Interviews&profile Archives

In Interviews&profile February 14, 2019 By Esther Ijewere

14-YEAR OLD ACTRESS TURNED ENTREPRENEUR BECOMES YOUNGEST PERSON TO SIGN A FIRST LOOK DEAL WITH UNIVERSAL STUDIOS

Marsai Martin, a 14-year-old African-American actress, is now a successful entrepreneur. She has recently signed a first-look production agreement with Universal Studios, making her the youngest person to do so!

Along with her own company Genius Productions, she partnered with the film studio giant where she will develop original content and hopefully provide opportunities for other young actors.

Martin, who was known for her role on ABC’s Black-ish, will serve as a writer for scripted projects alongside Genius Productions co-founder Joshua Martin, VP Carol Martin, and head of creative Prince Baggett.

The first film they will produce under the deal is entitled Step Monster, a comedy film about a teenage girl — that will be played by her — who is adjusting to life with a new stepmother.

Universal Pictures president Peter Cramer knew it was a great decision to partner with the young entrepreneur. He said in a statement, in part, “She is not only tremendously talented in front of the camera, but offers a unique perspective as a creator and producer that will resonate with all audiences.”

Martin couldn’t help her excitement in being a part of inspiring diverse and young ideas even behind the cameras.

“I am so excited for the magic I’ll be able to create and produce with Universal,” Martin said in a statement. “My goal is to show young women and girls that our voices and ideas matter and you are never too young to dream BIG!”

In Interviews&profile February 13, 2019 By Esther Ijewere

#PROFILE| AGELESS BEAUTY REGINA HALL

Regina Hall 48, was born in Washington, D.C., to Ruby, a teacher, and Odie Hall, a contractor. She graduated from Fordham University with a degree in English Language in 1992. At 26, she began appearing in commercials, and then made the transition into movies. She has starred in several movie productions including the series Ally McBeal (2001–2002), The Best Man (1999) and its sequel The Best Man Holiday (2013), Love & Basketball (2000), Malibu’s Most Wanted (2003), Think Like a Man (2012) and its sequel Think Like a Man Too (2014), About Last Night (2014), Vacation (2015), Girls Trip (2017), The Hate U Give (2018) and Little (2019).

Prior to pursuing acting professionally, she made a detour from journalism, having earned a master’s degree in the profession from New York State University.

“One of the reasons why I pursued journalism is because I read Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America, which weighed heavy on me a lot. It talked about the importance of journalism to democracy, and the responsibility a journalist had in what they wrote — the truth they uncovered. I thought it was such an honourable profession, and I still do. I didn’t pursue it because my dad had a stroke and life took me in a different direction. With everything going on politically, I value journalism even more and realise how difficult the job is — the risks they take in their life, what it takes to sit down and write a story. I’m very conscious about my news sources, too. I know a lot of people who only get their news from Facebook. I can’t imagine that. I probably love journalism even more, now. There’s days where I’d be like, “Ah, I’d want to tell that story,” because it’s so imperative. I don’t think people realise how connected journalism is to freedom of speech — they just think about what they want to say personally. Democracy is so connected to our press.”

Speaking on her decision to become a nun at 40, she says

“I wanted to do it because I find that my happiest places are when I’m in a really spiritual place. It’s almost like the rest of the world becomes background.”

More reason why we love Regina Hall are:

She is committed to volunteering for senior citizens.

She is the first African-American to win the New York Critics Circle Award for Best Actress.

She has won the Boston Online Film Critics Association Award for Best Ensemble, New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress,
Vancouver Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actress for the movie Naked (2017).

She has won the African-American Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress for the movie Girl’s Trip (2018)

She is 49 and flawless!

In Interviews&profile February 11, 2019 By Esther Ijewere

“WE NEED TO PLACE A PREMIUM ON THE EDUCATION SECTOR”- ADEYOYIN ADESINA

Adeyoyin Adesina is an experienced educator and Chief Executive Officer of Corona Schools’ Trust Council. She has built her career in the educational sector where she has been impacting the lives of students and teachers alike for over 18 years. A degree holder in English Studies from the University of Ife, a Post Graduate Diploma in Education from the University of Lagos and a Post Graduate Certificate in Education (International) from the University of Nottingham, she is a mentor, coach, public speaker and very passionate about educating young minds. In this interview, she talks about the state of the country’s education, her journey into the world of education, amongst other things.

As a seasoned educator of several years, does the country’s present standard of education give you cause for concern?
Yes, but it is not enough to just say ‘yes’. I acknowledge we have come a long way and even with the worries and concerns I have, I know the educational system in Nigeria has made some progress from where we were before. However, if you measure it with the lightning speed at which things are improving and changing globally, we are still a very far cry from where we should be in the education industry. What makes it more painful is that not only are we aware of this, sadly, our government has not seen the need to attach due importance to education policies and infrastructure. There is so much more we need to do in terms of improving educational standards in Nigeria. As a nation, we are educated, we travel to other countries and see the way things are done but never replicate it back home. Our tertiary education requires a lot more attention than it is presently getting. Our children, because of their exposure, do not want to remain in Nigeria and it is becoming an endemic problem and the government should wake up to its responsibilities before it is too late.

What attracted you to the world of teaching?
I wasn’t always a teacher; I used to work in a bank. Before working in the bank, I worked in the print media for a while and I loved it. I served in Jos and did my youth service at Standard Publishing Company, publishers of Standard Newspapers. I actually stayed on after service because I was very interested in what I was doing then. I did this for about a year before coming back to Lagos and got a job in the bank and that started my journey in the banking sector. Somewhere along the line, I discovered I wasn’t finding fulfillment in what I was doing. Around this period, I was teaching a pre-marital/counseling class in my church and I knew I had found my niche as I enjoyed it thoroughly. I took further classes in counseling to brush up my skills and this spurred my interest in teaching and that was how it all started, and I have never looked back since then.

Take us through your career journey over the years
I started teaching at a private school in G.R.A, Ikeja and within a couple of years I rose to become the academic superintendent of the primary section. In that time, I had the opportunity to travel in the Summer of 2002 for an education development programme for teachers in the U.K and it was there I was introduced to the then Educational Administrator, Corona Schools’ Trust Council. We hit it off and she offered me a job. I came back and resumed at Corona and started work as a teacher and my journey progressed quite rapidly. I started as a teacher in Corona School Victoria Island in 2002 and by April 2003, I had risen to become the Deputy Head of School in Victoria Island. I was D.H.S for three years and in 2008, I rose to the position of the Head of School. A few years after that, I was asked to start the Corona School, Lekki, the newest of the Corona Schools. I was the pioneer Head of School at the Corona School Lekki where I worked for another six years before being moved to Corona Secondary School, Agbara where I worked for another three years as Principal and in April 2017, I was promoted to the position of Chief Executive Officer, Corona Schools Trust Council.

Looking at the constant strikes that affect students in Federal universities, what would you suggest as the panacea for this age-long problem?
I think it is important to look at the reasons for the strike, which is oftentimes, a clamour for better pay, welfare for the lecturers amongst other things. Rarely do the students go on strike, it is usually the lecturers that embark on strike actions. This is why I said we need to place a premium on the education sector. In some advanced countries, teachers are rated as highly as doctors and other professionals unlike what obtains here in Nigeria and if the right priority is given to the sector, I doubt we would have these strikes coming up so often. The government needs to pay attention to their welfare, provide a conducive environment for the staff and students and generally upgrade the infrastructure. I graduated from the University of Ife many years ago and when I went back to my alma mater recently, I almost wept. Instead of things getting better, there is decay and erosion of values. When I was a student in the university, I was so proud of the school. We were just four in our rooms then but what do we have now? Everything is falling apart. What is the welfare program available for lecturers? How often are they paid and how often are their salaries reviewed? These are the major issues we have to consider. I am not saying the strike is the solution because as they are in a standoff with the Federal Government, the students are stranded at home and when they resume, the issues are not fully resolved so another strike is imminent. If the government has a roadmap for education for say, 10 or 20 years and is systematically working to achieving this, it would give us hope. But nobody makes any plan in this country and for the few that do, these plans and projects are not sustained by the incoming government as they roll out their own plans and agenda. Education shouldn’t be politicised.

As CEO, what does your job entail?
(Laughing) I call myself the Chief Executive Messenger because I seek, more often, to do what makes for the progress and satisfaction of all our stakeholders. My role is simply to actualise the strategic imperatives of the Trust Council. Corona Schools’ Trust Council will be 64 years this year and we are still evolving. As a leading educational institution in Nigeria, we hope to translate this to other parts of the world. My role is to ensure we deliver what we promise to our customers, which is to deliver world-class education. As a leading educational institution in Nigeria, we strive to ensure our relevance and influence, not just in the private sector, but also within the government and public sector.

This school has produced so many big names in Nigeria today, how does this make you feel?
I can tell you that there is a feel-good factor in seeing that you are doing something well, that after so many years down the line, the products of the schools can and do acknowledge the quality and pedigree of their early years education at Corona as what has set them off well on the path of life. It is gratifying to see all of our alumni doing well and excelling in their areas of chosen endeavours. We are currently working on bringing our alumni together and we know this would be a great motivator and influence factor for people to see the outcome of quality education. Seventeen years of my life have been given to this great establishment and I am proud and happy to be a part of it.

Running a private school can be very challenging, what are some challenges you face?
Living in Nigeria itself is challenging. Running a technology-based school where power is not guaranteed is a huge challenge. We all know the cost of diesel and the huge cost centre it represents. Excelling at running a school with the standard or quality of available workforce in the market is challenging. How do you deliver on your promise? As we see, our tertiary institutions are churning out half-baked graduates yearly, this is a huge problem. Many parents are facing uncertainty now because of the unstable economy. Many are not able to give their children the quality of education they desire. Amidst all of these, we must find a way to move on and excel. These challenges give us the opportunity to think of creative ways to pull through and overcome.

As a teacher, counselor and shaper, do you take special care in guiding young female students?
We are dedicated to turning out well-rounded young women and men and for every stage of their progression, we know they will be faced with fresh challenges at every developmental stage of their lives and we try to prepare them for these; we teach them about their physical make up, about life, the birds and the bees, monthly cycle, sex education, the do’s and don’ts of their bodies and so on. This is more necessary in this day and age where children are under attack, living with paedophiles and all. We have created an environment of trust in our schools and children can freely disclose to us if they are touched inappropriately in any way. Children do not lie mostly and when a child opens up to you, do not make them feel like they did something wrong. We also try to educate parents who might expose their kids to danger unknowingly.

Tell us something that has influenced your life and career positively?
I would say God, unequivocally. I am a Christian and, in every situation, I ask for God’s help and guidance irrespective of where I find myself. I always pray in every situation and ask that the essence of who I am shines through. I am an influencer and I am conscious of this and this guides me in how I act and speak. There are so many people looking at me and emulating me that I am not aware of and this influences everything I do. I look up to a lot of people and believe I should learn lessons from other people’s experiences.

What advice would you give a woman starting out on this career path?
Be true to yourself and who you are, do not try to walk in anyone’s shoes. Integrity is something we have sadly thrown away these days, but it is the one distinguishing factor that would help you irrespective of your position in life. No matter what you do, your integrity is the only thing that would stand for you and whatever you do, ensure you do it with all your heart, this is the only autograph you can leave. Do not let one part of your life suffer at the expense of another, find that balance and give everything a 100 percent.

What are three life lessons you have learnt and want to share with us?
One is to be yourself. The second is to have and maintain integrity at all times because that is what will help you sleep at night. The third, love people, help people. Take them as they are, as you are going up in life, take others along with you.

CEO Corona Schools’ Trust Council, Mrs. Adeyoyin Adesina.

You do so many things at the same time, work full time and are raising a family. How do you make them all work?
It hasn’t always been easy and I must confess that when my family was still very young, I had to put career on hold for them. All my children are grown and have left home now so that is no longer a problem for me. I had a meeting that ran late yesterday and I couldn’t go home so I stayed with my son in Dolphin estate. My husband thankfully understands and knows this is my passion. When I was still having children, I left paid employment so I could devote time to my growing children. It requires delicate balancing, but it has to be done. There was a time I used to go home with my laptop every night and work late into the night but I realised this wasn’t the best, so I only go home with it now when very necessary. This was what worked for me and while there may be a general principle there, I also realise that one cap does not fit all at the end of the day and what works for me might not work for the next person.

As a mentor, what would you say is the importance of mentoring for women?
Nigerian women need to support one another especially those juggling home and careers. It is even harder for single mothers and we have all realised that we need two incomes to support a home. We need to create effective support systems for one another especially if you have a broad experience and can guide younger women just coming up. I mentor several teachers, counsel a couple and encourage my managers to do same for other people. In church, I lead a group of women that support one another and what we are doing now is supporting young wives that are struggling with wifehood, motherhood and career. We pray for one another, help one another financially or just offer advice and guidance. I have three biological children and uncountable other children that I support, guide and mentor.

What is next for you?
(Laughing) Retirement and enjoyment of life. A lot of us don’t plan for retirement when we are young, and this would be a problem when you get to that stage. I used to think I would open a school when I retire but I have changed my mind, I am not doing that again. I would always be a teacher, educate and train others as long as I have the strength but this wouldn’t be the core of what I would do in retirement. I would do the things I love that I have been unable to do all these years including traveling, spending more time with my family, give my services out to those who need it. In my church, we recently organised a programme where we gathered the teachers in the community and held a workshop on capacity building at no cost to them; I would do more things like this and also make time for food business. I love to cook.

So how do you relax and unwind?
My routine now doesn’t allow for as much rest and relaxation, sadly. The horrendous traffic also contributes to this. My unwinding, for now involves not taking my laptop home from work and after eating at night and sorting myself out for the following day, I basically become a couch potato, watching T.V before going to bed. I try to read as much as possible. I have books everywhere; in my car, on my phone, by my bed, I try to read even if it is a page per day. I also try to make time to see my children when I can.

What is the one thing you want women reading this to take away?
Be you, take the time to know yourself and regularly introspect, place value on yourself always. It’s very important that a second party does not dictate the value you place on yourself. Finally, exercise utmost integrity in all you do. When you place the right value on yourself, it is easier to act with integrity because it becomes easier to see yourself above certain things and situations.

Interview by: Tobi Awodipe for Guardian

In Interviews&profile February 5, 2019 By Women of Rubies

MEET CHINONYE CHUKWU, THE FIRST BLACK WOMAN TO RECEIVE SUNDANCE FESTIVAL’S BIGGEST PRIZE

Chinonye Chukwu is a Nigerian-born, Alaskan-raised screenwriter, producer and director, and her works have received recognition and awards.

On Sunday, January 27, 2019, she won the most notable award at the 2019 Sundance film festival, thereby making her become the first black woman to receive the hugest prize.

Her film, ‘Clemency’ won the festival’s biggest prize– the Grand Jury Prizze for U.S. dramatic entry. This makes Chinonye Chukwu the first black woman to win the grand jury prize.

In 2012, Ava DuVernay was the first black woman to win a directing award, and now, Chukwu is a notable first black woman for the biggest prize.

Alfre Woodard stars in this gripping death row drama that definitely deserved the award. Deadline says Chukwu will work with Blacklist scriptwriter Alyssa Hill who will adapt the screenplay from the memoir A Taste of Power: A Black Woman’s Story.

Credit: Fabwoman.com

In Interviews&profile February 5, 2019 By Esther Ijewere

TALE ALIMI: THE YEAR OF DOING

Like most years, this year is already racing with full speed as the first month comes to a close.

At the beginning of each year or towards the end of the previous year, we make plans for the new year and set goals of what we want to achieve. A couple of years ago, after setting and not achieving my goals, I quit setting goals!

I decided to just focus on the moment, visualize what I want and go with the flow. That worked well for sometime as I did not feel like I was in competition with anyone and I was able to listen to my instincts. The problem with this approach was that I spent more time visualizing and creating my vision board than actually taking action!

That’s when I knew that there had to be a balance and I made up my mind to find it.

Fast forward a few years later, working with our clients at Tale Alimi Global, we usually start the year setting our intentions for the year we want and creating corresponding goals. As we work with clients, I have observed that some people are better at articulating their goals than others. However some people are only able to articulate averagely, but once they had clarity, they did a good job executing.

Our most successful clients are ‘doers’, they massively execute on the strategy we develop and achieve great results. I am big on strategic thinking and planning, but from my experience, I have to say that an average strategy with massive execution trumps a great strategy with poor execution.

If you are a planner and visualizer like me, its time to start doing more! And I have themed this year, ‘My year of doing’ because it reminds me of Shonda Rhimes ‘Year of yes’ and because I spent the last year exploring and visualizing.

To encourage us(yes we are in this together) to do more, I came up with five reasons why we should execute more this year.

The more you do, the more you know how to do

The sickness of planners is trying to create ‘perfection’. You want to spend all the time looking at various options, doing scenario planning and projecting outcomes. However, all this is theory until you start doing! I spent almost six months agonizing over the title and content of my next book. I will go on long runs, get inspiration about titles and a few days later I would begin to doubt its relevance. After going round in circle for too long, I put my foot down in October and decided to start writing. Surprisingly, the more I wrote, the more I had a better sense of direction.

So stop agonizing and trying to get things perfect and watch the months fly by, start doing and more clarity and ideas would come to you.

Execution is a cure for self doubt.

Another curse of perfectionists is self doubt. You never feel good enough to do what you know in your heart you are meant to do. Or you tell yourself you don’t have the resources or the time to do it. I was speaking to my team member some weeks ago about leading a segment at our year end event. I noticed she was hesitating and when I asked her why, she said she did not think she was qualified to stand before the calibre of people we were expecting. I immediately debunked her self doubt and told her about my mentor in my Social impact fellowship in the US who was a decade younger than me.

I told her to just do it and she did a great job that created a positive atmosphere at the event. When you begin to doubt yourself , don’t dwell on it, get up and execute. The more you execute on something, your self doubt disappears and you become more confident in your self.

When you execute, you make your own luck.

How many times have you looked at people and thought how lucky they are? Most times the so called ‘lucky’ people are busy executing on something. If you have been waiting for a lucky break and it doesn’t seem to be coming, maybe it is time to get up and execute so you can make your own luck. Yesterday, I saw a news headline that Kim Kardashian was expecting another baby, I decide to ‘keep up with the Kardashians’ as I hardly watch Television so I am not up to date about them. As I read the news, I realized that they were always busy doing something! From having new babies to starting beauty companies. They were making their own luck by executing.

This is the year to make your own luck. If you want to create a multimillion business, start grinding.

Execution builds your focus.

You need focus to execute. When you decide to execute, you cut out distractions. When I decided to start writing my new book, I started blocking out time and cutting out things that might distract me like excessive social media watching the lives of other people who were executing!

Execution is what brings dreams to life.

My favorite past time is imagining and day dreaming. My imagination has 3D capacity! I like to see things in my mind first because I believe creativity starts internally before it manifests externally. However after you are done dreaming, you have to take some action to see the dream come to life. If you have been seeing yourself as a millionaire in your dreams, or married to the person of your dreams, then make it a reality by taking action to bring your dreams to life.

Now that I have themed this ‘Our year of doing’, I am determined to lead by example. Some of the things I will be doing includes finishing up my new book before the end of Q1 and I am co-founding a new Company to address the milestone funding challenges that a lot of small businesses face.

If you are a small business that has had funding challenges, please fill this survey to help us understand your needs better. And if you have an interest in investing in small businesses , please fill this survey, so we will also understand your requirements.

I want us to hold ourselves accountable to our year of doing, so lets connect on Instagram so that as I share my progress, you can also share yours with me. Lets start doing!

In Interviews&profile February 5, 2019 By Esther Ijewere

MEET THE 10-YEAR OLD ENTREPRENEUR TAKING THE FASHION WORLD BY STORM!

Hailing from Johannesburg, South Africa, 10-year old Enhle Gebashe is already pursuing her dreams of becoming a well-known fashion designer and entrepreneur. She most recently founded Enhle Babes Couture, a children’s clothing brand specializing in glamorous African prints. Aside from the overwhelming number of orders, several doors have opened for her, including training opportunities and mainstream media interviews!

Young but with a vision

Enhle is a fifth-grade student at Rosebank Primary School in Johannesburg. She says her garments are all custom-made to meet the needs of her target market — girls ages 4 to 12. She envisions designing African prints, dresses, and anything in between that “princesses” can wear. So far, the support she received exceeded her expectations.

“So many people known me,” she told IOL. “I can’t believe this is happening to me. At school I’m getting so much attention, the people who used to bully me are now respecting me. The response is amazingly surprising for us.”

No time to play around

As a young entrepreneur with a hectic schedule, Enhle doesn’t have much time to play like other children. After school and every weekend, she goes shopping for fabric and doing photo shoots for her creations.

What started as an idea to make extra money for school trips is now becoming a reality. Enhle has been offered to study by a local design school on a part-time basis. Award-winning scientist Thulile Khanyile, who is her mother’s friend, also wanted to mentor her on the basics of money, saving, and business. She has also been in-demand in magazine and TV features. Regardless, she is still wowed by every like and comment she receives from her social media posts.

Staying balanced

Her mother, Desiree, is very happy for her daughter’s achievements. But she is still cautious about it. “Our plan was never to get her to be famous,” Desiree said. “I just wanted her to do what makes her happy, which is designing. I fear that she is very young for all this fame, so we need to be very careful about how she is handled going forward.”

Sometimes, Desiree still can’t believe what her daughter has achieved at such a young age. She said, “I’ve always known that Enhle is going to be something big one day. I kind of had it at the back of my head but I didn’t know it was going to be something this serious.”

Enhle aspires to someday be able to open up her own shop and reach out to other African countries as well. She credits her achievements to social media for helping people become aware of her creations. She said, “Nobody would know about Enhle if it was not social media. Social media has been the main marketing strategy for us.”

Source: Black Business

In Interviews&profile January 29, 2019 By Women of Rubies

MEET HUSEINA AND HASSANA EDILI-OGAJI, NIGERIA’S FIRST FEMALE TWIN PILOTS

Senior Aviation Officers, Huseina and Hassana Edili-Ogaji are Nigeria’s First Female Twins Pilots.

The twins who hail from Ankpa Local Government Area Of Kogi State have worked with various aviation companies, flight dispatchers, maintenance engineers, regulatory authorities, air traffic controllers, to successfully achieve a safe and effective aviation industry.

Here are a few facts about Nigeria’s First Female Twin Pilots

1. Huseina and Hassana Edili Ogaji both obtained their First School Leaving Certificate From Air Force Nursery and Primary School Kaduna between 1999-1998.

2. Thereafter they proceeded to Federal Government College Kaduna where they obtained their Secondary School Leaving Certificate between 1998 – 2004 with excellent results.

3. In 2006, Hussiena and Hassanna gained admission into the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology.

4. In 2008, the twins proceeded to Flight Safety International Le Bourge Paris, France where they obtained degrees in Dash-8 Professional Piloting.

5. In 2012, the Ogajis proceeded to Higher Power Aviation Dallas Fortworth Texas, United States Of America for Professional Piloting Certificate.

6. In 2013, Hussiena and Hassan secured admission into City University London, the United Kingdom where they bagged Masters degrees In Air Safety Management.

7. They have both won the Excellence and women in Aviation International award.

8. Husseina and Hassan Edili Ogaji are fluent in Igala, English, French, Hausa and Yoruba langauages.

In Interviews&profile January 28, 2019 By Women of Rubies

ABIKE DABIRI-EREWA: COMMITTED TO THE WELFARE OF NIGERIANS IN DIASPORA

When the then candidate Muhammadu Buhari hit the campaign trail in 2014, there was a permanent fixture at every campaign venue. Abike Dabiri-Erewa was the de facto anchor. At a point, her voice was hoarse. Still, the task at hand had to be done.

When President Buhari began his re-election campaign in December 2018, she was, again, thrown into the fray. With a distinct possibility of a rigorous campaign schedule before her, Dabiri-Erewa says she is more than ready to champion a cause she believes in: ensuring the re-election of President Buhari whom she is currently serving as the Senior Special Assistant on Foreign Affairs.

Born in Jos in 1962, Dabiri-Erewa was educated at the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) and the University of Lagos.

Although she is a former federal legislator, Dabiri-Erewa did not seep into national consciousness because of politics. As a band member in her university days, she was known as Abix Eros. As a television reporter, her human-angle reports, especially that of “Mary the Miracle,” which she investigated for eight years, launched her into national acclaim.

For 15 years, she was at the Nigerian Television Authority where she, at one time, was the face of Newsline, a human-interest news programme that focused on creating social change through in-depth reportage of stories that affect mostly the masses. Although she only anchored the programme between 1999 and 2000, the short period was enough for her to impose her warm personality on the show that was made popular by the likes of Frank Olize and Yinka Craig.

Her stint as the show’s anchor manifested in some of the bills she sponsored as a federal lawmaker, including Nigerian Infant Health Welfare Bill, Nigerians With Disability Bill, Freedom of Information Bill and Journalism Enhancement Practice.

As a member of the House of Representatives between 2003 and 2015, Dabiri-Erewa was the chairman of the House Committee on Media and Publicity and later the Committee on Diaspora Affairs.

Her journey into politics did not come easy, however. Nigerian politics is inherently misogynistic. She had to battle against the notion that she was an unknown in politics. And there is the discouraging belief that politics is a dirty game and, in order to win, one has to play dirty.

Today, she is one of the few well-known female faces in the Buhari government. That could be attributed to her prior successes as a lawmaker and a broadcaster.

Her relative success in the perceived dirty arena of politics, she said, she owed to her focus and to the former governor of Lagos State and a national leader of her party, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, whom she said helped a lot of women in politics.

After three terms in the House, all won with relative ease, she decided she has had enough of lawmaking. Maybe she was a bit disenchanted with the way things were being done then. But she insists the decision not to return to the House is not something she regrets.

“I think that’s the best decision I’ve ever made in my political life…for myself and my family,” she says.

Her decision to not return for a fourth consecutive term did not mean the Jos-born broadcaster wanted to disconnect herself from active politics. In fact, the time and energy she would have expended on her own campaign in 2014 and 2015 were channeled towards championing the cause of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its presidential candidate, Buhari. She crisscrossed the country with the campaign team, anchoring most of the rallies for the party. With a broom in one hand and microphone on the other, her experience as a broadcaster came in handy.

“I joined the campaign because I believed we needed to do some things differently. And I thought President Buhari was the man that could do that,” she said.

Dabiri-Erewa still holds on to that belief.

Late in 2018, she and others founded Together Nigeria, an independent advocacy group dedicated to showcasing what she says are the outstanding achievements of her boss in the last three and half years. The group, she tells GuardianWoman, is funded solely by members who believe that the president deserves a second term.

The former lawmaker explains that although the government has made “a few mistakes,” the achievements far outweigh them. A devout Muslim married to a Christian, Dabiri-Erewa is looking to take the Together Nigeria campaign beyond ethnic and religious lines. She insists her boss is better suited to make Africa’s largest democracy a more united country.

“While in four years President Buhari could not have totally redeemed Nigeria from the state in which he inherited the country, he has made great progress,” she says.

“Let’s keep moving forward under President Buhari, and finish the work that he has started to change Nigeria.”

Does she have her eyes on a higher elective political office in the future after she voluntarily ruled herself out of re-election she could have won in 2015? She defers to the future. But for now, she is dedicated to her role as the Senior Special Adviser to President Buhari on Foreign Affairs and the Diaspora and the first Chief Executive Officer of the Nigeria Diaspora Commission.

The law establishing the Commission was signed into law in 2017 by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, who was at the time acting as the president.

In those roles, she has the responsibility of connecting the government to about 15 million Nigerians living outside the country. In spite of the challenges that come with that, Dabiri-Erewa says she is focused on, among other things, making Diasporean Nigerians more involved in the election of the country’s leaders. She says she is looking forward to Nigerians living abroad being able to vote in 2023.

“It is going to be a priority,” she says.

Continue reading here https://m.guardian.ng/guardian-woman/abike-dabiri-erewa-committed-to-welfare-of-nigerians-in-diaspora/

Credit: guardian.ng

In Interviews&profile January 25, 2019 By Esther Ijewere

ENTREPRENEUR CREATES DOLL COLLECTION TO HELP BLACK GIRLS OVERCOME DEPRESSION

TiffanyJ, an artist and entrepreneur, suffered from depression and suicidal thoughts when she was young. So, in hopes of helping young Black girls that are battling depression, she has created an avenue to boost their confidence and self-esteem through a new superhero doll called “Super Beauty”.

At 12-years old, TiffanyJ started to experience depression that is considered common to young Black girls. At 14-years old, she realized that she can share her feelings through songwriting. But by the age of 24, she became self-employed and became the author of her first published book titled It All Starts With Me: An Interactive Guide To Discovering Self and Loving.

Through her book, she shared her own experiences and gave some advice to those who have been battling depression like how she used to be. She also held an annual Beauty, You Are Boot Camp. It was such a great advocacy and she saw that she can do more to reach more.

“For a while, I had been on a mission with self-esteem advocacy, but that book did not reach the audience and mentees I had that were young girls,” she told Black Enterprise.

Now, she has created Super Beauty Pep Talker, a speaking doll that says positive and inspiring messages such as “Nobody Do Me Better Than Me.” She hopes to let young Black girls know that they are unique and beautiful.

TiffanyJ hopes to sell the Super Beauty Pep Talker in Wal-Mart and other retail store chains.

In Interviews&profile January 25, 2019 By Esther Ijewere

PHOTOS & MOMENTS FROM ADENIKE OYETUNDE BOOK LAUNCH

Broadcaster, lawyer and social worker, Adenike Oyetunde launched her autobiography, Adénìké: Your Story, Your Movie, His Glory, on Sunday, January 6th, 2019, in Lagos at Harbour Point, 4 Wilmot Point Road, Victoria Island Lagos. The book was launched by Senator Ganiyu Olanrewaju Solomon, a father figure to her.

Adénikẹ́ is a real-life story based on the power of faith, hope and love against the odds of life’s circumstances. You’re about to read an intriguing real-life story of a young girl whose life’s trajectory completely changed overnight and is still evolving. It’s a story that will take you through her denial, strength, resilience, confusion, pain, tears, brokenness, surrender, and finally her freedom and liberty into true life. If you ever doubt that you cannot possibly pass through the trials and tribulations of life no matter how harsh it may be, Adénikẹ́ will inspire you to re-think that though.

Through reading this book you’ll see her fight for her life when all she had left in her was nothing but the hope to fight, you’ll see her find herself through a community of love and most of all you’ll see her come into her own. You’ll read about her determination and genuinely see through her experiences; you’ll almost be able to live and be present in this book as much as she was while going through the experiences stated in it. It is my hope that lives will be impacted through this read. On that same day, Adenike Oyetunde launched her not-for-profit organization, Amputees United Initiative.

According to Adenike Oyetunde, (founding trustee of AUI) the initiative was birthed from a place of personal journey to provide a safe haven for amputees, fresh and old, where journeys will be shared and experience heard, to strengthen each other, as these special humans continue to clamour for an inclusive society geared towards preparing Lagos and Nigeria towards the United Nations path to achieving an inclusive society in line with SDG 17.

Amputees United Initiative also creates a platform for persons with special needs to discuss matters affecting them specifically; ranging from educational needs, medical needs and infrastructural needs.

Adenike Oyetunde’s ultimate goal with the initiative is to create a facility encompassing amenities to promote and es-sir adaptive lifestyle (learning to use prosthetic limbs), establish recreational centres that are suitable for people with special needs, a gym specifically for PWDs; equipped with cycling and swimming facilities.

Where necessary, books can be bought at