Early in life, John Delano learnt one basic lesson of life. He learnt to live a life of sacrifice and to be able to stand for those in need. The son of a lawyer, young John learnt first-hand the importance of standing up for others when he had what can be described as a culture shock experience while studying for his A-levels certificate in the UK.
Young John had hoped to contest for a position in his school. But to his shock, a young white boy threw up a point that could be described as racist, by questioning his ability to represent. But just as he was battling with the right response to give, his teacher, also a white man, stood up to his defence, saying everybody needed to be given the opportunity to excel.
That seemingly insignificant experience has continued to resonate in his memory till date, making him more determined to always offer a helping hand to others. “The young man was trying to play up the racism card, but out teacher stood up immediately in my defence. It was a spontaneous action, it was not that he thought over it before responding. I tell you, that particular experience helped me to win the election and it changed my way of thinking. Since then, my attitude to life had always been what I can do to lift others up.”
In continuation of his efforts to lift others up, John and his partners are concluding arrangements to hold a arts and fashion show, which he said is aimed at showcasing the Nigerian arts and fashion industry to the world, as well as creating a platform for young Nigerians seeking the opportunity to showcase their talents.
Tagged ‘Arts and Fashion Lounge, John told The Nation the show is his own contribution towards expanding the nation’s economy. “We all need to do something to expand the economy. There is a lot that you and I can do if we are determined.”
Though a lawyer, John is determined to diversify into other areas of the economy. Towards this end, he is hoping to create a platform for arts and fashion enthusiasts in the country to excel. “What drives me is the fact that I want a change in our mentality. Presently, I am looking at arts and fashion. The reason is that when I just came back from the UK, I noticed that there was an explosion of expression. This expression came in the form of arts and fashion. So, I asked myself why it is so, the answer I got was that people want to express themselves.”
He is taking some time off his law duties to promote arts and fashion and build a structure which he hopes other people will build on.
“The root of my desire to go into the fashion thing is creativity. I want to celebrate and promote it. Presently, I am talking to some people and galleries to come on board and partner us. The idea is to see an industry that offers a career to Nigerians, so that our children can at a young age decide to take up as a career. I want a situation whereby parents would be proud to allow their children to go into the industry.
John believes that Nigeria has failed to fully exploit the business opportunities that the arts and fashion industry can offer the people. “I lived in the UK for a long time and my experience was that a lot of opportunities are open to the people. We can replicate same here. If you do your bit and I do mine, you would be surprised at how well we can make things work in this country.
“For instance, I believe that all the arts and fashion industry need to grow in Nigeria is for it to be organized. And if it is organized well enough, investors will come from as far as China and other foreign countries.”
While many young Nigerians would give the world to travel abroad, John said he decided to come back home after more than one decade of post graduation experience in the UK because of the better opportunities available here.
According to him, Nigeria remains one of the few countries where a hardworking man can make enough money to live a comfortable lifestyle. “I came back home in 2011 for purely economic reason. You know one thing, for all the problems that we have in this country, this is a place where you can make a lot of money legitimately.
“The UK is already developed, but Nigeria is still developing. What that means is that there are still many areas waiting to be developed. It means there are more opportunities in these virgin areas that are waiting to be developed.
“Believe me, there are more opportunities here than you can get elsewhere. Look at the people selling recharge cards. Though the profit may not be much, but the truth is that it is providing job opportunity for some people. That is the kind of opportunity that we hope to make available to our youths. Don’t forget this is a country of more than 100 million people, by the time you open up opportunities for the people you would be amazed at what we can do.”
His principle of making money, he said is based on opening business opportunities to the communities. “The richest people anywhere in the world are those people who open up business opportunity to the communities.”
Aside from his father, three other people have influenced John’s life of sacrifice. While urging Nigerians to learn to sacrifice in order to bring about the necessary change to the society, John listed the late South African President, Nelson Mandela, Muhammed Ali and late Indian leader, Mahatma Ghandi, three world leaders sacrificed to create a better society for their people.
John has a very huge dream for Nigeria. He dreams to see a country where opportunities would be available to all irrespective of background.
“What has brought me to this point is the realization that the people in the UK have a better sense of service. They are ready to serve. But we have not imbibed the attitude of service. That is something we need to do to develop.
“When you have a nation that says they don’t want our people to live below a particular poverty level. What they are saying is that while they may not be interested in enriching everybody, but that nobody must live below a particular level. That is my wish for Nigeria. Our people should not live below poverty line.”
