BusinessDay 23 Mar 2018

3
BUSINESS DAY
Friday 23 March 2018WOMEN’S HUB
Odunayo Sanya,
owning her scar
KEMI AJUMOBI
A
Non-Governmental Organisation
(NGO), the Shade of
Women Foundation (TSWF),
has unveiled a book entitled: “She
Said So, and Other Stories”, which
aims to enlighten Nigerians and
other African countries on the influence
of the girl-child and women in
national development.
Speaking at the event, which was
held as part of its efforts to mark this
year’s World International Women
Day, on the topic: “The role of girlchild
and nation-building”, the guest
speaker, Raheemat Adabanija, highlighted
the requisite knowledge of a
girl-child to fit for nation-building,
including formal or informal education
and skills.
She also charged governments
across the three-tiers, organisations
and institutions, to set-up more
sensitisation programmes in order
to reduce the problem facing the girl
child in Nigeria.
She said: “This book is part of
one of the essential tools that will
sensitise people, especially the females.
I strongly recommend it for
the academics, culture and tourism
sector, because any country that desires
absolute development will not
take the issue of women carelessly.
Odunayo Sanya is a versatile
professional with more than
20 years of postgraduate
work experience in the Education,
Financial Services and Telecommunication
sectors of which 15
years have been in management
positions. She is currently a General
Manager in a leading Telecommunication
Company – with an active
base of 57million subscribers (April
2016), where she leads the Planning
and Customer Management
team. She is adept at conceptualizing
and implementing innovative
customer –centric practices and
procedures to improve efficiency in
an organization. An Alum of the Lagos
Business School (SMP 27) and
IMD with executive trainings from
the Harvard Business School and
Cornell University, she is a certified
Professional Forecaster CPF) and
a member of the Institute of Business
Forecasting & Planning (New
York). An international speaker,
Odunayo has presented papers at
the IIR Telecoms loyalty &Churn
in Berlin (2009) and Nice, France
(2010). A conference advisor at
Fleming Gulf’s ‘Win Your Customer’
conference in South Africa (2011).
She is also a volunteer mentor on
the platform of WISCAR (Women
in Successful Careers). Odunayo
is a John Maxwell certified Coach,
Speaker and Trainer.
Sometime in 1997, she noticed
a swelling on her chest, just below
her collar bone. She thought nothing
of it other than it being a pimple
waiting for expiration. After a few
months, she observed that it was
growing and became very itchy. A
visit to her doctor revealed it was a
hypertrophic scar, in simple terms, a
‘Keloid.’ She met with a dermatologist
who let her know she must have
scratched an assumed ‘pimple’ and
this unconscious act had resulted
in a keloid. The scar began to grow
minimally – at first. “I was conscious
of it and worried as to the possible
alteration this may portend for my
life. In 2002, I commenced treatment
using injections. The keloid
was injected with steroids and left
in its wake so much pain that it was
unbearable. The Keloid continued
to grow; it was now about 2 inches
in height and 4 inches in length.” She
says and continues “It was thick and
very itchy. I worried about it, not so
much for my sanity but what others
would think. I was asked questions
around the cause, question to which
NGO inaugurates book to fight girl-child exploitation
ENDURANCE OKAFOR
One of the book reviewers, Olutoyin
Jegede, a professor said: “The
125-page book was instrumental
as it critically addressed the plights
of the girl-child and women in the
society.
“It entails an anthology of poems
and prose narratives (short
stories and essays) and contains 43,
nine short stories, and two essays.
The anthology is rich in ideas as it
touches on the existence of the girl
child: gender, beauty, education,
family, sexuality, and the role of the
society. It depicts the girl child as
unsecured and agitated girl.
“The book also described issues
of her biological set up, social experiences
and psychological conditions.
The creative work, however,
urged to appreciate the girl child
for her intellect and not her beauty.
Also, some of the poems centred
on the general objectification and
sexuality of a girl child and sexual
oppression, which include sexual
exploitation, rape, child or forceful
marriage and forceful prostitution.
“Above all, the title of the book
suggests the female audibility as it
is significant to know that women
are able to tell their stories and I
discovered that these stories have
depths as it described the situation
of rape more rigorously and talks
on the psychological implications
of rape on the girl-child.
“The poem titled: ‘Silence’ on
Page 93, describes not only rape,
but its aftermath; the culture of
silence of women when rape happens.
Keeping the secret of rape
is a serious social issue. Though
some of the writers celebrated the
beauty and the nature of the female
gender, some of the poems in prose
will build the self-esteem of the girl
child.”
She noted that the title reflected
hope of the safe return of the recently
abducted schoolgirls in Dapchi,
Yobe State.
In his take, Gbemisola Adeoti,
the Dean of Arts, Obafemi Awolowo
University (OAU), said the book addressed
the pains and pressures of
being a female in Africa, while the
Director, American Corner Ibadan,
Adefemi Bucknor, said the book
depicted the plights of the girl-child
and women across the world.
Speaking on behalf of the convener
and founder of TSWF, Shakirat
Oluwatosin Raji, the Programme
Manager, Omobolanle Adedeji,
restated the initiative was ready to
protect the right of the girl-child
and women across Africa as well
as tackle any problem faced by the
female gender.
The event, held at United States
Mission American Corner, Jericho,
Ibadan, Oyo State, was graced by academic
scholars from various institutions
including, Olutoyin Jegede,
Ramonu Sanusi, both professors
from the faculty of Arts, University
of Ibadan; Dean of Arts, Obafemi
Awolowo University (OAU), Gbemisola
Adeoti; Manager, Community
and Social Development
Programme, Oyo State, Raheemat
Adabanjia.
Others were the Director, American
Corner Ibadan, Adefemi Bucknor;
Director of Mother and Girlchild
Protection Initiative (MAGI),
I had no answer. With every pregnancy,
the keloid got permission for
growth.” She reveals.
The itchy pain was unbearable.
In 2009, Odunayo checked in for
a Keloidectomy after consultation
with a plastic surgeon. The surgery
was successful; at least, the thick
keloid had been taken off her chest.
She still had follow up treatments.
She had to take the injections again.
Half way into the first post-surgery
injection,Odunayo ordered her
surgeon to stop with a loud shrill. In
her words, “My reaction to the fluid
was that of intense pain which hit
my brain immediately. My doctor
had to stop. At that point, I took the
decision to prioritize my pain versus
the result. A number of times I have
had to answer questions from my
children like ‘What happened to
you here Mummy?’ They ask with
so much love and run their hands
over ‘My SCAR’” furthermore, she
says “ I have owned it; it doesn’t
own me. I make sure I answer every
time I am asked. I answer with a lot
of clarity and leave room for more
questions. My family have never
been afraid of My SCAR. I am not
afraid of my SCAR. My decision?
Though I was physically scarred on
the chest, I was far from scarred in
my mind and spirit.”
“ I realized my SCAR is my seed
of greatness. I understood (thanks
to my mentors – John C. Maxwell,
Paul Martinelli, Robin Sharma) my
SCAR is a license to help others fulfil
purpose. Rather than spend the rest
of my days and faith expecting healing,
I chose to spend the rest of my
days and faith pursuing my dreams
of impacting those I come across in
my journey in life. For this purpose,
I unveiled my SCAR.”
Hear her share more on her scar.
“ You see, my SCAR is a badge of
honour and I am proud to wear it.
It is an evidence that I have been
through some rare experiences
(respect me for that) and most important
is that my SCAR has added
strength to my beauty and confidence
to my gait. What SCARs do
you carry? They could be Physical or
psychological. Your SCARs are real
to the extent that you give them life.
To learn how to unveil your SCAR
and listen to the rest of my story,
join me on the 24th of March at the
Radisson Blu Anchorage Hotel on
Ozumba Mbadiwe for a Leadership
Masterclass based on a true
life story.”
Adijat Malik; the chief launcher,
Kunle Sanni and co-launcher,
Mobolaji Ajayi; pupils from the
Polytechnic High School, Abadina
College and Glory of God Primary
School, among others.