President Bola Tinubu on Thursday jokingly called First Lady Oluremi Tinubu “Iya Alakara” (Mama Akara Seller), a lighthearted nod to the recent uproar over her comments on small businesses.
The President made the remark while observing protocol at the Presidential Press Corps Dinner held at the State House, Abuja. A video of the event was shared by Aso Rock TV on YouTube.
Tinubu was seen smiling as he greeted dignitaries before turning to acknowledge his wife. “Good evening, gentlemen of the press, ladies and gentlemen, my dear wife, the First Lady, Iya Alakara,” he said, sparking laughter from the audience.
The nickname follows days of controversy after the First Lady encouraged Nigerian women to embrace small-scale businesses, such as selling akara, roasted corn and kuli-kuli, under the Renewed Hope Initiative’s empowerment scheme. She had said such ventures “don’t take much money” to start.
Her comments drew backlash on social media, with critics accusing her of downplaying the economic hardship facing many Nigerians.
The First Lady later clarified that the empowerment programme extends beyond akara sellers to traders dealing in tomatoes, pepper, vegetables, roasted plantain and other petty goods.
She made the clarification on Monday during the commissioning of the newly built Abubakar Maje Haruna Hall at the Emir of Hadejia’s Palace in Jigawa State, where she also revealed that the Federal Government donated N100 million to the Jigawa State Government to support 2,000 petty traders.
“Because of the atmosphere, what is going on, I’ve told Her Excellency that we’ve already given, donated about 100 million to her to use to empower 2,000 petty traders,” she said. “And I know they’ve been talking that I said akara. It’s not only akara, we also have tomato sellers. We have boole, and those also selling pepper, selling vegetables for us in the market.”
She added that the government would continue supporting the traders to make their businesses sustainable.
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