31st January, 2011
The day was 21 September 2005. The venue was the expansive Expo Hall of the Eko Meridien on Victoria Island. Some of the country’s most talented artistes – King Sunny Ade, KWAM 1, Lady Ayo Balogun, Tony Tetuila, Sunny Neji, Kenny St Brown, Lagbaja, Dare Art Alade and Yinka Davies among others had been assembled to provide first class entertainment in an unforgettable fun filled night. The capacious hall was packed full as the cream of the Nigerian society paid N100, OOO per head to attend the concert.
The cynosure of all eyes at the event was none other than the then First Lady of Lagos State, Chief (Mrs) Oluremi Tinubu, and now Lagos Central Senatorial Candidate of the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN. That day was this remarkable woman’s 45th birthday and, characteristically, she chose to mark the occasion in a unique way.
But then, the meticulously planned concert was not an end in itself. No, the purpose of the gathering was not just to listen to soul lifting music for its own sake. It was not to create an opportunity for the wealthy elite to flaunt their ability to afford the cost of attending a prestige event. Rather, Mrs. Tinubu had decided to utilise her personal influence and immense good will to mobilise support for the millions of disadvantaged Nigerians suffering from the debilitating sickle cell disease. All the artistes had agreed to play free of charge to raise funds for this noble cause. In addition to the amount realized from the entrance fee, many of the eminent guests in attendance donated generously towards combatting a scourge that is such a source of so much pain to so many. The concert was an outstanding success in achieving its objective of raising funds in aid of the financially incapacitated National Sickle Cell Research Centre.
Mrs. Tinubu’s personally signed letter to all the invited guests on that occassion speaks volumes about the character and compassion of this outstanding woman and I will quiote her words at length: “Friends and well wishers, I could not have chosen a better day and time to get this type of outpouring of love and support than when I turned 45, how time flies. We are all here with one purpose, to give hope and love to a group of special people amongst us, some very close to others and us by acquaintance. Sickle Cell disorder is not a pleasant experience; we lost a daughter whom a close friend of ours fondly calls Princess to the disease. Our Princess could not bring her Prince Charming home because she was gone too soon at the tender age of 3. The pain of losing her remains very fresh in our memory. But we are not alone in this plight and it is sad to note that one in every 4 Nigerians has the Sickle Cell trait, and over a hundred thousand children die every year from the disease.
“Nigeria needs this Center desperately and I invite you to join hands with me in making the National Sickle Cell Centre a reality. It is therefore my desire that all gifts that you may wish to present to me on this occasion be channelled towards this worthy cause. Today’s concert benefit should not be the end for the National Sickle Cell Centre, the challenge to everyone present is to ensure that the building is completed and running by 2006. On behalf of my husband and family, I thank you for your support.â€
That then was the personal, heart felt message that stirred the hearts of guests that memorable day. The artistes gave the performances of their lives. Scores reached for their cheque books and gave generously to the cause. The proceeds of the concert were speedily collated and audited in the best example of transparency and on Tuesday, 1 November, 2006, Mrs. Tinubu presented a cheque of N50 million to Professor Akinyanju of the National Sickle Cell Research Centre to stregthen that institution’s mission of “bringing hope to the African childâ€.
This captures succintly the essential Mrs. Tinubu – a life dedicated to giving back to society; to doing all she can to soothe the pain of others. On page 20 of her remarkably frank and thoroughly enjoyable little book titled “The Journey of Grace – My Faith Walkâ€, Mrs Tinubu gives an insight into her sacrificial philosophy of life in the following moving words: “I also discovered in Nehemiah 8:10 that God also makes provision for the needy through those of us who are more fortunate to care for them. Deuteronomy 15:9-11 explains how we are to take care of the poor who “shall never cease out of the landâ€. Also Ecclesiastes 5:9 says “Moreover the profit of the earth is for all: the king himself is served by the fieldâ€. With all this information, I realised that if God has provided for us, it must have been that we are chosen to be custodians to manyâ€. We can thus appreciate the values that have enabled this compassionate Amazon to touch and add value to so many lives.
A trained educationist who is a graduate of the prestigious Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Mrs. Tinubu has an abiding passion for the underpriviledged children, youth and women. She is driven by an overiding desire to help them fulfill purpose and actualise their trapped potentials. The greatest manifestation of this commitment is her New Era Foundation (NEF) which is easily the most successful and enduring of such initiatives by any First Lady in Nigeria’s history. Three years after she ceased to be First Lady, the NEF celebrated ten years of its outstanding success story. Unlike most of such ‘pet projects’ that tend to die once their initiators are no more in positions of public influence, the NEF is waxing stronger by the day.
One of NEF’s most creative initiatives is the annual Spelling Bee competition to inspire academc excellence in public secondary schools in Lagos State. The best three participants in the contest win cash and other prizes while the winner has the additional priviledge of serving as symbolic governor of Lagos State for one day. Thousands of public school students in the state study hard to excell in this competition and enjoy the attendant rewards. The worthy initiative has been sustained by the Governor Fashola administration and nine one-day governors have emerged over the last decade. No student who has gone through the experience has remained the same. Two of them graduated with First Class honours in their respective disciplines while others are doing well in their studies both within and outside the country.
Mrs. Tinubu’s eyes glitter with pride when she talks about the successes of ‘her children’. In a recent interview, for instance, she spoke glowingly of one of the one day governors, Mr. Chukwuebuka Anisiobi who was then in his final year at university. In her words: “Ebuka invited me for a programme in the school. It was actually the day we launched LAGBUS. I was not there because I had to go and give the boy support. He made me so proud that day and I shed tears of joy. This was a shy boy and he didn’t have any speech but he was great.†Such is this woman’s passion for helping children build positive lives.
Interestingly, even though she was First Lady, the NEF’s programmes were largely private sector funded. The first five editions of the Spelling Bee competition, for instance, were funded by Hallmark and Citizen Bank; Guarantee Trust Bank; Eleganza Industries PLC; Lagos State Assurance Corporation (LASACO) and Cadbury PLC respectively. It was only from 2006 that the Lagos State Ministry of Education took over the organisation of the competition as one of the motivational programmes of the state government. As a result of its seriousness, efficiency and transparency, the NEF has also developedworking relationships over the years with the Ford Foundation, World Bank and the Havard School of Public Health.
Other life-impacting accomplishments of the NEF include the establishment in conjunction with the Lagos State Ministry of Education of an Alternative High School for Girls in Agboju Amuwo, Lagos, to provide an opportunity for out of school girls to acquire the Senior Secondary School Certificate; HIV/AIDS advocacy for youths; and the New Era Wheelchair Tennis Championship for physically challenged but talented men and women. The New Era Youth Camp (NEYOCA) to have facilities for building the self esteem of at least 240 youths at a time between the ages of 7 to 17 years is currently being developed at Ibeju-Lekki with funds raised by NEF over the last seven years. Mrs. Tinubu requested that funds that would have been expended on adverts or gifts for her 50th birthday be donated to the development of the youth camp.
When Mrs. Tinubu became First Lady of Lagos State, the Committee of Wives of Lagos State Officers (COWLSO), established by Mrs. Funmilayo Johnson in 1973, had become completely moribund. Under Mrs. Tinubu’s leadership COWLSO was revived and transformed into an organisation for adding value to the lives of women and children. For instance, the annual National Women Conference initiated by Mrs. Tinubu under the auspisces of COWLSO has been sustained by the current First Lady, Mrs. Abimbola Fashola. The event has established itself as one of the most vibrant for qualitative discourse on issues affecting women in Nigeria. It was also under Mrs. Tinubu’s dynamic leadership that COWLSO initiated and successfully accomplished the rehabilitation of Campos Square, Lafiaji Recreation Centre, Kudirat Abiola Freedom Square (formerly Evans Square), Ebute Metta, Sam Shonibare Gardens in Surulere, Oshodi Sports Centre, Anthony Village Recreation Centre and Ojo Oniyan Recreation Centre in Maryland area.
She was at the barricades with her husband during the pro-democracy struggle that resulted in this democratic dispensation. She was a dynamic, creative, productive, compassionate and modest First Lady of Lagos State for eight years. Chief (Mrs.) Oluremi Tinubu (OON) will certainly be a worthy and qualitative representative of the Centre of Excellence in the Senate.
•Segun Ayobolu wrote in from Lagos.