nigerians have not realised is that fashion is another money-spinning industry. This event will therefore be a welcome development to showcase Nigerian fashion to the world.

Within this short period, what have you been able to achieve so far as patron?

A whole lot, I must say. First of all, the African Union is planning to celebrate its 50th Anniversary and through my negotiations with them, they have given Nigeria one full day to showcase our products.

Apart from that, I am bringing in the World Fashion University. The World Fashion Organisation has started building universities within the six continents, and the one for the African continent will be in Nigeria.

I am also bringing in the garment manufacturing industry. With these two major programmes – the World Fashion University and the garment manufacturing industry, there would be a whole lot of attraction to the people and further bring in tourists and investors into the country.

A lot of people have started recognising Nigerian fabrics and I believe this will cause a major boom in our fabric industry. Don’t forget that 20 years ago, Nigeria was the highest exporter of fabric, but that is no longer the case. Why? Maybe because our government keeps transiting or maybe we are not getting enough patronage. I believe that after this event, a time will come when Nigeria will not focus solely on oil because our fabric industry and our involvement in the world fashion event will divert a lot of attention to fashion because it is a money-spinning industry. When you study Indonesia and some other countries, you’ll see that a major part of their economy was built on the fashion industry.

I’m also working on a situation where our fabric will be showcased to the world, where, during summer, our clothes can be used. After this fashion event that I’ll be hosting next year, by the special grace of God, by 2015 I hope to bring in all the highest top designers like Gucci, Roberto Cavalla and other top designers that Nigerians are used to. Now when I bring them, it will be a married idea. We will take their own, how do they make their own perfect? How do they perfect their finishing? They will take our fabric and they can say, aaah these fabrics are good, they can use it during summer, so you can see that by 2014/2015 as they are preparing for 2015, you will see them using our fabric and then I’ll call you to say, are you watching fashion TV, because you will start seeing our product.

Are you organising a mentoring programme or some kind of training for those who do not have the education?

There would be other plans but the event will kick of first in order to gain the trust of people. Some people may even doubt if I’m sure of what I’m saying and they would like to see it.

So, I’m bringing in the World Fashion Organisation, the president, chairman will be here.

Those involved in the world fashion week will be here, I am expecting about 200 models all over the world. It will be a world class event that Nigeria has ever seen. I am also bringing in a special designer who designs for the royal family alone; he doesn’t design anything less than Queen Elizabeth’s family in London. I’m also bringing in a designer who designs exclusively for a special class of people; for the elites only. This designer specialises in shoes. He’ll take the measurement of your shoe and while waiting he’ll produce the shoe right on the spot and your design will never be another person’s design.

After this event has come to pass, we will source for people. We have talented Nigerians; it is not everybody that will be in a white collar job. Like this young lady I’m talking about, she’s a graduate, she’s a master’s degree holder but she’s in the fashion industry. So you can see that fashion is a world of its own and except you’re into it, you may never understand. For example, if you have one million naira, 800, 000 naira is going on fashion because by the time you shop for shoes, clothes and bags, what goes into your body is less than 100,000, so you can see that fashion takes a greater part of our wealth and we don’t know, it’s a money-spinning industry.

So far, you have been helping and inspiring a lot of young people. What spurs you on?

Well, that has been my nature right from my childhood and I have come to understand that the major investment one could have is when you make the people around you happy and secondly you don’t need to know these people. I would say that when you help people you make yourself to pray less. For example, if on your way to this place, you helped like six people they will say thank you, God bless you, but if you don’t help them you will be the only one to pray for yourself, so you can imagine where you pray for yourself and extra six people pray for you so you can see that you have seven blessings that day, you understand. Besides that, I have a theory that people should not measure you based on what you are but I believe people measure others based on the people around them. So when people around you are prospering, then you see yourself prospering. I came from a family where my father has sixteen children, he retired as a senior civil director, and how much was his salary? My initial desire was to be a lawyer, I got admission into the university and I said if I go into this who will train me – I can’t go on the road to prostitute in order to train myself, so I stopped and went into farming. I farmed a vast land of cassava started preparing garri, frying garri doing fufu, here you people call it amala then I sold it and kept the money. You can imagine where I was trekking a long distance as a young lady, then I was pretty but I said I can`t go into this. So that is how I started. I decided to read management that wasn’t my desire right from time I studied management. Now while studying, during vacation, I painted houses to make school fees, if you are conversant with Port Harcourt, I can tell you the number of houses I’ve painted in Port Harcourt. At times, when I`m painting outside the building men with their vehicles will just drive and park and say “wow it is only in your case that I`ve seen a woman painting houses I have not seen a woman paint houses in Nigeria.” Initially I was ashamed, so one day when this thing was happening, the director that I was painting his house said “Come on! Why are you ashamed, don’t you know that you are better than those young girls that will sell their bodies for money?” So that encouraged me. So, these were the things I did before graduating and you see, whatever you put in your efforts, God will always make it to come to pass.

Who has been your mentor so far?

I will say my mentor is God and basically you would ask me to mention someone that is living, I would say it is my father, but above all it’s my grand mum. I lived with my grand mum from the age of three months, so I lived with her till she passed on. So I would say it is my grand mum because she had only three children but she cooked with the biggest size of pot, so we eat with people that are not even our relations.

When did you become passionate about fashion?

I cannot say why I found myself into this, but the only thing I know is when I was a little girl I grew up to hear a story that my father used to tell me even in the village. You know I came to the city after secondary school. I`ve been a typical village girl, so to say, when I was a little girl. I never liked dirt around me, meanwhile I`m not wearing shoes, so after walking around I would go and fetch a cup of water to wash my feet. I would always wash my feet because they were dirty so that was one way and as a teenager I just found myself sewing clothes. I`ve never learnt sewing before, it is just that now I don’t have the time. I can`t make your clothes but I can make clothes for myself. How do I make it? You may ask, I would just cut the cloth, I don’t use tape when I cut the cloth. I will put it on my body, before joining I will look at the cloth and be like this one should be okay for me and I will just cut it. I can make straight skirts, I can make skirts, I can make a top. That is why if any tailor makes clothes for me I must find faults. So, anywhere I`m living I have a sewing machine. Even now I have a sewing machine in my house.

What is your definition of style and what are we likely to find in your wardrobe?

Well, style is something that fits well on your body and doesn’t make you look too extravagant. You don’t need to wear what I’m wearing. What you will always find in my wardrobe depends on the period, but currently you will see skirt and blouse, a few of trouser suits that I may not wear because of my tummy then you see leggings and tops.

How do you want people to remember you?

I want people to remember that at a particular time this woman brought this into Nigeria, this woman facilitated this that has helped a great number of people and God too should keep me at least for a longer time so that I will do more.