That Iperu Remo a rather quiet suburb sharing boundaries with Ijebuode and Sagamu major towns has now become a Mecca of some sort is no gainsaying. In the last weeks, the who is who, high and mighty and political heavy weights have been in this town to pay homage to one lucky father who gave birth to Dapo Abiodun ;The Prince . Ever before now, every May 29th the Emmanuel Cottage home to His Excellency Prince Dapo had always accepted these same numbers of societal of guests….May 29 being Dapo’s birthday. But this year, Daddy fondly called ” baba teacher died”. I have known daddy since I was 17years old. I came in contact with him at the Maryland home of His Excellency , early 94. One thing was constant. He is just too simple and extremely quiet. He walks out of his bedroom after prayers, meet his darling wife of 65years in the kitchen, chat or rather mumble some inaudible “i love you words ” into her ears and goes to sit down into reading his news papers or sipping his tea. One thing that that got me is that Mummy was ever glowing. A pointer to the fact that Pa Adesanya Abiodun had her keys. I honestly envied them at that old age. They were both each other’s hand bags and never left each others sides.
They had the same clothes on, and they catwalked sometimes together as if it was there marriage ceremony again. Truth is, if you want to know a mans, ask his wife. Ironically, no one need ask mummy anything till date. If you meet mummy anytime, anywhere she is either smiling or glowing. A pointer to the simple fact her husband is ever doing something (s) right for over 65years . That is who daddy was all his life. If he is driving, he is obeying all the traffic rules. He is never in a hurry. Now as a lecturer, I don’t know much of his students. But I met a few who he taught in Ife. Everyone of them had same thing to say about baba teacher. He wanted every student to pass, and he taught you until you understand! He was just so committed to teaching young people that he would seldom ask his students to stay back after school hours for extra murals at no costs. Such was the uprightness in daddy that spilled over to his children and people around him. He (pa Adesanya) was indeed what a father should be and every atom of what a husband any woman should have. He was constant as the northern star in the school of humanitarian moral standards. Daddy also loved nature. He would take a walk into the garden or into the flowers just to stare. Nothing was important to him that he couldn’t share.
Indeed we lost one man the earth gave us to learn from. Two things I am grateful to God I learnt from daddy was humility and simplicity. I saw it in its raw form and I imbibed it in its entirety. Today, Pa Abiodun is no more, but his good deeds speak for him. We thus won’t be sad at his demise, but we will be celebrating his life and times. Indeed he left gloriously, when his first son is on to becoming Africa’s golden boy in human political endeavour. Just last week Ogun state became for the 2nd time the best state in NIGERIA for Agricultural revolution.
Its happening before our eyes as Prince Dapo Abiodun silently takes the state to a new level in world standards. People who have travelled the Epe Ijebu express have been yelling Glorious Hallelujah. The ones in Ijebu ode township have been constantly giving testimonies. Oru-awa, Ago Iwoye, Abeokuta express , and municipal roads. It is one new thing or the other every week. Affordable housing, drinking water, peace among citizens, health nko? But it is not surprising to me as the world saying goes ” he who does not rest just for other people’s children to have a good life, sows seeds of greatness in the life of his own children almost effortlessly “.
This is the life and price Pa Emmanuel Adesanya Abiodun paid for all of us when he was living an upright life and doing good in the lives of many students. Today we are all partakers one way or the other in the good deeds of one man through his son who is our beloved governor.
As I close, I will admonish us readers to learn one or two things from the life and deeds of Pa Adesanya Abiodun and we should imbibe.
It will do us a lot of good in our future sojourn as we also grow old. To a champion of good deeds we say Adieu daddy!!! …Adieu Pa Abiodun !!!…. Adieu baba teacher!!! (Omo Iperu Akesan baale oja Akesan ndade Iyawo e nde oja…iperu osa fogun nsalo.
( Being a tribute by Hon Oke-owo Olasubomi)
