Keem Belo-Osagie Hits His Strides
Cont’d from pg.. 61
competition from the more grounded MTN and Airtel, Etisalat’s subscriber’s base had grown to 12million. It was an unprecedented feat and the promoters saw a need to invest in an expansionary drive. This was what necessitated the loan that has now caused its extinction. The brand name, Etisalat, has been withdrawn and now called 9mobile. Belo-Osagie is also the founder and former chairman of First Securities Discount House, now known as FSDH Merchant Bank Limited. FSDH is Nigeria’s leading money markets and Treasury bill trading financial services firm.
Turning 66 may not have added a few wrinkles to the visage of Modupe Ogunlesi, the beautiful wife of one of the most stylish men in his generation, Lanre Ogunlesi; it has, however, not also taken away her winsome beauty and happy outlook on life. While her husband has remained one of the most enduring faces and names in the Nigerian fashion space for the past three decades, Modupe shies away from the klieg lights and has successfully retained her anonymity. In spite of that, last weekend, as she celebrated her 66th birthday, she was a picture of profound joy and exultation. For leading a life worthy of accolades, it was no surprise that her husband flew her out of the country to celebrate her. Looking celestial yet courtly, while appearing livelier than a beehive, Modupe proved that she is still a sweet sixteen. However, Italy throbs in unprecedented spasms, as you read. A part of Italy to be precise; the Villa Eden, Merano, in the Italian Alps pulsates with love, and the coastlines heave with rumblings of extraordinary, epic festivity as the power couple celebrated the birthday celebration. They opted to flee Lagos’ maddening crowd and cluttered resorts for the peace of the world’s elite medical spa, safely tucked in the Italian Alps. Lanre decided to trim his schedule and spend quality time with his wife by celebrating her birthday far from the noise and bluster of Nigeria’s high society.
The humble, peace-loving couple celebrate away from home even as well-wishers at home and abroad treat them to a flurry of goodwill and congratulatory message. But as the messages pour in, Lanre and Modupe immerse in undiluted fun, necking and giggling, and professing love to each other with hearts reignited and set alight. There is no gainsaying they are really in love with each other. Lanre, is undoubtedly a ladies’ man but Modupe loves him despite the heartrending reality.
Five years after his sad demise, his family and friends unite to remember and appreciate the kernel and towering humaneness of a man whose life story resonates like a fairy tale, long after his exit from the mortal world. Yes, since his sad departure from the mortal world, memories of Olubunmi Adedayo assail his loved ones like a bittersweet gust of cold breeze after a discomforting heatstroke. For the umpteenth time, family and friends of the late Bunmi smarted from the pain of recollection as they were forced to relive the humanity and magnificence that characterized his short spell on earth with them.
When a mother has to bury her son, the sorrow is immense and eternal. Thus, no amount of condolences and words of encouragement can assuage the depth of the sorrow of Olayinka Adedayo, the brain behind popular and ubiquitous quick-service restaurant, Tastee Fried Chicken, whose first son, Bunmi, passed on September 2013. His family, Lagos metropolis, the high society to be precise, was so startled at the news of his demise so much they turned pale, as if they had heard of the arrival of the demonic Lilith. But tears and uncontrollable grief weren’t enough to rouse Bunmi from the dead. Then 36-years-old and a father of two, Bunmi was an executive director of the family business. The only son of his enterprising and respected parents, Bunmi’s death in South Africa after a brief illness, plunged the Adedayos into an abyss of pungent sorrow. A year after his death, the headquarters of the TFC where he worked and was widely loved for his genteel humaneness and candour, was renamed Bunmi’s Place. In 2016, the Adedayos launched the Bunmi Adedayo Foundation (BAF) with a mission to enhance the learning environment of the Nigerian child so as to produce Nigerian citizens imbued with upright character. “The foundation’s vision is to nurture and equip them with the skills and competencies that would enable them to contribute to national and global communities,” a statement on the foundation’s website posits. It was a very well attended event with many prominent Nigerians converging to celebrate a young man that died at the prime of his life. September 25 was another anniversary of his tragic death. That day, the TFC boss penned a heartfelt tribute to Bunmi reminding him how much of a beautiful creation he was and how they cherish the gift of birthing him. “For us, September 25 will always be the day that everything stopped. It is the day we lost a son with a heart of gold. A son worth more to us than wealth untold and though we know you are done with this earthly toil to go and rest, it still hurts because the pain never goes away. The grieving never ends; the mourning only becomes quieter, beating and echoing in our hearts.”
Billionaire businessman, Musa Danjuma, shouldn’t have any care or burden in the world. He has got enough money to last his great-grandchildren many lifetimes. He is in fine health. Business is booming. The Taraba State-born Musa has no worries or wrinkles in life. But, for a man with his marital trajectory, the trained lawyer perennially has to deal with issues arising from his past dalliances. Years ago, he lost his first wife, Dr. Nkiru Nzegwu-Danjuma, a lawyer, poet and author. She died after a protracted battle with renal failure at the age of 57. A barrister and solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, the mother of four daughters (Saratu, Asibi, Jennifer and Jessica-all lawyers) had 31 years’ experience in law practice. Even though they had been separated for a long time, Musa was reportedly distraught and disconsolate when the news reached him. Not just because of the kids between them, but because of the memorable times they spent together criss-crossing the world, looking into each other’s eyes and assuring themselves that they would grow and die together. But life happens. Not long after, he married a second wife, Pauline who has been described in the best superlatives on account of her beauty. A discerning mind would have thought that Musa would slow his roll and concentrate on his home but like a dog fated to get lost, he would sooner divorce Pauline. Then came Nnenna Ukeje; a bright and beautiful University of Lagos graduate who became a Member of the House of Representatives in 2007. Now chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs in the lower House, Nnenna and Musa’s whirlwind romance skidded off tracks not long after its consummation. On one of his rollicking merry-go-round, Musa met doe-eyed, drop-dead beautiful actress, Caroline Ekanem and decided to pitch his tent there. The marriage hit the icebergs in 2016. Sighted recently at an event, he did not betray the wrinkles of a man whose name had been dragged into a recent mess involving his ex-wife, Caroline. The lawyer turned shipping magnate had a smile on his face all through. There were whispers recently that he was going to use his last birthday celebrations to introduce his new wife to friends and family but that was not to be as no visible missus was in sight. Musa has been through four or five marriages already.