Annually, Allure Vanguard recognizes some women for the role they played, during the year, in their respective endeavours. Allure Awards is our way of saying ‘Thank you’ to leading women who have really made us proud.
The leap year, 2016, is indeed the year of the woman! In Nigeria, we are on the verge of producing the first elected female governor. All over the world, more women are leading countries; becoming chief executives of multinationals is now ‘one of the jobs’. Women are raising the flag side-by-side men. Now, we can comfortably say that ‘gender discrimination’ is a thing of the past – almost.
Packaged by the Team: Jemi Ekunkunmbor, Yemisi Suleiman and Pamela Echemunor, we present ‘Allure Women of the Year 2015’.
Aisha Jummai Alhassan – Woman of the Year
Since this democratic process began in 1999, Nigerian women have made efforts to emancipate themselves politically. The efforts have seen women in some state houses of assembly, the National Assembly and a few ended as deputy governors. Following the impeachment of Governor Chris Ngige of Anambra State in 2006, his deputy, Dame Virgy Etiaba, was sworn-in as governor. That was the zenith of women’s efforts in politics.
Now, for the first time since 1999, change has come for women through Hajia Aisha Jummai Alhassan, APC’s gubernatorial candidate for Taraba State during the 2015 general elections.
She was defeated in the election re-run held on 25th April, 2015 but on 7th November, 2015, she was announced winner by the election tribunal. Her victory, not only broke the glass ceiling over women but also made her the first elected female governor Nigeria has produced; that is if the PDP’s appeal in court fails. Her victory is even more appreciated as a woman from the conservative North.
Aisha Jummai started her political career at the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, where she joined student union activism at an early age of 18. Between 1978 and 1979, she held her own as Vice President and the only female in the SUG Exco.
The Law graduate of ABU was called to the Bar in 1986 and started work as a Magistrate Grade II in April 1988 at the Kaduna State Judiciary. She was also at the FCT Judiciary, where she rose through the ranks and became the first female Chief Magistrate in the FCT in 1996.
She was also the first female Deputy Chief Registrar and Director Litigation, High Court of the FCT Abuja in 1997.
At the height of her legal career, she was appointed the first female Attorney General of her state (Taraba) in 1997. She returned to FCT Judiciary from where she retired as Chief Registrar in 2009.
She joined the PDP in 2005 and contested the Taraba North senatorial seat and won in 2010. However, in her quest to make history, Senator Alhassan contested for the gubernatorial seat with the ticket of the APC. The world still waits to see what the outcome of the appeal by the opposing PDP would be.
Senator Oluremi Tinubu (OON) -Legislator of the Year
Until she was elected senator representing Lagos Central Senatorial District under the aegis of the All Progressive Congress (APC), she was the quintessential First Lady of Lagos State between 1999 and 2007. The educationist, administrator and philanthropist, as First Lady, founded the New Era Foundation; a non-profit organisation dedicated to youth development, girl-child education and women empowerment.
Known for supporting charitable causes such as the Sickle Cell Foundation, the amiable senator, when she turned fifty not too long ago, donated all her birthday cash gifts to one of such causes.
Her commitment to education is unrivalled with endowment funds in four universities; a science block at Adeyemi College of Education in Ondo State and a school building constructed at the Oluremi Tinubu Elementary and Junior High School, Johnsonville, Mount Serrador County, Liberia.
As senator, she hosts a quarterly town hall meeting with her constituents to render accounts of her stewardship and obtain feed-back on their developmental needs.
Although she is not given to many words, she has sponsored three bills: to provide social security for elderly citizens; to seek the amendment of the labour act to enhance employment opportunities for women; and, to provide special economic assistance to Lagos State in view of its status as a former capital city and the commercial capital of Nigeria.
Only recently, Senator Oluremi Tinubu moved a motion to address the incessant traffic gridlock on Apapa-Oshodi Expressway that has caused untold hardship to Lagosians and crippled commercial activities in that part of the state. For the first time in the history of the Senate, that strategic move was unanimously supported by 107 Senators – cutting across all the political parties represented in the Senate.
For a senate dotted with a handful of women, the recipient of the Ghana Noble International Award for Leadership (2004) and the Gambian Diamond Award for Immense Contribution to the Emancipation of People from Poverty (2005), Oluremi Tinubu remains a ray of hope for women that will follow her political footprints.
Otunba (Mrs.) Grace Titilayo Laoye-Tomori – Deputy Governor of the Year
Otunba (Mrs.) Grace Titilayo Laoye-Tomori (MPA, PGDE, BA) is the Deputy Governor of the State of Osun and Honourable Commissioner for Education in that state. A native of Osogbo, she began her educational career at St. Catherine Girls Grammar School, Owo and Victory College, Ikare. For tertiary education, she attended University of Lagos and obtained a Bachelor of Arts Hons. in History in 1973; two post-graduate diplomas as well as a Masters in Public Administration (1984) later followed.
She joined the Federal Ministry of Education as an Education Officer in 1974 where she spent the next six years. In 1980, she joined the University of Lagos as an administrator and rose to the position of Principal Assistant Registrar by the time she left the university in 1989.
In recognition of her wealth of experience in the public and private sectors, she was unanimously considered as the deputy governorship candidate to Ogbeni Rauf Adesoji Aregbesola in 2007; which they won.
Otunba Laoye-Tomori has positively impacted the state in her capacity, not just as the deputy governor but also as the Honourable Commissioner for Education. As a result, she has received accolades such as ‘The Most Innovative Education Commissioner Award for the South West Zone’ organized by President’s School Debates Nigeria, an agency of the Federal Ministry of Education.
She is also the recipient of the West African Gender Dialogue in Conjunction with West African Institute for Leadership and Governance, Most Outstanding Female Deputy Governor of the Year 2012.
Funke Egbemode – Media Personality of the Year
Editor-in-Chief and Managing Director, New Telegraph, Mrs. Funke Egbemode, was born in Ijabe, State of Osun. A product of Baptist Practising Primary School, Iwo and Baptist Girls High School, Osogbo, she holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife. She also holds a Post-Graduate Diploma in Journalism from the Nigeria Institute of Journalism, Lagos.
Egbemode cut her teeth in journalism in the defunct ‘Prime People’ magazine as a staff writer. In 1993, she moved to ‘The Punch’ where she rose to become Deputy Features Editor. In 2000, she was appointed Editor of ‘The Post Express on Saturday’. She was also the pioneer editor of the ‘Saturday Independent’ – a feat not very common with women in journalism in this clime.
She moved to the stable of ‘The Sun’ where she held the position of Editor, ‘Sunday Sun’. She was also General Editor of The Sun Newspapers, a position she held until her appointment as Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief of the New Telegraph Newspapers.
The mother of four also served in the public sector as Assistant Press Secretary at the Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) and later Special Adviser (Media) to a former Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Kemi Adeosun – Minister of the Year
Born in London to Nigerian parents, the native of Ogun State holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from the University of East London and a Post-graduate Diploma in Public Financial Management from the University of London.
She qualified as a chartered accountant with the Institute of Chartered Accountants, England and Wales, in 1994. She commenced her career as an accounting assistant at the British Telecom Company, London, from 1989 till 1990. Her career also took her to Goodman Jones, London, and several top companies such as London Underground Limited, London, Prism Consulting and Price Waterhouse Coopers, London as Senior Manager from 2000 till 2002.
In 2002, she became financial controller at Chapel Hill Denham Management and, subsequently, Managing Director in 2010. After working with Quo Vadis Partnership as Managing Director in 2010 and 2011, she was appointed Commissioner of Finance in Ogun State, from 2011 till 2015.
In November 2015, she was appointed Minister of Finance by President Muhammadu Buhari. Mrs. Kemi Adeosun is well admired for her brilliance and her achievements so early in life.
Chimamanda Adichie – Literary Icon of the Year
Novelist, non-fiction writer and short story teller was born on September 15, 1977. After spending a year and a-half studying Medicine and Pharmacy at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, she left for the USA to study Communications and Political Science at Drexel University, Philadelphia.
She later transferred to Eastern Connecticut State University where she obtained a Bachelor’s degree with distinction of Summa cum laude in 2001. In 2003, she completed a Master’s degree in Creative Writing at John Hopkins University. She also added another Masters in African Studies from Yale University in 2008.
Chimamanda Adichie’s writing career began in 1997 with the publishing of a collection of Poems, ‘Decisions’. The award-winning author published her first novel, ‘Purple Hibiscus’ in 2003 to wide acclaim. The following year, the book won the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for Best First Book.
Her second novel, whose title, ‘Half of a Yellow Sun’ pays tribute to Biafra, received the Orange Prize for fiction in 2007. Her third book, ‘Americanah’ caught the attention of New York Times as it was selected as one of the 10 Best Books of 2013.
The prolific writer who was inspired by the likes of Chinua Achebe, was in 2013 listed among the New African’s “100 Most Influential Africans 2013”. In 2015, she was listed among Time Magazine’s “The 100 Most Influential People”.
‘Half of a Yellow Sun’ by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has been named ‘Best of the Best’ of the winners of the second decade of the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction. The ‘Best of the Best’ was chosen from the ten novels that have won the prize in the past decade.
DJ Cuppy – Female DJ of the Year
Florence Ifeoluwa Otedola, also known as DJ Cuppy, is an entrepreneur, music producer, disc jockey and daughter of billionaire business mogul, Femi Otedola. She is a graduate of King’s College, London, with a degree in Business and Economics and currently working on her Masters degree in Music Business.
Cuppy began her career as a DJ at age 16 and has since been making waves locally and internationally. She is currently recruiting artistes under her music label, Red Velvet Music Group, a music management and content production business.
Omoni Oboli – Most Valued Actress
Omoni Oboli is a Nigerian actress and movie producer with a long line of movies and awards under her belt. A native of Mosogar in Delta State, Nigeria, she majored in French at the University of Benin in Edo State. While at the university, she began her acting career but took a 10-year break to get married and start a family.
She returned to the big screen in 2009 and has since proven herself noteworthy in the Nollywood industry. Oboli starred in the recently premiered film, “Fifty”. She also premiered her movie, “The First Lady”, here in Nigeria and in the UK last month. She is also a facilitator for the 2016 Broadway Movie Academy which will kick-off sometime during the year.
Zaron – Make-up Company of the Year
Zaron is one of Nigeria’s leading make-up brands, which was formed with the aim of improving lives through the development, marketing, distribution and sale of quality lifestyle products. The company, which originated in Leeds, United Kingdom in 2010, made base here in Nigeria in 2011 and prides itself on delivering quality products of international standards with various cosmetics fit for people of every colour.
Funke Bucknor-Obruthe – Most Creative Event Organizer of the Year
Mrs. Funke Bucknor-Obruthe is the Founder and Creative director of acclaimed events company, Zapphire Events. Zapphire Events is an event consultancy, marketing, planning and management company founded in 2003 by Mrs. Bucknor-Obruthe. The company has staff strength of over 10 event co-ordinators and over 200 liaison personnel.
Her company has organized big society events including the wedding of Bez and Bolatito Idakula.
Mrs. Itoro Eze-Anaba – Woman Advocate of the Year
Itoro Eze-Anaba is the founder of the Mirabel Centre, a sexual assault and referral centre that was set up to provide rehabilitation for rape victims. She was drawn out of compassion and determination after her personal encounter in 2003 with a younger girl, who had been sexually abused by her father, to set up the foundation. With much diligence and sincere hard work, the centre has helped hundreds of victims to get over the trauma and receive special care.
Through her hard work and dedication, the Mirabel Centre became part of the pressure group, the Child Protector Agencies, which advocated for a sexual offenders’ register which was endorsed and given executive backing by former Lagos State governor, Raji Fashola.
The Foundation has been able to create awareness about rape and sexual assault. The centre has seen 865 clients so far, including 20 males, which is a major achievement. Over 80 per cent of the victims are minors, below the age of 18.
Amongst the milestone achievements of the centre is that they have also been able to help young girls who became pregnant as a result of rape to have their babies and be reunited with their families.
They also visit schools to talk about rape and sexual assault. Working with the Lagos State Government, there is now more coordination of institutions that deal with child sexual abuse. Mrs. Itoro is, indeed, a trend setter and with her hard work and persistence, she set up the first rehabilitation centre for rape victims in Nigeria. This developmental work has saved many lives that would have gone astray.
Omoyemi Akerele – Fashion and Model Promoter of the Year
Omoyemi Akerele is the CEO of Style House Files and the brain behind Lagos Fashion and Design Week. Style House Files is a creative development agency for Nigerian and African designers.
Omoyemi Akerele is widely regarded as a driving force behind the burgeoning Nigerian fashion industry. A pioneering agency in image consultancy and creative direction in West Africa countries, Style House Files works with Nigerian brands on brand positioning and retail strategies. Akerele also helps brands gain essential international exposure through presenting showcases at Pitti Immagine in Italy, and through Lagos Fashion and Design Week (LFDW).
Founded by Akerele in 2011, LFDW runs a four-day schedule, featuring a select list of talented up and coming designers and fashion entrepreneurs. In partnership with the British Fashion Council, the show has been instrumental in raising the profile of the Nigerian fashion industry and has drawn international attention and commendation from journalists such as Suzy Menkes and Cristina Manfredi, as well as attracting a host of international buyers. She is either striking deals or introducing her designers to several international platforms like the Vogue Fashion Dubai Experience, the LVMH Young Designer Prize, the BFC, AltaRoma and Pitti Immagine, not to mention countless global retailers.
Prior to Style House Files, Akerele worked as senior style editor at popular fashion magazine, ‘True Love’ and set up an image consulting agency with a local Nigerian celebrity stylist, Bola Balogun. Trained as a lawyer from the University of Lagos, Akerele also holds a Masters degree in International Economic Law from the University of Warwick and worked at prestigious Nigerian law firm, Olaniwun Ajayi & Co. from 2000 to 2003.
Omoyemi Akerele was named one of six Global Gatekeepers of Fashion and Style recently and was featured on the cover of ‘Style Mania’ magazine as one of Nigeria’s foremost fashion pioneers.
Ejiro Amos Tafiri – Designer of the Year
Ejiro Amos Tafiri is a fast growing brand on the Nigerian fashion scene, the eponymous label by a Yaba College of Technology graduate. Through dedication and hard work, coupled with her exclusive designing skills, Ejiro Amos Tafiri worked her way to the top, beginning as an undergraduate at YabaTech, where she interned at Zizi Ethnic Clothing.
After graduating, she joined Out of Africa (Nouveau Collections) as a Production Assistant and a Junior Designer while waiting to be called up for the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC). During this time, she rose through the ranks to become Chief Designer. In pursuit of greater challenges, she moved to Tiffany Amber as the Creative Assistant to the Head Designer of the Tiffany Amber design team before starting self named Label: Ejiro Amos-Tafiri.
Ejiro Amos Tafiri is an exciting emerging brand in the Nigerian fashion scene. The brand focuses on producing wearable clothing and accessories inspired by the vibrant, fun-loving, joie de vivre culture of the Lagos people and the cultural diversity of its populace which spans the globe.
With a vision to become a global brand associated with the creation of beautiful, functional and affordable clothes, their debut collection featured casual, formal and evening dresses, tops, skirts, pants, kaftans, boubous and accessories. Their services include a ready-to-wear line consisting of items of clothing and accessories that cater for women and men. They also offer dress-making and haute couture services to our esteemed clients. As a result of Ejiro Amos Tafiri’s tremendous contributions to the ideology of the modern woman’s taste in fashion and her sense of style, as well as an ever increasing list of younger fashion lovers, the label introduces a diffusion line (DEAT) to satisfy the style needs of younger fashion enthusiasts who are looking to fill their wardrobes with fresh and urban cuts for the next fashion season.
The label captures the essence of Africa in her flowing styles. Ejiro Amos Tafiri has fast become a known brand amongst fashion insiders and customers looking for glamorous but yet inspired pieces. She has consistently, within such a short period of time, shown us that the Ejiro Amos Tafiri brand is ahead of its time with exquisite pieces on the runway and in her look books. She manages to cover all areas of ready-to-wear, consistently delivering in creativity and excellent craftsmanship.
Amongst awards Ejiro Amos Tafiri has received are ‘Outstanding Emerging Designer of the Year 2015’ at the Heineken Lagos Fashion and Design Week for her outstanding performance and meteoric rise over the years.
Mrs. Ibukun Abiodun Awosika – Entrepreneur of the Year
Ibukun Awosika is the founder and CEO of The Chair Centre Group. The companies in the group include The Chair Centre Limited, Sokoa Chair Centre Limited, Furniture Manufacturers Mart Limited, and TCC Systems and Services Limited; they are involved in furniture manufacturing, retail and bank-way security systems services.
Awosika also serves on a number of corporate and not-for-profit boards amongst which are: First Bank of Nigeria Plc, Cadbury Nigeria Plc, Convention on Business Integrity (CBI), and the Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority. She chairs the boards of FBN Capital Limited and Afterschool Graduate Development Centre (AGDC) – a facility which she promoted to help address youth employability and enterprise issues in Nigeria. She was past Chairman, FBN Life Assurance Limited.
She is a graduate of Chemistry from University of Ife, Nigeria; an alumnus of the Chief Executive Programme of Lagos Business School; the Global Executive MBA of IESE Business School, Barcelona-Spain; and Global CEO Programme of Wharton, IESE and C.E.I.B.S, Business Schools. With high interest in social issues including women, Ibukun Awosika is a co-founder and past chairperson of Women in Business and Management, and Public Service (WIMBIZ).
An ordained Pastor and founder of the Christian Missionary Fund, she has, through this faith-based organization worked with hundreds of missionaries spread across Nigeria to change lives through provision of medical, educational and other supplies.
As a fellow of the African Leadership Initiative and Aspen Global Leadership network, member of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) who has also served on the National Job Creation Committee (NCJC), she also sits on the International Advisory Board of IESE Business School, Barcelona-Spain. Amongst her enviable achievements, she was recently named Executive Director of First Bank Nigeria.
By Jemi Ekunkunbor, Yemisi Suleiman and Pamela Echemunor
