APC chieftain backs First Lady’s ‘akara’ remark, gives N2m to widows

By Deborah Oladejo, Osogbo –

A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State, Hon. Olatunbosun Oyintiloye, on Tuesday distributed N2 million to widows in Ibokun, Obokun Local Government Area of the state, saying the gesture was aimed at supporting the initiative of the First Lady, Sen. Oluremi Tinubu, encouraging women to embrace small-scale businesses.

Speaking during the event, organised as part of activities marking his birthday, Oyintiloye said the intervention was intended to promote the dignity of labour and encourage women to establish small enterprises.

He criticised those faulting the First Lady’s advocacy for small-scale ventures such as selling akara, roasted corn and kulikuli, saying such views ignored the value and fulfilment inherent in honest work.

According to him, economic growth is sustained by the strength of small and medium-scale enterprises, with many families depending on such ventures for survival. He added that critics of the First Lady were only seeking political relevance while ignoring the long-term benefits of grassroots entrepreneurship.

“There are many people who became very successful in business through petty trading, such as selling tomatoes and roasted corn. Today, their stories have changed, and they eventually became employers of labour. Starting small, as being encouraged by the wife of the President, is far better than engaging in prostitution or other illicit acts,” he said.

The APC chieftain said the support for widows in his hometown was intended to further emphasise the importance of starting small, becoming self-reliant and demonstrating the biblical injunction in James 1:27, which enjoins believers to care for widows and other vulnerable members of society.

Oyintiloye urged the beneficiaries, who received between N30,000 and N50,000 each from the N2 million support fund, to use the money to establish small businesses and earn a decent living.

In his sermon, the immediate past Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Obokun LGA chapter, Pastor Benjamin Fabelurin, said birthday celebrations and moments of personal reflection were biblically grounded and divinely inspired.