Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola is not a new name to many; in fact, he was the song on the lips of millions of Nigerians at a point. He won what was adjudged as the freest and fairest presidential election in Nigeria’s history.
He defeated his major rival, Bashir Tofa in his home state, Kano. Unprecedented! An Abeokuta man winning up North in the same Kano his major rival hails from? That is a Tsunami.
The above shows the level of goodwill the late businessman has among all tribes, creed and religion.
A lot of Nigerians and even non-Nigerians has spoken in glowing terms of the kind of person MKO is, most especially his philanthropic gestures, his empathy for the less privileged and of course his excess generosity.
Njenje Media News reports that a foremost Journalist and Ovation Publisher, Chief Dele Momodu, and former Senators Dino Melaye and Ademola Adeleke were unanimous in their glowing tributes on the late SDP Presidential candidate, most especially his generosity and philanthropic gestures.
They recounted their experiences in an exclusive Video made available to Njenje Media TV.
According to Dele Momodu, MKO gave him the biggest break in his life when they met in London back then in 1991. He recalled how Chief Abiola invited him to his apartment in the UK and in the company of Deji Abiola, dolled out money for him, and again, in the course of his wedding preparation in 1992, he came through.
In the Ovation Publisher’s words:
I didn’t even know MKO was in London, so I was going to a party in Strafford, but I needed to call my apartment, then I was expecting a message there as well. I put a 20 P Coin into the box, after I finished talking, I still have 10 p left, so I didn’t want to waste it, I said let me call Deji Abiola, so someone picked the call and I said can I speak to Deji Abiola, the person said who is that, I said my name is Dele Momodu, then I heard Deleee and I said who is that, and he said my name is Moshood Abiola, the phone wanted to fall down from my hand, kudi owo, God punish poverty, you won’t believe it, he said Dele 1, where are you? I said I am in Strafford sir, and then he said ‘can you come to my house right away, I was like I had no option, and you would think I was Ben Johnson with the speed I took to start my trip to his place. “
He said, 42, when you get to Green Portland train station, when you come out, so walk across to Chester terrace, I will be waiting for you, I was like Abiola will be waiting for me, can you imagine, son of iya oyo, are Ona Kankanfo, so I got there to cut the long story short, it was a video phone, I pressed it fiom, no response, I was like maybe Baba has changed his mind oh, I was going to press it the second time, then George, his Oyinbo guy then opened the door and said the chief is waiting for you in his bedroom. I had to go through the elevator, in the staircase, then I opened the door, I saw Baba on his bed in his housecoat, Deji his son was seating by his side, they were watching a video of one of his speeches.
“To cut the long story short, we started gisting, Dele 1, beeni e gbona, talking about my write-ups, then he said I told you to go and marry, you have not married, so what are you waiting for, you can’t put signature on a woman’s thigh, so what is your problem, go and marry. I said daddy, I don’t have the money yet, he said No, nobody waits till you have everything, you have to do something, and he asked of my girlfriend, my wife today, I told him she is here in London with me, we were courting then.”
“So it was time for me to go, then he looked at me, Dele 1, jemba e wa nkan, let me find you something, will 2 and a half grand be okay for you? Me that it was 290 pounds that followed me to London, someone is now asking me if 2500 will be okay in 1991 august, I stood up, my legs were already shaking, then he looked at me and brought out a cheque, do you have an account in London, I said No Sir, then he said I would ask them to open two for you, then he said ‘you even said your girlfriend is around, I will make it 4 grand, I went to the floor, 4 grands in 1991 was more than my salary in 1 year, I went on the floor, then as he was writing the cheque, then he turned the back, dear Coolae yo, the bearer does not have an account in the UK, please open two because its Sunday, I forgot the elevator to start with, the easiest way to go mental is to see the kind of money that you never bargained for, and unexpectedly, suddenly, so I came downstairs, gboooooo, I couldn’t open the door, I ran back upstairs, he could see that ‘mo ti ya bobo yi ni were’ (I have made this boy go nuts), now Deji had to let me out.”
Senator Dino Melaye narrated how the late businessman gave him his first-ever 100,000:
“MKO gave me my first 100k in life, 20 naira notes was the highest denomination at that time, I got that money, Baba Saraki’s own was 1 million, it was later, I am talking of money, that was 1992/1993, that period, only me , himself and Kingibe were in the room. One thing I heard is that he said I don’t expect you to account for it, I just want the results, he said this is not from the campaign funds, this is not from anything but I love the way you are coordinating the youths, I love what you are doing, especially your speech in Kaduna, he said go and work for me, that was the flag off, I was the only young boy who spoke there, he said go and coordinate these boys for me, the money was like, this is money, this is too big for me to handle.”
“ I said the 1 million I got from Oloye, Baba Saraki Olusola, I opened the Bible, Psalm 91 and I put the Bible on the money and I sat down on the chair till daybreak, I didn’t blink, I was just singing and looking at this money, I said it is going to disappear. Then in the morning, I now went to First Bank and opened my first account and put the money there. I went to Cotonou on my own, bought a silica, that one to ma gbe ori soke, I now brought that silica and drove it all the way from Cotonou to Zaria, that was how I became a big boy oh, instantaneous big boy, it’s not today I like cars, e don tey wey I dey that level. Some miracles, you can’t explain it and it sets your pole in life”
Momodu further narrated how Chief Abiola came through when he was preparing for his wedding in 1992:
“ I married a few months after that, December 12, I would never forget, every major money like that, on December 12, 1992, a week to my wedding, I saw him in Ife, he came for his doctorate degree, as soon as he came, told my wife, why haven’t you come back to see me, I said I have seen you sir, I gave you the list, you said you will come, he said ’that’s not what I am talking about, you will need some cash, I said thank you, daddy, he now said see me tomorrow, I will give you 50 grand, as in 50 grand as at that time, you won’t believe it. Then when he entered the Oduduwa hall in Ife, where Oba Sijuade, Adenuga, they all arrived , then Dr Adenuga saw me and said Bob Dee, so you will go to my office, mo ni kan drop 25k kan fun eh. So MKO was greeting people around, then he came to me again and pulled my hand and said, do you think that money would not be enough, I said its okay, then he said I will make it 80 grands, I said what? I left the place immediately; I was running mad, 80 grands for my wedding.
Senator Ademola Adeleke also alluded to the philanthropic inclinations of the Abeokuta-born businessman in the course of the teetee and marveled at his personality.
