President Bola Tinubu on Thursday humorously referred to his wife, Senator Remi Tinubu, as “Iya Alakara” (Mother of Akara Seller), amid ongoing public debate over her remarks on small-scale businesses as a means of economic empowerment.

The president made the remark while addressing guests at the Presidential Press Corps Dinner held at the State House in Abuja.

“Good evening, gentlemen of the press, ladies and gentlemen, my dear wife, the First Lady, Iya Alakara,” Tinubu said, drawing laughter and applause from the audience.

The comment comes days after the first lady faced criticism on social media for highlighting businesses such as akara, roasted corn and kuli-kuli as viable sources of income for women in the face of Nigeria’s economic challenges.

Akara is a popular Nigerian snack made from deep-fried bean paste.

Speaking on Monday during the inauguration of the Abubakar Maje Haruna Hall at the Emir of Hadejia’s Palace in Jigawa State, Remi Tinubu defended the initiative, saying beneficiaries of empowerment programmes coordinated through her office include traders dealing in tomatoes, pepper, vegetables and roasted plantain, popularly known as bole.

She disclosed that the Federal Government had provided N100 million to the Jigawa State Government to support 2,000 petty traders across the state. According to her, each beneficiary would receive N50,000 to recapitalise and sustain their businesses.

The first lady maintained that the intervention was aimed at strengthening grassroots entrepreneurship and insisted that the government would not be discouraged by criticism of the programme.