Valentine’s Day: Remaking celebration of love

Lawmaker celebrates with physically challenged person

EXACTLY this time last year, #FeBuhari, (meaning love Buhari), a riposte to critics of President Muhammadu Buhari, coined by his admirers, had gripped Nigerians ahead of the presidential election postponed from February 14 to March 28. Yesterday, however, lovers across the country let down their guard to mark Valentine, the only day in the year observed for lovers.

The origin of the day could be linked to a Western Christian liturgical feast to honour a saint called Valentinus. Today, it is being observed as an important cultural and commercial celebration in many parts of the world.

Saint Valentine’s Day is regarded as an official feast day in the Anglican Communion and also in the Lutheran Church with many parts of the Eastern Orthodox Church celebrating Saint Valentine’s Day.

A member of the House of Representatives, Temitope Olatoye, yesterday celebrated the day with the physically challenged persons in his constituency. Several empowerment items, about 5,000 items worth millions of naira, were distributed to some beneficiaries in all the 33 local government areas of the state, to celebrate the day.

Olatoye, who is representing Lagelu/Eleyele Federal Constituency in Oyo, said he was using the occasion to make the beneficiaries feel a sense of belonging. According to him, “disability goes beyond inability to walk, talk, or see; it is also inability to contribute substantially to one’s society.”

However, a lot of young people have misinterpreted the observance of Valentine, turning it to a day to practice promiscuity in sharp contrast to what gave birth to the celebration.

General Overseer, The Over-flowing Life Ministry, Ayobo, Lagos, Dr. Sola Akinkuolie, said if the definition of Valentine tallies with what God is saying about love, then the day should be observed in line with God’s own kind of love, which is pure and undefiled.

“God is the source of love but the way people are going about it is wrong and unfortunately, this wrong interpretation is gradually being extended to the church. If the day is observed to rejuvenate love between spouses, it becomes meaningful. However, the youth’s meaning of the day is contrary to the will of God,” he said.