Source: THISDAY Live
The maiden edition of the Most Valuable Governor's Wife Award 2014 [MVGWA] that was held at the Sheraton Hotel, Abuja has come to promote democracy as beneficiaries voted for the award winning governors' wives in their states and across the country.
The governors' wives are well positioned as part of the democratic team whose contribution to democracy will go beyond their husband's tenures. The set of criteria that were used can attest to this, because they are of global best practice as they are contributing to the global wellbeing of the woman empowerment and entrepreneurial skill development. The criteria are sustainability, empowerment, impact, change agent and corporate branding [SEICC].
To the world's democracies, those who think that first ladies position is not constitutional are in the minority. The Women for Change and Development Initiative founded by Dame Patience Jonathan, the first lady of Nigeria no doubt has joined global projects like Mrs. Cherie Blair's Cherie Blair Foundation for Women of the UK, Mrs. Michelle Obama's Let's Move [Anti-Obesity Campaign of the USA] and Mrs. Graca Mandela's New Faces New Voices. Majority of the world democracies have already benefited from the Women for Change& Development Initiative in terms of the Beijin Declaration domestication in Nigeria, the Cherie Blair's mentoring of women in business and mobile technology programme, the reduction in children obesity as a result of Michelle Obama's campaign that attracted Coca-Cola and Kellog's products in America, and Mrs. Mandela's Pan African network of increased women's access to finances in strategic partnership with the ADB and the ILO. So you can see that majority has carried the vote. This is democracy in action.
In Nigeria, the MVGWA is a challenge that the women should continue to do more even after their husbands' tenures have expired. The likes of Mrs. Toyin Saraki, founder of Wellbeing Foundation Africa, Senator Remi Tinubu, founder of New Era Foundation and Honourable Justice Fati Abubakar, founder, Women's Rights Advancement Protection Alternative, though not recipients of the MVGWA are still standing tall after their husbands' tenures had elapsed. Fati Abubakar has protected the rights of the Nigerian women across the country, while Toyin Saraki has upgraded her foundation to include African women and she is currently the Goodwill Ambassador for the International Confederation of Midwives [ICM] and Senator Remi Tinubu has annually organised the Spelling Bee Competition whose winners assume the one day governor of Lagos State. We predict that one of these winners will be the Lagos State Governor someday.
The MVGWA Team is happy that the recipients of the maiden MVGWA are doing us proud and justifying the awards presented to them. From Abia, Akwa Ibom, Benue, Gombe, Katsina and OgunStates, it has been an ascendency galore. We identify with Mrs. Unoma Godswill-Akpabio for winning the Sun Newspaper award for the Most Supporting Governor's Wife 2014. We are also happy about post MVGWA activities of the wife of Abia State Governor, Mrs. Mercy Orji, in Abia State. We also commend other MVGWA winners for standing tall after the awards.
The governors' wives are no doubts agents of development with their projects boosting grassroots enhancement. This has spurred us to set up an MVGWA foundation, featuring a new innovative and transformative maternal and newborn center that will offer new technology in child delivery to the Nigerian women. This multipurpose center will also include accommodation center, ICT center and international conference facility that will have each unit named after the governors' wives.
The Gross Domestic Product survey is divided into three major sectors- agriculture, industry and service. If stakeholders can conduct a survey of the governors' wives project separately, it can be established that they contribute certain percentage to the total GDP which is a barometer for measuring the economy of their states. The Nigerian government empowerment of thirteen women in key positions in the federal cabinet and the various enhancements at the grassroots level no doubt has been part of the reasons for the current status of Nigeria as a leading economy in Africa.
The MVGWA Team can also predict the leadership positions of these awardees. Like Hilary Clinton becoming a Senator, US Secretary of State and now preparing to contest the US Presidential election 2016, the governors' wives are also well knowledgeable and prepared for such future national assignments. One day, maybe soon we shall be having the first full female governor or president of the country from amongst the MVGWA recipients. Already, Senator Remi Tinubu is a former governor's wife who is now a senator.
This piece comes to conclusion by asking where were the self-appointed critics of the first ladies position when Michelle Obama, the US first lady read the Presidential Weekly Radio Address on behalf of her husband May 11th 2014. We advocate a vote out for those presidential candidates who do not present their wives at the campaign podium for 2015 presidential elections. They would have shortchanged the country of potential first ladies and the attendant benefits that comes as a package from the president. We look forward to the MVGWA 2015.