Mrs Grace Olufunke Oluwarohunbi is the wife of the bishop of Yewa Anglican Diocese, Ogun State, The Right Reverend Michael Oluwarohunbi. The University of Ilorin graduate, who is also a career woman, speaks with RITA OKONOBOH on the bittersweet experience of being a bishop’s wife, how women can set marital priorities right and what she thinks of a woman president for Nigeria. Excerpts:
Brief about background
I was born in Benin City, Edo State. I was there till after I finished secondary school and moved to Abuja. I was in Abuja from 1986 till 2014 when my husband was elected bishop. I attended the University of Ilorin, where I studied Statistics for my first degree. I have a postgraduate diploma in Computer Science and am currently pursuing a Masters Degree in Information and Communication Technology. I have worked with the Ministry of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; Head of Service; Ministry of Environment; New Partnership for Africa’s Development; Ministry of Police Affairs, and am currently working with the Ministry of Interior at the Ogun State office.
How did you meet your husband?
I met him while I was working with the Ministry of the FCT, sometime in 1986 in Abuja. I was employed then and he was the admin officer who documented me. We got married on December 3, 1988. He wasn’t in the ministry, as in being a priest, at that time. However, he has always been very active in church. He was the assistant choir master at the then Cathedral of Abuja.
You’re the president of the Women Organisation of Yewa Anglican Diocese. Women are assumed to be more tasking to lead. What has the experience been like, as the leader of women in the diocese?
I would say it’s been a little challenging and quite interesting because it’s a great privilege to be charged with such task. It’s a privilege that should not be taken for granted or with levity. The women in the diocese have been very wonderful. We have been working wonderfully together and partnering to take Yewa to the next level, and ensure that the gospel of Christ is planted in the hearts of the people.
What would you say is the best part of being married to a bishop?
It’s the privilege to serve God in a higher capacity; the privilege to be a servant of all. If God calls one to work in this capacity, it is an amazing experience and I thank God for the opportunity, and I pray that God would always grant me the grace to serve him.
What is the hardest part of being married to a bishop?
You have no life of your own; you may also discover that there isn’t as much time for personal business as before, because everybody becomes your concern. It’s been quite challenging, but God has been my All-Sufficiency.
You’re a wife, a mother, women leader, career woman. How do you create a balance?
God has been my source of inspiration and strength. For instance, for the women organisation, we have leaders who are also trained and who can serve and fit into different areas of leadership – delegating responsibility. As a career woman, I attend to my job well too. I do my best to ensure that my family gets the best of me too. My husband is my first priority.
What do you wish the congregation understood better about being a bishop’s wife?
I would wish that they understood that being a bishop’s wife is an enormous task that takes the totality of one’s being. They should understand that we are also humans. I would appeal that people continue to pray for us, for God to endow us with his wisdom.
In Nigeria, the apex of leadership has always featured men. More than 50 years after independence, some people would say we are not where we should be in terms of positive development. Do you think women would do better?
I see leadership as a call and I believe that God knows best when a woman can come in. Leadership is not defined by gender. God calls whom He would. Having said that, when you consider how women are – they are very committed, passionate, strong, multitaskers, and do not like to fail – drawing inference from that, one could say women would not do badly in leadership positions of the country. We can draw examples from some organisations where women lead, and see that they have done so well.
Activities for the upcoming diocesan women organisation conference
The conference, which will take place at St. James’ Anglican Church, Oke-Odan, Yewa, Ogun State is a forum for the women come together to thank God for what He’s done for us; to appraise our performance and chart the way forward. The theme of the conference is The Weapon of Our Warfare is not Carnal. Welcome Service is on Thursday July 13, after which series of life-enriching programmes will commence such as the decoration of the 2017 mother of conference, Chief Mrs C.O. Amore. Bible Studies I and II will be anchored by Canon Festus Ajayi from Lagos West Diocese titled The Arm of Flesh and Christian Armory.
Evang. (Mrs) Kehinde Enih will speak on Spiritual Warfare. On Friday July 14, Reverend Barnabas Olusegun Daramola will speak on Looking unto Jesus, and Venerable J.S.S. Wusa will speak on Having a Peaceful Home between 9:30-I0:30am. There will be Bible quiz; seminar on event decoration will come up on Saturday to be anchored by Mrs Mosunmola Olatunbosun. On Saturday, there will be health talk on heart-related diseases, which will be anchored by the Oloke Odan of Oke-Odan, His Royal Majesty, Oba (Dr) O.O. Fagbenro, while the presidential address of Mama Yewa, Mrs G.O. Oluwarohunbi will also take place on Saturday. Thanksgiving service will take place on Sunday July 16th.
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