By Christy Anyanwu
Princess Odunola Owolabi is unassuming and confident in a refreshing way. As a teacher, banker and entrepreneur, she has had a taste of different facets of life. She spoke to Saturday Sun about life generally, including as a princess of Omu-Aran in Kwara State, her days as a banker, and her retirement as Managing Director, Covenant University Microfinance Bank, among other issues. Please enjoy it.
What are the most outstanding things about you?
Well, I’m a princess, a daughter of the late Oba Suleiman Durotoye. My father was on the throne for almost 50 years. He ascended the throne before people like us were born. He died on January 26, 1993.
From history, we learnt my dad was a Christian before he was enthroned as Oba of Omu-Aran. At that time, we were under the Ilorin Emirate. They used to go to Kaduna to attend meetings and they didn’t allow Christians to be part of it. If you were a Christian as an Oba, you wouldn’t be given a prominent position. There was a lot of pressure here and there, and he became a Muslim. But as a Muslim, he never put pressure on his children to become Muslims. All of us started life as Muslims but today, majority of us are Christians, except one who is still a practising Muslim. He had six wives; my mum was the third, but we lived harmoniously together. It was a good polygamous home if I would assess it. All of us were living together, all the children.
I went to Ilorin Teachers’ College, and after graduation, I was posted to villages to teach. That time was something else. I had a brother that took me to school on a bike and brought me back home. But I was determined to further my education. I attended the School of Basic Studies in Kwara State. After the School of Basic Studies, I proceeded to Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria for my first degree in Political Science. That time, Nigeria’s situation was good, no issue of insecurity. You could travel anywhere without problem. At times, we would board a train from Ilorin and the train would develop engine problems, and we would be stranded in the bush. Most of us were students. But we would be there, just gisting in the bush. There were no phones to contact our parents, but we felt good because everywhere was peaceful.
After graduating from ABU, what came next?
I graduated from ABU in 1987 with a second class upper. I read Political Science, and I did my youth service in Kano State with the Nigerian Customs. After that, my dad spoke with Alhaji Lateef Jakande, and I started work in his publishing company. But that was not my line. Jakande was a politician. Although, I read Political Science, I didn’t plan to be a politician. I didn’t stay too long with Jakande before I got a job at Trade Bank Plc. I was in Trade Bank when I did my Masters programme at Ekiti State University, Ado Ekiti. I was there at Trade Bank for more than 10 years. I was in charge of their treasury and foreign department. In the 11th year, I moved to City Express Bank, in 2006. But we lost it to UBA during the merger/acquisition period. Then I started business. I was into business for a long time. I later joined Covenant University, because of my relationship with the bishop. Bishop Oyedepo happens to be my big uncle. He insisted, because of my experience, that I should come and head the Covenant University Microfinance Bank. I was the Managing Director and I was there for five years.
Why did you resign from your MD position at the microfinance bank?
I left because my daughter was the only one at home. I didn’t know my daughter would get married early. I felt I should be part of her life because she had always been in the boarding school. I was in Covenant University bank, but I was already used to business and I felt like, what else was I looking for? As a businesswoman, I was travelling abroad to import household goods and gift items. My bosom friend had been in the business for a long time. She introduced me to the business and we were supplying Cash-and-Carry, Mega Plaza and other big outlets on wholesale basis. We had a big warehouse.
At what point did you get married?
I actually got married in 1993, and to the glory of God, between 1993 and 1996, I had my two children. Both of them are outside the country now. The first one graduated from Covenant University for his first and second degrees. His sister graduated from Afe Babalola University for her first degree. She is a chartered accountant. She works with the Bank of Industry.
As the daughter of a king, what memories do you have about growing up?
It was fun. It was a great one. A number of us didn’t recognise it until later in life and we realised it was a privilege. Our father was a man of integrity. He didn’t like cheating. He didn’t like amassing wealth. So, he trained us. We went to the farm, though they used a car to carry us; we bought drinks, coke and bread. We did that when we were on holiday. But we were enjoying all of those privileges, people greeting you as Omoba o. As a princess, you were identified anywhere you went and for the fact that he was on the throne for a very long time, even up till today, they refer to him as the best king in Omu Aran. Dad imbibed in us the spirit of humility, he taught us not to take what does not belong to us. There’s something he used to tell us, I will first say it in our language: E so ko yin’ (Don’t live a life of hostilities among yourselves, don’t ever). It means: free your mind, don’t hold any anger or grudge against anybody. Don’t write anybody off in life. Circumstances can make people change or behave in anyway; it does not mean they will not come back later to do the right thing. We enjoyed him while he was alive. He died close to 100 years old. My mum died at 100 years.
What would you link to the longevity of your parents?
Those people were lucky. They were not used to the kind of life we are living now. They were eating what we term carbohydrates today. They were eating it and at the same time were energetic, not necessarily conscious of it in terms of doing exercise. My mum was from Imarun too. Her fathers house was like you were going from Arepo main gate to Journalists Estate in Arepo, and my mum could go there twice or thrice a day. In the course of doing that, even after eating a bowl of pounded yam, she would have shed a lot of it.
What lessons have you learnt about life?
Life is transient. There are different stages of life. I have learnt so much about people. It’s always better to get it right at a younger age, to get the knowledge right. Yes, I graduated from ABU with a second class upper. I was actually the best in my department in 1987. When you are honest, there is no door that would not open for you. Most importantly, you need to know God. If you know God, any stage of your life, I mean really knowing who God is, how God operates, those things that He requires of us, if you happen to do that in good time and in good age, you will have a good life. Not that there won’t be challenges, there will be challenges but at the same time, overcoming these challenges will not be difficult.
One area of my life, if I have the privilege as a lady, is that it’s good for one to be very conscious before you make your choice in marriage. It’s because whoever you marry determines so much. Even, aside from your intelligence or whatever you try to achieve, whoever you marry makes a lot of impact in your life. You should have somebody that would encourage you. Marry somebody that understands you and is ready to work with you in achieving your goals. In a situation where it is not there, you need to struggle hard to make sure the marriage works. Majorly, what I have learned about life is that there’s nothing one can do outside God. And because He said even before we were conceived in our mother’s womb, He already knew us; that means He knows the end from the beginning. Whatever He allows to happen to you, He allows it for a purpose. If, for instance, you are married and you fall into the wrong hands, and you scream maybe I should not have done this, but maybe God has allowed it for a purpose. Ask God, ‘how do you want me to navigate this road?’ I would say the God factor is key about life. Going to church is not what that matters but your heart being with God is the focus. What is your personal relationship with God? How much of him do you know?
Recently, I attended a Bible college at Redeemed Christian Church of God and in one of the classes; the lecturer was talking about a lot of devout people everywhere. He said a number of us were of the opinion that on Sunday we must go to church, but after Sunday what do we do? He said God has given us his words, not only to the pastor, but also to everybody. But a number of us don’t even open our Bible till the following Sunday. So, we don’t cross check whether what the pastor said on the pulpit was the right statement or not. Then, we know that God can speak to everyone. It’s not only the pastor that he speaks to. What exactly did the Word say? So, if someone is ready to get it right from the early stage, at least you will be able to avoid a lot of things that would stand against your destiny.
How do you feel at 60?
It means a lot. It’s the grace of God that has brought me this far. A lot of things have happened this year. If you wake up and see yourself alive, just be happy. I have gone through a lot in life. I have issues with my marriage. I was in courtship for 11 years. We are from the same town and we were only married for three years. We got married and, luckily, I had one child in 1993 and another one in 1996. Since that time, God has been faithful to me. It’s not by power, not by might but by His grace, which has kept me. Luckily, my children are doing very well and I am alive. When it happened in 1996, I was in Trade Bank and I was in the Clearing Department.
You had a wonderful upbringing in a polygamous setting, but a lot of people are not so lucky and would say otherwise about polygamy…
Like I used to tell people, in our own case, we never had a nasty experience. I owe it to God and our dad. He was a unifying force. He brought everyone together. All of us could be like 20 in a room. We could all decide to sleep in a room. The children loved to be part of the family. There’s a kind of love that bound us. When I was in secondary school, my friends used to tell me that our own polygamous home was different. But, especially this generation, it is not easy to run a polygamous home successfully because we now want to separate our children. In this generation, we don’t want anybody to occupy our space. Maybe, the generation after this might be different because those children are mindful of their professional status. Some of us that are parents are telling them that marriage is very important to them; any marriage that does not work is not worth it. But for us, before you declare that your marriage is not working, you would have gone the extra mile; you don’t just leave your marriage. But for this generation, if one is not ready, they go their separate ways.
As a qualified teacher, do you miss teaching?
Within me, I was not fulfilled. I felt I should go further in my education, and I got to have my degree. I told myself, you should go for law, you have people you are looking up to, you cannot just sit back in Kwara State saying that you are a teacher’.
You look trendy at 60. What’s the secret?
I’m a quiet person. I always love it when I see people looking good. Because of my years in the banking sector, the profession has affected my dress sense. You must be in your suit. You are going for retreat, you are going for training; you just have to look good. So, it did affect my dress sense. As a businesswoman, my friend was a very beautiful lady. She was very conscious of herself. She would never wear any official dress. She has never worked for anyone since we left school and she dressed very well. When you have people like that around you, you are not competing, but you know that some people are checking you out. As a banker, you know what to wear at any given time. Your instincts would tell you, this is not what I should wear.
How do you relax?
I really want to build my spiritual life. I want to give back to God. I love watching Christian movies. I have not been doing well with my Bible, so I want to do better. I go on retreat with my friend. Recently, my friend and I went to Ghana for a retreat, and really, it was refreshing to me. She has lost her husband and three of her children are grown and living abroad. We go to gatherings where we worship, and we watch films.