City People Publisher, SEYE KEHINDE Reveals His Encounter With The Guru
This is the time to celebrate one of Nigeria’s richest men Otunba Mike Adenuga, as he clocks 70. This is a time to recall how our paths crossed. And he sent for me. That was in 1990. I was the Editor of the dreaded radical weekly newspaper, TEMPO Magazine that fought the military junta of IBB to a stand still. After my senior colleagues in The News stable picked me to edit this new publication called TEMPO, I introduced the coverage of Oil & Gas. So week in, week out I reported the Oil sector like no one did.
And that made me something of an expert in this area.
Those were the days Marc Rich, the Chegoury Brother & Co and many of those who dominated our Oil sector. Back-to-back I was breaking oily stories. One of those I wrote about then was Mike Adenuga who struck oil in 1990.
Of course like every Reporter I had a good source who fed me with all the exclusives.
He himself was a big player in the Oil sector.
Unknown to me Mike Adenuga had been following my writeups in TEMPO and he wanted to know who this tiny rat was, reporting all the happenings in the Oil industry, especially as it concerned his moves. And he sent for me. He sent his most trusted P.A. who we all know to me. And he told me in a friendly way that he would want me to meet his Chairman (that is what everybody calls him). Or put differently Otunba Mike Adenuga wants to meet me.
Haaa! I was scared. What have I done wrong to have attracted the attention of the Guru who was making waves then? As at the time I got the verbal invitation, not many journalists had ever met him. In fact, only few Nigerians had ever met Mike Adenuga in flesh.
All we hear were tales about how Great he is, about how successful and rich he is and how he dominated the Oil sector like a Colossus with his company, Consolidated Oil which later became (Con Oil).
I had very little option, but to accept to go and see Big Mike. So, I had to go and meet his P.A. in his house, somewhere in Victoria Island, and we both drove in his car, to the Chairman’s Oko Awo residence. It was a fortress. He takes his Security seriously. And so, we had to wait for him to send to us one of his househelps in uniform to come downstairs to lead us to a wing of the house which served as his Office. When we got to the door, his P.A. knocked 3 times and we waited for a reply.
Lo & behold it was the Chairman himself who opened the door for us. And he called my name familiarly. Seye come in.
Are you the one that has been writing all those Oil stories Wow! I couldn’t believe or imagine I could be in the presence of such a great Nigerian who Bashorun Dele Momodu has described as the Spirit of Africa, because you never get to see him, up till now.
He doesn’t attend parties. He doesn’t go out.
He ushered me to my seat behind his Oak table and we began to chat. He commended my efforts and told me he has never missed a copy of TEMPO, weekly because of the Oil stories.
I guess he wanted to ask me for my Source also but he just couldn’t get around to asking me. He told me the reasons he asked to see me was because he wanted to put a face to the name Seye Kehinde.
By the time he told me he was ready to release me to go, I had spent about 45 minutes with this Great man many Nigerians have never set their eyes on.
That was my 1st time of meeting him and the 2nd time was at a Glo event years after at Villa Medici, his favourite restaurant, in Victoria Island, Lagos. By then, I had founded City People and he asked me how City People was doing.
He congratulated me for giving birth to a dream I had nurtured since I was in school at the Obafemi Awolowo University.
Meeting Mike Adenuga made me know a lot more about him. And that got me a place on his mailing list. Occasionally, I get messages from him and his annual Xmas Card which is usually hand delivered to me. Of course, City People has benefitted immensely from GLO in terms of generous adverts.
There are some of us his aburos, who have learnt a lot from him about Success and Business. He sent me this glazed Glass plaque that captures his success principles which has been on my table and another one, which is the story I did on his foray into Oil business.
As he turns 70, I join hundreds of people like me whose lives and businesses he has touched miraculously.
Unknown to many people Mike Adenuga is one of the biggest Philanthropists in Nigeria. Ebenezer Obey describes him as Olowo to nfi owo sanu. That is Mike Adenuga’s biggest and best kept secret: He does not like you to talk about his philanthropic gestures. Once he touches a life, he simply moves on. He does not expect you to even say Thank you. He does not even create the avenue for you to say Thank you, because you can’t see him, unless he chooses to see you.
As he turns 70, I wish him many more years in good health and happiness.
Happy Birthday To The Guru.
Happy Birthday Sir
