“In 40 Years of Marriage, We’ve Never Raised Our Voices at Each Other” — First Lady Oluremi Tinubu

Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, highlighted faith and mutual respect as key to lasting relationships, drawing on her nearly 40-year marriage to President Bola Tinubu.

Speaking Thursday evening at an Interfaith Breaking of Fast (Iftar and Lent) at the Old Banquet Hall, Presidential Villa, Abuja, she said relationships with people who do not fear God rarely endure.

“In almost 40 years of marriage, I cannot recall a time when we raised our voices at each other,” she stated, citing her interfaith marriage as a model of harmony and respect.

The event brought together Christian and Muslim women, including wives of state governors, to mark overlapping Ramadan and Lenten observances. The First Lady emphasized the importance of peaceful coexistence and the role of women in mentoring the next generation.

“God has given us today to gather, and as women from different backgrounds, we are reminded of the unity that faith can inspire,” she said. She urged women leaders to pass on “real intelligence” and values to younger generations.

Addressing rising religious tensions in the country, she stressed that personal example of harmony can counter division and insecurity, urging Nigerians to live with a “fear of God” as the foundation of wisdom.

Prof. Ganiyat Adejoke Adesina-Uthman, Director of the National Open University of Nigeria, delivered a keynote on integrity in public service under the theme, “Serving with excellence, compassion, and integrity in public life.”

Notable attendees included former First Lady Dame Patience Jonathan, Vice President’s wife Hajia Nana Shettima, former Vice President’s wife Hajia Namadi Sambo, Senate President’s wife Mrs. Ekaette Akpabio, Mrs. Fatima Tajudeen Abass, female National Assembly members, ministers, and judges.