Jide Ojo at 52: Photograph as tool for sober reflections

 

It’s my birthday and a time of sober reflections. I have been doing exactly that in the last few days. Those who know me very well know that I like taking pictures of myself and share same on my social media handles especially Facebook. Though I am not a party-going dude, my media advocacy indulged me with opportunities to take selfies. Photographs helps me to document my history. Last weekend, I went through my photo gallery to see how I have metamorphosed over the years. I have shared few of those pictures that evoke nostalgic feelings in me on my Facebook wall. I captioned the posts “The son is the father of the man.” When I saw some of the old pictures, I laughed at myself.

God bless whoever discovered the technology of taking photograph and filming. It has helped me a lot in my reflections on how I have changed over the decades. In some of the old pictures I was so thin I couldn’t recognise myself again! In some other pictures, I looked like someone in borrowed robes as am decked in some ill-fitting dresses sown by my local tailors. In one of the picture posts, a Facebook friend, Eric Mamven Selven could not help but asked, “Sir, you were a tall guy then and not now. What could be the reason?” I simply answered him that the reason is “Poverty”. I have said time and again that I came from a very poor background. My family of seven (father, mother and five children, four of whom are girls) was so poor that poor people around us were even daring to call us poor. This is because our own poverty was raised to power two. It had square root!  

For me, growing up, it was education with tears. I have to trek about five kilometers to and from my primary and secondary schools.  My parents could not afford to give me transport fare to board vehicles. My father never had a bicycle let alone a car. He was a poor primary school teacher while my mum was into petty trading which didn’t fetch much. During my tertiary education, especially as an undergraduate of University of Lagos, I lived off some classmates and my uncles. They staked their little resources to ensure that I didn’t drop out of school.

For most part, we lived in a room and at the best of times in a room and a parlour. Imagine a family of seven cramped into such a tiny apartment. I remember a particular sad incident when our one room apartment at Alaro, Sango area of Ibadan, Oyo State was flooded and we had to leave the room for the rain to subside. On another occasion, soldier ants invaded our room while we were sleeping on the mat and we had to battle all night to disperse them with kerosese. Mark you, I was at the University of Lagos as an undergraduate when all of these happened.

I recall what should have been my first TV appearance on a popular show on Galaxy TV known as “Be my Guest”.  I had gone for the recording of the show at BJ Rentals Hall at Sango, Ibadan and indicated my interest to be among those who will be at the “high table” to be interviewed. Unfortunately, when the show host noticed that I didn’t wear socks on my shoe, he disqualified me. Socks, mere socks that I can buy a carton now disqualified me from featuring on a popular TV show. Anyway, all that is in the past now.

There is a popular Christian hymn that says “count your blessings, name them one by one, and it will surprise you what the Lord has done”. Today, on this joyous occasion of my 52^nd birthday, I bow and tremble before God for his goodness and wonderful works in my life. He took me from the miry clay and moulded me to be among the movers and shakers of Nigeria, both in the civil society and the media. Today, I make bold to say that I am a success story.

While my material possessions are few and unimpressive, however, my media induced public image is very large. I say without being immodest that I am one of the most interviewed person by the media in Nigeria. As at today, I have been interviewed severally  on 35 Television Stations, 36 radio stations and 31 newspapers across Nigeria. In 31 years of my media advocacy which started in October 1990, I have to my credit over 1,500 published articles. Even though I don’t get paid for my media engagements, I have been columnist with one of Nigeria’s most read newspapers, The PUNCH since October 2012. I have published three books: Nigeria, My Nigeria: Perspectives from 1990 – 2010; “A Nation in Tow: Essays on Leadership and Governance (2016) and “Nigeria: Corruption and Opacity in Governance” (2019). The icing on the cake now is that courtesy of the management of the Independent Television, I am now a TV Show host. My show, “Development Focus with Jide Ojo on ITV” which debuted on January 6, 2021 holds every Wednesday from 7 – 9:30am. I thank the General Manager of ITV Abuja, Mrs. Amber Osasu Olague for facilitating this symbiotic engagement.

As I celebrate my 52^nd birthday today, I thank God for the grace to impact lives in terms of knowledge and otherwise. My knowledge sharing skills have given me opportunity to train political party chieftains and gatekeepers, top echelon of election management bodies, both INEC and SIECs, federal and state lawmakers, media juggernauts, local government chairmen and councilors, the Police  as well as civil society managers.   How I wish to be very rich to meet the needs of the poor and needy around me, unfortunately, the economic meltdown is affecting my consulting job so much so that I am no longer able to assist as many people as I was able to support in time past. I do hope and pray for Nigeria’s economy to improve so that I can get more business offers and help more than I am doing now. Lest I forget, happy birthday to Mrs. Rachel Modupe Okegbola, my birthday mate, benefactor, mentor and God sent helper. My greatest wish for myself on this auspicious day is longevity in good health and wealth. May Almighty God grant all my noble heart desires. Cheers!