Sanwo-Olu’s Wife, Air Force Chief Urge Support For The Boy Child

Wife of the Lagos State governor, Dr Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, has stressed the need for support for the boy child to excel in all facets of life.

Mrs Sanwo-Olu spoke when she led 600 boys from various public and private schools on an excursion around Lagos, including the Nigerian Air Force Logistics Command in Ikeja.

She stressed the importance of education that cuts across all spheres of life for male children.

The four-day programme, which started yesterday, was anchored under the Lagos Boy Child Initiative, an initiative of the Office of the First Lady, dedicated to rallying support for the boy child.

Flanked by the Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Youths and Social Development, Toyin Oke-Osanyintolu, the governor’s wife was received at the Air Force Command by the Air Officer Commanding, Air Vice Marshal Abubakar Suleh.

She said, “I have realised that there has been a lot of talk on the girl child and we need to balance it. There are other advocates like me around the world who have been talking about the boy child. Instead of painting them as ‘yahoo yahoo’ boys and people who don’t have any future ambition, we believe that boys can become successful people like you and can end up becoming presidents, governors and the like. And this is like a mentorship programme where we encourage boys to be responsible men in the future.”

She said the objective of the Lagos boy child initiative is to raise awareness that boys are boys and to ensure they have the right to attend school and receive adequate education.

“We have seen a lot of boys out there who are now breadwinners at the age of 10. They have to go out there to ensure that their brothers and sisters can eat, unfortunately, at the expense of their education, which is not very fair.

“We also want to create awareness that even if any of the children have issues, they should please know that there is hope for us to rehabilitate these children. They should not write them off,” she added.

In his response, Suleh pledged the Air Force’s support for initiatives that strengthen the moral upbringing of the boy child, noting that moral decadence in society does not begin with adults.

He advised the young boys to dream big and work towards making them a reality.

The AOC said, “You just dream and take the first step, and you can achieve it if you work hard.

“We commend this programme. We think it’s a very good initiative, and we’re ready to support you and the programme in any way we can.

“Unfortunately, in the past few years, so much emphasis has been on the girl child, and we have forgotten our brothers on the side. I think we should carry both the boys and the girls together. They all have their peculiar needs and should be given the necessary mentorship and guidance.