….. See Limitations, obstacles as stepping stones says Owa-Ale
One of the foremost traditional rulers in Ondo State and Owa-Ale of Ikare-Akoko, HRM Oba Adeleke Adefemi Adegbite-Adedoyin has charged corps members not to allow obstacles of life to overwhelm them in their quest to achieve greatness.
He also urged them to see the limitations and obstacles as temporary barriers to their greatness.
The 18th Owa-Ale Adimula of Ikareland gave the charge when he featured in the Entrepreneur Personality, a novel initiative of the State Coordinator of NYSC, Mrs. Victoria Nnenna Ani to bring successful personalities in various skills and vocations to motivate the corps members.
Oba Adedoyin, a United Kingdom trained lawyer, who shared his background experiences with the 2021 Batch ‘B’ (Stream II) corps members said that the members of the service corps needed to set achievable goals for themselves and work very hard towards actualising their dreams.
“My dear patriotic and illustrious citizens of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, I want you to see your enlistment in this noble programme as a deliberate attempt by the Government to prepare you for the challenges ahead”.
“Large number of you seated here will be dreaming to be like Dangote, Otedola, Adenuga and the likes but are you prepared and ready to make the kind of sacrifices these gurus are daily making to remain at the top” he queried.
Oba Adedoyin asserted that individuals who wished to be relevant in the society must not depend or rely solely on Government to provide everything they needed but engage in profitable ventures to be economically and financially independent.
“Think about your life and make up your mind to be great and successful because no one associates with failure. If you are not meeting up with the expectations of your parents and by extension, the society you are living in, no one will identity with you”.
“You possess attributes and characteristics just like successful people in the society. Your education has placed you in a vantage position to make you recognise and work towards what will make you an asset and not a liability. No man will want to marry a woman who has nothing to offer or bring to the table, ditto for the woman”.
“I engaged in washerman business in Ibadan, the capital of Oyo State. The one you have upgraded to dry-cleaning today, waking up as early as 1am washing clothes and other fabrics just to save money for my education in United Kingdom. During this trying period, I sacrificed lots of comforts and conveniences because I was confident that my tomorrow will surely be better” he said.
“Don’t disappoint your parents and families because they are expecting you to put smiles on their faces at the end of the service year. It would be out of place if after the service you remain dependent on them. During your service, do away with everything that may want to constitute themselves into stumbling block”.
The revered Monarch encouraged the corps members to draw their inspiration from the Holy Bible, specifically, Luke 5:4 where Jesus charged Simon to ‘launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch’.
“Ondo State is a fertile land to prosper and you don’t have to relocate out of the Sunshine State before God can answer your prayer. NYSC has created the platform which is known as Skill Acquisition and Entrepreneurship Development (SAED) programme. What are you still waiting for? Embrace it and you will never regret your actions”.
“Let me tell you the secret which I am confident will work for you. Try and be different in whatever you do. Upgrade and put creativity into how you package whatever goods or services you have to offer. The sky is the starting point for those with creative ability”.
“I am a mechanised farmer who is equally into fishery and piggery. The technology has made farming easier and this does not hamper my law practice and seeing to the welfare and well-being of my people. My central message to you this day is that you should aspire to be great” he concluded.
The elated State Coordinator, Mrs. Victoria Nnenna Ani was full of praises to the royal father for accepting to come and motivate the corps members despite his crowded schedules.
Mrs. Ani admonished the corps members to imbibe the spirit of humility that God has deposited in the legal icon who despite his rich credentials and the privileged position still believed that skills and vocations are the bastions for economic prosperity and emancipation.
