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Arewa Ogangan, Miss Oluwatunmise Akinyele, last week Monday organized a Girl-Child Advocacy programme in Ido-Ekiti, the headquarters of Ido/Osi Local Government Area of Ekiti State, in commemoration of the International Women’s Day (IWD).
According to Miss Akinyele the occasion was to celebrate women in Ido-Ekiti, noting that charity begins at home.
She stated that the programme would continue after her tenure as Arewa Ogangan.
Her words: “The event is one of its kind and has never happened before.
“We decided to celebrate women in Ido-Ekiti because they say charity starts from home.
“We have to celebrate our women and girls because some day they will be out there in the world.
“I look forward to doing it every year, but it might be the next Arewa Ogangan that will continue this legacy that I have created.”
The dramatic art undergraduate emphasized on the topic she chose for the event: ‘Educate the Girls, Build the Nation.’
“I chose the topic because women have always been considered low or inferior.
“I feel it is time to break that bias, break that chain, chord and mentality that see women as inferior. We can be equal.
“I want women to have a voice because I’m a wounded lawyer who ended up being in dramatic art. I still want to make a voice because I know that I can’t do it alone, I want other women to join”, Miss Akinyele said.
Olojudo of Ido-Ekiti, His Royal Majesty, Oba Ayorinde Ilori-Faboro, who was represented at the occasion by his wife, Olori Ngozi Ilori-Faboro, the Eyesorun of Ido-Ekiti, and the Elders-in-Council, partnered Arewa Ogangan on the premise of educating their subjects, especially young girls, in line with the theme of the IWD.
Faboro said: “Akinyele envisaged us celebrating the IWD. We put it in motion and we are happy that it’s our inaugural day in Ido-Ekiti.
“The theme for the IWD prompted us to invite our young girls to understand what it is all about, how it affects them and the issues surrounding girl-child.
“We invited the two major secondary schools in Ido-Ekiti – Ekiti Parapo College and Oganganmodu Grammar School – to come and receive lectures and celebrate the day with us.”
On the role of the traditional institution to further extend what Miss Ido-Ekiti has started in the community, the monarch added that Ido-Ekiti will continue to organize programmes that will cut across all women and girls under their jurisdiction.
“I have been working and educating the girl-child because lots of expectations have been placed on her without any support system that helps her understand who she is.
“We are raising mothers and sisters that will build a strong Nigeria.
“We pray that the plight and development surrounding the issues of women will be looked into more closely and hope that Nigerian men will see beyond what is the obvious.”
Prince Segun Adebayo, an engineer and philanthropist, who was one of the resource persons at the event, stressed the importance of parents training their wards and not shifting the responsibility to teachers alone.
Adebayo charged parents against imbuing the girl-child with inferiority complex, saying they should see it as a means of breaking the glass.
One of the students who participated in the event highlighted the significance of the event, pledging to utilize the messages she received.
Bamidele Olajumoke, an SS3 student of Ogaganmodu Grammar School, said: “The wife of the Kabiyesi dwelled extensively on the theme of the day.
“We will take it home and ensure that we give in our best without being afraid.”
