allure 12062022

| Interview
been entrenched in me and acknowledged by
other people even though I still believe that I am
work in progress in that area. This value and others
came from my parents because I saw how they
related with people across social strata, gender,
religion and tribe with love, honor, respect,
compassion and empathy. I also learnt from my
parents to give to the less privileged and this has
become second nature to me because we did
this together as a family from when I was very
young. My kind and gentle nature is also a byproduct
of being raised by and observing them.
So, in essence, my family and parents prepared
me for this role. In the same way, I also see how
children pick things like a sponge and an example
is the way my daughter is literally able to mimic
me and my exact voice at just six years old
especially when dresses like me (laughs).
Therefore, children pick the values that their
parents portray not what the parents desire. So,
we parents need to first embody the values we
seek to transfer to our children.
In terms of the skills a woman needs for this
kind of role, I think humility is key especially
because of the state of the society we are in. Even
though its great and important to stand up for
your rights, we need to be as gentle as a dove and
embrace our innate femininity with all humility. We
shouldn’t seek to “compete” with men by
behaving “manly”. I also believe we need to
uphold compassion for our fellow human beings
and the people we’re leading as I see it as one of
the greatest keys to wisdom. This is because
leadership is servanthood before it requires
direction. These values are very critical for a
woman in a position of authority.
What are your thoughts on the importance of
having more women in politics and the process
for achieving the same? How can you describe
the Nigerian government’s efforts so far to
facilitate this considering decisions like its recent
rejection of the bill on gender equality? Also, what
should the government do differently to
encourage more women to participate in
politics?
I’ll start from the last part of the question. The
government is the people and the people is the
government so sometimes when we say
“government” we transfer responsibility to our idea
of an organization called the government. In
actual fact, we are the government. Therefore, I
believe that from the micro-levels of families and
schools we need to teach the girls that they have
a voice and their opinions as well as contributions
to the society beyond childbearing matters, right
unto the mid-levels like the workplace where
women should be properly trained and given
equal opportunities such as access to promotions
without having to sell themselves, and then at
macro-levels like the national platforms where
women should be brought on for ministerial and
other leadership positions.
There is a saying that “no one can realize your
value apart from you”. It means we need to
understand our value because people will treat
you as good or bad as you let them treat you.
From my experience working in the public sector
at NIMASA, the most critical persons of women in
government are women themselves i.e. by
“one of my core
objectives
during this reign
is the
empowerment
of girls and
especially
women
in our rural
communities.”
pushing other women down. Therefore, the
minority women in government now should make
space for other women to come up by mentoring,
promoting and encouraging them. This is because
when we start seeing the value of ourselves as
women, our fellow brothers in government will
respond to that and react the same way
genuinely.
We understand that you have a desire for each
life in the Warri Kingdom to be worth a life in
Washington DC, what does this mean in practical
terms and what are the possible ways for
achieving that?
As we know, no country values the lives of its
citizens more than America and it’s not because
their body parts are worth more than ours but
because they have a desire to improve the quality
of life of their citizens and they attach value to
human life. These two motivations are intertwined
because when you value human life, you will want
to improve the quality of life of your people. I
believe this is what I meant when I said “…Until one
life in the Warri Kingdom is worth the same as a life
in Washington DC..”. It means that until we really
begin to see value of our people and the quality of
life that they require from basic amenities like
water and light to roads and schools, we still have
a lot of work to do. In essence, we are committed
to empowering the people.
Having grown up in a wealthy family and being a
wealthy person yourself, what can you say are
the fundamental principles of thriving financially
without having to sacrifice crucial things that
matter?
The first and foremost thing will be trust in God.
This is because when it comes to wealth building,
the journey is filled with ups and downs. Therefore,
you need trust and faith in God as an anchor. The
second principle will be diligence, the Bible says a
man diligent in his works will stand before kings so
we should not look down on the little seed in our
hands because we are comparing ourselves to
others or because we are just despising our little
beginnings. Also, I mean diligence in all its forms
including accountability and building wealth
according to pattern. The third principle will be
INTEGRITY! – I can’t overemphasize this. The fourth
principle will have to be perseverance and being
true to your assignment such that you do not give
up. I saw all four principles serve as cardinal points
in my father. For example, one of his major prayer
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June 12, 2022