Abdullahi M. Gulloma
Hajiya Aisha Muhammadu Buhari has been described by many as “First Lady (sorry Wife of the President) of a kind.” And rightly so indeed, for between the time her husband married her and last year when he was elected as President, few presidential spouses can compete with her in terms of dignity, reticence and simplicity.
Compare and contrast her, for example, with the wife of the President’s immediate predecessor, Goodluck Jonathan. Patience Jonathan attracted universal scorn on account of her being perceived as veritably overbearing and brash.
Recall, for instance, how Mrs Jonathan went haywire during the campaigns for the 2015 general elections. Not only did she shot barbed arrows at a certain section of the country by branding them as indiscriminate breeders of countless kids, she went as far as declaring that the current number one citizen was supposedly “brain dead.” Conversely, Aisha was the epitome of dignity and diplomacy, remaining unruffled under Patience’s pummeling and refraining from indulging in gutter language.
Last week, specifically on April 14, 2016, the Wife of the President added another feather to her cap by making move which captivated a legion of hearts, albeit not without a measure of controversy, as shall be evident shortly. Seizing an auspicious moment, in this case, the second anniversary of the abduction of the now world famous Chibok school girls by the Boko Haram insurgents, Aisha launched a book titled “The Essentials of Beauty Therapy. A Complete Guide for Beauty Specialists” and dedicated the proceeds to a noble cause.
Specifically, Her Excellency announced that money realized from her book on beauty therapy will be doled out to the Chibok girls who have been in captivity since April 14, 2014, as well as to the other victims of Boko Haram attack littering Internally Displaced Persons (IDDPs) camps all over the country.
Bearing in mind the heart-felt empathy which she had displayed when she hosted mothers of Chibok girls on the eve of the anniversary, Aisha’s humanitarian gesture undoubtedly struck a chord in plenty hearts.
In fact, since her husband ‘s electoral triumph last year, she has been underscoring her heart of gold every now and then through charity. When she is not donating relief materials to victims of the Boko Haram terrorist, she would be at some hospital “spoiling” the patients a little or in some schools donating her widow’s mite to the students and staff alike.
One of the refreshingly different things about her humanitarian endeavours in the past one year is that she acts with little or no red tape or bureaucracy. Hitherto, the typical First Lady would make her intervention once in a blue moon through a non-governmental organisation or foundation. Aisha usually acts every now and then in rather no-frills way. This is apparently in line with the President’s assertion that the present administration would not accord official recognition to the First Lady position.
Be that as it may, opinions have been divided over the propriety or otherwise of using the otherwise solemn occasion held on April 14.
Some people have interrogated the motives behind such presidential venture. “Beauty What, for goodness’ sake? What has beauty therapy got to do with the Chibok girls’ lingering predicament? Shouldn’t someone like the Wife of the President be writing on a more engaging subject in the mould of the then United States First Lady, Hilary Rodham Clinton, whose book titled, IT TAKES A VILLAGE, remains a reference point after so many years?”
If you asked me, I would say I share some of the concerns raised by people on the timing of the book launch. I believe sincerely that the organisers of the event were insensitive to the plight of the Chibok girls. For an event planned to coincide with the second anniversary of the still-missing Chibok girls, a subject such as Trauma Therapy would have been a little more appropriate.
Then there is this issue of donating the proceeds of the book launch to the Chibok girls’ folks and other victims of Boko Haram’s heartless bloodletting. As noted earlier, this is a very commendable gesture. But given the need to uphold the highest ideals of accountability in this type of self-imposed project, not a few compatriots wonder how every possible loose end will be tied by the Wife of the President and her team, with a view to avoiding any potential land-mine in the immediate future.
This is particularly so as the amount of money with which the book was launched by the V.I.Ps remains shrouded in secrecy. Vice President Yemi Osibanjo had set the ball rolling when he declined to reveal the amount he donated. Apparently taking a cue from him, those present at the event held at the State House in Abuja, launched the book one after the other without disclosing the amount.
Against this backdrop, the ball is firmly in Aisha’s court now. All eyes will be on her to see how and when her pledge will be redeemed. Given that public officials’ performance in such endeavour hasn’t been all that encouraging in the past (remember, for example, the billions of naira donated for victims of the 2012 food disaster), we hope and pray that she will act in a manner that will shame the cynics and add lustre to the “change mantra” of the present administration.