'The Memoirs of Daddy 3' By Adesina Ogunlana

Vol 8 No 12 10th December 2007



THE LEARNED SQUIB

I love my three daddies; Daddy 1, Daddy 2, Daddy 3. And, I love them in equally unequal proportions. All of them are in their seventies. One gave birth to me, the second gave bliss to me and the third gave backing to me. Don’t tell me you don’t understand riddles. Of these three daddies, the one I see most frequently is Daddy 3 and is the only one of my daddies who still goes on wearing natty suits and ties.

Sometimes, we travel together, especially to a golgothaic arena in the centre of Nigeria. Of course Daddy 3 was always on hand to ensure that no crucifixion of me takes place and that my (some say, stubborn) head stays on my shoulders.

Of course we don’t travel in silence. We talk, we gist and almost always on serious issues. Daddy 3 is a mine of information especially on law, politics and history. And what great ideas he has!

Daddy 3 is, as well known quite principled and a first class legal mind, but only relatively few people can claim to know him closely enough. Daddy 3 is now an old man. Then, he will become a grand old man and then one day he will become a was. Of course I don’t want that to ever happen, yet mortality, reality teaches us, is an inescapable fate of all humanity.

Fortunately, however there is a solution to the problem of mortality. An ever effective remedy and which turns mortality to immortality. That remedy is in putting pen to paper, about one’s ideas, one’s life, one’s dreams etc.

That’s the main reason, Mr. William Shakespeare still frolicks with us, any time. Even tomorrow good old Willie will still “dey kampe” because his ideas and thoughts have been immortalised in all those great works of his. Remember Julius Caesar? What of Merchant of Venice? Othello, nko?

Even right here in Nigeria, I know of such immortals. I know of Fela ‘Omo Iya Aje’, I know of Obafemi Awolowo. The former waxed records, the latter wrote books. Both had books written about them. How then can they die?

Of course when Chinua “Things Fall Apart” Achebe finally goes to the land of Eneke the Bird, where hopefully he will meet the master fabuist, Amos Tutuola, he will yet remain with us, hale and hearty. The same happy fate surely will befall Kongi, the action-packed Nobel Laureate.

This is the fate I want to befall Daddy 3. I don’t want him to go the way of that wizard of law, F.R.A Williams who knew so much but wrote so little. And not that F.R.A did not write; the problem was that the colossus was only writing briefs and not books.

I now invite every man and woman of good-will to join me to appeal, urge, persuade, enjoin, encourage, advise Daddy 3 to drop everything and face Project Immortality now!

Walahi, that baba is too precious, to be allowed to just disappear into eternity like that without adequate and permanent representations of his genius on our terra-firma.

ASSIGNMENT FOR MY FRIENDS:

1. Anytime you meet Chief G.O.K Ajayi SAN. After greeting him, politely ask, “Chief, when are your books coming out?”

2. Continue to send SMS to Chief G.O.K Ajayi SAN, asking, “Chief, when are your books coming out?”


P.S. Daddy 2 is a philosopher. For a feast of ideas, you can meet him at:
www.numberphilosophy.blogspot.com
and
www.myakokaverandah.blogspot.com