‘No time for boyfriend, give us another First Class’ — Paul Edeh tells Ochanya

The Secretary-General of Ochetoha K’Idoma, Barr. Paul Edeh, has urged Ochanya Owoicho, the first female of Idoma extraction to graduate with first-class honours from the Nigerian Law School, to remain focused on her academic and professional career as she prepares to begin postgraduate studies in the United Kingdom.

Edeh gave the advice on Friday at a ceremony in Abuja marking the fulfilment of Chief Godwin Obla, SAN’s, scholarship pledge to Ochanya.

Obla, through the Godwin Obla Foundation, has paid £33,000 for Ochanya’s tuition at Queen Mary University of London, where she will study for an LLM in Artificial Intelligence and the Law, while another ₦25 million has been provided for her upkeep during her stay in the UK.

Edeh said the scholarship was a remarkable opportunity for a young woman who had struggled to pay her law school fees.

“On behalf of Ochanya and her family, we want to express our heartfelt appreciation for giving the opportunity to a young girl who struggled to even pay her law school fees,” he said.

He praised Obla for extending support to someone with whom he had no prior personal relationship.

“First, there’s no affinity, no relationship, no connection with the recipient of today’s award,” Edeh said, adding that Obla’s first contact with Ochanya was to congratulate her and inquire about how he could assist her and her family.

Edeh said Ochanya should see the scholarship as a challenge to continue the cycle of mentorship and support.

“We also believe that with this gesture that has been extended to you, you replicate more than enough,” he said.

He then urged her to avoid distractions and concentrate on her studies.

“I want to urge you not to throw this opportunity away,” Edeh said.

“There’s no time for you to go and look for a boyfriend. It’s no time for you to get into that world where girls would even approach you for a relationship.

“It’s a time for you to give us another first class.”

Edeh said he was struck by Obla’s own remarks about helping others to advance professionally, noting that the philanthropist had previously supported other lawyers on their journey to becoming Senior Advocates of Nigeria.

He said the same spirit of lifting others was now being extended to Ochanya and should eventually be passed on to someone else.

“This gesture is urging you also to extend that privilege to someone else,” he said.

Edeh also described Obla as someone whose generosity had touched many lives beyond the scholarship presented to Ochanya.

“He does this thing lavishly. He cannot control his giving,” Edeh said.

He disclosed that his own daughter, who is studying law, had also received financial support from Obla, describing the gesture as another example of his willingness to assist young people.

Edeh prayed for God to preserve Obla, his family and those whose lives had been impacted by his interventions, while urging Ochanya to make the most of the opportunity as she begins her postgraduate studies in the UK.