BOLANLE AMBODE, SOUTH WEST COUNTERPARTS MOBILISE WOMEN AGAINST CORRUPTION.

Wife of the governor of Lagos State, Mrs. Bolanle Ambode and her counterparts in the south west region of the country, have identified good moral values in homes and proper upbringing of children, as the formidable foundation of the war on corruption in the country.

She made the observation in her goodwill message, at the launch of the anti- corruption sensitization crusade tagged: Nigerian Women Against Corruption in the South West Region, jointly organized by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the wives of the governors, in Ikeja, Lagos

Mrs. Ambode who spoke on behalf of the wives of governors of states in the south west region, noted that women had divine endowment to mould character, and they needed to do this at home, to put the children on the right moral course.

According to her, ‘Women are strategically positioned by the role we play as moulders of character and behaviour. If we view corruption as one of the manifestations of deficient moral values, we must begin to pay proper attention to the home and ensure that our children are given the right upbringing based on time-honoured values of honesty, integrity, trust, the fear of God and dignity of labour’

‘Let us start the fight from our homes by discouraging any act, behaviour or attitude that aids and abets corruption. If we succeed as individuals in our various homes, there will be no room for corruption and corrupt practices in the larger society’, she stressed.

She commended the commission for recognizing women as critical stakeholders in the crusade, and for mobilizing them for total onslaught against the menace in the country. 

Earlier in his address, the acting chairman of the commission, Mr. Ibrahim Magu, traced the current economic recession to corruption, stressing that corruption must be dismantled if Nigeria must take its rightful place among nations.

He said: ‘If you can pause to trace the genesis of our socio-economic problems, you will realize that it is linked to the long years of the unbroken chain of corruption. In fact, corruption is the cause of the current recession and the falling value of the naira. If there is one enemy that we need to urgently confront, it is corruption.’

Speaking at the function, the deputy governor of Lagos State, Dr. (Mrs.) Oluranti Adebule, lamented the enormous damage that corruption had done to the country’s economy and image, promising that women would champion the crusade against the menace.

The guest speaker, Mrs. Ayo Obe, human rights lawyer, contended that mothers should teach their children to take pride in what they have and do not have, warning that dishonesty should not be seen as a norm. She urged parents to drill honesty and discipline into their children and teach them to be agents of change.

In attendance were the wives of the governors of Oyo, Ogun and Ekiti State. Other eminent personalities present included: HRM Oba Rilwan Akiolu, Olori Zainab Wuraola Ogunwusi; Nike Akande, President Lagos Chambers of Commerce; Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, SSA to the president on diaspora affairs; Pastor Mrs. Folu Adeboye; past deputy governors; past first ladies; iyalode of Lagos, Alhaja Bintu Tinubu; Opral Benson, the yeye oge of Lagos, members of state house of Assembly, State Exco members; market women; south west delegates; just to mention a few.