Chief Dr. Mrs. Ebelechukwu Obiano, Osodieme, wife of the Governor of Anambra state, Chief Willie Obiano, is a special gift to her husband, Ndi Anambra and humanity at large. Osodieme is a woman with a heart of gold. She is a virtuous woman, courageous, intelligent and versed with conventions, rules and precedents on virtually all matters.
Dr Mrs Obiano is a very caring first lady; hence, she named her peg project, Caring Family Enhancement Programme (CAFÉ). Osodieme lives up to that name by being a pace setter, goal-getter, game changer, visionary, humble and generous to all. She is a binding factor and denominator between the haves and the have not.
Overtime, Mrs Obiano devotes time to her motherly role as Mama Anambra, not just for women and children but to other disadvantaged members of the society who found in her soothing voice beside her husband’s considerable disposition to assist people in need without making noise about it. Mama Anambra is a mother who understands what a child does not say. If love is as sweet as flower, then Osodieme is that sweet flower of love to the down trodden, women and children.
Thus, her NGO, CAFE has continued to meet the most pressing needs of the vulnerable and disadvantaged citizens of the state by not only promoting and securing their access to social services but by also facilitating their integration into the social and cultural activities of humanity. Today, through CAFE, Osodieme has transformed the lives of rural women, orphaned children, the down trodden, less privileged, inmates of correctional centers and persons living with disabilities.
At a time when the fallout of flooding and acts of terrorism caused mass exodus of some Nigerians from their original places of abode with attendant challenges to local economy of communities where they sought refuge, Osodieme rose to the occasion and headed straight to address the issues of basic shelter, general hygiene and food shortage in some holding camps. She led a contingent of donors to save Anambra women and children from starvation and diseases like jaundice, cholera, diarrhea and malaria.
The National Bureau of Statistics considers Anambra State one of the States with very minimal level of unemployment. That feat bears testimony to the effectiveness of government initiatives supported by organizations like CAFE. Osodieme has facilitated the empowerment of over 6,000 indigent women and youths via skills acquisition and trainings. She also provided start-up grants as working capital and purchase of equipment in various ventures like hair dressing, beauty therapy, fashion design, confectionery as well as community health services.
At Nteje, Oyi LGA, Dr. Mrs. Obiano set up a Mentally Challenged Persons Home, equipped with skills acquisition centre and a sickbay. So far, over 120 inmates have been successfully rehabilitated and reunited with their loved ones. At Isulo, Orumba-South LGA, she rescued the School for Children with Special Needs from desolation and the children saved from what appeared to be a disastrous end.
Osodieme, via CAFÉ, procured and distributed over 2,000 prosthetic limbs and wheel chairs to physically challenged persons, irrespective of gender, religion and political inclination. This is unrivaled till date in Anambra State!
On March 4, 2020, the South East caucus of Nigeria’s movie industry, Nollywood, stood still and watched in emotions as Osodieme came through for ace actor, late Ernest Azuzu and moved him from Lagos to Awka for treatment and visited him at Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu Teaching Hospital ward and rehabilitated him thereafter.
Her regular Local Government tours and engagements have made her the only Anambra First Lady with visibility in all localities in the state. It is therefore not surprising that CAFE has built, completed and handed over to widows over 28 self-contained, well-furnished bungalows across the state.
Having been adorned with numerous awards such as the United Nations Peace Ambassador Award; the Excellence Award from Atlanta Georgia in United States; the Primetime Reporters First Lady of the Year; the Sun Newspaper Award for the Most Supportive First Lady of the year and the Woman of Excellence Award among others, history is awash with records that Osodieme has done something differently. Mama Anambra daalu ooo!
WRITTEN BY DR. NNAMDI NWADIOGBU
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