Mrs osinbajo reveals intimacy relationship

Her Excellency, Mrs. Dolapo Osinbajo shares a lot of common traits with two great men in her life. She’s as intelligent and compassionate as her late grandfather, Late Obafemi Awolowo. She is as impactful as her husband and Co founder of The Society Orderly Trust’s, Vice President Yemi Osinbanjo. Ediale Kingsley is exposed to such grace and value.
Excerpts:

IN October 2014, you launched your book, ‘They Call Me Mama, From the Under Bridge Diaries’ in Lagos. You said that your inspiration to write the book came from your experiences with some street boys and men in Lagos State, and with the book, you aimed at giving them a human face. How did that project go?
It went well. With the proceeds from the project, we have been able to sustain our efforts in getting the street urchins off the roads. Our weekly visits to the ‘boys’ in their hideouts under the bridge brings to us unforgettable memories. Reminiscences of these times are the focus of my book. Our original meeting spot, which was referred to as ‘Under,’ has been transformed to the Muri Okunola Park.
What inspired you to do such a special project?
They are beloved children and they call me “Mama.” They are lost, but found. That is my motivation to write the book which I dedicate to the lost ones, the outcasts, the deviants, those at the periphery of the society, deprived due to circumstances such as poverty and crisis in the family.
Many have come to admire the legacies and personality of Prof. Yemi Osinbajo. You are known for hard work and commitment to integrity and success, what informs these virtues?
Yes, as a young boy, he attended Corona School for primary school education after which he attended the then Igbobi College Yaba where he won several prizes and emerged winner of the State Merit Award in 1971. He also picked the School’s Prize for English Oratory the following year. He consistently won the Adeoba Prize for English Oratory between 1972 and 1975; Elias Prize for Best Performance in History (WASC)  1973, School Prize for Literature (HSC), 1975; African Statesman Intercollegiate Best Speaker’s Prize, 1974. So the strive for success and integrity has always been in him.
Did he carry that into the University? We understand that the University of Lagos, UNILAG, has always been a social ground. Did he really partake in the social life or it was studies all through?
Well, he enjoyed some form of social living, but he also studied hard to obtain a Second Class Upper degree and LLB. I received the Graham-Douglas Prize for Commercial Law. In 1980, he attended the London School of Economics and Political Science, where he obtained a Masters degree in Law.
Are we going to see these qualities in his new calling?
He’s bringing in hard work, focus, reputation, and attention to details. He likes to support people who believes in probity and accountability. I think that is important. He also would ensure implementation of policies. They showed that for eight years in Lagos State. They worked very hard on our justice sector reforms and all the other reforms of the Tinubu-led administration. Even in the Fashola administration, they worked hard with those who were there. They have been there in the public service
Was he surprised when he was nominated as Buhari’s running mate?
I wouldn’t say he was completely surprised. I think his name was always mentioned. His name came up much earlier. Maybe a great deal of importance wasn’t attached to it, but it came up early. At least, in the press, it was reported frequently too. This had been on for four or five months before the public announcement. There have been speculations for that long. His name had always popped up.
Why did he accept the party’s offer to run as VP?
He believes in public service. He didn’t have to think much about it. In life, one of the important contributions you can ever give to your society is to serve through the public service. He has always believed the most effective way of making maximum impact on the welfare and well-being of our society is through public service.
And did both of you just think or you prayed about this too?
Prayer is what we do every time. The same way we pray for many things is the same way we prayed on this one. Communication with God is not negotiable. I also think people, maybe, get more religious when it comes to political office. People tend to say God told them to do something or the other; but I think the most important thing to bear in mind is that as far as the Christian is concerned, there is something called the priesthood of the believer, which means that every believer is a priest unto God. It also means that every believer has a duty to serve man as if we are serving God. In other words, service to man is service to God. For a Christian, especially a pastor, to suggest that if he has an opportunity to serve millions of people, an opportunity to effect policies which may alleviate the sufferings of millions of people, as it is the case in Nigeria, an opportunity to fashion policies that may transform the lives of people, I think it may be hypocritical not to participate in that.
So God must have told you that you will win when you prayed. Did God revealed such before the result election?
Is that the focus? Should that be the point? That’s the point we drove across during the electioneering, not about winning. That is not what we were interested in. What we were interested was not what God says about winning or losing. We were not asking Him for, as it were, a lottery. If we were going to play a game, then we could have asked, ‘O Lord, will we win or lose?’ That’s not the point. The point is will he serve the people or will he not? That’s the only issue we need to consider, and we didn’t need any special directive on that because that is what God has already said we must do as believers.
A news item made the rounds then, claiming that The Redeemed Christian Church of God, where he was pastor, came out to say it never endorsed your husband. How true is that? The church does not endorse candidates. The RCCG as a church cannot endorse a candidate. How can a church endorse a candidate? People think you and your husband are not core politicians.  Does this bother you?
I think that, perhaps, there is an advantage to that because it means that we have to work harder. And as you can see, he is working very hard. I think that hard work always pays off. Before the election, we went around, speaking with the people to know their concerns. We take nothing for granted, and that is one of the most important things we brought into the campaign then. We ensured we did everything needed. And that included answering questions from the public. We didn’t say to the people, ‘We are so well-known. We don’t need to come and speak to you.’ We need to work hard to get the party’s policies known and recognized. We need to serve and not politicize.