Mothers Should Always Be Mindful of Their Children’s Needs

Dr Habiba Muda Lawal, OON, British Chevening Scholar, was born in Bununu Tafawa Balewa Local Government Area of Bauchi State. She had her primary education at Gyamzo, Toro LGA, her home town and Secondary education at Federal Government College, Kaduna and Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, Nigeria, where she obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry and Master’s Degree in Inorganic Chemistry from the same University. She attended Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU), Bauchi, for her Doctor of Philosophy degree (PhD) in Inorganic Chemistry.

She is an exemplary public officer, Lecturer, administrator, publisher, public servant, educationist, motivator, and mother. She also served as the Secretary of the Presidential Transition Council/Federal Transition Coordinator to usher in the current Administration and as Acting Secretary to the Government of the Federation. Dr Habiba excelled in her duties before her retirement as the Permanent Secretary of the Ecological Project Office (EPO).

Currently, she is the Chair of the Board of Trustees America US-NIGERIA, ECULPAA (International Visitors Leadership Alumni), Grand Matron of PEACE Magazine, Fellow of the Chemical Society of Nigeria (CSN), Nigerian Institute of Management, Fellow LEAD International (Leadership for Environment and Development) and a Member of the Science Association of Nigeria (SAN).

In this interview with Abdulfattah Abdussalam, she advises working mothers to be more attentive to their young Children.

Excerpts

What was growing up as a girl-child like for you then in Northern Nigeria?

It was not that easy for a girl-child in that era. I was fortunate to have a father who defied societal norms by insisting that all his children, boys and girls, must go to school for education. And that gave me opportunities over my age mates, but at a price. Then, I can remember whenever I came home for holidays; I did not want to go on errands for my parents because of disparaging comments from some meddlesome individuals in our community. Comments like: “We hope she does not bring forth a bastard child to her father?” “Would this one not get married?”  The community watched in amazement, especially after I finished primary school and contrary to their expectations, my dad decided I would go to secondary school, which was unusual then. So, I became the first Muslim girl to attend a secondary school in my local government. I am the eldest female child of my father’s children, and looking at it from the lens of a child, one does not know the gravity of issues since one was just in one’s world view as a child. In my naivety, I even thought it was like that everywhere. It was later I realized that ours was unique and different. We are grateful to Allah that my late father sent us to schools. Today, the same people who made disdainful comments then are the same ones now allowing their children and grandchildren to attend schools and get educated.

What has changed in North Nigeria, compared to your growing years?

What has changed is the fact that now there is the recognition that the girl-child should also be educated and now allowed to participate in academic programmes like her male counterpart. In our era, a large number of us were not allowed a choice in educational and extracurricular activities. But today there is a general recognition that the girl-child has equal rights with a male child as they are growing up. In that era, there were very few who were given chances to complete primary school, secondary school or post-secondary schools like Teachers’ College, College of Education and Universities.  So I think growing up as a girl-child fifty years ago was significantly less privileged than the current girl-child.  We are now in the digital age with the availability of mass media, the internet, computers, mobile phones and scientific gadgets which significantly have made the girl-child much more different from yesteryears. Today, she is better informed and has opportunities to consult far and wide, thus she can manage efficiently a few more intricate things than we used to do. Many of us knew nothing about computer functions or the telephone until we were almost 25 to 30 years old and after a University education.

What kind of a man was your father at that age and time to have thought of sending you to school?

That was due to his education and exposure. My father was a trained Nurse by the missionaries, so he knew the value of education and had the foresight to educate us.  He fathered 40 of us, and we were all educated at the time he died in 2016. Happily, before his death, he witnessed my rise to become a Federal Permanent Secretary. When he died, 36 of his children were alive out of his 40 children and out of these, except for two females who did not go beyond secondary school education for marital reasons, the rest of us have more than one-degree certificate.

Can you recall your schooling pattern and some of your classmates?

My primary school was Gyamzo Primary School, also known as Toro Practicing School. Then, in our community, there was a Teachers’ College in Toro, and the college used the school as a teaching practice school for her students’ teachers. I remember I was living in the village when my father came and took me away from my aunt for primary school education. I finished in 1976 and proceeded to Federal Government College, Kaduna, and a mixed secondary school for boys and girls. Each state in Nigeria used to send four candidates, and the candidates were of mixed gender or at least one female, but some states were without female students. In my set, there was Fatima Jega Muhammad from the Jega family in Sokoto and Mairo Attah from the Attah family. I remember we started together from the start. A few others, like Fatima Ciroma and Lami Yakubu Gana eventually joined us.

What were the glowing and challenging moments of your sterling career?

One of the glowing moments was the day Mr. President appointed me as a Permanent Secretary. The position of permanent secretary in the Federal Civil Service of Nigeria is competitive because even though one may pass the examination, the president still has to choose one of the three candidates recommended for him. He chose the best candidate, and that happened to me. President Goodluck Jonathan could have picked the 2nd or 3rd candidate, but he selected me. And I am grateful to Allah for that. Another glowing moment for me was the day I retired from the Federal Government Service of Nigeria.  I counted that as a memorable moment because of what I contributed to the service, especially my contribution to the Ecological Project Office, where I served for 6 years. I initiated the change in name from the Ecological Fund Office (EFO) to the Ecological Project Office (EPO) to reflect the mandate of tackling ecological challenges in Nigeria. For my challenging moments, the first occurred when I was trying to come into the service. I remember I was posted and believed I had taken a job as substantive Director in the service but the letter of my conversion and transfer of service came as a “deputy Director” after 18 months at my desk as a director. It was like a demotion, but with patience, it came to pass. I eventually became a director and a Permanent Secretary. Another challenging moment was the amount of work my colleagues and I had to put in as members of the Presidential Transition Council, handing over power to the current administration. It was challenging. As the secretary of the Transition Council, I have to navigate between the outgoing and incoming regimes and ensure a successful transition. Coordinating the handover process was challenging. I learned a lot through the challenge because it was a job I was happy to be involved in. It provided invaluable lessons and left me with a sense of accomplishment.

How did you manage the home front during the Permanent Secretary years?

My husband was very supportive, so I must thank him.  Although he is with his Creator, may Allah continue to reward him in his grave for all the support he gave us. He has been my pillar of strength since day one after I married him.  I married him after my secondary school education. I think I did well in my career and as a wife but not so well as a mother.  While I was in the office, I thought I was doing well, but because I now have more time to listen to my children these days, I feel awkward that I should have spent more time listening to them and engaged enough emotionally talking to them. Except for this, I will say I managed to navigate the tasks at home as a wife and mother.   But now, when we sit and laugh over those periods, I wish I had handled it differently. Let me advise working mothers to note that being physically present with their children is never enough, especially when their children are young. They have to be more attentive regularly and communicative. Also, be mindful of their needs, especially the unsaid needs.  Alhamdullahi, despite my seeming not to be there enough for them, they have all turned out very well.

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