HID’s 92nd birthday holds today

From Tope Abiola and Tade Makinde - 25.11.2007

THE matriarch of the Awolowo dynasty and Yeye Oodua, Chief (Mrs.) H.I.D. Awolowo, CFR, clocks 92 years today. As part of the activities marking the birthday anniversary, there will be a Thanksgiving service at Our Saviour’s Anglican Church, Ikenne Remo, Ogun State, at 10.00 a.m.

There will also be an Inaugural DSH (Dideolu Specialist Hospital) seminar for heathcare professionals on Monday, November 26, at 1.30 p.m. at the Confrence Hall of DSH, Ikenne.

Titled “Update on Screening for Blood-Borne Viruses in Healthcare Professionals in Nigeria,” it is hoped that the presentation and the subsequent discussion at the forum will not only serve to enlighten participants, but also assist in pointing the way to desired future policy directions on this important issue.

Guest Speaker will be Professor Babatunde Oshotimehin, Director General, National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), while audience is expected to comprise members of the Association of General & Private Medical Practitioners of Nigeria (AGPMPN), consultants, nurses as well as some key functionaries of government.

Dideolu Specialist Hospital was envisioned as a centre of medical excellence by Chief Obafemi Awolowo before his sudden transition in 1987.

The hospital remains committed to that vision of excellence, however, and intends to actualize it through various strategies, one of which is to make significant contributions to the continuing professional development of healthcare within its locality and beyond.

Chief (Mrs.) Awolowo was born in Ikenne Remo on 25 November, 1915 to Chief Odugbemi Adelana, the Ayangbuwa of Ikenne and Baba Ijo of St. Saviour’s Anglican Church, Ikenne and Princess Elizabeth Oyesile Adelana, one of the founders of the Apostolic Church in Ikenne and a foremost leader of the church.

She started her elementary school in Ikenne in 1921 and later attended St. Peter’s Anglican School, Faji, Lagos, in 1928. She attended Methodist Girls High School, Broad Street, Lagos, between 1928 and 1933.

She became a teacher after leaving school and taught for three years at her alma mater between 1934 and December 1936. Chief (Mrs.) Awolowo got married to the sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, the political giant, nationalist and statesman in 1937.

As a devout Christian, Mrs. Awolowo became a staunch member of Agbeni Methodist Church, Ibadan, where in 1940, she was made a class leader, she also became the first matron of Agbeni Youth Progressive Association when it was founded 60 years ago.

She was also the president of Agbeni Young Women Christian Association (AYWCA) for many years. Apart from this, she was also the chairman of the Young Women Christian Association (YWCA) (International), Western Region.

In Ikenne, she became a member of St. Savour’s Parish Church Council from 1960 to date; she has also been the matron of Ikenne Social Circle since its inception in December, 1954 and the grand patron of the Country Club, which she launched in 1984.

Mrs. Awolowo was honoured with many chieftaincy titles in different parts of Yorubaland among which are the Mojibade of Ikenne, Iyalode of Remoland and the Yeye Oodua.

She has travelled far and wide. She travelled on holy pilgrimage to Jerusalem in 1980 and 1982 and visited Rome and Cairo. She is the first grand matron of the Yoruba Council of Elders (YCE). Mrs. Awolowo has, since 1987, been the chairman of the African Newspapers of Nigeria (ANN) Plc, publishers of the Tribune titles. She is also a counsellor and guardian to many leaders in the country.