{"id":22239,"date":"2025-10-26T00:30:23","date_gmt":"2025-10-25T23:30:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/?p=22239"},"modified":"2025-10-26T11:37:19","modified_gmt":"2025-10-26T10:37:19","slug":"atiku-abubakar-pays-tribute-to-late-stella-obasanjo-calls-her-a-symbol-of-grace-and-service","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/2025\/10\/26\/atiku-abubakar-pays-tribute-to-late-stella-obasanjo-calls-her-a-symbol-of-grace-and-service\/","title":{"rendered":"Atiku Abubakar Pays Tribute to Late Stella Obasanjo, Calls Her \u201cA Symbol of Grace and Service\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

ABUJA, Nigeria (FN) \u2014 Former Nigerian Vice President Atiku Abubakar has paid tribute to the late First Lady, Stella Obasanjo, describing her as \u201ca symbol of grace, compassion, and unwavering dedication to the Nigerian people.\u201d

In a statement released Sunday to mark the anniversary of her death, Abubakar praised Stella Obasanjo\u2019s contributions to women\u2019s empowerment and public health initiatives during her tenure as First Lady from 1999 until her passing in 2005.

\u201cShe embodied the spirit of selfless service and left an indelible mark on Nigeria\u2019s social development,\u201d Atiku said. \u201cHer compassion for women and children remains a model for leadership grounded in empathy and purpose.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Nigerian Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Stella Obasanjo, wife of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, was widely recognized for her advocacy in improving maternal health and her involvement in humanitarian causes. Her death, following a surgery in Spain, shocked the nation two decades ago and continues to resonate among Nigerians.

The former vice president called on younger generations to emulate her \u201cquiet strength and commitment to humanity,\u201d adding that her legacy lives on through the lives she touched.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Several public figures and organizations also shared tributes on social media, recalling her as \u201ca mother to the nation.\u201d The Ministry of Women Affairs praised her \u201cunwavering support for female education and child welfare.\u201d

Family members of the late First Lady expressed appreciation for the remembrance. \u201cWe\u2019re grateful that her impact continues to be celebrated,\u201d a relative said.

Government officials, including presidential aides, also acknowledged Stella Obasanjo\u2019s legacy, describing her as a \u201ctrailblazer who elevated the role of First Lady beyond ceremonial duties.\u201d

Her husband, former President Obasanjo, has often spoken about Stella\u2019s influence on his life and presidency, once referring to her as \u201cthe soul of compassion in the Villa.\u201d

Stella Obasanjo would have been 80 this year. Memorial events are expected in Abeokuta, Ogun State, later this week, where dignitaries are set to honor her life and contributions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ABUJA, Nigeria (FN) \u2014 Former Nigerian Vice President Atiku Abubakar has paid tribute to the late First Lady, Stella Obasanjo, describing her as \u201ca symbol of grace, compassion, and unwavering dedication to the Nigerian people.\u201d In a statement released Sunday to mark the anniversary of her death, Abubakar praised Stella Obasanjo\u2019s contributions to women\u2019s empowerment […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":22237,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[4,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22239","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-naija-news"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.funminews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/images-2-3.jpeg?fit=506%2C606&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22239","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22239"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22239\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22240,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22239\/revisions\/22240"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22237"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22239"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22239"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22239"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}