Nigerian women have been advised to develop their self-confidence and build capacity for nation building in order to help Nigeria achieve her full potentials.
The advice was given by Mrs. Foluso Oyenuga FCA, a reputable Chartered Accountant, during her lecture at the installation of Mrs. Titilayo Olajide as 29th President of the International Inner Wheel Club of Bodija and the Inauguration of the Club Executives for the 2019/2020 International Wheel Year.
Mrs Oyenuga, who is the Founder, New Nation Enlightenment Foundation, said the Nigeria of our dream is achievable if women, who according to researchers, are believed to be more than the male population, change their orientation and ways of thinking about the way forward for the nation.
“Do women really think about Nigeria as a whole or are we all just bothered about our immediate families? Do we envision and participate or do we lean back and do nothing? What do we see, think, believe?
“How did we meet Nigeria when we were born? What did our parents tell us about Nigeria? What did Nigeria become as we grew older? And what have we birthed for our children and the coming generations? Did we have a blueprint we followed in history? Do we have one now? What direction are we headed?” Oyenuga asked.
Oyenuga, who is also a senior partner at Ade Esan & Company (an off-shoot of Spencer Thirwell Chartered Accountants), a highly reputable firm of Chartered Accountants, said history has shown that women were very involved in social, economic and political activities. They raised industries in food processing, pottery making, cooking, hair making, mat weaving, etc and they were central to trade and even participated in long distance trading with courage but somehow they lost it along the way, though not totally as some few women still holding fort.
“Amina of Zaria grew up in her grandfather’s court and was well equipped with military skills which made her as capable as a man. She had so many plans to extend the territory of Zazzau and she executed them and created trade routes throughout Northern Nigeria, conquered towns and made them pay her tribute. She was credited with kolanut cultivation and Hausa fortification known as Amina’s Walls.
“Moremi of Ife was the wife of the king but her people were threatened by their neighbors and so she did something strange by sacrificing her son. She got powers to disguise and infiltrate the camp of their enemies. She learnt their secrets and disclosed them to her people which helped them defeat their enemies.
“Both of them had what they were looking forward to for the benefit of their people. They wanted it, they equipped themselves and met their targets. We are capable of achieving great feats when we encourage and embolden ourselves,” Oyenuga added.
The widely traveled entrepreneur, who was the governorship candidate of People’s Party of Nigeria in Osun State in the 2014 election, further said the Nigeria of our dreams starts from the ‘us’ of our dreams when we start thinking of how to make our lives and the lives of our neighbours better, then Nigeria as a whole will have a chance.
“For women to achieve the Nigeria of our dream, a lot of women need to be educated because education liberates us and particularly we should design Adult Education for our market women (Bodija, Agbeni, Alesinloye, Gbagi etc) because they form majority of the women population. It is most obvious when political rallies are being done.
“Our exposure determines our insight. So we need to expand what each girl or woman sees; what she knows. Show them the good. That her situation can be better. Reorientation through Social Re-engineering, the mind must be liberated with sound education.
“They say there are more women than men in the world. The same goes for Nigeria. Now imagine the ripple effect on Nigeria if every woman had a vision and was equipped to carry it out,” Oyenuga concluded.
Diginitries present at the event included Mr Dare Babarinsa, a co-founder of Tell, Nigeria’s acclaimed foremost weekly news magazine, the Chairman of the occasion, Chief (Dr) Kunle Olajide, Engr Odeleye, Rotary Club Governor.
Mr Gboyega Fisher, President Ibadan Recreation Club, Hon Alabi Olajide, a member of Ekiti State House of Assembly, Dr Bukola Balogun, Mary Golding National Awardee among others.
Packaged by Lanre Olabisi
