My father said, “ *I never begged Prince Yomi Kolawole, the Kogi State House of Assembly Speaker for a car, and I will never for the remaining part of my life beg him to give me a car, so Jibowu, NEVER and I repeat NEVER you ask him again for the car gift he collected back from me* ”
*The facts*:
Sometimes in 2018, I was in Ilorin when a call from my friend (Hon. Emmanuel Amupitan, alias Chemical) woke me up. He said, “Prince Jibowu, my boss, the Speaker of Kogi State House of assembly, Prince Yomi Kolawole is aware that Olukiri’s Nissan Pathfinder had an accident and despite that it has been fixed, that the car was still in a bad shape. As such, he would like to me to bring it to Kabba so that it can be properly fixed”.
Ooh! I was grateful for the intervention and I gave Chemical my younger brother’s (Ibigbemi) number at Kabba for quick action.
The jeep was moved to Kabba and parked at the speaker’s hotel (Grand Royal) for over eight (8) months untouched contrary to his initial promise.
My dad at some point became worried as to why the car has to be abandoned especially at the frontage of an hotel in Kabba. He insisted the car must be returned to him with the hope of fixing it himself but Prince Yomi Kolawole refused to release the car.
We kept quiet until the time he was under pressure to convince the electorates on how and why he needs to return to the house of assembly, especially after the national assembly’s embarrassing election when the People Democratic Party swept Kabba/Bunu elections contrary to the believe of the ruling party, the All Progressive Congress (APC).
Every APC member was nervous and Prince Yomi Kolawole was devising every means possible to return. Hon. Duro Meseko, his major strategist, suggested to him at his hotel, that, “The Honourable Speaker, as part of our strategies, how much will it cost you to get the Olukiri another car. That it will not only make the Olukiri happy but the entire Kiri Kingdom”
The speaker bought the idea and Hon. Duro Meseko invited me to his hotel at 6am that day. On getting there, he ushered me to the speaker’s room even though I insisted on staying at the waiting room till the speaker woke up.
Right there, we all agreed to drive to Lokoja and pick a white Mazda SUV which was still in good shape for my dad. Alas! On getting to the speaker’s lodge, Prince Yomi Kolawole changed his mind that we should take the Ford Explorer which has been grounded for some time, because we are aware it was being used as a back up car by his police escort and damaged. Hon. Duro Meseko insisted it has to be the white SUV but he refused.
Right there, he instructed Hon. Sunday Demoku, to invite his mechanic to come and tow the Ford Explorer to his workshop and see how it can be fixed. I was then instructed to follow the mechanic and ensure I come to Kabba with the Ford Explorer that day. I never knew the extent of the damage, and each time I requested to poke my nose and monitor the repairs been carried out by the mechanic, he will ask me to go and sit at the customers bay.
When he said he was done, I moved but the Ford didn’t pick the way it was expected to pick. I quickly placed a call to the mechanic to complain and the mechanic said, it will be like that because he just worked on the gear selection and the engine and that once I run it for some time, it will be okay.
As I was trying to ascend the hill after Obajana, the jeep dragged at just 30kilometers per hour. I quickly called Hon. Sunday Demoku and Hon. Duro Meseko to complain and when they mentioned it to the speaker, he said, “ *just manage it to Kabba and let’s see how we can take it to baba at Akutupa, thereafter you bring it back for the mechanic to recheck*”
Sadly, after my dad had seen it with the intention of returning it to the mechanic, *the Ford Explorer couldn’t ascend our popular Giro Hill* . I have to manage it back to Akutupa, and took a bike to Kabba to inform the stakeholders.
They quickly placed a call to the mechanic, and the mechanic sent one of his boys to Kabba the following day and I drove him to Akutupa with the APC Sienna Jeep donated to Akutupa ward by Hon. Kehinde Oloruntoba. It took the Mechanic’s boy several hours before he could manage the car to Kabba.
The election was few days ahead, so Prince Yomi Kolawole said I should please wait until after the election so that we can properly work on the Jeep, but behold, he abandoned it after he had won the election.
Meanwhile, the entire Kiri Kingdom was happy when the news went round that the speaker gave Olukiri a Ford Explorer. The whole Pejegbos (Kiri traditional rulers) went to congratulate the Olukiri and from there went round all Kiri towns to solicit support for the speaker’s election. It was a massive win across Kiri Kingdom.
Months after, the speaker didn’t give any positive interest on how the car will be fixed. Hon. Kehinde Oloruntoba became embarrassed about the situation and instructed his driver to take the car to a reputable mechanic in Abuja. A bill of 1,500,000 was handed over to him and he called me and we both went to the speaker to show him. He exclaimed that it was outrageous, but Hon. Kehinde Oloruntoba told him that, “this jeep was meant for the head of my Kiri traditional rulers, so I am ready to give you 750,000 while you too should drop the balance” but the speaker refused and abandoned the car.
When it was overstaying with Hon. Kehinde Oloruntoba, he had to return it to Akutupa, that whenever the speaker is ready, he should go and pick it for repair.
When the pressure mounted on him, he invited me with Esther Balogun, and gave us money to go to Akutupa and tow the jeep to his official lodge at Lokoja which we did the following day, and behold that was the last time we set our eyes on the Jeep.
*Efforts*:
I was almost permanently on the speaker’s neck with Hon. Duro Meseko, Hon. Kehinde Oloruntoba, Hon. Esther Balogun to fix the jeep and return it to Olukiri or release another jeep for the old man, but he declined.
*The Obadofin of Kiri, Pejegbos James Ikusemoro, the second in command to the Olukiri of Kiri* once sent Prince Yomi Kolawole an SMS and followed it up with a call. The speaker requested to know who was calling and Obadofin James Ikusemoro introduced himself, explaining that he was speaking on behalf of the other traditional rulers of Kiri Kingdom about the Ford Explorer he gifted Olukiri. The Speaker hung up the phone on the Obadofin of Kiri Kingdom as soon as he heard that explanation.
The Olukiri instructed his younger brother again to place a call to the speaker on why he has to embarrass the Obadofin over the car, but he equally hung up on the Olukiri’s younger brother too.
My younger brother, Ibigbemi who was initially used to bring the Nissan Pathfinder to Kabba also called the speaker but he bluntly told my brother that he is not owing Olukiri any car.
*The Lies*:
I am aware that, at a time in his lodge during one of his meetings with his aides, someone raised the car issue but I learnt one of his close aides sold an idea to the Speaker on how he has to play politics with the car by fabricating lies on us, the Olukiri’s children and the entire Kiri Kingdom so as to exonerate himself.
On this note, they first concocted lies that, when I was bringing the jeep from Lokoja, that I traded off the engine of the jeep with another engine at Obajana.
When that couldn’t fly, they started saying I have turned it to my utility car with one of my respected leader at Lokoja.
That failed again, the next was to say that, everybody knows that Kiri roads are bad and that the jeep was damaged by our road in Kiri land.
Of recent again, the Speaker placed a call to someone that, when I took the car home, that one of my brother in Ilorin hijacked it, took it to Ilorin and damaged it and that out of his magnanimity, he had to recall the jeep for repair.
*The Olukiri’s Family Decision*
As a result of the numerous lies being peddled across the local government and the embarrassment it has caused us, the Olukiri has instructed all his children, brothers, the traditional council (Pejegbos) and well wishers, NEVER to ask Prince Yomi Kolawole about the Ford Explorer again. This write up is therefore necessary to set the record straight.
The family will like to state unequivocally that, Olukiri has been buying and using cars since in the 70s and, as such, the Speaker’s Ford Explorer gift can’t be intoxicating at this time.
Also, this is not the first car gift to the Olukiri. Kabba/Bunu local government several years back, gave the Olukiri a Nissan Pathfinder and the state government also gave him a brand new Toyota Avensis. Also, Kabba/Bunu, Ijumu House of Representatives member, Hon. T. J. Yusuf once gave the Olukiri a Ford jeep besides the Olukiri’s personal cars.
So, why is it that the one handed over to him by Prince Yomi Kolawole is the only one generating issues if it’s not *A GREEK GIFT*?
More so, my brother in Ilorin is a Quality Control Manager in a reputable multinational bottling company and has a very good car to himself and couldn’t have hijacked our dad’s car, even up till now he doesn’t even know what the Ford Explorer looks like. Good enough, most people that are being told all these lies are his contemporaries and they know his worth.
The most pathetic lie that worries us all in Kiri is that, Kiri road damaged the car. This is sad, and it didn’t go down well with my dad because my dad felt that, even if the Speaker cannot use his good office to facilitate the construction or even once in a year grade our untarred roads, he shouldn’t be ridiculing us again about it because of the jeep he gave to him.
On this note, we want to plead with the Speaker and his aides, to not damage our reputation over the jeep again because we will NEVER ask him again.
*It will however be on record that, you gave HRH, The Olukiri of Kiri Kingdom a Ford Explorer and collected it back. Period*.
Thank you,
Prince Jibowu Mosiko
For the family.