Sir: She is a rare breed; an iconic combination of brilliance, beauty and boldness. But more than these, she has become a jinx-breaker of some sort, making history by becoming the first Ihima-born politician to climb up to the pedestal of senator-ship, in Nigeria’s chequered history of democracy.
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Interestingly too, she is the first female politician in Kogi Central Senatorial District to achieve that feat. It means therefore, that her victory has come to balance the political equation, as she has perfectly hit the bull’s eye by using one stone to hit two birds.

Her concept of politics is encapsulated in the noble paradigm of the late President Yar’Adua’s promoted servant-leadership, to serve with her innate milk of human kindness, rather than to be served. Over the past decade, she has stood head and shoulders above her peers as a beacon bearer- through philanthropy and political engineering- to show the way forward out of the long, dark tunnel of self-inflicted ignorance, mass acquiescence and servitude. Not surprising is that she encapsulates the leadership qualities of vision and the 5-C principles of character, commitment, candour, compassion and charisma.

Not left out of course, are the rare attributes of the 3-H attributes of hard work, humility, and honesty of purpose. Mind you, one is not garbing her in the cloak of perfection. No one is.

The truth however, is that in spite of being born with the proverbial silver spoon, in the serene, scenic and idyllic Ihima setting back in 1979 she has not lost the common touch. She chose, in an uncommon decision-making process to wear the tattered shoes of the common man and knows exactly where they pinch him most. And more importantly, she does everything humanly possible to replace such shoes with new ones!

One is talking about no other person than Barrister Natasha Hadiza Akpoti-Uduahgan, a social entrepreneur and politician. As the founder, Builders Hub Impact Investment Program, BHIIP several lives have been touched; moving many erstwhile helpless and hapless citizens from the ignoble pit of mass poverty to self-sustenance and prosperity.

It is intriguing to note, that over 1000 children across Nigeria have benefitted from Natasha’s educational scholarship programmes. At a point, 600 primary school children, 248 of which are orphans were adopted on December 9, 2015 from primary schools within her immediate community in Ihima, Kogi state and beyond. She has similarly adopted children she has come across, with some hawking sundry food items and others filling potholes on the streets to touch tellingly on the their human development index for good. As she had rightly noted: “I believe in the power of education as an essential life tool in eradicating poverty and no child must be deprived of such an opportunity”. Great, you would admit.

As Natasha assumes office at the Senate, she must come to terms with the fact that one’s victory in any given aspect of life leads to a new set of challenges. She must be ready for such. Meanwhile, history will reckon with her as an indefatigable fighter for human rights, a great lover of education and a female politician in the likes of Funmilayo Ranome-Kuti, Margaret Ekpo, and Hajiya Gambo Sawaba. By Ayo Oyoze Baje