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Tag: Osinbajo’s wife

  • Aisha Buhari, Osinbajo’s wife head APC’s women/youth presidential team

    THE All Progressives Congress (APC) has named the President wife, Hajia Aisha Buhari, as the chairperson of its Women and Youths Presidential Campaign team for the forthcoming general election.

    She will be assisted by the Vice President’s wife, Mrs. Dolapo Osinbajo, who will serve also as the team’s co-chairman.

    Their appointments were contained in a statement yesterday in Abuja by the Director of Information in the Office of the President’s wife, Mr. Suleiman Haruna.

    According to Haruna, the team will be inaugurated today by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa at 2pm.

    The appointees have a mandate to campaign vigorously for the re-election of Buhari and Osinbajo in the February 16 presidential poll.

    The list of the appointees also has the APC National Woman Leader, Hajiya Salamatu Baiwa, as the National Coordinator.

    Other executive team leaders include: Mrs. Adejoke Adefulire as vice chairman (South), Mrs. Mairo Al-Makura as vice chairman (North) and Juliet Ibekaku-Nwagu as deputy national coordinator (South).

    According to the statement, Hajiya Binta Muazu will serve as the deputy national coordinator (North), with Mrs. Rashida Yahaya Bello as zonal coordinator (Northcentral), Mrs. Hadiza Mohammad Abubakar for Northeast, Dr. Zainab Atiku Bagudu for Northwest and Mrs. Nkechi Rochas Okorocha for Southeast.

    Mrs. Florence Abiola Ajimobi will coordinate women and youths from the Southwest zone and Mrs. Judith Chibuike Amaechi would coordinate the Southsouth women and youths for the exercise.

    The statement added that the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Administration, Dr. Hajo Sani, will serve as the team’s Administrative Secretary.

    Other members of the campaign team include: artistes and celebrities from Nollywood and Kannywood as well as technocrats, politicians, academicians and the business class.

    The statement announced the establishment of an advisory council for the campaign team, comprising serving and ex-ministers, governors, legislators and security officers as well as top public officers.

    To serve on the council are: Youth & Sports Minister Solomon Dalung; Comptroller-General of Customs Col. Hameed Ali; retired Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Suleiman Abba; Brig.-Gen. Jafaru Isa, Gen. Buba Marwa; former governors Orji Ozu Kalu (Abia); Sullivan Chime (Enugu) and Sen. Ali Modu Sherrif (Borno).

    Others are: Dr. Mohammed Mahmud; Dame Pauline Tallen; Hajiya Naajatu Mohammed; Prof. Pat Utomi; Dr. Nasiru Ladan; Prince Tonye Princewill; Festus Keyamo (SAN); Muniz Banire (SAN); Amb. Justice Muhammadu Dodo; Amb. Baba Jidda; Amb. Deborah Iliya; Amb. Suzanne Aderonke Folarin; Amb. Ayuba Ngbako; Mr. Terry Waya; Alhaji Mahmud Shinkafi and Alhaji Ibrahim Dasuki-Nakande.

  • Osinbajo’s wife, Agbaje, others praise Corona Apapa at 60

    Members of the Corona School Apapa Alumni have showered encomiums on the institution for inculcating vital values responsible for their current enviable status.

    Led by Mrs. Dolapo Osinbajo, wife of the Vice President, they praised the school for forming invaluable traits that helped them reach the pinnacles of their professions.

    It was at the 60th anniversary of the school in Lagos last Sunday.

    Mrs. Osinbajo, who graduated from the school in 1978, recalled the institution inculcated sound values in the formative years that have continually helped in defining who she is.

    Recalling her fond memories, she said: “School was fun! Some of us started out as reluctant lovers.

    “This is peculiar to those who were leaving home for the first time and had the first shock of their early years as they had to put up with many faces on the first day of school.”

    Mrs. Osinbajo, in a Skype address, expressed happiness for being part of the 60th anniversary, adding the nation needs more of such schools to raise productive kids.

    Deputy Managing Director of First Bank, Gbenga Sobo, also an alumnus, praised the school for remaining steadfast to its mission despite changing times and culture.

    According to him: “We are all beneficiaries of the sound teaching inculcated in us by our teachers in Corona.

    “We are happy and thankful to God that this school has produced eminent personalities in our society and beyond.”

    Former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Lagos, Jimi Agbaje, recalled the school has been a melting pot of difference races since inception.

    Agbaje, who graduated from the school in 1967, stated students from as far as Italy, India, Bangladesh, Germany, Australia, Sri Lanka and many others were in Corona Apapa.

    Chairman of the Corona Apapa @60 Planning Committee, Mrs. Bukola Gbadamosi, told reporters the journey which began for her at age 3 has left indelible marks on her.

    Mrs. Gbadamosi, who graduated from the school in 1977, said pupils of the school are paragons of lasting friendship.

    Head of the School, Grace Egbekuse, reiterated its commitment to making the environment more amiable for the growth and motivation of the students.

     

  • Aregbesola, Osinbajo’s wife, others pray for safe return of abducted Dapchi schoolgirls

    Aregbesola, Osinbajo’s wife, others pray for safe return of abducted Dapchi schoolgirls

    •Officials’ wives conference opens

    Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola has urged Nigerians to pray for the safe return of the 110 Dapchi schoolgirls who were abducted in Yobe State recently.

    Also, the wife of the Vice-President, Mrs Dolapo Osinbajo, noted that the virtues of motherhood had declined.

    She said those who abducted the girls were born by women, have sisters and probably have daughters too.

    Aregbesola spoke at the opening of a two-day conference of Osun Officials’ Wives Association (OSUNOWA), with the theme: Virtuous Woman: Pushing for Greater Development.

    The governor urged the participants to pray to God to touch the hearts of the abductors to release the girls and others in their captivity.

    He said: “I want to use the opportunity of this gathering, being a gathering of mostly women, to ask that we all pray for the safe return of some girls who are supposed to be in school but were kidnapped by some criminals in the northern part of our country.

    “Let us pray for the safety of the girls and their return. We should all, as women and Nigerians, pray to God to touch the hearts of the criminals to hasten the release of those innocent girls and those with same experience.”

    Aregbesola described the abductors as cowards.

    To the women, the governor said: “Don’t fail to let your conference address the issue of those cowards who kidnapped our girls. Tell them in your resolutions that if they are not cowards, they should stop denying innocent girls their freedom but face soldiers in the region for peace keeping.”

    He noted that ?women are central to life as guarantors and caretakers of the human race.

    Aregbesola said nature has made women to be the stronger gender from the biological point of view.

    Mrs Osinbajo, who was the Mother of The Day, hailed the government for developing infrastructure across Osun State.

    ?The Vice-President’s wife noted that the theme of the Conference is apt and carefully selected, saying every woman must assess herself to see that she is pushing for greater development.

    She urged the participants to be fully involved in the presentations and other programmes that have been scheduled for the conference.

    Mrs Osinbajo said: “The challenges we face as a nation is a product of the negligence of our civic responsibilities as women and mothers. What is development today may not be development tomorrow. That is why we need greater development.

    “We need to assess ourselves as individuals, women, mothers and wives? of government officials, particularly on the need to impact on our collective lives and in the lives of other people.”

    The wife of Osun State governor, Alhaja Sherifat Aregbesola, said the conference was borne out of the concern to extend the frontiers of human development.

    She said the conference would be a forum where government ?officials’ wives would be further retooled and equipped with extant and emerging knowledge on various aspects of life.

    She said: “Our development focus will embrace training in skills and economic empowerment, creation of awareness and intervention in critical health-related issues, civic and development policy advocacy, among others.

    “Similar associations have attained a lot of mileage in our sister-states. We are happy to note that recently Ondo State inaugurated its own association. This is a good development, which promises to create a stronger bond and enhance integration among women in the Southwest.”

    ?Oyo State Governor Abiola Ajimobi hailed the virtuous women among the wives of leaders.

    The governor noted that most politicians and leaders would have misbehaved if they were not blessed with virtuous women as wives?.

    He said: “A virtuous woman is someone who is foresighted and noble. A virtuous woman, therefore, plays a major role in development. I, therefore, congratulate the wife of Osun State governor for bringing up this programme.”

    Other dignitaries at the programme included the wives of Ekiti, Lagos and Oyo state governors, Mrs Feyisetan Fayose, Mrs Bolanle Ambode and Mrs. Florence Ajimobi.

    Others included the Secretary to the Governments of Osun and Oyo states, Alhaji Moshood Adeoti and Mr. Olalekan Alli as well as the Chief of Staff to Osun State Governor, Mr Gboyega Oyetola.

     

     

  • Ambode, Udom, Obaseki, Dickson, Fayose, Osinbajo’s wife hail women’s contributions

    Ambode, Udom, Obaseki, Dickson, Fayose, Osinbajo’s wife hail women’s contributions

    •Lagos  empowers 2,613 women entrepreneurs with N2.1b 

    GOVERNORS Akinwunmi Ambode (Lagos), Udom Emmanuel (Akwa Ibom), Godwin Obaseki (Edo), Seriaki Dickson (Bayelsa) and Ayodele Fayose (Ekiti) have hailed the contributions of women to the society and nation-building.

    They spoke at the opening of the 17th National Women Conference organised by the Committee of Wives of Lagos State Officials (COWLSO) in Lagos with the theme: “She creates, she transforms”.

    The governors took turns to celebrate the doggedness, dexterity and creativity of women and their notable contributions towards building a better society.

    In his goodwill message at the event, Ambode lauded the resilience of women in their different spheres, noting that women are naturally-gifted with skills and talents that make positive difference and impact on their generation.

    He said: “Our women are constantly creative; making something out of nothing. Creativity has become very essential to succeed in today’s world because we face new challenges everyday – at home and at work. As the woman creates and transforms, she positively impacts the family, the workplace and the nation.

    “With the female population in our country today, it is clear that our women have the capacity to positively affect the Nigerian economy and are already doing so.”

    He was optimistic that the conference, aside celebrating the resilient and dynamic nature of women under diverse situations, would go a long way to unleash the creative and transformative energies of more women.

    Ambode, who restated his administration’s commitment to supporting female entrepreneurs, added that as at September 2017, no fewer than 2,613 female entrepreneurs, who run Medium and Small Scale businesses have been funded through the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund to the tune of N2.1 billion, assuring that more would be given before the end of the year.

    The governor congratulated the first female mechanic, Sandra Aguebor, who was presented with the Inspirational Woman of the Year Award, saying she had dared to succeed in a career many see as a sole reserve for men.

    Emmanuel, who was guest of honour, lauded COWLSO Chairman and Lagos State Governor’s wife Mrs. Bolanle Ambode for sustaining and improving the COWLSO conference, which started 17 years ago.

    The governor said there was need for women as liberator of the world to be appreciated by every man for their contributions to growth at all times.

    On the theme of this year’s conference, Emmanuel urged women to live their lives by creating and transforming people and things around them without minding the shortcomings, adding that it was important for them to keep hope alive.

    Also, Dickson said the role of women in transforming life could not be under-estimated, saying that it was imperative for women to always be appreciated and celebrated.

    Dickson and Obaseki hailed Lagos State for the initiative, saying that they would replicate same in their states for the benefit of women.

    On his part, Fayose said life without women would be full of crises, saying that it was important for women to be given opportunity to be in the drivers’ seat in the country.

    In her welcome address, Mrs. Ambode urged women to speak up against the barbaric practice of female genital mutilation, saying that the campaign must start from the home-front, churches, mosques,  offices and the communities.

    Mrs. Ambode said: “Female genital mutilation is evil, it is wicked, it is anti-social and unjustifiable. In fact, it is a crime against women. We must devote time for enlightenment and awareness, especially among uneducated mothers. We must stand together against it, until the practice is totally eradicated in our country and the world.”

    She urged woman to resist the temptation of pursuing economic empowerment at the expense of taking good care and paying attention to their children, stressing that children who do not enjoy parental care, easily grow to become potentially dangerous youths and threatening the peace of the society.

    “The rising trend of leaving the girl-child entirely in the care of housemaids, neighbours or strangers in pursuit of income or for flimsy reasons, should be discouraged.

    “We must desist from and discourage child-labour, child-abuse and fight child trafficking with all our strength. We owe it a duty to give good parenting to our children and indeed all other children put in our care. We must give them hope and allow them see the positive side of life, as a way of bringing back good morals and societal stability,” Mrs. Ambode said.

    In her keynote address, the Vice President’s wife Mrs. Dolapo Osinbajo urged women to work hard to transform their children and wards into greatness and create a safe and secured society by inculcating the right virtues in their children.

    She particularly urged the womenfolk to draw inspiration from women who had performed creditably well in their chosen profession, and endeavour to leave their footprints on the sands of time.

    Mrs. Osinbajo said women must speak up against rape and all forms of abuse against women and children, and also speak in defence of the downtrodden and less-privileged in the society.

    Highlight of the event was the presentation of the Inspirational Woman Award Mrs. Aguebor by Mrs. Osinbajo and the unveiling and beautiful rendition of the COWLSO anthem.

     

  • My 10 years experience working with Area Boys, by Osinbajo’s wife

    Vice President’s wife Mrs. Dolapo Osinbajo yesterday shared the experience of how she worked under Lagos bridges, trying to reshape the life of street boys popularly called Area Boys.

    Mrs. Osinbajo, who said the boys called her Mama, said her experience in the 10 years she worked with them revealed that contrary to popularly believe that the boys are  children of the poor, several of those from rich and influential homes also found their ways into the street.

    Addressing teenagers at the 2017 Teens Career Conference organised by The Everlasting Arms Parish (TEAP) of the Redeemed Christian Church of God in Abuja, she said streets running through and around some of the bridges had names of popular people, some of whose children also found their ways on streets as Area Boys.

    She said while working to get many of the boys off the street, she came across several kind of hard drug, noting that she decided to document her experience in a book which she titled: “They call me Mama”.

    Mrs. Osinbajo urged teenagers at the event not to allow anybody despise them.

    Also speaking, former Minister of Education Oby Ezekwesili urged the participants to use their teenage years to decide on what they want to be in life, lamenting however that 65 per cent of children in public schools who are not doing well in education are children of the poor

    Asking those in government to do something urgently to address the decay in public schools, she said: “If we do not reform education in this country, the 65 per cent of the children in the public school system that are failing are usually the children of the poorer segment of the society.

    “So, what it means is double jeopardy. You are going to create what I call inter-generational poverty, dynasties in families simply because you have failed to make public education effective and productive and able to grow the competitive skills that they need in order to move from one level of society to the next level of society”.

    Other speakers at the conference include Kaduna State Deputy Governor’s wife Mrs. Charity Shekari and popular Nollywood actor and former Commissioner in Delta state Richard Mofe-Damijo.

    Head of the Teen Church, who coordinated the event and former Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Segun Adeniyi, said the event was organised to inspire young people to know that there is nothing they are going through that others have not gone through.

  • Nigeria needs love to conquer, says Osinbajo’s wife

    Nigeria needs love to conquer, says Osinbajo’s wife

    Nigeria needs huge dose of love to overcome its challenges, Wife of the Acting President, Mrs. Dolapo Osinbajo, has stated.

    She spoke at the weekend in Owerri, the Imo State capital, during the official inauguration of a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) ELFREEDA FOUNDATION founded by Mrs. Uloma Nwosu, daughter of the Imo State Governor.

    Osinbajo tasked Nigerians to show love to one another irrespective of religious or tribal sentiments.

    According to her: “Our nation needs love now more than anything else. I encourage the people of Imo to show example of this love which I see in them to the rest of the country.

    “Love never fails. I have a request that is deeply rooted in the bible.

    “It is a selfish request because it entails loving everybody irrespective of religion or tribe. And this is what Nigerians should be doing now.”

    Declaring open the foundation, Mrs. Osibanjo said: “I am not surprised with what I see today about the Foundation and all I can whisper is I’m so proud of you my junior sister and daughter, Uloma”.

    Governor Rochas Okorocha described Mrs. Osibanjo as a mother, adding that “her love knows no bound irrespective of class, religion or tribe”.

    Nwosu said the foundation is to help the less-privileged, widows, orphans, disabled and others in the society.

    According to her: “I’m glad ELFREEDA Foundation has joined other charity organisations across the world in helping the less privileged.

    “I remember while growing how we used to go to the Mosque every Friday to feed the poor and since then I have vowed to show love and care to the needy and today that dream has come true.”

     

  • Osinbajo’s wife to Nigerians: ‘Keep faith with God’

    Osinbajo’s wife to Nigerians: ‘Keep faith with God’

    Wife of Vice President, Pastor Dolapo Osinbajo has impressed on citizens the need to keep faith with God.

    She made this clarion call yesterday in Lagos, during the Arise Annual Women’s Conference 2016, where she was the special guest of honour.

    According to the VP’s wife, the one way to rescue the country from the prevailing socio-economic travails is for Nigerians to surrender all to God. She had in her entourage wives of some state governors and other public functionaries.

    Speaking on the theme of the conference tagged: ‘Grace to Grace,’ Mrs. Osinbajo said Nigerians must reconnect with their creator in order to experience a turnaround in their circumstances.

    Waxing philosophical, she said, “All things are possible with God.”

    Mrs. Osinbajo who raised different prayer points for the country, specifically sought divine intervention towards peaceful coexistence and economic stability of the country.

    Speaking earlier, Kwara State First Lady, Mrs. Omolara Ahmed said Nigerians need to seek the face of God more than ever before in order to get out of the socio-economic challenges bedeviling the nation.

    On the roll-call at the event were the wife of the Lagos State Governor, Mrs. Bolanle Ambode, represented by the Head of Service, Mrs. Olabowale Ademola and her counterparts from Imo State, Mrs. Nneoma Nkechi Rochas, Benue, Mrs. Eunice Orthom, Anambra, Mrs Ebele Obiano, represented by Mrs. Pauline Nwakaego, and wife of former deputy governor of Kogi State, Mrs. Tokunbo Awoniyi.

    Also in attendance were wife of former governor of Ekiti State, Erelu Bisi Fayemi, former deputy governors of Lagos, Princess Sarah Sosan and Princess Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, and Mrs. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora.

    Justifying the need for the conference, its convener, Pastor (Mrs.) Siju Iluyomade, Pastor-in-Charge of RCCG, Region 20, said the theme of this year’s conference ‘Grace to Grace’ was carefully chosen because “Grace is an empowering force. It is said to give persons amazing abilities to do what they ordinarily are not capable of doing. This power is received and not deserved by merit, and it is not selective. It is available for everyone.”

    Grace, she stressed, “Suggests a progression, an upward movement and promotion. It shows an enlightenment of body, soul and spirit for the singular purpose of showing God’s favour at work with us. God’s grace has been manifested in our four key areas of influence namely: free healthcare provision delivered via our free clinics and free mobile clinics, empowerment skills acquisition and vocational training for economic gains to the participants, education, teaching, training and using the Arise Module as a tool to teach compassion, good neighbourliness, tolerance, kindness and other virtues.”

    The highpoint of the occasion was the cutting of the anniversary cake supervised by the guests.

  • Osinbajo’s wife advises women

    Wife of the Vice President Mrs. Dolapo Osinbajo has said women should be proud of themselves because they possess indispensable intrinsic values crucial for human and societal development.

    She spoke at the fourth national women’s summit organised by the Oyo State Official’s Wives Association (OYSOWA), led by the wife of the governor, Mrs. Florence Ajimobi, in Ibadan yesterday.

    As homemakers, Mrs. Osinbajo admonished parents not to shirk their responsibilities to their children and husbands.

    Recalling her encounter with a former armed robber, Shina Rambo, Mrs Osinbajo said the experience was “an eye opener to me about how parental neglect drive children into crime”.

    “Rambo shared the experience of how he was abused and traumatised as a child. He showed me his back and I saw cane marks. This, he told me, sent him to the streets.

    “We must show love to our children. God can use you. There was a time I was going under the bridge to preach to gangsters to change their ways. With my small frame, God used me on a particular occasion to avert bloodshed among rival cult groups.”

    At the event were Governor Abiola Ajimobi; wife of Lagos State Governor Mrs. Bolanle Ambode; former Lagos State Deputy Governor Mrs. Sarah Sosan; wife of the Minister of Solid Minerals Erelu Bisi Fayemi; former Minister of Industries, Mrs. Onikepo Akande, wives of heads of security and other federal agencies in the state as well as scores of delegates from across the country.

  • Face your studies, Osinbajo’s wife advises women

    Face your studies, Osinbajo’s wife advises women

    Life of the Vice President, Mrs Dolapo Osibanjo, has described charity as a burden on every affluent human being. She spoke during the scholarship award ceremony organised by Nigerian Women Association of Georgia (NWAG).

    Thirty-seven students of tertiary institutions received scholarship at the event held in Abuja penultimate friday. Mrs Osinbaji praised the women association for lifting the indigent, describing NWAG as a development-oriented group.

    She said: “Nigerian women are naturally generous and compassionate. These are the attributes NWAG is showing us in doing good things. The women association has remained united and committed to change lives positively.”

    Mrs Osibanjo urged the beneficiaries to take advantage of the scholarship to study hard and acquire knowledge that would change their lives and help them to accomplish their goals. She also advised the students to be committed to the ideals of the association and be good ambassadors.

    In his keynote address at the occasion, General Overseer of Transforming Church in Gwarinpa, Reverend Sam Oye, described the women body as promoter of excellence, saying NWAG created opportunity for brilliant indigent ladies to remain in school.

    He said: “The purpose of life is to live a life of purpose. Everyone must be committed to seeking the good and welfare of others. No matter how poor one thinks he is, there is someone somewhere who is poorer.”

    The NWAG founder and Director-General of National Council for Arts and Culture, Mrs Dayo Keshi, said the body started in Atlanta, Georgia in United States, but grew its membership to over 70 within a short period.

    She advised the beneficiaries not to use the grant to buy cloths and other material things. She said the money must be used to pay their tuition and venture into businesses to sustain themselves in school.

    Mrs Keshi said: “The idea about the scholarship was conceived on the day I was invited to a similar event. I met a young girl who was into prostitution. She said she became a sex worker because she had nobody to take care of her and her poor parents.”

    She said it would be sacrilegious for young girls to sell their bodies to cater for their parents, noting that it is honourable for women to be poor than to engage in dehumanising trade.

    International Coordinator of the women body, Mrs Agatha Nnaji, said NWAG was determined to prevent young girls from going into prostitution by helping them to overcome physical and material challenges they may be facing.

    She said: “Each year, ladies are selected from every state of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory to benefit in the scheme. The awardees are carefully selected through different tests to ensure the right persons get the scholarship. The selection process passed through several stages before the final list was made. People who did not get this year should be hopeful next year.”

    Jehilat Kenali, a beneficiary from the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria in Kaduna State, said the women body had given her opportunity to further her studies, which suffered after the death of her father.

    She said: “The death of my father was a blow to the family. My aunty did a lot to keep me in school, but all seems not to be enough because of other expenses. This scholarship will enable me to complete my university education. I plan to start recharge-card business to sustain myself in school.”

    Lilian Iloabanafor, a 300-Level Marketing student of Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK) in Awka, Anambra State, said she was surprised when she got the email informing her that she had won the scholarship.

    Aside the scholarships award to female students, NWAG has also supported the Sickle Cell campaign and has shipped medical materials worth over $1 million to various states in Nigeria.