The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Niyi

  • FOR JIMI SOLANKE

    FOR JIMI SOLANKE

    (Maestro with a Thousand Masks) (3)
    SNAPSONG 214

    Music and purposive mischief
    Talent and its tempting torture
    That impatience with settled laws
    Which painted Liberty in lurid letters

    You argued with the clock
    Queried old songs with new stanzas
    Tutored ancient drums with daring steps
    As if your leg was the chosen stick

    On their patient membrane.
    You chanted folklore into folklaw
    Pressed idle Memory into busy Re-telling
    Converted sleepy legends into urgent summons

    Your eyes always on the young
    Who pampered ignorance into trendy art
    Torturing native names into meaningless appellations
    Swearing in the temples of foreign gods

    Songtime
    Storyland
    How so valiant your striving to mend the leak
    To call on our Past to address our Future

    Farewell, Olujimi Omo Solanke
    Tell the Langbodo men* over there
    Our feet are set on the increasingly steep climb
    Our eyes on the prize still still beyond our gaze

    • Reference to the late D.O. Fagunwa and Wale Ogunyemi: the former created Oke Langbodo in his fiction, while the latter used it as both trope and title for a pan-Nigerian, pan-African epic drama.

  • Niyi Orimoloye-Jibril marks 50th

    Niyi Orimoloye-Jibril marks 50th

    Olugbeminiyi Orimoloye-Jibril, widely known as Niyi within his professional circles, has attained the illustrious age of 50, signifying a momentous achievement in his distinguished career within the oil and gas sector.

    Renowned for his wealth of experience and influential leadership, Niyi has played a pivotal role in shaping the industry landscape and driving innovation.

    As an esteemed executive at NAOC LTD (Nigerian Agip Oil Company Ltd) now Oando Plc, Niyi has exemplified expertise and dedication in his field, earning him a sterling reputation as a leading guru within the industry.

    Niyi, the scion of Honourable Dr. P.S. Orimoloye-Jibril, a former lecturer at the University of Ibadan and a respected member of the House of Representatives, hails from Oyo state.

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    His upbringing within a scholarly family has undoubtedly shaped his character and approach, emphasising humility and simplicity in the face of significant achievements.

    To mark his entrance into the league of quinquagenarian, Niyi’s beloved wife, Bukola, gathered friends, family, and associates to commemorate her husband’s age milestone. The celebration, much like the man himself, was characterised by elegance, yet close-knit. The couple went for a quiet dinner which signifies dignity over grandiosity.