When the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, visited Ekiti State, her remarks encouraging women to embrace enterprises such as akara, kulikuli and roasted corn attracted widespread criticism. Many interpreted her comments as reducing Ekiti women to petty traders. At the time, I joined the debate with an article titled, “Who Is This Iya Alakara?”
Her recent engagement with women in Abia State, however, has prompted me to revisit that position.
Whether one agrees with the First Lady’s politics or not, it is difficult to ignore what appears to be a deliberate communication strategy. Every effective communicator understands that messages are shaped by context. Audiences differ, and meaningful engagement requires an appreciation of their realities, aspirations and opportunities.
Driving through a state, observing its infrastructure, interacting with its people and listening to their conversations naturally influences how one frames a message. In that regard, Abia presented a markedly different picture.
Under Governor Alex Chioma Otti, Abia is steadily redefining itself. The transformation is not driven by grandiose projects designed merely for headlines. Rather, it is anchored on the systematic renewal of infrastructure, improvements in governance and the restoration of public confidence. The introduction of electric buses in Umuahia, the rehabilitation of roads, enhanced public services and renewed investor confidence all point to an economy preparing for higher levels of productivity.
It would have been surprising if the dominant conversation in such an environment revolved around frying akara or roasting corn. Instead, the First Lady focused on the renowned Akwete fabric industry, announcing a ₦2 billion intervention to strengthen the sector and position it for greater national and international competitiveness.
That intervention speaks volumes.
It reflects a recognition of the entrepreneurial capacity of Abia women and an acknowledgement that they are ready to move beyond local production to value addition, branding and global markets. The investment was more than financial support; it was a vote of confidence in an ecosystem that appears prepared for the next phase of economic growth.
This naturally raises an important question: What comparable economic intervention accompanied the First Lady’s visit to Ekiti? Whatever the programme or amount may have been, it is reasonable to assume that government interventions are often designed around prevailing realities and perceived opportunities.
Ekiti women, like many Yoruba women, have long demonstrated remarkable resilience and enterprise. Across markets and communities, they have built livelihoods through trading, food processing and other small-scale businesses. There is dignity in honest labour, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with encouraging entrepreneurship in those sectors.
Yet leadership must do more than celebrate survival; it must inspire aspiration. The objective should not simply be to produce more akara sellers or roasted corn vendors, but to create an environment where such enterprises can evolve into structured businesses with access to finance, technology, branding, processing and export opportunities.
The more profound lesson, therefore, is not whether the First Lady spoke about akara in Ekiti or Akwete in Abia. The real lesson is that every state projects an image of itself through the quality of its infrastructure, institutions, economy and the confidence of its people.
Governments shape that image.
When infrastructure improves, investment follows. When governance inspires confidence, opportunities expand. When a state’s economic ecosystem matures, public conversations naturally shift from subsistence to industrialisation, innovation and wealth creation.
Governor Alex Chioma Otti deserves commendation for demonstrating that meaningful development does not necessarily require borrowing beyond a state’s capacity. Abia’s experience suggests that prudent financial management, strategic prioritisation and disciplined execution can produce visible and measurable results without mortgaging the future of generations yet unborn.
Perhaps the First Lady simply responded to what she saw.
If that is the case, then the contrasting messages she delivered in Ekiti and Abia should challenge every governor to ask a deeper question: What story does our state tell visitors before we even begin to speak?
Ultimately, this conversation is not about akara, kulikuli, roasted corn or Akwete cloth. It is about the economic identity a state projects, the quality of governance it offers and the level of opportunity it creates for its people.
If the First Lady’s engagements provoke governors to build economies where citizens are empowered to move beyond survival towards innovation, value addition, industrial growth and global competitiveness, then the conversations she has sparked may ultimately prove far more valuable than the controversies that first surrounded them.
