Everything was set for the 7th edition of Inspiring Woman series. This year the theme was ‘Gender Matters Arising’ and it couldn’t be more apt for the season we are in.
One by one the guests began to arrive and the guest speakers were already in the guest lounge, exchanging pleasantries and catching up.
My excitement knew no bounds when the Executive Assistant of the First Lady of Kebbi State kept updating me on the journey and how close they were to the centre. In little or no time, she made her grand entrance and I was like a kid in the candy store. I knew what it took for her to come so you can imagine how excited I was to see her. After a warm embrace, she joined other speakers in the visitor’s lounge and we all left together and made our way into the hall where all the guests were ready to hear, learn and of course enjoy a sumptuous meal as provided by Speadmeals Ltd.
When you have a line up of intellectuals like Dr. Joe Odumakin, President, Women Arise for Change Initiative and Campaign for Democracy; Aishah Ahmad, Chairperson, WIMBIZ; Head, Consumer Banking, Diamond Bank PLC, Dr. Olajumoke Oduwole, Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Industry, Trade and Investment, Her Excellency, First Lady of Kebbi State, Dr Zainab Shinkafi Bagudu, Consultant Paediatrician, MD/CEO, Medicaid Radio-diagnostics, and Dr. Princess Olufemi-Kayode, Criminal Justice Psychologist, Forensic Interviewer, Child Protection Consultant and Victim Advocate at an event like this, you can be sure it was worth every minute spent.
First to speak was Olajumoke, who in her element as an academician enlightened us deeply on women roles and relevance in the nation. She shared on the need not to see yourself as inferior being a woman. In her words “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent. The choice is yours to make.” She educated us all on the need to change our mindset because what we feed our mind is what we will exhibit as traits. She further stressed on the need for women to be disciplined and not engage in conversations even with the opposite sex that doesn’t edify the mind.
Next to speak was Aishah and she made it known prior to her speech that “We know a lot about the grim statistics regarding women’s empowerment, but I’d like us to focus much more on what we can do to achieve lasting change. Every ‘feminist’ out there – man or woman – can significantly make a difference in this narrative” and she buttressed this point further stressing that there is need for more women to be on the board, not just because they are women but because they qualify for it. She made reference to great women who are impacting the world in their own way and encouraged all women to be positive change agents.
Next to speak was Joe Odumakin and it was indeed a moment never to be forgotten. She showed us pictures of women who have been abused and insisted that her organisation will always defend the rights of all. “We have more cases of women being battered and abused by men but very few cases of women abusing men. No living soul has the right to unlawfully terminate another’s life” she insists.
Next was Princess Femi-Kayode and her story brought us all to tears. A survivor in all stratums of life but despite her trials, she has come out stronger and better and says she doesn’t want women to go through what she has gone through and will do her best to shine the light. One area that really got my attention is how she has consistently improved herself in every way “I am still learning, all my teachers who sometimes lecture me are older than me. I am improving myself daily. I built my own website. I love to push young people to do better and I am not too old to learn. I am being strong and pushing myself beyond limits so no child will go through all I went through and if they have, they can know that if I scaled through, they can scale through too. I was a single mum for many years and I have learnt a lot. Yes I was able to conquer but you do not need to go through that so learn from me.” She says.
Then it was time for the final and keynote speaker, First Lady of Kebbi State, Dr Zainab Shinkafi Bagudu and it was another intriguing moment. She spoke on gender matters in various aspects that got all of us thinking deeply but what stood out for me was when she spoke about Mayowa, the young lady who was all over the media recently that died of cancer and she linked the same scenario with losing her father and further admonished the society to calm down in being hasty in judgement. In her words “ May father recently died of cancer and as a doctor, my family would come to me regarding his condition, sometimes with reasonable questions but mostly with unreasonable requests for a miracle that no matter how much I wished it, I could not give to them. On the 5th of July, my mother woke me up at 5am to demand in her loudest unreasonable voice that we move him to an alternative care hospital. We did not. On the 6th of July, he passed away. It is indescribable loss with a lot of pain. My family, like Mayowa’s were doing what any human being with piety would. They were not giving up without a fight for their loved one.”
“I have worked with closely Toyin Aimakhu for about 4 years now to raise funds for patients that cannot afford treatment. Not just cancer patients, but also IDPs. She is a very spontaneous, emotional, bubbly and most of all she gives herself freely and willingly for such causes. She has never demanded payment and would cancel paying jobs in her schedule to fit our fundraisers @medicaidradCF. Thank you Toyin and personally, #IStandByToyin. I believe that her family, Toyin and all those that donated to #SaveMayowa did what they thought was in her best interest.” She says.
I am grateful to God for the success of Inspiring Woman Series 7 and looking forward to series 8 already!
KEMI AJUMOBI
