By Priscilla Ediare
Ekiti state first lady, Dr. Mrs. Olayemi Oyebanji, recently unveiled her pet project, Widows and Orphans Hope (WAOH) as part of the first anniversary of her husband’s administration. Dr. Oyebanji has worked in the University environment for about 23 years holding various positions and responsibilities. She was a senior lecturer at the University of Ibadan before becoming first lady of Ekiti state.
In this interview with Daily Sun, she spoke about how she switched from her role as a university lecturer to that of a first lady.
As a senior lecturer, what are those things you have missed about the classroom?
I was a university teacher before assuming the position of Ekiti state first lady. All my life, I have worked in the university environment. I joined the university system, 23 years ago as graduate assistant at the Ekiti State University. Certainly, I have missed a lot. I have missed the rapport in the academic world and the academic freedom that we enjoy. It is a platform where you can express yourself and be what you want to be. I have missed all that as well as my students and the close relationship with them.
How has it been since your assumption of office?
My journey as an academic has prepared me for this office. I have been working with various people in the academic system. It is like one of the things that I did when I was at UI. I was an Assistant Hall Warden of the biggest hall in the University of Ibadan, Queen Idia Hall where we mixed with young adults, girls, ladies. We give accommodation and have to resolve their issues, so that has prepared me for this office and of course, it has not been easy but we have been pulling through. I can confidently say that the experience I had got from the academic world has helped me to deal with many issues.
Can you recall some of the responsibilities you have handled in the past that have prepared you for the demands of the office of the First Lady?
In the university system, three are major areas as academics. You have to teach, in which case you meet with your students and pass knowledge. You have to carry out research work with publications and you have community service where you are invited in your community to give talks, to come and sensitize people. So, to me, there is a correlation between what I am doing now with those roles. Basically, what I am doing now in the Office of the First Lady is more or less like community service which I have done in the university system. So, it is a continuation of what I have been doing.
Can you tell us some of the impactful interventions your office has carried out since you came on board?
I was fortunate to take over from the former First Lady who is like a mother to me. She took me through what I needed to know especially in the area of campaign against Gender-Based Violence in the state. Ekiti has been in the forefront in the campaign against Gender Based Violence issues like rape, abusive relationship and all those stuff. When I came in, I hit the ground running on that because that has been institutionalized. I have been able to intervene in some Gender Based Violence cases. A case in point was the case of a woman who was sentenced for owing and at the time of her sentence the woman was about two or three months pregnant. So, it was brought to my notice and I worked with the Ministry of Justice because along the line before we got justice and got her out, she delivered in prison. First, we had to ensure the safety of the baby, to stabilize the woman and the Ministry of Justice in partnership with my office swung into action and she was released. We filed a case in the Court of Appeal that this woman should not be sentenced for owing, she can’t pay in prison, it is when she is free that she can pay.
There are many cases like that which afforded me the opportunity to know that there are many women in prison. Sensitization is going on in Ekiti, There has been lots of interventions. We have embarked on empowerment programmes for them.
Recently, you unveiled your pet project Widows and Orphans Hope (WAOH project). Can you tell us the motivation behind the conception of this project?
My background actually helped be to look into that project. As a lecturer, you meet with lots and lots of students with different socio-economic backgrounds. We have the indigent students. So, in my little corner as an academic, I have been intervening, paying school fees here and there, giving them money to support them in school. And even widows, we take responsibilities and support them too. I took to the direction of widows because they are the most vulnerable in our society. Many of them have been subjected to one form of inhuman treatment or another. It is our duty to assist them. Orphans are also part of our agenda.
Don’t you think that the issue of funding will be a major challenge for WAOH Project because of the huge number of intending beneficiaries?
Funding has always been a problem for every project even if you bring the governor. I believe this kind of thing needs someone to make sacrifice. When I started this project, I started putting some money aside as my own seed money. And people have been coming to assist me in this project knowing how passionate people feel towards issues of widows and orphans. There was a case I told someone about and he agreed to help us. With God on my side, we are going to get funds but if we keep talking about this issue of funding, I won’t do anything. So, I have to start because on the day of the unveiling, we looked at 300 widows with various needs.
Naturally, if I don’t start, such assistance may not come because I want to use this platform to assist them. On the issue of funding, we are getting to the bridge and we are already crossing it. People are responding with their widow’s mite.
Another challenge that must be considered is sustainability. How do you plan to sustain this project after your tenure?
Look at the Gender-Based Violation Prevention and Prohibition Policy which was initiated by the former First Lady, Erelu Bisi Fayemi, is she still in office today? She is not, but we are still running the GBV policy because it has been institutionalized. The kind of work she did while she was in office was to sensitize people on this GBV thing and everybody now in Ekiti is aware that you cannot just treat your wife anyhow, or rape and go scot-free. So, what I intend doing to ensure that even after office, this project does not die with my tenure is to sensitize people, appeal to the consciousness of the people. When I approached people with the concept of the project, I first realized their compassion in them, and that is what I want to leverage. I am going to integrate the project in all sectors and hope to make it a culture among people.
We talked about sustainability of the project. How can the support you have given to the vulnerable be institutionalized so that it would outlive your stay in office?
One of the ways I want to ensure sustenance is going through legislative process. Of course, we have widows; law and all that which I want to revisit. I want to go through that path to ensure that the whole thing about WAOH is legalized through Assembly, pushing bills here and there. I will make consultations with the Assembly so that this work outlives the initiator and the owner of the vision. I will do more of sensitization, I will also ensure that it becomes part of our culture at all levels, local government level, ward level at every time that widows must be taken care of. Everybody has something to give, even a widow in your neighbourhood, you can give her food, assisting them doesn’t have to be something extraordinary. So, when that sensitization is done in an aggressive manner, people will see them as everyone’s responsibilities. So, whether I am in office or not, they will still be taken care of. Of course, I carry the vision to everywhere I am because it is a passion for me. So, I think that will help and if that will not be enough, I will still make consultation. I will still consult people to know how to go about it, to ensure that after I leave office, it doesn’t die with my tenure.