Hearty Cheers to Her Excellency, Mrs. Olufunke Agagu At 70

~ By Femi Agagu


Always gorgeous and regal, she glides and glitters. Her glowing visage, queenly frame belied her age. Yet, she's been around for awhile. From that synergy of brain and beauty in a sterling Miss Olufunke Aliu to the trophy wife of a distinguished pedagogue, Mrs. Olufunke Agagu, the dazzling wife of the late genius geologist and governor of Ondo State, Dr. Olusegun Agagu, joins octogenarian circle.

Reaching this rung, by any human standard, is no easy reach. It's a height reached by rare grace and privilege, especially for a woman who had faced real tough times, whom God has used to affect many lives far and near and who by choice has given most of her life and time to the betterment of humanity.

The strength of intervention is not in numeracy, but in the quality of life Mrs Agagu has lived up to this page. Olufunke is not just a wife to the late governor, but his life-long ally and confidant, a pillar of strength and amazon who, defying life's humongous prices and threatening curves, fought beside her heartthrob, traveling through the seasons with him at both losing and winning times.

A devout christian and illustrious mother whose shade of maternity differs from the usual. A rare gift both as a wife and mother, and a consummate friend of the downtrodden. For those whose parts have crossed hers, the testimonies abound about the much that God has helped her to do to help mankind.

Author of Handicapped Education Foundation (HANDEF), Mrs. Agagu, through this intervention, has healed pains for the physically challenged, doing large scale empowerment programme . Since it was founded in 2008, HANDEF has been encouraging people living with disabilities by organising seminars and workshops to empower them on health issues, business and entrepreneurship, and partnering with other local and international organisations to give them a sense of belonging.

The first Lady carries with her innate penchant for service. It's no surprise she was called, recently, by appointment to the governing council of the Rufus Giwa Polytechnic, Owo, to bring her wealth of experience as an industrious, workaholic wife of a former governor. Her appointment by Arakunrin Rotimi Akeredolu, governor of Ondo State, lends credence to the fact that she is yet untiring in her consummate passion for public service.

The academic community into which she's now a part can only be better for it because her luster can be trusted to infest the institution and by extension, the state.

There is no gain saying she remains a gift, not only to her families and associates, she's an asset to the sunshine state. As we congratulate and celebrate this beautiful citizen and leader of the sunshine state at 70, it's our hearty supplication to God that this eventide of her life will be bright and blessed with happiness and fulfilments.

*#Femi Agagu is Ondo State's Hon. Commissioner for Education, Science & Technology.**