First Lady Urges Davido, Burna Boy, Asake to help the Poor through charitable Foundations

Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has urged leading entertainers, including Davido, Burna Boy and Asake, to use their wealth and influence to support the less privileged by establishing charitable foundations.

She made the appeal on Saturday during the launch of the National Community Food Bank Programme in Lokoja, Kogi State, where she encouraged the artistes to emulate international musicians known for their philanthropic activities.

“I want to appeal to our young ones in the entertainment industry. I have mentioned it before, and I will use Akon, a music icon who does a lot of great charity work. They make the Burna Boys of this world, the Asakes, all of them, Davido. We want to see you with one foundation or the other, helping the poor with your money,” the First Lady said.

Tinubu noted that while there was nothing wrong with owning luxury items such as expensive cars, celebrities should also invest in initiatives that uplift vulnerable members of society. “Good cars are good, a Maybach is good, a Rolls-Royce is good, but still, you can help,” she added.

Defending her earlier remarks on empowering women through petty trading, the First Lady said the Renewed Hope Initiative had continued to support grassroots entrepreneurs, including pepper, vegetable, okra, melon, akara and kuli-kuli sellers, as part of efforts to reduce poverty and promote self-reliance.

She recalled the story of an unemployed graduate in Abuja who turned to selling akara after failing to secure a white-collar job. According to her, the initiative provided support to expand his business, enabling him to employ 12 workers.

“The burden on the government is huge. You can still help. There are pepper sellers, vegetable sellers, okra sellers, melon sellers, akara sellers. Akara is delicious, I can tell you that.

“There was once I read an article about a young graduate who said he didn’t get a job and started selling akara. We approached him, though I didn’t put my name to it, and we equipped him further. He now has 12 workers working under him, and he’s doing very, very well,” she said.