Dr. Christine Olufunke Adebajo is the Governor of District 404 B-2 of the Lions Club in Nigeria. She is also a public health consultant to the World Health Organisation and some other international bodies. In this interview with PAUL UKPABIO, she reveals how her job as a nurse earned her a husband and also speaks about other interesting parts of her life.
What lessons would you say your background taught you?
My background had a great influence on the person that I am today in the sense that I was brought up by strict parents who believe that nothing pays like hard work. Their main focus was education. They made us to believe that no matter what property your parents bequeath to you, you cannot make good use of it if you do not have good education. With that at the back of my mind, I wanted to achieve something on my own. I wanted to get the best of education that I could get, believing that it will empower me to achieve my objectives in life.
So, what did you study?
After my secondary school education, I went to the School of Nursing. That wasn’t really the career that I wanted to go into, but at the end of the day, I thank God that I did that, because it formed the basis for my future development. It exposed me to humanitarian services. There and then, I made up my mind that I would not get out of that circle of education, profession and employment.
I then travelled out of the country to England to study Hospital Administration for my first degree. I worked for some time at different hospitals in London and later proceeded to do a master’s degree in Health Facility and Planning. That was the study of how health facilities are utilised for specific purposes. For example, we were taught how to design a hospital to know where to locate people with infectious diseases; to know where to locate the maternity wards and the theatre to avoid the spread of infectious diseases and have free flow of people, for instance, in a situation of fire incident. That is the planning aspect.
In the services aspect, we were taught the kind of services required for specific groups of people in specific environments and also for specific people in a particular geographical location. So, that gave me a wider knowledge about health.
When you came back, where did you work?
I came back briefly to Nigeria and decided to work in the health sector. After a while, I went to America to do a Ph.D in Public Health, an interesting area of Medicine. It gives you an idea of the kind of diseases that can be prevented. We had to do a lot of statistics, finding out, for instance, the number of the population with particular kinds of diseases and so on, and how such diseases could be prevented.
From then on, I was able to start getting employments in international organisations. I started to work as a consultant to quite a number of health organisations, including the World Health Organisation and United Nations. I did quite a number of works for Ford Foundation, and that expanded my horizon.
On returning to Nigeria, how were you able to integrate back into the system?
I didn’t have any problem integrating back into the system because I believe that home is home no matter what comfort you may think that you enjoy outside your country. Out there, you cannot get to the level you want to get to except you are just lucky. There was a time we were going abroad and a colleague of mine who is a medical doctor and who also works in the area of international relations told me that I should not complain about the situation in Nigeria. She actually cautioned me by asking if I would have got to the level that I had got to if I had stayed back in England. I considered it and realised that what she was saying was absolutely the truth. So I really wanted to return to Nigeria and settle down. I didn’t have any issues or second thought about it because I just believed that this is my country. That was why I quickly adapted and made use of my best ability to achieve my set goals.
Do you still travel a lot?
I still travel a lot. But by the time I spend a few days abroad, I usually want to return to Nigeria. That is because I do not believe that there is any place like Nigeria. My children live abroad; at least majority of them. I actually have only one living here in Nigeria. I think that the reason those other ones prefer to stay abroad is that they were born there. They never experienced this aspect of life.
This is a beautiful country that we have here in Nigeria. Forget about the issues that we have. Yes, we have issues and the major issue that we have is leadership. If we can get that right, I can assure you that no Nigerian will want to stay abroad or rather only a few Nigerians will want to stay abroad.
At what point did you decide to join the Lions Club?
I started ‘Lionism’ in 1989. My husband, who is a surgeon, was already a Lion before me. He introduced me to Lions Club. I attended a few functions of the club and realised that I needed to get involved myself. Funny though, I later took more interest in the club than he did (laughs).
With your husband in the same club, what was it like?
At the time I joined, I was just an ordinary member. At that time also, women were not allowed to be Lions; they were only allowed to be Lionesses. That connoted that the male Lions Club had to form the Lioness Club as a project. But later, the women in the USA went to court to challenge the fact that women should be able to join. The major issue and difference at that time was the issue of finance. The male Lions Club was paying more dues than the Lioness Club. But the women believed and insisted that with more and more women getting more financially empowered, they could meet up with the financial obligations. So from then on, women became Lions.
At that time also, I was the President of The Lioness Club. I then moved from Maryland Lioness Club where I started Ikeja Golden Lions Club. They also transmitted from Lioness Club to Lions Club. I was there for about 12 years as club member, observing and participating in various activities of the club before I could become president again. After that, I served at various district committees as chairperson. I rose from there to become a regional chair, later became a zonal chair. However, one is supposed to have become a zonal chair before becoming a regional chair. But the District Governor then felt that I was too much for a zonal chair. He made me a regional chair.
But there is a clause there: if you really want to be a district governor, you must have served as a zonal chair at some point in time. So at some point, I went back to become a zonal chair. I really didn’t mind that at all. I continued serving. All through that period also, one was expected to go through a lot of educational preparations, like participating in leadership management courses, art of speaking courses and programmes, to develop one as an individual. I availed myself of all those opportunities too.
You mean you had to go through all that to become a district governor?
Yes, I had to. And I love reading; that is my hobby. I love studying (laughs). And I like challenges. After that, I put in for the position of 2nd Vice District Governor. I campaigned all around various clubs and won eventually. With time, I moved from 2nd to 1st Vice District Governor and finally by the grace of God, I became a District Governor.
What is it like to be the District Governor of Lions Club?
It is a lot of responsibility. If you follow my career build up, you will realise that I was well prepared for it. If one is not prepared and you find yourself there, you will definitely have issues. It is a position that demands serious exercise. You have to supervise so many clubs at various states of the federation. I even believe that the responsibility is more than being a governor of a state. That is because you are a governor of several Lions clubs in different states and you have to know them in and out. You have to know the clubs by name, you have to know the members by name, and you have to visit them.
And you know that before becoming a district governor, you would have gone all around to campaign anyway. So you would have known the clubs and visited them before you can be elected. So, one needs to have considered that and made up one’s mind before taking on such responsibility as becoming a District Governor of Lions Club.
Do you enjoy it?
Yes, I do. I enjoy what I do. It is serious, it is tedious, but I certainly enjoy what I do.
How do you combine it with your regular work?
To be frank with you, a Lions Club District Governor ought to get a sabbatical. There is no way of combining it. That is because it is a full-time job. It is a job of 24 hours in a day. If you get a chance to lie down to sleep, you will still be thinking of how you will get your members, how you will encourage them to pay their dues, how you are going to execute all the programmes that have been earmarked to be achieved. The one year tenure is loaded with things that one actually needs five years to achieve, but you have to achieve it for the club in a year.
So what did you do?
I took a sabbatical. And to be frank with you, I have actually taken half sabbatical in the last two years. But this year, I have taken full sabbatical. I am lucky in the sense that I am self-employed. I delegated some of the things that I normally do, but at the same time, there are certain things they cannot do for me. They cannot do my consultancy work for me because you are appointed as a consultant based on your personal capability. So, for those kinds of activities, the work will have to wait (laughs). They cannot be combined with the work I have to do in the Lions Club.
Did you meet your husband in the US?
No, we met in Nigeria. We met as far back as when I was doing my nursing programme in Nigeria. We have been married for 41 years.
How was it like when you met?
He was a young doctor who came to serve in the hospital where I was training as a House Officer, and I was in my final year. The rest is history.
But you both lived abroad…
We travelled out later because he also went for his specialist course.
How has your marriage been over the years?
God has been kind. There is no marriage that doesn’t have its challenges. If anyone says that his or her marriage has been rosy all through, then the person would be a liar. As for me, like I made up my mind on a career, I also made up my mind on marriage and what I wanted for my children. I didn’t want my children to have a broken home. For single parents, you can have the financial power, but you definitely cannot be father and mother. We waded through the storm and we thank God.
If you were to advise young mothers and singles, what would you say?
I will tell them to really plan for whatever that they want to do. Don’t jump into marriage. Don’t jump even into a career because you see some other persons doing it successfully and you then think that you should be able to do it. You should have your personal goal in life. You have to humble yourself too. For a career woman, if you are too conscious of your achievement, you probably will never be able to make a home. That is because many people have their ego. So even when you are doing pretty well, you have to pretend as if nothing is happening. You can even be making big success but still pretend as if nothing is happening. Don’t throw the success to his face.
Before you know it, you will be getting his support and moving on. As a woman, if you want to stay in marriage, then stay there. If you want to be a career woman without staying in marriage, that is your choice; everyone has a right to a choice. And for those who have not been able to make a success of marriage, that is not the end of the world. Nothing should draw you back from realising what you want to be.
How were you able to earn your husband’s respect to the extent that he gave you the independence to pursue your career?
It is not total independence, but you have to be able to build such trust between one another. And like I said, I didn’t let my achievement get over me. Communication is key. Don’t concentrate on things and issues that frighten and discourage. For instance, a woman should not come home with all her frustrations from work and pour them on her husband. Sometimes I get so frustrated at work but when I get home, I put up a brave face as if everything is okay. That is because if you keep pouring your daily frustrations from workplace on him, one day, he will say you should not go there again.
What memories do you have of your growing up years?
Oh, I have interesting memories. I used to think then that my parents were too harsh. There was actually one day that I called my mum and asked her if she was really sure that she was my mother. But at the end of the day, I realised that my parents’ strictness was for my own good. We were brought up in a religious home. That has affected my disposition to life because I have found that without a relationship with God, an individual is nothing. Also, if you do not know God in a personal way, you cannot go far. God never fails.
How were you able to keep the men at bay?
I have a strong disposition which I put out, though it is a facade. It makes people to find it difficult to get to me in that regard. That is my weapon. It has worked for me. Even if other men had the intention, they are forced to conclude that I am a proud person, though that is not true. I am a soft person; a real woman. But I do not flaunt it.
What fashion items attract you the most?
I wear the right stuff. I wear English clothes, suits, slacks and jeans. If I want to look mature, I wear native dresses. I like to combine colours. I wear colours that rhyme from head to toe. I see dressing out as a priority, starting from my nail to the rest parts of my body. I am very selfish about my individuality, and the reason is that it is not everybody that you meet in a day that you will meet again. But the impression they get of you on that particular day is the memory they will carry with them. It gives me joy when I am pleased with my good looks.
What fashion item would you not do without?
I don’t do without moderate make-up, I wouldn’t want to do without doing my nails, and I wouldn’t want to do without my glasses not rhyming with what I wear.
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