I learned from Ibadan to see opportunities in everything. – Shettima

According to the Vice President, the wedding party was not made up of just friends but rather a close-knit family bound by time, education, and unbreakable ties.

Vice President Kashim Shettima has said that he learned how to seize every chance that comes his way in the old city of Ibadan.

Shettima spoke at a wedding celebration at the International Conference Centre, University of Ibadan, according to a statement from Mr. Olusola Abiola, Director, Information, Office of the Vice President.

The bride, Ibukun Okunmadewa, and the groom, Obafemi Omitiran, were getting married.

The Vice President referred to the bride, Ibukun, as “my beloved teacher.” Prof. Folusho Okunmadewa is the mother of the bride.

Shettima, who interspersed her address with verses from “Ibadan,” a poem by one of Nigeria’s best poets, John Pepper Clark, said that he was in Ibadan to receive visitors at the bride’s wedding rather than as a guest.

“So, in this old city of memories, I am here to greet you as guests. Ibadan is my home; it is where I was shaped and trained to seize every chance that comes my way.

We are here to celebrate the beginning of a magnificent journey to discover the meaning of life for Ibukun and her groom, Obafemi, whose daughter Ibukun is. Without the patience of my dear instructor, Prof. Folusho Okunmadewa, this would not have been simple.

According to the Vice President, the wedding party was not made up of just friends but rather a close-knit family bound by time, education, and unbreakable ties.

“This room reminds me of a city that has ingrained its culture, values, and ambitions deeply into my being, but it also reminds me of how fate has contributed to the growth of families and relationships,” Shettima said.

Vice President Shettima praised the merits of Prof. Okunmadewa, the bride’s father, calling him “a beacon of wisdom and guidance for vast generation of scholars.”

“I’m honored to be able to draw from this intellectual haven of the University of Ibadan, as well as to identify as a qualified son of the soil and a member of the family.”

He prayed for the newlywed couple to grow in their love for one another, saying he understood the feelings a parent has on the day he gives his daughter her hand in marriage.

One of life’s most profoundly bittersweet moments is giving up one’s daughter in marriage.

It serves as a reminder that life is a journey filled with chance, hope, and transformation.

However, I am confident that you have given Ibukun the moral fortitude she needs to move on from her first family today. And may her new life offer her boundless happiness.

Dignitaries such as Prof. Isaac Adewole, the former Minister of Health, Gov. Babagana Zulum of Borno, and Adebayo Lawal, the deputy governor of Oyo State, attended the wedding celebration.

The others were Prof. Kayode Adebowale, vice chancellor of the University of Ibadan, and Shubham Chaudhuri, country representative of the World Bank in Nigeria.

Prior to her departure to Abuja, Shettima also attended the wedding celebration of Abdulqudus Okeowo and Suliat Alli at the University of Ibadan.