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By Bianca Iboma-Emefu
History was made when Olasubomi Iginla-Aina, was recently elected the Director, Global NGO Executive Committee (GNEC), which is the representative organ for all NGOs associated with the United Nations Department for Global Communication (UNDGC). Iginla-Aina has a track record of almost 30 years of humanitarian works. The leadership trait of this quintessential jewel first showed when she was in secondary school and then came into full bloom after she emerged as the student union president at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State. Her advocacy works were later recognised by Queen Elizabeth II, who bestowed her with an award as Member of the British Empire (MBE) in recognition of her contribution to humanity. In this interview, she outlines her plans to strengthen civil societies across the globe.
Can we have a brief insight into your background and how your journey into humanitarian activities began?
I am from Lagos State. My dad was from Isale-Eko and my mum from Ikorodu. I grew up in Surulere. I attended Yewande Memorial Primary School and had my secondary education at Lagos Anglican Girls Grammar School, LAGGS, where I began my humanitarian work as a student. I was the head-girl in my set and led a number of student clubs and organisations. I used the opportunity to plan and execute various humanitarian projects for the less privileged, for instance visitations to the SOS Village and other orphanages.
My parents were philanthropists. There were particular days of the week when members of the public would come and appeal for funding various welfare needs. My dad, Alade Iginla, was referred to in the community as Baba Alanu. We had different people living with us in the house. My mum had a compassionate heart. She would go all out to assist people and encourage them.
Growing up was quite a challenge because I was born into a polygamous family. Sadly, my mum died a few days after my 11th birthday.
I had to live with my grandmother, who equally died a year after my mum’s death. That was how my aunty came to live with us.
Truly, engaging in humanitarian activities just start in our minds. You will just find yourself interested in activities that are in alignment with your purpose while for some it may be an unusual burden for a cause.
Looking back at your days in the university, what would say are the memorable achievements?
While I was in secondary school, I kept telling my friends that I was going to study Architecture at the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU) and that I was going to become the President of the Students Union. They listened to me and watched me with great amazement but they never for once understood me. I finally gained admission into OAU to study architecture in September 1996. I made my way to school with the excited thought: “OAU here I come!”
Right from year one, I started to mention to my roommates that I was going to become the President of the Students Union Government (SUG).
They would look at me and laugh. They told me that, “females don’t become presidents here.” But I continued to tell them that I would one day become the SUG President.
I remember one day we all woke up to hear the news that some SUG executives and some other students were killed during a cult attack. There was pandemonium on campus on that very day. I decided to visit the hospital to confirm what was going on.
I got there and learnt that the bodies of the students had been moved to the mortuary. I insisted that I wanted to confirm what I was hearing. For a strange reason, I got to the mortuary and the attendant showed me the bodies of the dead students. I came out of the mortuary angry and right behind the mortuary building, reaffirmed within me that such injustice must not be allowed to continue and I must become the president of the SUG.
Ordinarily such a scene should discourage anyone from getting involved, but on the contrary that made me reaffirm my dedication to the cause.
Whenever my roommates met me outside the room within the campus, they would greet me the same way students greet the President, just to tease me. I didn’t ever get annoyed with them. All I did whenever they said “My honourable president” was to affirm with “Amen” within me, and then answer them the way the president would reply students when greeted that way: “At your service always.”
They always walked away, puzzled, and never seemed to understand me, but thank God I understood myself.
In my Year One, I fasted for 21 days to become the SUG president. Again, in my Year Two, I fasted for 21 days for the same reason.
While fasting, God revealed campaign strategies to me in the dream. I documented the revelations and when it was time for election, I used those strategies that blew everyone’s mind.
My strategies were mind-blowing. I had no money to campaign. After many challenges, I was denied funds from home because they didn’t want me to contest. Lecturers and popular people were campaigning for me without knowing me.
I was a faceless candidate; I had no money for posters. I used chalk to write my surname, “IGINLA” (which literarily means “big tree”) in strategic places on campus and on trees. I later appealed to one of the business centres on campus to please write “IGINLA” with landscape orientation on A4 paper and they produced black and white photocopies of this. The total amount for this was N100, which I agreed to pay after the election.
There was a particular lecturer, who taught one of the special elective courses with thousands of students attending his lecture. During one of his classes, I appealed to the students to vote for me. He specifically said: “This guy is environmental-friendly, instead of defacing the campus, he is writing with chalk, and when rain comes, it will be washed away.” He said others made expensive posters, and that they would steal the students’ money when they got into office. This was the basis for his plea.
No one knew whether I was a male or female except my close friends. I am currently writing a book to give a detailed account of my growing up years titled: IGINLA. More details will be found in this book.
I eventually won the election to become the Vice President of the Students’ Union. A few months after, God showed me how my president became humiliated in a dream. I looked for him to warn him of an impending danger and asked him to be careful. Unfortunately, there was a problem not too long from then, and my president was suspended. That was how I became the President. During the period I emerged as president, the longstanding problem of reinstating over 10 rusticated students, including the SUG President became resolved.
This problem had been there before I became a student: it was an inherited problem that had caused several disruptions to the university’s academic calendar over the years, claimed the lives of students during protests, and had eventually become a national issue.
The Vice Chancellor was removed and many atrocities took place. I decided to follow the way of peace. My studentship was threatened at some point, but I believed in the cause. The school authorities wanted me to cancel a congressional resolution to hold a rally on the day former President Obasanjo was sending the Governing Council chairman to the school.
The school authorities just wanted to create an atmosphere of peace within the campus. I insisted that I wouldn’t cancel the rally but that it would be conducted peacefully. Interestingly, while the rally was taking place, I got information that a student who went to play football slumped and died on the field. To avoid further troubles, I immediately left the rally venue and told the Deputy Dean of Students’ Affairs that we would need to move the body and make the body sit in the car with us as if he were alive.
I sat with the body on one side and another person on the other side and we escaped through the back gate to move the body to the mortuary. If the students were aware that a fellow student had died, the situation may be hijacked and may be used to cause unrest within the campus, meaning that the peaceful rally I was trying to achieve would have become bloody.
Recently you contested to become a director of the Global NGO Executive Committee and won. How did it happen?
I felt I could add value to the body and make more positive influence as an executive member, hence I contested. It was not easy at all, I had made the attempt three times and never got on the list of candidates until now. It was a 30-day election and many organisations had to vote digitally and globally.
Why did you contest for the position and what plan do you have while in office?
I sought a higher office with the intent of doing on a larger scale the things I have being doing for close to 30 years. I believe in working with the GNEC in a star-studded team of fellow visionaries. I hope that we should be able to push the frontiers of development agenda across the world in meeting up with the expectations of the electorate. God helping me, my strong organisational skills, experience and creative capacities will no doubt
be a good resource for the work of the GNEC. This will also be of immense benefit to organisations across the globe. I am happy to share my knowledge and expertise, to the benefit and empowerment of civil societies across the globe.
I also hope to bring to the table, ground-breaking ideas and solutions to help the Executive team.
What is your advice for Nigerian civil society organisations?
Everywhere around the world, the civil society has been the foundation for social welfare and development. Nigeria as the foremost
country in sub-Saharan Africa has also developed structurally with many NGOs working with the government to promote good governance, advocacy work, social welfare, rights protection and a couple of others. In spite of all that we have achieved, it does appear we are still scratching the surface compared to what we can evidently see being done in other climes.
In addition, one of the things we must do is to leverage on numbers by encouraging more of us to come on board. The second, and a very important thing to do, is to join forces with other civil society organisations to make a lasting impact globally. Perhaps the third will be for us to encourage ourselves and others, lift each other up and complement each other’s work instead of engaging in unnecessary competitions, which are not in any way healthy for our overall development. I believe the potentials are huge for us as a nation.
As the Director of GNEC, what would Nigeria benefit, given that you are a Nigerian and a member of the Global NGO Executive Committee?
I was elected as a member of the Global NGO Executive Committee to represent global interests. However, because I am passionate about Nigeria, I would be glad to contribute my quota towards the development of Nigeria in any way that I can, beginning with the empowerment of the third sector.
Nigerian civil society organisations (CSO) must be credited for their conscientious efforts in working with the government towards the welfare, security and development of Nigeria. However, there is still room for improvement. There is a need to come together so we can attain exceedingly greater achievements, as the saying goes: ‘if we want to go fast then we go alone but if we must go far we have to go together.’ We truly need to work more as a team. I am committed to the empowerment of the Nigerian civil society. I hope to work with them to get them more involved with nation-building assignments as well as supporting them to build formidable networks that will bring more global relevance through the work of the United Nations. I hope to team up with CSOs to encourage the promotion of the SDG goals.
I will basically work with NGOs in Nigeria to organise trainings and seminars that would generally empower beneficiaries, especially in areas pertaining to youth development, child abuse, and the empowerment of less-privileged members of the society.
Civil society organisations ought to be properly represented at sittings of the National Assembly and state legislatures in order to help maximize civil society involvement in a democratic system as well as solidify and validate the legislative process even more. Such high level involvements will ensure that decision making is truly representative of the interests of the people. Therefore, I intend to work hand-in-hand with the relevant authorities to see this actualized.
