The Delta State Ministry of Higher Education has reportedly instructed Osato Edobor, a student at the Delta State College of Nursing Sciences, to record a video thanking Governor Sheriff Oborevwori for intervening in her case after the school issued her a query.
Edobor had been queried after posting a video about Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu’s visit to Delta State, which captured how students embarrassed her during the event.
She was also accused of disrespecting the governor by stating in her video that she did not know his name.
Following widespread public criticism, the ministry informed Edobor that the governor had stepped in and directed the college to withdraw the query letter.
According to a source who spoke to DAILY GAZETTE said “She was contacted by the state’s education commissioner on Friday and asked to make a short video thanking the governor for directing the school to withdraw the letter.”
The source added, “I understand that she was initially asked to travel to Asaba to record the video, but when she declined, the commissioner pleaded with her to create a short clip thanking the governor for his intervention.”
Edobor had previously been threatened with disciplinary action by the college after she posted a video from the First Lady’s visit on March 25, 2025, at the Dome Event Center in Asaba.
The event was part of the Renewed Hope Initiative Health Programme, where 10,000 professional kits—Crocs and Scrubs—were distributed to midwives in the South-South zone.
The college’s provost, Evbodaghe Rita Ogonne, had signed the query letter, stating that Edobor’s act of “recording, singing, and posting the video in question was inappropriate and in violation of the institution’s standards.”
Citing the Student Handbook, the letter accused Edobor of committing a “punishable offence as enshrined in the Student Handbook under standardised disciplinary action for some punishable offences No. 8, Page 21.”
It ordered her to explain in writing, in triplicate, within 24 hours why she should not face disciplinary action.
“You are therefore requested to explain in writing in triplicate copies within 24 hours of receipt of this letter why disciplinary action should not be taken against you for this act,” the query stated.
A source close to the student revealed that Edobor is deeply worried about the potential consequences of this situation, especially as she is set to graduate on May 10, 2025, and has already repeated her class twice.
“She is scared to go back home after all she has gone through. She is about to graduate, and now she’s worried that this could be the end of her academic journey,” the source said.
The viral video in question showed student nurses openly rejecting the First Lady as their “mother” when an MC at the event attempted to give her that title.
When the MC said, “Na our mama be this” (This is our mother), the students responded in unison, “Na your mama be this” (This is your mother), making it clear they did not accept the designation.
The incident sparked discussions about growing discontent in Nigeria amid economic hardship under President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
When DAILY GAZETTE contacted the college provost, Mrs. Evbodaghe, she accused Edobor of tarnishing the institution’s reputation by posting the video in her nursing uniform.
“After the trending video—‘Na your mama be dis’—went viral, we addressed the students and instructed them to take down any related posts from the internet,” she said.
She added, “But Edobor went ahead and made her own personal post. If she had done it without wearing our uniform, I wouldn’t have been concerned because that would have been her personal business.
“But in our uniform, she insulted the governor and even said if she were carrying a gun, she would have bombed people. When I saw that, I was really disturbed—it seriously tarnished the school’s reputation.
“In our school, we have a set procedure for handling such issues. The first step is to issue a query and have her appear before a committee. If she shows remorse during that process, we can let it go.
“But instead of responding to the query, she posted it online. What does that say about her? Does that reflect a good student? Nursing is a serious profession with strict codes of conduct. We don’t act carelessly and expect to get away with it. She didn’t just violate our code—she disgraced the school.”
However, the video referenced by the provost was actually a separate post in which Edobor narrated her experience traveling to the event venue.
In the video, she said, “So we are on our way to Asaba to meet His Excellency, Tinubu’s wife. Let me just switch to pidgin—we dey line o as if say we carry bomb, I no understand, make una no bomb Tinubu wife cos if not we would already bomb Tinubu wife o. They actually check our bag to see if we carry anything inside (We are in a queue, but I don’t understand why they are checking us as if we plan to bomb Tinubu’s wife. We would have done it if we wanted to do it. They actually checked our bags).”
She also commented on the students’ rejection of the First Lady as their mother, saying, “Oga, no be our mama—our mama dey house o.”
Regarding Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, she simply said, “Look at the Delta State governor… uhmm, I don’t know his name, sorry guys, I’m not from Delta State.”
Meanwhile, human rights activist Omoyele Sowore has condemned the threats against Edobor, saying she should be celebrated rather than punished.
“The audacious nursing school students who suitably rejected Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s wife, Senator Remi Tinubu, in that ‘Na Your Mama Be This’ song ought to be celebrated, but as is characteristic of this Tinubu repressive era, one of them is being targeted for sharing this charming rendition on her TikTok page,” Sowore wrote on X.
He added, “We will be providing backing to this lady with all our physical and legal might to ensure the authorities at Delta State College of Nursing Sciences do not perpetrate this egregious act of injustice, as an injury to one is an injury to all.”
