Mrs. Haleemat Oluwayemisi Busari has been chosen as the running mate of the PDP gubernatorial candidate for the the 2019 elections, Mr. Jimi Agbaje. Here are some things you should know about her:
Haleemat was born in 1964, to the family of the Late Ahmed Tijani Shehu Giwa, a businessman and Vice President of Jamatul Islamiyya of Nigeria from Epe, and the Late Mrs. Mujibat Abeni Mopelola Giwa (nee Shonibare), a princess of the Kosoko royal family from Isale Eko.
The law graduate from the University of Lagos is a Director on the board of several blue-chip companies, including: Zain Nigeria Ltd (now Airtel Nigeria, a leading telecommunications company) and First Bank, Sierra Leone.
She attended Methodist Girls High School, Lagos, after which she obtained a Bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Ilorin in 1986, followed by a Law degree from the University of Lagos in 1990.
Called to the Nigerian Bar in 1991, she returned to Unilag for her LL.M. in 1995, before obtaining an MBA from the Lagos Business School in 2005.
She began her legal career in 1992 when she joined the Irving and Bonnar/Bentley Edu law firm in Lagos and rose to the position of a senior associate, before leaving to join the Honeywell Group in 1999 as Company Secretary/Legal Adviser, where she rose to be Head, Group Legal and Regulatory Affairs of the Nigerian conglomerate.
She is an active member of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and the Federation of International Women Lawyers (FIDA).
She is married to Teslim Olatunde Busari, SAN.
While in he 20s, Mrs. Busari was the founding Amira (female head), the Movement for Islamic Culture and Awareness (MICA), an organization that provides a network and fellowship platform for young Muslim professionals.