Congratulations Madam DG, WTO!

Sometime in 2013, at the height of militancy and drought which affected the production of soybean, maize, and other agro commodities in Northern Nigeria, I was saddled with the responsibility to approach the Federal Ministry of Finance to process some concessions targeted at reducing the cost of raw materials (soybean/animal feeds) and reduce the deficit of soybean supply in Nigeria.

This situation availed me the rare opportunity to meet the most powerful woman in Nigeria then, Finance Minister Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala. When I was summoned to her office, I was anxious and full of emotions- I was in complete awe! A little boy from Abeokuta presenting a proposal to Madam Ngozi! However, the minute I set my eyes on her, all my worries, fears, and brain freeze disappeared!

She was majestic, graceful, simple, and humble, all at the same time! She welcomed me to her office wearing only slippers, dressed in Ankara, and donned her signature gele (headgear). She carefully listened to all I had to say, asked me a few questions to probe how my submission tied with the Federal Government’s policies on food security. To my utmost shock, she agreed in totality to my arguments and called in one of her assistants to expedite action on my submission. And yes, they did!

Madam DG, you may not remember our encounter, but your simplicity and friendly demeanor taught me invaluable life lessons I hold dear till today.

“Pride makes us artificial and humility makes us real” – Thomas Merton

Congratulations Madam GTO. I am positive you will do a fantastic job!

Thank you, former President Olusegun Aremu Obasanjo for scouting this amazon to serve our fatherland at such a dire time. We can only pray for your successors to identify and place talents irrespective of gender, ethnicity, and background to the service of our dear country. After all, we are one Nigeria.