The Life &Times of Chief (Mrs.) Florence Morenike Saraki :
By all accounts, she was a combination of royalty, grace and a unique personal style. Among the attributes she’d be remembered for is her impeccable fashion sense and culinary skills, which she exhibited with flair and panache even at an advanced age. To which she added the assiduousness and high sense of duty with which she played the roles of devoted spouse to one of the most towering political figures in Nigeria’s Second Republic, and the revered matriarch of a large, diverse and influential political dynasty.
The flood of tributes that have trailed the recent passing of Chief (Mrs) Florence Morenike Saraki, mother of the former Senate President, Dr. Bukola Abubakar Saraki, at the age of 88, attest to her undoubted pedigree and the far-reaching impact she had on the lives of those whose paths crossed hers during her eventful life-journey.
And what a life-journey it was! Born on the 8th of August 1935 in Owo (in what is now Ondo State of Nigeria, Chief Mrs. Saraki (nee Ibidapo Okunroboye) was the only child of Madam Felicia Ojomo (of the Ojomo royal household) and Mr. Samuel Ibidapo Okunroboye. She had most of her education in the United Kingdom, eventually attending Balham & Tooting Bec College in 1957, where she gained a bachelor’s degree in Accountancy before going on to earn a law degree. She was thereafter called to the Inns of Court, London – ie licenced to practice law in the United Kingdom.
It was while in the UK that she met the young medical student who would later become her husband. She and Dr. Abubakar Olusola Saraki were married that year. Though from a Christian background, her marriage to a Muslim laid the foundation for what was to become a multidimensional family unit characterized by love and mutual understanding among its members. The couple welcomed their first child, a son named Bukola, in 1962. He was followed by three more children.
Upon her return to Nigeria, Mrs. Saraki began her professional career at Shell BP, before going on to join the United Africa Company (UAC). While in UAC, she played important roles that showcased her versatility, industry and business acumen. Her work in the legal department brought her under the tutelage of the then-head of the company’s legal department, Chief Ernest Adegunle Shonekan, GCFR (who would later rise to become the company’s Chief Executive Officer, and then govern Nigeria brief as Chairman of the short-lived Interim National Government).
Eager to pursue new challenges in the world of legal practice and entrepreneurship, the late matriarch retired from the services of UAC and joined the law chambers of Olagbegi, Aregbesola & Saraki, where she rose to become Partner, thanks to her legal expertise and her unwavering commitment to justice and the good ordering of society.
An astute entrepreneur, Mrs. Saraki engaged in various business ventures, trading in items such as rice, tomato concentrates, sugar and vegetable oil, and explored opportunities across many sectors, in which her natural affinity for accounting and numbers came to the fore. She also ventured into farming, with farms located in Kwara and Ondo States.
During her lifetime, Madam Saraki was the recipient of several awards and recognitions for her contributions to society.
As already mentioned, she and her husband were blessed with four children – namely, the aforementioned Dr. Bukola Saraki, who, before his tenure as President of Nigeria’s 8th National Assembly, served as Governor of Kwara State from 2007 to 2015; as well as a former minister of state for Transport, Senator Gbemisola Saraki. The others are Tope Saraki-Edu and Laolu Saraki.
Beginning from her immediate family, the influence of the late matriarch, who lost her illustrious husband, Senator (Dr.) Olusola Saraki in 2012, was enormous. Reflecting on her role in the Saraki family, and particularly in the lives and careers of her offspring, one sympathiser remarked, ‘No wonder her children exude class, elegance and dignity. It takes a woman with such impecable pedigree to raise such fine children.’ Another sympathiser, who once worked with the deceased’s late husband as a political associate, described her as a pillar of strength, a guiding light and a dedicated mother who left an indelible mark on the lives of everyone she touched, describing Mrs. Saraki’s unwavering dedication to her family as a testament to her selflessness disposition. In the days after her passing, other sympathisers have voiced similar sentiments, in a deafening chorus of acclamation for a truly remarkable lady.
Lawyer, accountant, farmer, political spouse and nurturer of a dynasty, the late Mrs. Saraki was a fitting partner to the late Senator (Dr.) Olusola Saraki, who served as the highly influential Majority Leader of the Nigerian Senate during the aforementioned Second Republic (from 1979 to1983). During his lifetime, he was widely regarded as the ultimate kingmaker in Kwara politics. He also held the traditional chieftaincy title of the Waziri of the Ilorin Emirate. Upon his passing at the age of 79, she held the fort with admirable fortitude, resilience and discipline.
These are the legacies she has left her children and numerous grandchildren, as they were joined by the cream of Nigerian society as well as friends, well-wishers and teeming admirers in the series of elaborate funeral rites that were lined up to bid a fond farewell to a rare gem of a lady.
The world, in the immortal words of Shakespeare, is a stage, and we human are merely actors who play our respective parts and depart. Some play a single part, while others play multiple parts. By all accounts, the late Madam Florence Morenike Saraki played all her parts exceedingly well.
May her gentle soul find rest in the bosom of her Maker.