THE LOVE STORY THAT BIRTHED TETRAZZINI
Out of his passionate love for food, Prince Donatus Okonkwo necessarily married a woman who knew how to carefully construct a pathway to his heart with a good and nutritious meal. However, it was a rewarding obsession that birthed one of the thriving indi
Prince Donatus Okonkwo cuts the image of one who does not beat about the bush. And he does not. Take for instance, his decision to go to a higher institution which was taken after he had left secondary school and became fully introduced to business. His older brothers were already doing well in commerce. He admired their outlook to and progression in life.
Therefore, he decided that it would not be particularly wrong to stand on the shoulders of these giants. It was just as well that in his teenage, he started to grapple with the rudiments of buying and selling. This was in Aba, the famed heartland of trade in eastern Nigeria. Having acquired the necessary experience, it was time to advance his formal studies abroad. Without giving it a second thought, he pitched his tent with a business school in the United Kingdom to study Business Technology.
Okonkwo has so much sentimental attachment to Aba, the land where he cut his teeth in business. However, there is a romantic side to his love for Aba. It was where he entered early adulthood and met his wife, Ngozi - who he fondly calls Nwanyioma, Igbo word for ‘the good or beautiful woman’ - who is also a graduate of business studies from the Abia State University. Their interest in business was not the only thing they had in common. Both of them had a healthy love for food. Theirs was a love story contracted, sustained and preserved with familiarity for food. Nwanyioma may have other qualities he admired in his ideal woman, but her ability to produce appetizing meals was a towered above everything erlse
Even in the early days of their courtship, it was a strong grip from which Okonkwo could not (and did not want to) release himself. Apart from satisfying him with nourishing meals, he was quick witted enough to appreciate the potential of a future business exploitation of her culinary skills.
Okonkwo himself also had a good background in cookery. Back in the day in the UK, to augment the financial support from home, Okonkwo took up a job at McDonalds, a global quick-service restaurant. The experience he acquired would later prove very invaluable when he decided to venture into food business. The Ojoto, Anambra State born businessman disclosed that the investment began as a humorous way of advertising his wife’s cooking to the world. If cooking were a game of football requiring 11 players, Okonkwo believes his wife would be in a world class cooking team. Although he cooks himself, having learnt from his mother and from serving his older brothers, his catering artistry was given further verve at McDonalds. However, he readily concedes the crown for the best and most innovative cuisine to his wife. Okonkwo who is a promoter of beauty pageants and entertainment fares, loves and is surrounded by beautiful women. But what would have been a
Cont’d on pg. 57
TETRAZZINI WAS ESTABLISHED IN THE FOURTH YEAR OF THEIR MARRIAGE. WHILE OKONKWO AND HIS WIFE HAVE LIVED TOGETHER AS ONE IN THE PAST 22 YEARS, THE BUSINESS IS 18 YEARS. IN THE BEGINNING, MRS. OKONKWO DEVELOPED THE RECIPE AND PERSONALLY WORKED IN THE KITCHEN AND BEHIND THE COUNTER ALONG WITH HER HUSBAND TO GROOM THE FIRST SET OF 17 STAFF WITH WHICH THEY STARTED THE COMPANY. FROM THEIR FLAGSHIP OUTLET AT AJAO ESTATE OFF AIRPORT ROAD IN LAGOS, THE BUSINESS HAS SINCE GROWN TO EMPLOY 1160 STAFF IN 23 OUTLETS
bait to lead him astray has long been settled by his wife who knows that the way to his heart is to serve him a creatively designed meal.
He loves eating “everything as long as it is appetizing and nourishing; whether Nigerian or continental. Once, I settle down to my wife’s cooking, I forget the world. That is when I think deep and draw a lot of inspiration. I love cooking. I’m inspired by my wife’s cooking. She is one of the greatest cooks in the world. She will be in the top 11 best cooks in the world. Her cooking is extraordinary.”
He related how Tetrazzini started. “Amazingly, I don’t know what language it is. But people say it is Italian. I got it from the dictionary. It means the best recipe. When we started the food business, I was searching for a name. I saw it in the dictionary, ‘Tetrazzini chicken’. It means the best chicken recipe; so when we started the restaurant, I named it Tetrazzini. When I was in school in the UK, I worked with McDonalds, a quick-service restaurant. When I came back to Nigeria, I found out that my wife was the best cook. I felt we should showcase to the world what she was doing well in private. Nothing was stopping us from going commercial with it.”
Tetrazzini was established in the fourth year of their marriage. While Okonkwo and his wife have lived together as one in the past 22 years, the business is 18 years. In the beginning, Mrs. Okonkwo developed the recipe and personally worked in the kitchen and behind the counter along with her husband to groom the first set of 17 staff with which they started the company. From their flagship outlet at Ajao Estate off Airport Road in Lagos, the business has since grown to employ 1160 staff in 23 outlets. However, that recipe by Okonkwo, which is still being used across board in all Tetrazzini outlets, remains the winning formula that keeps customers coming back, all these years. Tetrazzini Foods has since given birth to other businesses. From the food company opened in 1999, it has become a group of companies. Today, there is Tetrazzini Total Services, Tetrazzini Properties that develops properties for lease or sale; Tetrazzini Agro is involved in a lot of backward integration. There is a plan to develop its unique agricultural system. “We have a couple of other subsidiary company that I am a board member.”
If she was human, at 18 years, Tetrazzini would be an enticing and promising young lady today. Good to note that Okonkwo is not disappointed in his investment. “I have been a creative entrepreneur. I have been involved in wealth creation and building my businesses. I have been in the private sector. I have pioneered a company called Tetrazzini to be listed on Nigeria Stock Exchange. Tetrazzini Food Company which I am the chairman of the board is being listed on the stock exchange as a secondary platform. In no time, as the economy stabilises, it will be listed in the primary platform and it will be traded as a stock and blue chip company. Tetrazzini Food Plc has become one of Nigeria’s Fortune 500 companies. I grew the company from one outlet. I have been in the private sector for the past 21 years, creating opportunities, wealth, businesses and employment for the citizenry.”
Okonkwo whose business acumen has been celebrated with several recognition and awards has created a couple of platforms to give back to society. He is passionate about education and raising leaders in business. There are several mentees who look up to him. “That’s what I do most. I believe that success without succession is entirely a failure. I have built a lot of entrepreneurial network to mentor people. Regrettably, it’s very difficult but I never give up. It’s extremely difficult to mentor the young people today because their psyche is very disturbing. They are all looking for shortcuts. So mentoring them step-by-step, line-by-line is very difficult. But I can’t give up. We have the AES, Academy for Entrepreneurial Studies, where I’m an executive member. They have a monthly, quarterly and yearly programme which I teach and sometimes I have the opportunity to teach at the Lagos Business School. I’m one of the Nigerians who didn’t have the opportunity to spend a lot of time in the university. I knew what I wanted. I wanted to be an entrepreneur; so I did not waste time studying anything else. I went straight to a business school in the UK and studied Business Technology.”
To celebrate his 22nd marriage anniversary and the coming of age of his business, Okonkwo has decided to do something different. He is planning a huge youth summit in Awka, Anambra State. The meeting would be a conclave for as many young people who have enjoyed his scholarship, either at Ojoto Boys High School where he built several classroom blocks, renovated and equipped the science laboratory or those who were baked in his entrepreneurial oven.
He has a surprise for them. They will have the rare opportunity of learning the Seven Life Lessons from the undefeated boxing champion of the world, Floyd Mayweather! “It is going to cost us a lot of money, but I believe those who will be there cannot ever be the same again after listening, first hand, to the grass-to-grace story of Mayweather. This is somebody who was not given any chance, but he beat all the odds against him. The lesson is, if Mayweather can, you can as well. He is coming to Nigeria between June 12 and June 14. The Igwe of Ogbunike, one the ancient kingdoms in Igboland, will confer him with a chieftaincy title. We are also taking him to Lagos and Abuja; after which he will continue his tour of West Africa to Ghana.”
With his fame and excellent reputation, Okonkwo believes Mayweather who is flying out of his Las Vegas base in the United States of America will immediately bring the attention of his over 15 million followers on Anambra State. Although, he was taciturn about other plans to which the Mayweather visit may be converted, it is generally being touted that Okonkwo who has his eyes on the governorship ticket of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Anambra State could be showing off the extent of his connection to persons with global influence. One of the emerging enterprises from the Tetrazzini group is Zzini Media. With this platform, Okonkwo intends to aggregate all his entertainment, leisure and media related pursuits. Already plans are afloat to bring to Nigeria a world class female American musician in the last quarter of the year. Okonkwo loves, listens and dances to all kinds of music. He is also looking forward to the day he can muster enough rewarding partnership to stage a Floyd Mayweather fight in Nigeria. He also loves watching basketball; plays table and lawn tennis actively to relax. His love for sports is highlighted by the fact that he has attended many Olympic Games and World Cup events. One of the leaders of his community, Okonkwo, is however, well known and appreciated beyond his immediate community of Ojoto or Idemili. “
I’m the greatest community developer. I’m talking about my immediate community, that is, Ojoto and Idemili. I take a very strong concern in developing and supporting education. In the state, I have many students who are on my bursary sponsorship that I’m giving a lot of financial aid all over the place. I have developed a school in my community to become one of the best secondary schools in Anambra State. It is called Ojoto Boys Secondary School. We built it back. People are now trooping into the school. When I met the school, there were about 30 students. It used to be our pride, but it went down to zero. We rebuilt the whole school. I missed attending the school by one year or so. I would have attended that secondary school. The school was not opened the year I was entering secondary school. They didn’t commission it then. So, I felt that school that used to be our pride should be returned back to its glorious years. It is now the pride of Anambra State.”
Apart from that school, Okonkwo has contributed his quota to the development of his community in several other ways. “We have committed unprecedented financial support to the community. But I’m focused. I know my people love business, entrepreneurship and trade. I believe a good entrepreneur is one that has a sound foundation because if you cannot calculate your money, how do you succeed? A good educational foundation is the best you can give to any entrepreneur. That is why I built the secondary school, so that even if you can’t make it to the university, you can read and write and be able to conduct your business”.
2BABA CROWNED KING AT MEGA MUSIC SHOW
The Port Harcourt edition of the Mega Music Nationwide Tour sponsored by Globacom witnessed an unscripted drama as the duo of Peter and Paul Okoye widely known as PSquare “crowned” the living music legend, Innocent Idibia, alias 2Baba as a new addition to the impressive list of Glo ambassadors.
The hall erupted in cheers as the enigmatic P Square, who had just finished their superlative performance returned on stage with one of the godfathers of modern Nigerian music, 2Baba in tow.
Svelte Ebube Nwagbo and Juliet Ibrahim had earlier been on stage to announce that there was a surprise for the crowd. As the stage light dimmed, Nollywood star jester, Victor Osuagwu, who made a celebrity guest appearance at the show, came on stage followed by P Square, who cheerily announced the presence of 2Baba. The talented twins then symbolically initiated Idibia into the exclusive brand ambassadorial class by placing a crown gingerly on his head. He subsequently began his first official performance as a Glo ambassador, taking the audience on a musical cruise that traversed his sojourn in the music industry from his days as one of the trio of the defunct Plantashun Boiz.
The singer-songwriter, record producer and entrepreneur also performed his hit single African Queen which seemed like opium to the crowd who sang along with him line-for-line.
OGBA ZOO OPERATOR CRIES OUT TO OBASEKI
Ogba Zoo and Nature Park is Edo State’s foremost conservation and tourism enclave, which for years was neglected and abandoned until 2000 when the administration of former Gov. Lucky Igbinedion under Public Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement ceded the management of the park to a private firm headed by one of Edo State’s renowned tourism practitioner, Andy Osa Ehanire, with a promise to fund the rejuvenation of the park among others.
Ehanire and his management team have largely succeeded in bringing back from the brink the death the zoo, breathed life into it and make a growing concern and a tourist attraction attracting the interest
of nature lovers, conservationists, fun and leisure seekers who daily, especially during festive periods, throng the nature and leisure enclave for entertainment.
While the management is still battling the Edo State government to keep it own end of the
bargain in respect of funding the zoo, however, investigation revealed that Ehanire is fighting perhaps the greatest battle of his life, as he is engaged with both poachers of the zoo’ natural resources and land grabbers, who have in the last couple of years decimated the zoo.
Historically, Ehanire disclosed the wide reach of the zoo: ‘‘The Ogba Zoo, which we manage, was designed and developed in the early seventies by then military administrator of former Bendel State, the late Brig. General Samuel O. Ogbemudia. Its concept was an extensive biological garden, with potential for resort development.
‘‘Soon after Ogbemudia’s regime, the zoo suffered a long era of decline and eventual collapse, spanning the late eighties and nineties. By the time of our private sector - led intervention in the year 2000, the zoo was already in the ‘mortuary’ and was like ready to be written off the books.’’
But the intervention of his firm, he said brought it back to life but without a prize: ‘‘The extent of its abandonment and decay, notwithstanding, Ogba Zoo experienced a painful rebirth through our rescue mission, which was purely self-financing, with no support from government.
‘‘But as challenging as reviving a moribund zoo was, there were other hidden challenges that can hardly be imagined in a sane society,’’ added Ehanire, who is also the secretary general of the Nigerian Association of Zoos and Parks (NAZAP), even as he narrated the several ordeals of the park.
‘‘It started as a minor incursion by community land grabbers into the zoo land until it was aided by official government instruments in the form of a gazette. All these years of battling the encroachment on the zoo, our private-sector led management was as good as left to solely tackle the growing menace unaided.
‘‘The land area encroached upon grew from about 10% of the zoo land that was ceded by the gazette, to more than 60% of the entire zoo. It was like a horror movie seeing bulldozers leveling priceless flora in this pristine conservation heritage that had been a classic urban forest rarely found anywhere in the world.’’
Memos, he said were written to the state government and other concerned groups in the state, such as the state House of Assembly and the palace of the Oba of Benin. When no respite came from all those , he opted for court action where judgment was delivered in favour of the zoo but again, that didn’t deter the land poachers from
plundering the land of the zoo, thereby destroying its ecosystem, flora and fauna resources.
Not relenting in his bid to rescue what is left of the plundered zoo, Ehanire spoke of efforts at drawing the attention of Gov. Godwin Obaseki to the plight of the zoo. ‘‘We have sent letters to the governor on the extant matters and maintained contacts with the solicitor general and the secretary to the state government on the issue,’’ he said. Furthermore, Ehanire disclose that: ‘‘We equally sought and have been promised audience with the governor. We are, therefore, hopeful that the new governor will take a decisive approach to save the zoo from the grips of brigandage and looters. We are also anxious as to when specific government interventions would commence to save the zoo, before all that needs to be saved are totally destroyed. ‘‘We do pray
that the forces of light will prevail over those of darkness in this nascent and very promising administration of Obaseki.’’
MEET B-RAY, ABUJA’S NEW SINGING SENSATION
The nation’s performing art got a major boost recently as Abuja’s new singing sensation B-Ray, premiered an enthralling stage performance of her single debut entitled, “Don’t Run Away”. That evening, all roads led to Club Tarvan, opposite EMAB Plaza Wuse 2, venue of the command performance that was witnessed by the who-is-who, in the entertainment industry. The playlist included Washington DC, Dr. Aruba, Shortcut, Amb. Wahala, Mr. ODL, Gospel Alhaji, Yaksman and 3310 among others.
The unveiling was timed to coincide with B-Ray’s major launch into the entertainment circle not only in the Federal Capital Territory but in Nigeria in general. Speaking shortly after her captivating performance B-Ray whose real name is Peace Ebere Okoye Obianika, expressed her determination to succeed as an entertainer.
B-Ray as her fans call her, is from Nneni in Anambra State but was born in Abuja in 1986. She began to sing when she turned 22. Asked what motivated her, she replied that she just likes singing. “I don’t just come out and sing. My music comes through inspiration. I’m either inspired by God or my husband. When I remember how caring he is, I’m inspired to sing. I’d start singing either to say thank you or recognise and appreciate his love and attention. That’ the source of my inspiration and how my music gets the desired content. I sing R&B and Afro Soul. From the inspiration, you’d find out that my lyrics are tilted towards love and thanksgiving. I have a track titled ‘Don’t Run Away,’ it’s a soul song and currently getting some airplay. It’s message of unity and love.
When couples quarrel or have a dispute, they fail to realise the need to quickly resolve the issue, because happiness is a necessary ingredient for marital harmony. The song is a soul-mender, it encourages married people to realise when they cross their boundary, and the need to say ‘I’m Sorry’ for peace to reign and for them to return to speaking terms again. The other track, ‘Ifeoma’ is dedicated to those about to wed, the newly wed and their ilk, to celebrate their day, a day that is special in the life of every woman. I mentioned my husband’s name Osita in the middle of the song as fitting tribute. I like the way he talks, and what he does, so I acknowledge all these as I sing.”sing.g B-Ray B-Rayy holds a B.Sc degree degreeg in Business Administration from the University Universityy of Calabar. After her studies, she moved to Ghana and then to South Africa before coming comingg back to work briefly brieflyy in the banking bankingg and oil sectors of the economy.y Not getting ggettingg the satisfaction she craved, B-Ray B-Rayyqquicklyyquickly returned to her first love, music and singing singinggg and rightg now, her single singleg track titled Don’t Run Away Awayy has hit the airwaves with a bang. bang.g B-Ray B-Rayy now happily married, is a talented hot artiste whose brand of music will bring joy to many homes and also add colour to the entertainment industry in Nigeria and beyond.
THRILLING SENSATION CONTINUES GCGT
After an electrifying episode last week, God’s Children Great Talent (GCGT7) will roll its third episode on TV screens across Nigeria and United Kingdom with astonishing talents on display today. For what promises to be a breath-taking television show, Episode 3 will showcase phenomenal talents from Port Harcourt who will battle to impress GCGT7 judges comprising award winning singer, Omawumi, music producer TY Mix and prolific dancer, Kaffy Last Sunday, five finalists emerged from Abuja region and moved on to GCGT7 semi-finals in Lagos. This includes nine year-old gospel rapper Enoch who charmed the hearts of the judges by raising the roof with his “hallelujah” rap dab, and eight-year-old Peter was absolutely amazing with how well he handled the instrument and left the audience amazed. With the search open openp to acts from ages agesg 5 to 20, GCGT has brought broughtg the variety varietyy format back to the forefront by y showcasing showcasingg uniqueq unique per-pper rformances from across theth country. country.y The show is a true celebration of creativity and talent, featuring ingg a colourful array arrayy of singers, dancers, comedians,comedians spokenp word artist and hopeful stars, all vying to win the judges hearts and the grand prize of N250 million management deal, N10 million and a brand new car.
AROUND THE PARK WITH FOUR CHINESE JOURNALISTS
–Yinka Olatunbosun
When the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) embarked on a Lagos tour with four senior Chinese journalists, one major challenge was to overcome the potent language barrier. Unlike the French language, the Chinese language is one of the least spoken languages by Nigerians.
Although quite recently, some private schools in Lagos have incorporated the
language in the school curriculum, it is still perceived as a rather difficult language.
Defying the language barrier, the National President, NUJ, Abdulwaheed Odusile led the delegation to three destinations in Lagos for sightseeing and cultural understanding. Also in attendance was the Chairman, NUJ Lagos, Deji Elumoye. Muri Okunola and Freedom Park were visited before the team finally left for the state-capital based Ndubuisi Kanu Park.
Meanwhile, the Freedom Park holds a very important historical and cultural deposit of knowledge that the Nigerian journalists share with their Chinese counterparts. The interpreter had the burden of communicating correctly and quickly the meanings of the conversations that were directed at them. It was quite frustrating as one interpreter didn’t seem enough to perform that daunting task.
The four journalists from China were the Director of International Department of All-China-Journalists’ Association, Rong Changhen; the Deputy Editor-in-Chief, China News Service, Zhang Ming Xin; the Vice President, Shaanxi Daily Media Group, Fan Yanbin and the Deputy Chief Editor, Beijing Daily Group, Wu Yi Lin.
The Chinese journalists’ faces bore different shades of emotions when they were told the story behind the Freedom Park. A former colonial prison which had a high mortality rate for prisoners, the park-in its modern architectural form still retains some vignettes of this sad history.
One of the security men at Entrance A offered a bit of the prison yard stories when he voluntarily accompanied the team to the museum where some artifacts had been preserved for cultural reference.
The walls of the museum were lined with the portraits of former fighters for Nigeria’s Independence from the colonial British government led by the Queen of England. The pictures of Late Chief Obafemi Awolowo and Herbert Macaulay provided fresh topic for conversation with the Chinese journalists who were soaking in the details of the preindependence experience.
“Awolowo was a journalist and even Herbert Macaulay was a journalist,’’ Odusile added in the midst of the surrounding Chinese murmurs. For those of us who were curious, the interpreter was only doing a one-way interpretation since most of the experiences that amused the Chinese were lost on us.
The passage between the former prison cells were paved with interlocking blocks that led to the food court, an open-air space for drinks and small chops. The visiting journalists glanced up and down the trees which are labelled. The only building that they couldn’t access was the Kongi’s building since there was no event taking place at the hour. When this reporter found a colleague from NAN speaking with the Chinese journalists, it became tempting to ask them their names in English. Good enough, they responded by writing down the names on the writing pad or by giving out their personal business cards.
Apparently, they understood some basic English expressions but would rather communicate more effectively in the mother tongue- a big lesson for us in self preservation.
YAW’S APERE HOLDS AT EKO HOTELS
The 9th edition of the “Yaw Live on Stage” series tagged Apere holds today at Eko Hotels Convention Centre. Over the years, Yaw has transformed from being just a funny OAP and TV actor into a professional comedian and stage play actor. From the first edition of “Yaw Live on Stage” series, there has been a noticeable difference in his flair. His antics and delivery have become funnier and more relatable and you wouldn’t want to miss out on what he has planned out this year.
The AperePERE buzz has gone beyond the shores of Nigeria and Sound Sultan’s feature in the stage play has raised some eyebrows but reports have revealed otherwise. It is being said that musician and actor Sound Sultan will bring exceptional to the Apere experience. Rumour has it that after Apere, he might delve into fulltime acting.