EMPOWERING WOMEN AND YOUTHS: UNLOCKING THE FUTURE”
BEING THE TEXT OF ADDRESS BY HIS EXCELLENCY, CHIEF ADEBISI AKANDE CFR, AT THE INAUGURATION OF TITI TOMORI-PONNLE FOUNDATION HELD AT OLAGUNSOYE OYINLOLA AUDITORIUM, OSUN STATE UNIVERSITY, OSOGBO ON SATURDAY, 21STDECEMBER, 2024.
Caption:Chief Bisi Akande
Distinguished guests (Protocols),
I feel honored standing before you today to give a speech at the inauguration of this beacon of hope and opportunity for women and youths being occasioned by the TITI TOMORI-PONNLE FOUNDATION (TTPF).
In the wilderness, the common knowledge was that man began as wanderers, scavengers and gatherers of fruits and vegetables as foods. It happened, strangely ofcourse, that some of the strong few that gathered thousands, coveted still part of or all of the possessions of those who gathered hundreds or less and, at times, the strong few went further to enslave those with none to help them overpower others so that everybody’s possessions would belong to the strong few. Whereas, most of these foods are too much for the strong and their families. The surplus extra, most of the time, would become decayed and get bad and useless very quickly. And yet, the strong few who had more than their needs eagerly desired to have more and struggle still to snatch from those that belonged to others no matter if all got decayed and wasted. Surprisingly, over the years and in all the ages, majority of the people of every community in this world aspire to be strong with a view to imitating the greedy strong members of their societies. In other words, avarice seems to have become the most prevalent culture of the rich and the strong people.
With this kind of situation, I am wondering if a part of the human mind does not situate a fertile garden inside which different ideas and behaviors are grown and nurtured by body instincts with unequal portions for greed, gluttony, selfishness, avarice, covetousness and for all kinds of malevolence too.
Of what modes then was the mind of Her Excellency, Mrs Titi Tomori-Ponle made when she became instigated to champion this idea of collective gathering by the strong and the rich for sharing among the poor and the vulnerable youths and women? Perhaps, inside the same fertile garden in the human mind, there must have remained some spaces for the conscious reasonings too to plant variables of ideas like altruism, patriotism and other forms of benevolent behaviours! It is like thinking that the human mind is the garden of the evils inside which the abode of our individual god is erected! In the probable battle for survival between the sense of malevolence and the sense of benevolence, knowledge and learning through some of our senses must have been endowed by nature to mediate.
Today, the Titi Tomori-Ponle Foundation is beginning to lead us into the centers of the human minds in a away, possibly, to unravel the root causes of the battles between the human body instincts and his/her conscious reasonings!
Certainly, the instruments being adopted on this occasion have to do with learning in education and in skill acquisition – the unconquerable threats always militating against illiteracy, ignorance and unemployment! And this is why the initiatives like this are so critical. Let me therefore congratulate Your Excellency, Mrs Titi Tomori-Ponle on this bold initiative. It is a beacon of hope and opportunity for women and youths that comes from the selfless benevolent parts of your mind. I’m excited that, from the extra surplus of your gathering and acquisitions, you want to recreate your own altruistic and patriotic kind among the youths and the women folks within our society.
As a person who had spent the greater part of life in a career that is people oriented and also as a former Governor, I have witnessed firsthand the transformative power of education, skill acquisition, and entrepreneurship. I have seen how empowering women and youths can unlock the full potential of our communities, driving growth, innovation, and prosperity. I have also seen the naked realities of poverty, inequality, and unemployment that afflict many of our citizens. I have seen how women and youths, in particular, face unique challenges in accessing education, job opportunities, and very basic resources. I must sound a note of advice to the initiator of this laudable enterprise that for this Foundation to stand the test of time, all efforts must be geared towards follow up and sustained monitoring. We need to work together; we must work together to create a society that values and empowers women and youths.
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Initiatives like this transcends politics or political affiliation, it is about humanity. Humanity is about lifting others up without the consideration of political affiliation, tribe, religion or creed. This should begin a clarion call to organizations, businesses, and individuals who share the vision and commitment to empowering women and youths to step forth and partner with TTPF. The future is here and the time to embrace it is now! Like the Yoruba people will say; “omo t’o ba si’pa la ngbe”, Titi Ponle has raised her hands to be lifted up! We ought to strive to lift her up and support her in this very noble venture.
Let us join hands, ladies and gentleman, to stimulate our selfless emotions in creating a brighter future for all our youths and women.
Thank you.