ISMAIL OMIPIDAN
When people encounter you, treat them in such a way that they would want a repeat of the experience.
That was the treatment I got when I first met her in 2019, upon my assumption of duty, in Osun.
I resumed August 5, 2019 and I met our First Lady, Mrs. Kafayat Olaitan Oyetola at a close range, barely 48 hours after. She actually sent for me. She spoke to me like a mother. She welcomed me with open arms. She is one of the few that helped me to settle down fast in Osun.
Historically, there are several examples around the world of what ignoble or positive difference women around power can make.
Mrs. Oyetola, the First Lady of Osun and Chairperson, Southern Governors Wives’ Forum, is one virtuous woman that belongs to the clan of women who use power and influence positively.
Whenever Mr. Governor plays host to guests, who may have to take lunch, dinner and even breakfast, our First Lady personally supervises the kitchen. She does not believe that abandoning the kitchen to the cooks is how to announce that one has arrived politically.
Our First Lady not only cooks, she also directs the kitchen affairs by phone even when she is away, all in a bid to ensure all is well.
In spite of doing all of the above, she still devotes time to her Pet Project, the Ilerioluwa Development Initiative, an outreach that has impacted positively on the lives of many, especially women and children in Osun and beyond.
For all these and many more, I celebrate our mummy, the First Lady of Osun, today.
Today is her birthday. Her humility is infectious and Osun could not have asked for a better First Lady.
As you mark your birthday today, I pray that only that which Allah has decreed will come to pass in your life, Ma. No evil person, no matter how powerful, shall have the power to abort your destiny and that of my Principal, your husband, our Governor, Adegboyega Oyetola. Amin!
Happy birthday to you and happy 39th wedding anniversary, Ma!
. Omipidan is Chief Press Secretary to Osun State Governor, Alhaji Adegboyega Oyetola