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  • The prince polyglot at 75: Whither Ekiti?

    The prince polyglot at 75: Whither Ekiti?

    However, writing about Prince Julius Adelusi-Adeluyi is, without doubt, the equivalent of carrying coal to Newcastle

    For example, by sheer manipulation, Ekiti was represented by five members, Ondo nine, Ogun 19   inclusive of the opportunists called civil society groups. In a restructured Nigerian society, the imbalance, even in the West, would be so obvious that we would be exchanging one imperialism with another (with Ekiti five and Ogun 19″, for instance). This, of course, is totally unacceptable.’ – Chief Oladeji Fasuan, MON, JP on President Jonathan’s 2014 talk shop.

    As at the last count, he speaks some six different modern languages and that, by the way, is only a minuscule part of this incredible human being, this senior citizen of a great country, who has, and continues to leave his mark on several areas of our national life. However, writing about Prince Julius Adelusi-Adeluyi is, without doubt, the equivalent of carrying coal to Newcastle.  Too much has already been written about him, his background, and student activism at the then University of Ife which culminated in his election as the Secretary-General of the World Student Movement, a position which took him to about 140 countries, his impressive and continuing involvement in the organised private sector, as well as his philanthropy, the last leading his law firm to be mostly involved in pro bono services.

    Therefore, in order not to just  merely celebrate  him  on  his 75th birthday, I  decided  to pidgeon-hole him – not an easy prospect – zeroing in on the usefulness to Ekiti, or  otherwise,  of  the  IGBIMO URE EKITI (IUE) which he founded. After all, has he not told us that “the template had been laid to ensure that URE does not end up as a nine day wonder?”

    Consisting the likes of  Sir Remi Omotoso, Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), Dele Adesina (SAN), Professor Peter Adeniyi; Chief Sam Bolarinde; Admiral Dehinde Joseph; Ambassador Bayo Ayeni , Dr.(Mrs) Funke Adebajo, and several  distinguished Ekiti citizens, IGBIMO, from its published statements, ‘is open to all qualified Ekiti indigenes who imbibe the core values of the Ekiti people, including dignity, reliability and integrity; who are committed to the development of the state;  understand their psyche and the need for reason, accommodation and patience in handling matters of mutual interest, who are passionate for results, but are not involved in partisan politics.  Proven leaders in their professions, businesses, vocations or community and who are socio-economically stable. “IGBIMO,” we are further told, “aims at bringing together people of impeccable integrity who are prepared to pool their resources towards re-establishing the state’s respectability, political stability, peace, progress and development.”

    I paraphrase below my reference to IGBIMO in my write-up on the occasion of Prince’s 71st birthday in 2011: “If there were an organisation oga would have wanted me enlisted in but which, however, proved impossible because of my not-so hidden involvement in political activities, it is IGBIMO.  I was obviously  one of the first people he discussed IGBIMO with and it is no self-glorification when I say that he was kind enough to ask me to do the draft of his speech at  the body’s inaugural meeting, before settling down to carve it in his inimitable  style.’

    So, to the meat of this entire article.

    If IGBIMO URE EKITI is all we have been told it is, and Prince, the founder is alive and kicking, aging more gracefully and the organisation waxing stronger, why is Ekiti in its present dire straits? What has the body done, or how does it intend to help the present government settle down to proper governance, now that the governor is no longer bogged down with any threats of impeachment?

    I would be the very first to admit that mediating the Ekiti conundrum is not the easiest thing on planet earth.  Many, including the respected Prince, are aware that in spite of my not being in governor Fayose’s political party, I contacted, in the heat of  his troubles with the G.19,  eighteen distinguished Ekiti non political icons, pleading with them to kindly intervene in what was obviously  a major blur on the state.  That effort led directly to Chief Deji Fasuan calling a joint meeting of Ekiti Elders and the rump of the committee for the creation of Ekiti. Unfortunately, like the one at the instance of Aare Afe Babalola, it led nowhere. I subsequently took the matter up with Prince who then informed me that he had much earlier involved both Chief Olanipekun and Elder Adesina, both Senior Advocates of Nigeria, and two of those I had earlier contacted and discussed with severally by phone. Unfortunately, even after they had been promised a meeting with the two groups, nothing eventually came from their efforts.  My suggestion then which I once published on these pages, was that the House should drop all threats of impeachment in return for a guarantee by Fayose of an unfettered resumption of legislative duties and payment of   the legislators’ outstanding entitlements.  In addition,  fearing that the state  might graduate into an orgy of armed robbery and kidnapping, which has since happened, I suggested that all political thugs, especially the imported members of the Niger Delta volunteer force,  should be paid off  after all  the dangerous weapons shelled out to them must have been  meticulously withdrawn.

    So what now do I want Prince Adelusi-Adeluyi and URE to do?

    Effective 5th June, 2015, circumstances changed completely in Ekiti. As things stand in the state today, political contestation has literally receded into the doldrums since my party, the APC, would first have to sort out its own internal convulsions which, among other things, has enabled Fayose metamorphose into something of a conquistador.  That situation has been further accentuated by the fact that it does not appear there is anybody in the state today, whose word he respects or whose advice, he will readily take.  To further worsen matters, he equates the party in Ekiti; which reminds me of a PDP top shot,  indeed, a former LG Chairman in Ekiti, who walked up to me in church last Sunday and said: “Oga, you people should  get ready to receive  Fayose in the APC because we are going to run him out of our party”. I know that the governor and his aides will vigorously deny and denounce my conclusions here, the best they can.

    In my view, however, the time has come for a body of eminent personalities like URE to now seriously engage the governor to, at least, let him know the consequences of the prevailing state of affairs. I know from interactions with several Ekiti compatriots who no longer  dare  go home, and those  at home who can still whisper their honest feelings if there is no chance of their being overheard by Big Brother, that the state economy , already in the doldrums, is heading  into  more dire straits. Nor does any serious minded businessman any longer consider Ekiti worth visiting except he is a PDP member out to get some contract. My plea is that URE should, on this glorious occasion of its founder’s birthday, decide to meet with Governor Fayose and advise him to deliberately reduce the prevailing tension and fashion out a genuinely people-friendly mode of governance. It is not enough for Okada riders to claim they are in Eldorado. That chimera does not a state make. He must change course and become everybody’s governor. The only time I saw him at his first coming as governor, was when he visited Ekitis resident in Lagos. He could very well go on such trips again and  reassure citizens outside the state of their security  whenever they visit,  rather than  this seeming  eagerness to act  as  PDP’s  national leader. He needs Ekitis everywhere to come help him out of the present miasma.  I know from discussions with those who should know, that Governor Fayose holds Oga Juli, Wole, and Dele in very high regards. These three could be in an IGBIMO delegation of about five or six persons to seriously engage him on the way forward.

    Happily, the next election is a long way away.  He should therefore be able to see that their effort is beyond politics.

    Here is wishing our delectable Prince many happy returns.

  • How prince, lawyer, four others died in canoe mishap

    How prince, lawyer, four others died in canoe mishap

    EPE, a coastal community in Lagos, is yet to get over the death of its prince and five others in a canoe mishap last Saturday.

    Prince Azeez, son of Olu of Epe Oba Sefiu Adewale, his friend Wale Mogaji. Mogaji’s brother Gbolahan, who just returned from London; a lawyer, Muheez Bello, his personal assistant Shamsideen Agoro and son of the canoe owner died when it capsized.

    Bello’s widow Monsurat, the canoe owner and another of his sons survived.

    The late Bello, a lawyer with Chevron was aspiring for Epe Local Government chairmanship under the All Progressives Congress (APC) platform.

    They were coming from the riverine area where Mrs Bello went to vote.

    An eye witness, Rasheed Bello, said the canoe capsized barely five minutes after it took off.

    “We left for the riverine area at 12 noon and we were about leaving when they arrived. He asked us not to leave and wait for him and the person in the boat asked him what he was going to do at the back of the Lagoon, he said he can’t leave his wife that she wants to go and vote there. When they were about to board, the first thing they asked for was life jacket and they were told there was no life jacket and he said no problem. We moved and he and his wife began to take pictures including their friends. When we got there, they dropped and we left for elsewhere. That’s all I know,” he said.

    Another eyewitness said they were seen taking pictures before the canoe capsized.

    The news of the accident went through Epe like wild fire.

    Many, including the royal family, the Mogajis, the Bellos, the canoe owner family and their friends virtually did not believe the report, describing it as “rumour”.

    “We were waiting for him to come and cast his vote and we started hearing different rumours and nobody knows what exactly was wrong. In fact, I even asked one of my brothers to find out and he couldn’t go,” Prince Dapo Adewale told The Nation.

    The remains of Prince Adewale, a director in the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, were among the first to be brought out.

    He was rushed to the hospital.

    “… but when we moved near the Lagoon, I saw his (the late Adewale’s) T-shirt because he was wearing one red T-shirt and I was like ‘Kileleyi ke, kilode meaning what is the meaning of this? What happened?’ So, we found him and took him away from there thinking there is still hope. We took him to the hospital. It was there a doctor confirmed him dead,” Prince Dapo said.

    The late Bello’s uncle, Alhaji Adekunle Bello, relived how he heard the news, saying: “As far as I am concerned, it is one of his senior brothers that can answer that because I wasn’t there. I went to cast my vote at the Primary Health Care near Oliwo Market. I was at the voter registration centre when my phone rang and my younger brother told me that his (Bello’s) canoe has sunk! I asked ‘what happened?”. They said ‘they cannot even say’. All they said was nine of them entered the boat instead of them to wait because they went with a very big boat but unfortunately, I think they have a lot of programme in Epe that Saturday; so he was planning to return early because only his wife went there to vote; he escorted his wife with others. When he was going, he sat down here and I was asking him ‘where are you going?’ He said ‘Ere Ise.’  And that was all.”

    Alhaji Bello noted that they should have opted for a bigger canoe or boarded it in batches instead of nine of them at once.

    “Unfortunately, the canoe cannot contain four people but they want to manage it with the hope that they will get to Epe quick from there. The boat sank because there were heavier men inside the boat,” he said.

    According to Alhaji Bello, his late nephew was planning a big 38th birthday party for that fateful day.

    “He greeted everybody that Saturday, telling them to continue enjoying themselves till he returned because that Saturday was his birthday and he has promised some people that there is going to be a big ceremony to mark the birthday,” he said.

    “Whenever he comes to Epe, he will come down to my house; take his bath and dress up in my room and go out. It is a great loss not only to both the family and the local government, but the world. He was well known and I wasn’t surprise when Ambode (Akinwunmi) and Osinbajo (Prof Yemi) came to pay their condolences.

    Prince Dapo, who teaches at the Lagos State University (LASU), described the accident as a “big tragedy”.

    He said: “It is a serious tragedy because we are not talking about a single individual but six persons. The whole community has been in a devastating mood since Saturday,” he said.

    According to him, the 48-year-old late Prince Adewale was with him and others on that fateful day, preparing to cast their votes.

    “There was a problem with the INEC card reader machine and I took the INEC people to their office and when we came back, we were accredited and other people were doing their accreditation. He came with two of his friends – Gbolahan and Wale Mogaji. When they sorted out the issue, the three of them left in a car. That was all.”

    He described him as an easy going person and a perfect gentle man.

    “We are so close, we went to the same school and I remember we did O’ level together, slept in the same room and on the same bed. We have never had one minute quarrel even after graduation, we moved together, rented a flat and lived together before I was giving an official contract and I finally moved out.

    “Apart from that, he was a very intelligent man. Whenever there were serious issues, he had a way of handling it even when people take it too serious and he will take it with levity and before you know it, the problem is solved,” he said.

    The late Bello’s political associate, Modupe Bello said she still didn’t believe it’s real.

    “It was very sad. I was called by one of our campaign teams that, did I hear that MB (as Bello was fondly called) went on water and the boat sank? I told her he did not tell me anything and I was confused. I miss him so much and I still don’t believe because it looks like a drama till now,” she said.

    According to her, their last conversation was on Bello’s birthday.

    “He called on Friday that he wanted to have his birthday on the 28; Election Day and told me to make some enquiry about the things we are going to use for the birthday party,” she said.

    “He was a very accommodating person; he accommodated both the young and the old,” she said.

     

  • Hole in the heart prince returns with ‘Gift of Life’

    Hole in the heart prince returns with ‘Gift of Life’

    Just back from an all-expense paid trip to the USA, courtesy the ‘Gift of Life’ organisation to correct his heart condition, Taiwo Abiodun captures the joyful reunion of Prince Tomiwa Adewale Abegunde with his school mates, teachers; and of course the joy of his parents, especially his father, the Olunaun of Unaun, Owo, Ondo State, who was with him all the way.

    The whole school vibrated as shouts of joy engulfed the air. Without doubt, it was a day of joy and reunion for students and teachers of Fourah Bay International School, Owo, and Ondo State as they welcomed back one of their students Prince Tomiwa Adewale Abegunde, who had just returned from a trip to Memphis, United States of America, where he successfully underwent treatment for his hole in the heart ailment. They quickly convened an assembly, where they all thanked God for his safe return and took turns to shake hands with him. Emotions also flowed, as Adware’s mum and teachers wept for joy. And why not! Literally speaking, his can be described as the story of a boy just back from the threshold of the dead. Sporting a Gift of Life ‘T’ shirt, the man at the centre of the whole activities fought back tears. You could tell that he was overwhelmed in the euphoria and could go on and on with the jubilation; but suddenly he was reminded he had to go home and rest. Doctors specifically impressed it on his father to make sure he takes a long rest, before commencing regular activities.

    Adware hadn’t been to the school for months. The story of his illness was first published in Sunday Nation in October, 2013. Then, his parents had cried out for public assistance, upon discovering that their little boy had a hole in the heart and needed to go through an expensive heart surgery.

    Fortunately for them, help came in the shape of Gift of Life, a non governmental organisation based in Memphis, USA, after Tunji Onibode, a Lagos-based businessman and philanthropist contacted them on the boy’s behalf. The organisation thus facilitated his trip to the USA and also paid for his successful treatment at Memphis Hospital.

     

    Genesis of the problem

    Adewale’s father, His Royal Highness, Olanrewaju Abegunde, the Olunaun of Unaun, Owo said “Adewale started complaining of his ill health four years ago. He started with cough, then pains in his chest; and then he could no longer attend school regularly. He became weaker and weaker. Eventually, he went through series of tests in the hospital and was diagnosed with a hole in the heart condition. We were told he needed a surgery, which could only be done in India and America. We therefore had no choice but to cry out for help, having already exhausted our resources.”

    Continuing, His Royal Highness said “Help however came, following the publication of his story in The Nation newspaper, when Mr. Tunde Olabode linked us with Gift of Life NGO in America.  Before then, we received several text messages, with people offering all kinds of advice. Some said to take him to church, while some others suggested trado-medical options. We managed to get the visa and air ticket and landed in the United States on January 17, 2015. At the airport, the organisation arranged to meet us. They also footed the hotel bill, hospital bill, and took care of feeding and several other things.

     

    I wept on the way to theatre

    The monarch recalls that the boy was subjected to many tests. The doctors also said his health was fast deteriorating. “I was told that the boy would have slumped and die one day, if we hadn’t come in at the time. I also wept when he was being led to the theatre for the surgery, which they said would last three hours. The surgery was performed by Dr. Kumar of Le Bonhuer of Children Hospital, Memphis. I was consoled but reminded that anything could happen, and to take heart and continue to pray for his survival. The President, Vice President and other Gift of Life members also took turns to console me, but at a stage, we all broke down and wept. We thus hung in suspense, hoping for the best.

    “After three hours, they came out to tell me that the operation was successful. To say the least, we were all relieved. I went in to see him sleeping. He woke up looking very weak, but still recognised me. He was discharged the following day and immediately started going about freely. In fact he was given only paracetamol, and that is what he has been using, nothing more! He was told to come back for medical check-up after 15 years.”

     

    How Nigerian doctors destroyed Adewale’s eyes

    The family also seized the opportunity of the trip to seek treatment for Adewale’s eye, since he also suffers from eye defect. Here, the Monarch received a big shock. “The doctors said his eyes had been destroyed by the doctor who operated on them in Nigeria in a bid to remove cataract from them. They said the doctor who operated on his eyes did a bad job, as one of them had gone bad and the other was almost going blind. They also wanted to know if I sued the doctor for the damage done.”

    The monarch revealed that his son’s eyes were operated upon at a government hospital in Lagos Island. He however thanked God for taking them to America; else the second eye could also have gone blind.

    Asked to compare the medical practice in Nigerian and the USA, the Olunaun of Unaun said there are no bases for comparison. “In fact the gap is just too wide; we are not doing well here at all. In a ward where my son was operated,  there were about 15 to 20 echo machines; but here in Nigeria, one needs to go to Oshogbo or very few places for  an echo machine.”

     

    Fun after the surgery

    Although the royal father went to the USA on a solemn mission to save his son’s life, he said he nevertheless had fun, courtesy of the organisation that sponsored the treatment. As at the last count, he said the organisation has done this operation for 56 children; yet this has not stopped them from making sure these medical tourists get a rich dose of the American fun.

    “After the surgery, the Foundation started taking us round. They took us to the museum, hotels, zoological gardens, the Mississippi River and other attractive sites; all at their own expenses. For three weeks, we were lodged in a mini palace, with full security, and a housemaid, who attended to us and took care of us.”

     

    Royal reception

    Contrary to general opinion, he said Americans appreciate our culture and dressing, something he said added to his joy. “They took pictures with me; I was in the midst of over 100 white men who treated me very well and attended to me with honour .They made me feel at home. The  members  organisation, who are also people of high repute Bill Pickens (head of Gift Of Life Mid-South, Mephis Tenneessee ), Tracy Rusoom Chism, Stephanie Baker Lawson, Dick Cockrell, Joe Fracchia,  Bernado Zapatas, William Schrader, Lynn Lanier, George Chism, Lisa Wilcox and Sussan Scott were all wonderful.”

     

    Home at last

    The traditional ruler returned home on February 18, and gladly declared that the three weeks he spent in the United States was like six months, as he was beginning to miss home and long to be back amongst his people. He recalled how some members of the FedEx family and his son Adewale wore long faces, as they headed for the airport, en-route Nigeria. “Even I could not hide my feelings at the airport. We were all going to miss each other.”

     

    Advice to Nigerian government

    The Monarch advised the Federal and State governments to borrow a leaf from the western world and equip our hospitals. But for the endemic corruption in the country, he cannot fathom why Nigeria’s health system cannot rise above such deplorable level.

    Adewale’s mother, Olori Olanike expressed her gratitude to The Nation Newspaper for the publication of the story that eventually led to saving her son’s life. She said “I am saying a big thank you to you all, especially The Nation newspaper and Mr. Tunde Onibode, who assisted in all these. Adewale’s health has improved; he can now walk, sleep and breathe very well, and no longer complain of pains! Since he came back, he has also been eating very well.”

     

    At school

    Adewale’s parents expressed their appreciation to his school’s proprietor, Mr. Mensah James, whom they said stopped collecting school fees, as their son’s condition aggravated. “The boy is brilliant and it pained the School’s Proprietor that he was falling sick, so he stopped collecting fees from us.”

    On his part, the young prince, now bespectacled with his recommended glasses meant to correct his eye condition, regaled his colleagues with stories of their trip. In between, he also told The Nation of how beautiful and interesting America is; the big buildings and offices, and warm welcome by the organisation, which he described as “so loving!”

    Mr. Sulaiman Babatunde, Adewale’s tutor described the JSS1 student as very brilliant. “We all had been praying for him, until we heard that an organisation in the US sent for him and took care of him. He is a lover of everybody and we are all happy to have him back and healthy.”

    Some of the students, including Babatunde Adekiya, Mumuni Ade and Victor Olorunsusi also spoke glowingly about the young prince, even as they flocked around him, taking pictures and sharing in his moment of joy.

    Mensah James, the school proprietor on his part said “I am very, very happy. The boy is a special boy. When the parents came to tell us that he was being taken to America, we were glad and we all prayed for him. He is clean, brilliant and certainly a future leader.”

  • Owo prince boosts ICT education

    A Philanthropist, Prince Adesola Olateru-Olagbegi, has donated a computer skills acquisition centre to the people of Owo Local Government Area of Ondo State.

    The centre is an addition to a resource centre built by his family in honour of his late mother, Olori Florence Adeoti Olagbegi-Olateru.

    The centre is expected to offer Information Communication Technology training to adults, pupils and students for free.

    The donor said since the centre was constructed in 2009 by the children of the late Olori, the place has served as an adult training centre for residents of the ancient kingdom and produced three sets of trainees in various fields.

    He noted that he decided to establish the computer centre because he discovered that many people in the community do not have knowledge of ICT.

    “Today, there is nothing you want to do without computer and I am worried that our people not only in Owo but in some other places in Nigeria are still lagging behind. We still have some university graduates who cannot operate computer and this centre will serve and train them freely.

    “This is our own quota to the development our community because government cannot do it alone. This community belongs to us. We should focus on maintaining all the government infrastructures and as individuals we should come out and see what we can do to support our communities.”

    While urging residents of the community to register free for the training, Olateru-Olagbegbi assured them that he would continue to collaborate with people who are ready to impact on the community.

    A Senior Special Assistant to Governor Olusegun Mimiko on Direct Labour, Mrs. Mobolaji Suara, urged the people to embrace the opportunity  and be computer literate.

     

  • French Montana, Wale for Ice Prince’s next album

    French Montana, Wale for Ice Prince’s next album

    CHOCOLATE City rapper and Oleku crooner, Ice Prince, continues to break bounds, refusing respite even after his latest feat; winning the coveted award for Best African Act at the 2013 edition of the Black Entertainment Television (BET) Awards.

    The awards ceremony which was held in June at the Nokia Theatre, Los Angeles saw Ice Prince becoming the fourth Nigerian artiste to win the award since 2face and D’banj jointly won it in 2011 then Wizkid and Sarkodie (Ghana) in 2012. The rapper beat fellow Nigerian 2face Idibia, Toya Delazy (South Africa), Donald (South Africa), R2Bees (Ghana) and Radio and Weasel (Uganda) to become winner.

    The artiste who had earlier released the intended title of his second album; Fire of Zamani to be released on September 7, also recently unveiled some of the foreign acts to be featured on the album. His management confirmed that Bad Boy/ Maybach Music artiste, French Montana, and Maybach Music rapper, Wale, will definitely feature on the album. The track with Wale will be his first collaboration with a Nigerian artiste, though there had been rumours of a possible collaboration with Wizkid which is yet to be released.

  • Prince Aven Akenzua’s long wait

    THREE years after the union between Omosede, the Esama of Benin, Chief Gabriel Igbinedion’s daughter and Prince Aven Akenzua hit the rocks, the charming prince, obviously not one who sought for undue attention, went out of limelight. Not much has been heard about him ever since. But the buxom lady seems to be enjoying life and moving on. Rumour mill is agog that she wants to give matrimony a second trial.

    Theirs was one of the weddings of the year. It was a royal wedding that drew many from all walks of life. But after two years, the residents of Edoyaye Avenue, off Osawe Street, Etete, GRA, Benin City, were thrown into panic when armed mobile policemen, said to be acting on the order of the Esama, stormed the palatial mansion of his in-law (Aven) in two lorries to evacuate his daughter’s belongings.

    Aven is a son to Enogie Uyieken Akenzua, the younger brother of the Oba of Benin, His Royal Highness, Oba Erediauwa, and had against the wish of the Benin palace forged ahead and got wedded to Omosede, the eldest daughter of Lady Cherry Igbinedion. The marriage produced a baby boy in 2009 and was widely celebrated by the house of Igbinedion in a grand style. Although the reason for the separation was kept a top secret, sources had speculated that the marriage probably crashed on the ground that the ancestors as epitomised by the Oba of Benin never gave their support and blessings as required by Benin tradition.

    In what appeared to be a total disregard for the apparent disapproval of the Benin monarch to the marriage, Chief Igbinedion and Enogie Uyieken gave their son and daughter out in an uncommon colourful royal traditional and church weddings on December 31, 2008 and January 5, 2009 respectively.

  • For the prince, a princess

    For the prince, a princess

    An accountant with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Lawrence Elugbadebo, gave out his daughter, Omotayo, in marriage to Prince Olaoye, son of the Olu of Odonselu, Oba Shafi Sule, in Lagos last Saturday, writes OMOLOLA OLAOLUWA.

     

    October 6 will remain memorable in the minds of the families of the Olu of Odonselu, Oba Shafi Sule and Mr. Lawrence Elugbadebo, an accountant with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). Their children, Omotayo Temitope and Prince Olaoye Tokunbo got married last Sunday.

    The ceremony began with the traditional engagement on Thursday at Grandeur Events Centre, Oregun, Lagos.

    The marriage was payback time for this humble and generous man who has touched the lives of many. Dignitaries, including the top hierarchy at NNPC, turned out in large number to felicitate with him. The array of personalities spoke volume.

    Oba Sule also tapped his goodwill to make the occasion memorable for his son.

    Engagement over, the wedding proper took place on Saturday at Chapel of Christ The Light, Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos.

    Looking glamorous in her wedding gown, Omotayo was the cynosure of all eyes as she marched into the expansive church to say ‘I do’ to her beloved.

    A quiet looking Prince Olaoye shone in a white shirt, classical suit, spectacles and a matching pair of shoes.

    He hails from Ile-Ife in Osun State.

    The presiding priest, Revd John Tanimonu, congratulated the couple for making their parents proud in all their endeavours.

    Noting that marriage has its ups and downs, Tanimonu, who is the Chaplain of the church, said marriage laid on the foundation of God would endure all challenges. And, above all, he said, love conquers all.

    Tanimonu also enjoined the couple to love each other, share their lives with each other, have the spirit of forgiveness. He charged the bride to imbibe the spirit of humility and be submissive at all times.

    After a well attended church service, the wedding train moved to the Haven Events Centre, Ikeja, where they were entertained by the Elugbadebos and the Sules. The expansive hall could be described as a haven of many colours. From, the lighting, to the decoration, everything depicted opulence and affluence. There was enough food; small chops were also in abundance while drinks and champagne flowed freely. The Master of Ceremony, Olateju Oyelakin, fondly called Teju Baby Face, Segun Dangote and First Born almost sent the guests out of their seats with their humorous jokes.

    A boardroom guru, academia and former High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Dr Christopher Kolade, chaired the occasion.

    Known to be a man of few words, he thanked the guests for taking their time out to grace the occasion.

    He asked rhetorically: “Are you happy to be here?” All responded with a resounding “yes.”

    Kolade said whenever he attended a wedding, he usually observed the couple; for the couple, he scored the bride 10 for performance and the groom also 10 for his effort.

    He urged the couple to always persevere and be patient with each other.

    He told the groom: “You have heard the preaching in church that you must share all you have with your wife. This is not talking about property; you are going to share your time with your wife. Thus, he said out of 100, the husband must devote 75 percent to listening and 25 percent to talking”.

    Kolade wished them well as they sojourn in the next phase of their lives.

    After his speech, Gongo Aso crooner Abolore Akande popularly known as Nice was ushered in to serenade the couple.

    Nice didn’t disappoint as he churned out various songs from his hit album to the admiration of the guests.

    Rounding off the wedding was cool, calm and unassuming ‘Baba Commander’ himself, Evangelist Ebenezer Obey. Evangelist Obey was at his best. Guests danced to the Miliki master’s ever-green songs.