Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has expressed optimism for the year 2026, urging Nigerians to remain thankful for life and to embrace generosity as a guiding virtue in the New Year.
Welcoming newborns at the Federal Medical Centre, Jabi, Abuja, Senator Tinubu said stepping into 2026 was itself a blessing deserving prayers.
“We thank God for God’s mercy and we believe that this year we all made it and we pray that it will be a blessed year.”
She disclosed that she welcomed five babies during the New Year outreach.
“I welcomed five in total.The baby of the year, a girl, and then the triplets. The mother has waited for 13 years, which is wonderful, and another baby boy.”
According to the First Lady, the visits were part of a coordinated effort involving senior government spouses and officials.
“Mrs. Shettima, Her Excellency, the wife of the Vice President, she’s going to a hospital to welcome the baby of the year there, and then the Honourable Minister of Women Affairs, she’s also going to the National Hospital, and then the Honourable Minister FCT is going to another hospital. So our hands are full with babies.”
Praying for the newborns, she added:
“And we pray that these babies will be a blessing to this nation.”
Addressing Nigerian women, Senator Tinubu described them as resilient and hardworking, encouraging them to pursue their aspirations with faith and determination.
She also emphasised generosity as a defining guiding principle for the year.
“Make sure you are generous. This year, I tell people, if you want money, you have to sow money to the lives of the less privileged.
Be generous. It’s a year of generosity.”
Father of the first baby of the year, Mr. Celestine Adakole Akeme, expressed joy and gratitude over the timing of the birth.
“There is no better way to start a new year as this, having my first child on the first day of the year and the first baby of the year, Exactly 12am, 1st of January, 2026. Well, I would say a very big thank you to God in a million ways, because I really don’t, I’m short of words, I would just thank God, I would keep thanking God for the rest of my life.”
Commending the hospital for its professionalism, he said:
“It was simple, I would like to commend this hospital, they did really well, I would say that with all honesty, everything was fine, it went really well, in fact I didn’t even know when my baby was delivered, they just came to me and said your baby was delivered and I asked, she was so strong, healthy, fit, everything was just fine.
In fact, I started thinking like, is this really Nigeria, I really didn’t expect that.”
The baby, named Zion Enekole Adakole, was presented with gifts, a birth registration certificate and cash support by the First Lady.
Senator Tinubu was accompanied by the Wife of the Vice President, Hajiya Nana Shettima; the Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development, Hajiya Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim; the Minister of State, FCT, Dr. Mariya Mahmoud Bunkure; the Permanent Secretary, Women Affairs, Mrs. Nko Esuabana; and other officials.
The New Year baby reception celebrations align with ongoing child-centred interventions under the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, covering child protection, health, education, nutrition and social welfare.
The First Lady through the Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI), a grassroots-based non-governmental organisation complements government efforts through programmes on agriculture, education, economic empowerment, social investments and maternal and Child health .
Intersecting these interventions, a broader national commitment to safeguarding the well-being of Nigeria’s children and securing a hopeful future for the country is guaranteed.
