• Ex-NTA GM, hubby honoured as Owu monarch marks first anniversary
From Laide Raheem, Abeokuta
From Laide Raheem, Abeokuta
Saturday August 5 2023 was a day of joy and glory for a respected Amazon of journalism, Mrs Funmi Wakama and her Rivers State born husband, Ene. On that auspicious date, Ene Wakama and his wife, Funmi, immediate past General Manager of the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) Abeokuta were honoured with the chieftaincy titles of Fiwagboye and Yeye Fiwagboye of Owu Kingdom, Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.
The event, which was part of the events commemorating the first anniversary of the coronation of Olowu of Owu Kingdom, Oba (Dr.) Saka Matemilola, was witnessed by the high and mighty in the society, particularly, illustrious indigenes of Owu from within and outside the shores of the country.
Dressed in resplendent white embroidered Aso Oke, Funmi and her hubby, were ushered into the Oke Ago-Owu Palace of the Olowu, with the Yoruba traditional cum sacred Gbedu drums, accompanied with folk songs, laden with genealogical praises of Mrs. Wakama heritage in Egbaland
The former GM, was all smiles as she and her husband, Wakama, an engineer, walked majestically towards the dais, ready to undergo the rites for the chieftaincy titles.
For the Wakamas, the event indeed served as a gathering of their friends, colleagues and well-wishers, who converged on the palace grounds to felicitate them. Very Important Pesonalities such as the immediate past governor of Ogun State, Senator Ibikunle Amosun and his wife, Funsho; the Controller, Ogun 1 Area Command of the Nigeria Customs Service, Bamidele Makinde; the Medical Director, Federal Medical Centre, Abeokuta, Prof. Musa Olomu; High Chiefs of Owu Kingdom among others, were on the ground to honour the newly installed Fiwagboye and Yeye Fiwagboye of Owu Kingdom.
After the performance of the chieftaincy rites, the monarch offered prayers for the couple and later presented certificates of installation to Mr and Mrs Wakama.
Oba Matemilola attested to the positive contributions of the Wakamas to the development of the kingdom.
The monarch expressed optimism that the conferment of the chieftaincy titles would spur the couple to contribute more to the overall development of Owu Kingdom, Abeokuta.
The Olowu, however, urged the new Fiwagboye and Yeye Fiwagboye not to relent in their efforts to help the growth of their immediate environment and the society at large.
Through with the installation ceremony at Oke Ago-Owu, the retinue of the well-wishers moved to the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL), Abeokuta, for the reception.
The reception, chaired by a retired military top brass and illustrious son of Owu Kingdom, Gen. Ekundayo Opaleye, was attended by a former governor of Ogun State and National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Aremo Olusegun Osoba; a former senator who represented Ogun West between 2019 and 2023, Tolu Odebiyi, management staff from the headquarters of the NTA in Abuja; Wakama’s family members from Rivers State; Public Relations experts; General Managers of Ogun State Television Service, Tunde Kazeem; Permanent Secretary, Ogun State Ministry of Information and Strategy, Waheed Adesina; former Chief Press Secretary to Governor Dapo Abiodun, Kunle Somorin; media managers and journalist friends of Mrs. Wakama.
Speaking with newsmen on the sidelines of a reception, which was also to celebrate her retirement from the service of NTA, Mrs. Wakama, who also served as the Senior Special Assistant, Media to former Governor Ibikunle Amosun between 2011 and 2015, expressed her delight at the honour done her and her husband by the Olowu and the people of Owu Kingdom.
She added that her family would forever cherish the chieftaincy titles, promising that she and her husband would continue to work for the development and progress of the kingdom.
Earlier, the chairman of the occasion, General Opaleye (rtd), noted that with chieftaincy titles, Chief and Chief (Mrs) Wakama had become elevated personalities, urging them to ensure amity and conscientiousness in their environment.
In his short remarks, Aremo Osoba commended the couple for being exemplars in their respective fields, which according to him, culminated into their honour as title holders in the Owu Kingdom.
While lauding the Fiwagboye and Yeye Fiwagboye for organising a befitting reception, Osoba further charged them to continue contributing to the socio-cultural and economic development of their immediate environment.
The highlights of the event was the official launch of the Funmi Wakama Foundation, aimed at giving succour to the less privile