A very good-natured Ora man, flawlessly fluent in Yoruba – after all he schooled in Oyo – as he was distinguished in his eloquence in English language, deep of thought, methodical even in jest, orderly in every material particular and with a biting wicked sense of humor which he waters down with a hearty laughter, lest you take it too much to heart
YESTERDAY, as all the who’s who, in Nigeria’s politics and business in the past half a century, gathered to launch Maradona’s memoirs A Journey In Service and his IBB Presidential Library, I was transported back to that fateful Friday morning on 13 February, 1976. Gen. Murtala Mohammed, the Head of State, had just been murdered. I’ve often wondered which was more horrid or dastardly – murdered or assassinated. By IBB’s account yesterday, Dimka was holed up in Radio Nigeria’s broadcasting house in Ikoyi, Lagos. And IBB was ordered by his boss Gen. TY Danjuma to go flush him out. He arrived with an armored column. I saw it. The deadly menacing tank gun barrel was trained on the Voice of Nigeria building where I’d just finished the 7.30 News. My heart was faint. I confess. It left broadcasting that very moment. Whereas I’d gone that day to read The Network News at 7.00, and 10.00 on Radio Nigeria and 7.30 and 8.30 News on Voice of Nigeria, as I sought a safe hiding place I ran into IBB and Dimka – the flusher and flushee – “discussing” how to end that deadly impasse. Well, you know how that ended. IBB succeeded. Dimka paid for his high crime. But my heart stayed deeply troubled.
So, when Mac came to woo me into Lintas Limited I was ready to go. I never really asked him why me. And he didn’t volunteer the information. He was a director in the company and I knew my place. That we shared some friends didn’t persuade us to mingle freely. Until the last decade and half when all of our starchiness dissolved, I presume, by the biblical injunction to live peaceably with each other and in obedience to Obey’s quip that wondered for how long we’d live clad in iron. Only then did I see who Mac Ovbiagele really is. A very good-natured Ora man, flawlessly fluent in Yoruba – after all he schooled in Oyo – as he was distinguished in his eloquence in English language, deep of thought, methodical even in jest, orderly in every material particular and with a biting wicked sense of humor which he waters down with a hearty laughter, lest you take it too much to heart.
We belong to a WhatsApp group of 9 who once lived and worked under ISM whose moustache bristled no matter the time of day – sorry, if you know you know – didn’t my in-laws say that if you give just a word to the wise it’ll become a statement as soon as it is properly digested! I’m not the youngest in the group. That honor is someone’s. On that night, I saw that Omo Jesu (OJ) – Sir Steve – had asked Dele – Aro – if he had any news about Mac. Aro replied saying that it wasn’t good news. So, although it was past midnight on that Sunday, 26 January, 2025, I called Dele. And he told me that Mac has passed. I was shook!
If I’m shaken, and deeply too, by Mac’s passing how about his elder brother, Broda Bruce and his children and grand children? How about Dele Adetiba, Las Sunmola, Steve Omojafor, Julian Dalmeida, Ibidun Allison, Sola Olamuyiwa, Lolu Akinwumi, Yemi Ogunbiyi, John Ohiorhenuan, Biodun Shobanjo, Mac Emakpore, etc? Y’see, that our group used to meet, sit, eat and just be merry every now and again. But not since COVID. And, I’d missed two of his last outings – one was to honor Mr. Felix Ohiwerei and the other was his 80th birthday. Now all that’s gone.
Broda confided in me very recently that since Mac’s beloved wife Dorothy passed 16 years ago he had been gone too…only bravely carrying on. Hmmm. Mac was not my friend for he was such a deeply friendly spirit. Whenever he phoned me he will call out all the names that made up my initials of ROCM and then round it off with “Oko Morayo”!
Mac goes home today.
Rest peacefully eternally.
Adieu.
- https://web.facebook.com/ron.mgbatogu
Comments are closed.