President and Permanent Designate Representative of a non profit organisation, Centre for Convention on Democratic Integrity, (CCDI) to the United Nations, Mr. Olufemi Aduwo, has applauded President Joe Biden appointment of Nigerian- American Mr Adewale (Wally) Adeyemo as Deputy Secretary of Treasury. Aduwo, who is currently in United States on United Nations assignment, was full of praises for President Biden for the appointment.
According to Aduwo, Adeyemo, the first African-American to be appointed Assistant Secretary of the Treasury, is a strong advocate of multilateralism, Adeyemo is expected to help the US overcome its worst economic crisis since the 1929 crash. Adeyemo was one of the stars of the Obama Administration. I met this amazing Nigerian in 2016 at World Bank & lMF Boards of Governors Meetings at Washington DC, he impressed everyone he met with his intelligence, great judgment and kindness.
At 39, Adewale Adeyemo already has extensive experience. At age of 34, he was the United States Deputy National Security Adviser which made him a member of the Executive Office of President Obama and the U.S National Security Council, serving under National Security Adviser. The U.S Senate on Thursday confirmed the Nigerian born Adeyemo as the deputy secretary of the Treasury, making him the department’s first Black Number two official.
Never before has an African-American been appointed to such a high position in United States. Wally was born in Nigeria ,in Gbongan, Osun State, he was just a baby when his parents decided to emigrate to the United States with their three children.Adeyemo said during an exchange organised by the CSIS think tank in July,2020 that three issues must be given priority by American government: inequalities, the country’s competitiveness and future employment opportunities. He also stressed the importance of a collaborative management of the pandemic by the G20 states.
Adeyemo places the origin of his support for multilateralism from very early on in his life. On 11 February 1990, his father, a school teacher, woke him up to see Nelson Mandela coming out of prison. “Although the images on my television were of a reality thousands of miles from my home, in California, I could feel the hope Mandela inspired not only in South Africans but also in my father.” He would say much later. “It continues to remind me that events far from home can make a meaningful difference in the lives of Americans.” This was followed by a meteoric rise from student body president at the University of Berkeley in 2001 to the head of the cabinet of the Financial Consumer Protection Bureau (a new federal agency created as a result of the financial crisis) in 2010.Adeyemo joined the Democratic Party at an early age. At 23, John Kerry’s presidential campaign charged him with inspiring African-American voters in California.
That should be a great lesson to Nigerian youths,instead of being political spectators and instruments of destruction as political thugs, they should fully involve in the political process as participants. I hope Nigerian government would not be careless with relevant of Adeyemo influence and huge assistance he could made available to Nigeria and Africa.
