Zainab Buba Galadima, daughter of Nigerian political figure Alhaji Buba Galadima, has clarified that her father never secured her any position in government.
Instead, she attributes her career breakthrough in public service to former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.
Speaking during an interview on MIC On Podcast, Zainab addressed assumptions that her father’s political influence helped her land a government job.
“No, he never got me a job,” she said.
“I ran for office. I was an elected councillor under CPC, and then we moved into APC. So, when APC was formed in AMAC, I became the leader, because naturally, when a party is formed, they look at the highest-ranking member or officeholder, and that person becomes the leader of the party in that area. I built myself politically.”
When asked if her father served as her political godfather, she replied, “No, not at all.”
She further clarified that even during President Buhari’s administration, her father played no role in her appointment.
“How could he get me a job? They don’t get along with him. He couldn’t get me a job. I met the Vice President then, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, during the campaign, and he asked me to work with him.”
“We went around Abuja campaigning, and he asked me to work with me because we had a conversation together.”
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“He asked, ‘What do you know as a councillor?’ and I told him. I just gave him a brief summary of my CV, and he was like, ‘Oh really? So you went to school like this?’ and I was like, ‘Yes.’”
Zainab explained that it was during that discussion that she pitched an idea focused on youth and women empowerment.
“He said, ‘Can you work with me?’ because I gave him an idea of empowering young women. He asked me to put it down in writing, so I gave it in writing before the inauguration in 2015. That was what they built up to make TraderMoni.
When asked to confirm if the TraderMoni initiative was her idea, she affirmed, “Yes. I was doing it on a small-scale level in my ward. So that was how I got there. But my father never had any hand in anything.