16-Year-Old Hon. Peace Oladosu From Ibarapa Central/Ibarapa North Federal Constituency Makes History as Youngest Person to Preside at National Assembly

 

The Nigerian House of Representatives, led by Rt. Hon. Tajudeen Abass, has honoured 16-year-old Hon. (Miss) Peace Oluwaseyi Oladosu, One Day House of Representatives, representing the good people of Ibarapa Central and Ibarapa North Federal Constituency of Oyo State.

Hon. (Miss) Peace Oladosu, who arrived in Abuja through Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport, Abuja, alongside her proud parents on Monday, July 22, 2024, won an intellectual contest spearheaded by Hon. (Dr.) Anthony Adebayo Adepoju on June 17, 2024, getting a chance to preside over the people of Ibarapa Central and Ibarapa North Federal Constituency.

Performing her official duty on Tuesday, July 23, 2024, Hon. Peace and her team were received by Hon. Adepoju and Hon. Ojo Sunday Makanjuola (Smato), representing Ogooluwa/Surulere Federal Constituency, with applause from honourable members and members of staff who welcomed her historic visit to the National Assembly.

The talented schoolgirl was subsequently led to the office of Hon. (Dr.) Adepoju at the third floor of the House of Representatives building, where she was officially declared a One Day House of Representatives Member, representing Ibarapa Central and Ibarapa North Federal Constituency of Oyo State.

Shortly after that, Hon. Peace was invited by Hon. Ugochinyere Ikenga (Chairman, House Committee on Petroleum), who represents Ideato Federal Constituency of Imo State in the House of Representatives. Meeting with Hon. Ikenga, Hon. Peace also had the opportunity to interact with Hon. Aniekwe Peter Udogalanya, representing Anambra East/Anambra West Federal Constituency, where the two distinguished honourable members congratulated her on her accomplishments as a One Day House of Representatives member.

The happy Hon. Ikenga immediately announced monetary gift to Hon. Peace, whom he described as a colleague and one whose nature of recognition is being conferred on for the very first time in the history of the National Assembly of Nigeria.

After that, Hon. Peace and her team proceeded to the Chamber’s Gallery of the House of Representatives, where she was honoured by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Tajudeen Abbas, PhD.

Reading the citation during the plenary session of the House of Representatives on Tuesday, July 23, 2024, Rt. Hon. Abbas said, “Hon. Colleagues, I have the honour to introduce to you Hon. Peace Oluwaseyi Oladosu, the winner of the One Day House of Representatives Member representing Ibarapa Central and Ibarapa North Federal Constituency of Oyo State Competition. On June 17, 2024, in a very well-contested event by over a thousand students, Hon. Peace emerged victorious in an intellectual competition sponsored by Hon. (Dr.) Anthony Adebayo Adepoju, a distinguished member of the House of Representatives. This exceptional and very talented secondary school student from Favourland College, Igboora, hails from Idere Town in Ibarapa Central Local Government Area of Oyo State.

“She is here with us, along with her very proud parents. Can you stand up for recognition, the parents too? Please a round of applause for this wonderful girl; congratulations; please keep the flag flying,” the Speaker said.

Leaving the chamber’s gallery, Hon. Peace was hosted by one of the outspoken members of the National Assembly, Hon. Billy Osawaru, member representing Orhionmwon Uhunmwode Federal Constituency of Edo State. During their engagement, Hon. Peace had a productive conversation with the lawmaker, where she had the opportunity to share the problems confronting her federal constituency. Among the problems highlighted by Hon. Peace were a lack of power supply, poor mobile network coverage, and a lack of ICT centre in the entire Ibarapa region, making prospective students seeking admission into higher institutions of learning go the extra mile outside the region to register and perform other ICT-based exercises. She lamented that accessing the Internet for sufficient knowledge acquisition is almost impossible for students in the area.

Hon. Billy immediately assured Hon. Peace that they would both co-sponsor two motions on the three highlighted problems, copying the relevant agencies to address the issues. He promised Hon. Peace of his support even after her tenure as a one-day House of Representatives member.

After that, Hon. Peace visited Hon. Olajide Stanley, representing Ibadan North West/South West Federal Constituency, where the Ibadan-born lawmaker promised a reception for the one-day honourable in Ibadan City. He added that he would be in constant touch with the one-day honourable member in the area where he can come in as far as ICT is concerned, being the Chairman of the House Committee on ICT.

Hon. Peace also visited Hon. Idris Wase, a member representing Wase Federal Constituency and Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives in the 9th Assembly. The veteran lawmaker, who is the Chairman of the House Committee on Federal Character, prayed for Hon. Peace for all her dreams in life to come true and made monetary gift to the One Day Reps member for making Nigeria proud.

She was also received by Hon. Abass Adigun, affectionately known as Agboworin. The lawmaker said it would be the first time in the history of Nigeria that he would hear about the One Day House of Representatives, commending Hon. Adepoju for being a first-term lawmaker that reasons like someone who has been in the National Assembly since 1999. He applauded Ibarapakan for his style of brilliant representation, promising to copy the one-day initiative in his constituency. “Hon. Adepoju, you don’t know what you have just started, its impact, and what the future looks like with this. I am telling you this afternoon that I am copying this initiative in my constituency too, and after that, we can also have a situation where all students in each of the constituencies in Oyo State come together and we have one person emerge among them to represent the whole of Oyo State as One Day House of Representatives Member. I am sure the children in my constituency will always emerge victorious, he jokingly said.”

Hon. Agboworin, however, presented to Hon. Peace a cash gift for being a diligent and exceptional student in her constituency.

It was a moment of elegance when the very distinguished Hon. Olamijuwonlo Alao-Akala received Hon. Peace Oladosu. He said, “Hon. Peace, you are one of the special young children created by the Almighty God; that you achieved this at a time that social media platforms are derailing the youth from focusing on what is necessary is worthy of commendation. You have not only made your parents proud but also the entire population of Nigeria. I am happy that you are from my dear state, and this simply shows that we are truly the Pacesetter State. I appreciate Hon. Adepoju’s ability to organise this; it is unprecedented, and I am happy to share this moment with you.

The son of the former governor of Oyo State, who represents Ogbomoso North, South and Oriire Federal Constituency, presented a cash gift of an unannounced amount, saying he believes the gift would motivate her to face her studies and continue to make the region proud.

In the office of Hon. Olamijuwonlo, Hon. Peace also had the opportunity to meet other vibrant members of the House of Representatives, Hon. Sesi Oluwaseun Whingsn representing Badagry Federal Constituency of Lagos State and Hon. Muktar Shagaya, representing Ilorin West/Asa Federal Constituency of Kwara State, where they all praised the innovative idea and prayed to God to make Hon. Peace excel in her various endeavours in life.

She also met with Hon. Oyeshina Oyedeji Najimdeen, member representing Iseyin, Itesiwaju, Kajola and Iwajowa Federal Constituency. The lawmaker commended Hon. (Miss) Peace and wished her the very best in life. The lawmaker also represented a cash gift to Hon. Peace Oladosu for her exceptional abilities.

On getting back to her official seat, Hon. Peace made her first official appointment by appointing Miss Sunday Jumoke as her personal assistant, urging her to see her appointment as a call to serve Ibarapa Central and Ibarapa North Federal Constituency, Oyo State and Nigeria on the programme with diligence, dedication and loyalty.

Apart from having practical experience of plenary session of the House of Representatives, Hon. Peace was also lectured on the working system of the National Assembly.

Addressing pressmen on the historic event, Hon. Peace remarked, “The former UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, admonished politicians at all levels of government worldwide to think beyond the immediate comfort and glamour of public offices and build younger generations in such a way that they do not suffer from the consequences of their parents’ carelessness.

“It is a thing of joy that Hon. (Dr.) Anthony Adebayo Adepoju’s representation is guided by a sense of posterity, propelling him to come up with the epoch-making initiative of this one-day representative, availing me of the unprecedented privilege as a teenager to not only be accustomed to the dynamics of legislative representation but also to decide the affairs of the constituency for a day.

She went on to say that, “It will be an act of ingratitude if I fail to express my heartfelt goodwill towards Hon. (Dr.) Adebayo Adepoju, the member representing my constituency, Ibarapa Central and Ibarapa North Federal Constituency of Oyo State, for this initiative of one-day reps. My heart brims with pride thinking about how blossoming the future of education in my constituency will be with this historic initiative.

“It is an initiative that will stand the test of time. It is not a display of sycophancy; Hon. Adebayo Adepoju has demystified representation. A politician with innovative ideas like him deserves to be showered with praise and may history be well with him.

“I promise to leverage this golden opportunity to inspire the children in my region and be a stellar ambassador for this initiative, celebrated globally since my emergence. I owe it to the people of Nigeria to excel in all I do, and I am committed to achieving this from now on. I won’t let you down, Hon. Adepoju, Ibarapa Central and Ibarapa North, Oyo State, Nigeria, Africa and the world at large. So help me, God,’ her speech partly read.

Hon. Adepoju, in his own speech, appreciated the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Tajudeen Abbas, for the recognition given to Hon. Peace Oladosu during the plenary session of the House of Representatives. He appreciated his constituents for their continued support and collaboration and expressed his gratitude to His Excellency, Engr. Oluwaseyi Makinde, for being a model of good leadership, inspiring him to always go above and beyond for the good people of Ibarapa Central and Ibarapa North.

He also praised well-to-do individuals for always putting the interests of Ibarapa Central and Ibarapa North first in everything; he commended his wife for her everyday assistance, which he said had propelled him to focus on carrying out national assignments.

The Deputy Chairman of the House Committee on Federal Character, however, promised that the one-day House of Representatives Initiative is going to be a yearly event, saying the next winner of the initiative will enjoy an expense-paid free trip to any of the leading African countries to visit renowned scholars in educational sector.