The wife of the Governor of Oyo State, Chief (Mrs) Florence Ajimobi marked her 58th birthday on Wednesday with the official dedication of an information technology building she donated to the Ajayi Crowther University in Oyo Town.
While speaking at the occasion, the Oyo State Governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi also used the opportunity to attribute the modest success which his administration recorded in the last six years to his ability to take hard decisions on some policies and programmes in the state.
Other activities lined up to mark the birthday included the inauguration of the rehabilitated Office of the Wife of the Governor which was gutted by fire in 2016 as well as a thanksgiving service held at the Government House Chapel.
The governor, while speaking at the occasion witnessed by the Alaafin of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Olayiwola Adeyemi III, members of the state executive council, religious leaders and other eminent personalities, said anybody who desired success in life must exhibit some elements of stubbornness.
“For anybody to succeed in life, such a person must be stubborn. And that is why when some people say I am stubborn, I know what I am doing. Were it not for my stubbornness, I probably would not have been able to achieve anything since I became governor.
“Besides, if I had resigned to fate when they said that we didn’t win the 2007 governorship election and had not exhibited that stubbornness again in 2011, we would not have been where we are today.
“It was also that stubbornness that made me to seek a re-election in 2015 and thank God that the good people of Oyo State gave me their mandate again, thus making me to break the second term jinx,’’ he said.
Ajimobi, who expressed his happiness to witness what he termed ‘the foundation of development’ through the inauguration of the project, said his wife’s gesture was one of the many efforts she had put into contributing her quota to the progress of humanity through education.
“My joy knows no bound as my wife brought us here to witness the foundation of development through this project. We all know that education is the fountain of development and a major part of education today is information technology.
Also speaking, Oba Adeyemi described information communication technology (ICT) as an invention which would outlive the present generation, saying it contributed immensely in dissemination of information as a major tool in ending the Cold War in 1989.
While commending the wife of the governor for the gesture, the royal father described her as a gift to humanity, especially with her humanitarian and philanthropic disposition.
“I salute your support to your husband’s administration. Your dedication, commitment and passion to help the less-privileged in the society are highly commendable,’’ the royal father remarked.
In her address, Mrs. Ajimobi said the ICT centre would aid teaching of new skills and impartation of information technology skills, particularly in this era when the world had become a global village.
Mrs. Ajimobi, who said that no fewer than 2,000 people had benefitted from her ICT training centre, described information technology as an aspect of life with endless opportunities.
“This donation of this building and facilities therein will aid teaching of new skills with impartation of information technology skills which is my new area of interest apart from the maternal healthcare program.
“It is my belief that greater possibilities abound with ICT and the requisite knowledge to drive the nation’s growth is available,” she said.
Mrs Ajimobi gave special appreciation to God and her family, especially her husband who he said had been a strong pillar of support for her and her dreams.
She promised never to relent in her pursuit of development, especially for those in the grassroots and womenfolk.
While appreciating the gesture, the Vice-Chancellor, Ajayi Crowther University, Prof Dapo Asaju disclosed that since the establishment of the institution 11 years ago, only the administration of Governor Abiola Ajimobi had shown tremendous support through donations of cash and materials.
Packaged by Oyedapo Oyewole
