In this concluding chat, Pastor Bisi Oladele reveals to Gbenro Adesina how he met his wife, Titilayo and the evolution and state of digital media in Nigeria. Excerpt
Q: Can you speak to how you manage your secular and spiritual assignments together as well as what it takes to be a wife of a journalist and the political figures in Oyo State you know one-on-one in the course of discharging your journalistic duties that you can’t forget and why?
A: Three in one. Number one, how I manage the combination of secular and religious works together. It’s about setting priorities. That is why I don’t have time for flimsy things. I’m always busy. I’ve important things to do; church and journalism jobs. For those two jobs, you are on call 24/7. Your church members can need your advice 12 midnight, 5am, 4pm, wherever you are, you have to be there to do your duty. News breaks anytime of the day. It is about setting priorities right. You can’t have time for frivolities. I’m a Christian. So, I don’t drink, I don’t party, I don’t go to club or where one will be wasting time talking. Secondly, what it takes to be the wife of a journalist? I always think it is more demanding to be a print journalist, particularly, if you’re a correspondent because so much is expected from you. You cover everything. God gives me a wife that is very understanding. Interestingly, my wife was a campus journalist. I recruited her into Megaphone News Agency. We were both in the same department studying English but she was two years my junior. Today, the rest is history. So, it is a journalist marrying to a journalist. So, nothing is strange to her in all that I do. In fact, she gives a lot of support to me. As a print journalist, you can be on call for one hour conduct an interview. As you are dropping this call, someone is calling. It can be tiring for somebody that doesn’t understand. Just like children will say, daddy is always going out until digital took over. We always go out to cover one event or the other, and to attend one meeting or the other.
Pastor Bisi Oladele and his wife, Titilayo
Q: What is the point of attraction to your wife?
A: Honestly, I just felt some chemistry. Interestingly, she also did in return. It was an equilibrium thing. I called the attention of my friend to her saying she wasn’t a typical girl like that. Quite obvious she is from a good home because of her dressing. She dresses formally. I just told my friend I am feeling some chemistry for her. The guy laughed. You know we were not born again then. My friend said, “o tun ti de” (you have started). I couldn’t resist her. We began as friends. Eventually, I let her know that I was feeling something for her. She was suspecting me because of the way I look at her. At last, we married. She understands and support in every way possible.
Q: Did she stress you before accepting your proposal?
A: She has already intuited that I was in love with her and she felt the same thing for me. She just said “let’s see”. She didn’t accept to be lovers immediately. We just had a friendship relationship until I graduated. After leaving school, I was writing her love letters. If I see anybody going to Ife, I would write and give to the person to deliver to her in her room. I knew her room number. Whenever I was at Ife, I would look for her and we would take pictures together. I would take her out. We would eat and all of that. It didn’t work initially because I went away. Until 2004, we met in UI again. I came to Ibadan from Lagos. I went to see late Prof Ayo Banjo who turned 70 that year. At the Department of English, where I went to see Prof Banjo, I saw her and greeted her and we started talking again. She was there to obtain a Master’s Degree. They didn’t take her and she wanted to see a prof in the Faculty of Arts for help. So, that was how we met again and the beginning of our serious relationship.
Q: If you are to describe your wife in one word, what will you say?
A: Amazing. Her name is Titilayo and I called her my joy. To the political figures in Oyo State since 1999. I’ve met and had relationship with 60 to 70 percent of them. One of them is outstanding – late Senator Abiola Ajimobi, the former governor of the state. We met in 2007, when he was battling former governor Alao-Akala for his 2027 mandate. I met him through a friend of mine, who was very close to him, Akin Oyedele of Punch newspaper then. Gradually, we became friends until he won his election in 2011. He was one of the politicians that I have the closest relationship with.
Q: Who is the most controversial politician in Oyo State that you can point to?
A: Of course, I will say the late Baba Molete, Chief Lamidi Adedibu. He was controversial even as high chief. He was controversial in politics and on land matter and some other matters. He was truly a controversial politician.
Q: Have you ever experienced an interviewee chasing you away?
A: Not that he chased me out. It was Prof Wole Soyinka. Oodua Investment Limited in Cocoa House just established a museum on the topmost floor. They invited the Alaafin of Oyo, late Oba Lamidi Adeyemi and Prof Wole Soyinka, for the commissioning of the museum. I was among the few journalists that were invited. After everything, we were leaving with the GMD of the Oodua then, Mr Adebayo Jimoh. Adebayo Jimoh wanted to go with Prof Soyinka down to the ground floor to see him off at the car park. I just entered the lift with them. Because the GMD knew me as a journalist, he couldn’t say don’t come. If he did, I wouldn’t listen because I had made up my mind to interview Soyinka. In the lift, I said Prof, this is a wonderful opportunity I have been looking for to interview you. He just pushed me aside and said we are not talking about any interview here. I insisted and told him that I won’t miss the chance of interviewing him. He kept brushing me aside. At a time, he said you are very stubborn. Before I knew it, the lift was on the ground floor and he ran away. He didn’t abuse me but he didn’t allow me to interview him.
Q: If you are to cast a headline to describe Nigerian journalism and Nigerian journalists, what will it be?
A: I will say Nigeria, journalists and the challenge of proper practice.
Q: With your challenges then, how did you navigate to get to where you are today?
A: I’m still working hard to get to my dream place. It was really tough that time, I must confess. After my graduation, it was extremely tough. I stayed back where I served. I served in a federal government college in Delta State. I stayed back because there was no job in Lagos. I was later fired. After my service year, I practically begged the principal to employ me. The principal could only employ level six downward. As a graduate, the right level for me is eight. I accepted whatever level she gave me because I needed job desperately. At age 30, I couldn’t go back to my parent to continue feeding me. I just needed something that would help me stabilize and get to my next place in life. I started working and the school owned us five-month salaries. People staged a protest and the woman decided to throw all of us out. I got a job as a teacher again in a Federal College of Education, Asaba, which just started its international secondary school. During the interview, I came second. The person that came first was a retired principal. She performed better than I by the reason of experience. The woman thought she could cope but she couldn’t. So, they came for me and I worked there as a teacher teaching English and literature. In 2002, I got tired and said, this is not what I want for my life. I wanted something far better. I came back to Ibadan. That was when I started knocking doors of advertising agencies in Lagos. It was tough but I will never forget a friend of mine. That my friend that connected me with the Comet newspaper. That wasn’t the only good thing he did for me. When I decided to move from Ibadan to Lagos in 2003, after staying for one year or more in Ibadan without getting anything done, I decided to move to Lagos to start a new life. Because he was already working and having some money, he would send me money to cover my transportation. I was living with another friend who is late now. The moment I got that job; he agreed with me to move to his Ikorodu house. He has already got a car. He would take me to work and bring me back. That way, I was saving transport cost. My salary was extremely poor. My salary was N12,000 per month. That N12,000 would only take care of my transport. He was very helpful. You have to survive. I started gradually. I found my love again for journalism not minding the fact that the reward was very poor. I was enjoying it. As I was producing good copies, people were noticing me. I resigned in 2004 to come and do business in Ibadan. In 2007, I was feeling as a fish out of water not practicing journalism. The moment I got back to Lagos, I returned to journalism. I tried to be focus. I try to give my best because it is giving your best that you can be the best. Despite the fact that the reward wasn’t really encouraging, and work environment wasn’t really stimulating, I just kept giving my best. I was focused. I thank God, though, I have not got to where I desire in life, we still have to give thanks to God that I am not where I was in 2003 or 2005. I know by God’s grace; I will get to where I desire in life.
Q: Are you still aspiring to be a lecturer?
A: I am not planning to go into academia as a lecturer. Lecturing is my first love and that is the reason why I have registered for my PhD in Mass Communication. My Master was in Communication. I am already fulfilled obtaining First Degree in English. My study of English has always been helping me in my journalism practice. It has been of tremendous help in my journalism practice. I am okay. Now, it is PhD in Mass Communication that I am eyeing. I am not doing PhD because I want to use it to look for job. I just want to be a researcher. I love research. I want to use my journalism experience to solve problems. I am not planning to go and get a job as Lecturer 2 or Assistant lecturer. I don’t think I would enjoy being a lecturer today as I would if I had taken it earlier. I just want to use the knowledge I am gaining now as a researcher to use it to solve problems in the society and to leverage on my experience to do something that is not popular now.
Q: You’re the chairman of the South West Guild of Online Publishers (SWEGOP). Can you say something about digital journalism?
A: With digital revolution, journalism is also a victim. It is a victim because gone were the days when people will wake up in the morning and go to the vendors’ stands or wait for vendors, who hawk newspapers. Gone were the days when you get to office, your newspaper was already on your table and at your spear time, you go through your newspapers to know what goes on in the day. Digital revolution has changed all of that. Because of that, journalists are also moving from traditional means of serving news and other content to digital means of serving news and content. Consequently, we now have proliferation of online news publishing firms. The digital revolution brought a lot of advantages. One of it is that it is easy to set up. For instance, I don’t have the multibillion required to set up national newspaper with a standard press, offices in 20 states, recruit journalists, editors and other supporting staff. But if I can set up a website and I can have about four staff to source news, upload and people read stories on my website, I am in business. This advantage has made it easy for plurality of news publishing. In addition to the traditional media that are still operating, we have a lot of journalists that have gone into independent publishing in the United States, where you have news publishing platform that has nothing more than 10 staff. Unlike traditional media like the Nigerian Tribune having about 150 reporters. They may not be big and the volume of their transaction may be very low, but they are in business -pay salaries, attract advertisements, and make some impact. It is these people that have come together because they have common interest. That is the guild of South West online news publishers. They just elected me as the chairman a few months ago and we cover south west Nigeria because our members cut across south west Nigeria. We are having our 9th anniversary in June in Ibadan. It is going to be big. The way news is produced, consumed, shared have changed. This digital revolution is what give birth to online news publishing that makes it easy and possible for individuals who do not have big money at least to start their own businesses
Q: Can some of these media establishments come together to form a bigger one?
A: It is on the table because we all see what is on the ground now for the future.
Q: What is your last remark?
A: It is very interesting being a journalist. It is also very interesting being a professional in other fields. What is most important is in whatever you do, try to be your best and try to be the best. Give your best and aim at being the best.
