Uzo Iwobi
Uzoamaka Linda Iwobi (born 7 February 1969) is a British-Nigerian solicitor and equalities practitioner. She is the former Specialist Policy Adviser on Equalities to the Welsh Government, an Honorary Fellow at the University of Wales Trinity St David and founder, secretary and former chief executive officer at Race Council Cymru. She is also Vice President of the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama.
Quotes
[edit]- I’m so delighted and so excited to receive this award. I had no idea and didn’t expect it at all. I’m very humbled that an institution I worked in as a part time law lecturer all those years ago and studied in where people invested in me and help develop me have remembered me in this sway.
- I am absolutely speechless and humbled to receive this wonderful news. Looking back at my 23year old self who arrived in Wales I could not have imagined this moment. Having worked so hard to gain acceptance, to have been mentored by so many amazing people and believe ever so strongly – that by God’s grace, hard work and determination pays off – I thank whoever nominated me and honestly can’t describe how humbled and delighted I am to receive this news from the brilliant WEN Wales team
- I want to say to all the students – believe in yourself, work extremely hard, never take no for an answer, keep pounding on those doors and be prepared that you will fail at some thimngs and that is actually ok because you learn but never ever give up. I believe if you keep going and follow the lessons you’ve learned at this University the sky is our limit.
- Thank you all so much for inspiring me – diolch yn fawr from a truly grateful Welsh Nigerian woman.
- Andrew and I met at the University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus Law School lecture hall in 1989. Andrew was a dashing young and extremely handsome man with a bright future ahead of him. Andrew comes from a mixed heritage background – his mum Letty is from a white English / Jewish heritage and his dad Charles is a black Nigerian man. He was highly sought after by many young ladies in our university and by other young women within his circle of friends not just for his dashing good looks and charming personality, but he had an outstanding academic background.
- Andrew had achieved a First Class Hons Degree in Law from the University of Jos and qualified as a Barrister and Solicitor at the Law School in Victoria Island Lagos -graduating with the best overall result in the Nigerian Law School in his year 1981. He was awarded the Teslim Elias Prize for “The Best Overall Performance” at the Nigerian Law School and was also awarded a second prize which was the Nabo Graham-Douglas Prize for Commercial Law at the Nigerian Law in the same year. At 25yrs he produced a well acclaimed thesis on, “Legal Pluralism in the Land Law of Southern Nigeria” and achieved a PHD in Law from Birmingham University UK in 1987.
- Andrew was a brilliant, intelligent and well-read young man and was serving at the time as the Associate Dean of the Faculty of Law at Enugu Campus. He was lecturing within the Law school at the time and taught my classmates and I the much dreaded “Equity Law”. He was noted as UNEC’s most eligible bachelor and many of the ladies in our class gawked at Andrew, wanting to date him, marry him – whatever… well so did I. He was 28yrs old and I was 20yrs old.
- I can honestly say that I heard nothing, saw nothing, and understood nothing - apart from staring in awe at the face of the gorgeous Dr Iwobi! I was so lost in wonder that Tessy nudged me a few times and said, “Uzo! stop this at once and face your book ooo, with all the people interested in him – such a man will definitely have a lady in his life”. I totally ignored Tessy and stared at him for the entire lesson – I do not recall writing anything down during that first lesson.
- As you may guess, I got only a C for Equity Law following the assessment that year (but later when we got engaged) I asked him why he had given me such a low score when I did so well at the other law subjects, he said (with an amused grin), “I didn’t give you a C, you deserved a C – you probably hardly listened during my lectures – you were too busy admiring the lecturer”! I have not let him forget that he marked my paper extremely harshly! That was how we met!
- I was a rather plain and ordinary young lady – who always had a passion for justice and equity (no pun intended)! I had a spring in my step and worked hard to do well in my studies and graduate as a Law graduate. I recall that early in my third year of Law studies in UNEC, we had to study some core law subjects, one of which was “Equity Law” taught by our then Associate Dean of the Faculty of Law called Dr Andrew Ubaka Iwobi. At this point, I had never seen this lecturer in passing so had no idea who he was.
- When my friend Tessy Ohahuru and I walked into our very first Equity Law Lecture (a little late) Dr Iwobi looked up (his irritation palpable at the disruption to his lectures by the “two late stragglers” – as he called us both; all I could do was return his gaze, but mine was in pure unadulterated puppy love!) and I turned and whispered to Tessy – “There is the man that I will marry”! Dr Iwobi then sternly reprimanded us for turning up late and asked us to sit down quickly and then stated that next time that happened, we had to stand outside as we would not be allowed in. He said, “No stragglers will be allowed into my lecture”.
- Thus severely reprimanded and absolutely embarrassed, we sat down quickly and throughout that Equity lesson, prayed earnestly that he would forget our first meeting. It was not a favourable introduction and so I sat down quickly beside Tessy who promptly settled down and started taking notes as the lecture progressed.
