Encomium
Can we meet you?
My name is Olakunle Fawole, the last born of mama.
We commiserate with you on the death of your mother?
Thank you so much.
What would you miss most about her?
I will miss everything about my mother. She was a fantastic woman.
We learnt mama was a very meticulous person, even on movie set?
Yes, you’re right. And that’s going to rub off on us a bit. We always argued about the same thing but in different ways. That happened a lot of times. But at the end of our arguments, we always came to a conclusion. I really loved her for that.
My mother was a super woman and she single handedly raised me. You can imagine a woman to raise a man. Mama was my best friend and my confident. At times when someone offended me, you would hear me saying I will report you to my mummy.
How did you receive the news that she is no more?
Actually, I was there when she died. It softened the effect of the blow.
How would you describe her death?
It’s painful. I was hoping she won’t die now, but we can’t argue with God because he knows that she died in the presence of myself and my brother. It’s like we watched the whole thing as she was going.
How would you describe her last moment?
I really didn’t know what was on her mind at that moment because she wasn’t talking anymore neither was she moving. She was just breathing. Whatever was going on right inside her, nobody can’t tell. But I was sure she was praying because she was very good at that. She always prayed for us.
The last message I heard from her was that I should smile. She could not talk when she was about to die. What her last smile told me was to be courageous.
How true is it that mama said she should be buried by Islamic clerics and that her burial shouldn’t be delayed?
Yes, that was her wish. She had even made arrangements for her burial before she passed on. She had spoken to some members of NASFAT and all that. I was there too. So, she made everything a lot easier. So, there was no any controversy on how we’re going to bury her or where she was going to be buried.
We learnt you are the closest son to her?
Yes, that’s true.
What else can you tell us about her?
She was a loving mother, a very good friend and a confidant. There’s a lot of guys on the street that also referred to her as their mother because she was easily accessible. You can easily approach her if you have any issue. Even if my friends had issues with their girlfriends, my mother would call the girl, take her to her room and advise her.
My mother was just very nice, not only to her children but everybody around her. But that doesn’t mean she won’t shout on you when the need be.
Can you remember the last movie she featured in before death beckoned?
That’s hard for me to recall. What I only know of was that she was supposed to be on a movie coming up, the title is Akande by Asurf. They had spoken about it. She had got the scripts, but man proposes, God disposes. God’s way is always not our way.
We understand mama was really down, and at a moment she was on a wheelchair?
(Cuts in) Bo, it wasn’t that she was ill but she couldn’t stand for long again so, that’s why people thought she was down. Nothing was wrong with her, it is just that she wouldn’t stand for a long time.
But it was reported she died of diabetes, how true is it?
Diabetes was part of the complications that led to her death.
What of breast cancer tale and cerebral fever?
Like I said, she had health complications that led to her death. Truly, she had breast cancer but she survived long ago. But because of her age, it was like everything was a bumper package of problem, all on her alone. But she fought the battle as long as she could.
Would you say she had a premonition of her death?
Yes, something like that. You know all these signs when an aged person is about to die. At times, she would just tell me, it’s like the time is near. But I would just say, mama, please stop. I will just tell myself, it’s a lie, mama is just threatening. She can’t die soon. Not knowing she really knew what she was saying.
How prepared is the family for the 8th day fidau?
Everything is on the way. We have the ground ready at the Central Mosque, Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos. That’s on Wednesday, July 13, 2016, at 10am. It’s going to be conducted by NASFAT. Also, provisions have been made for Ansar-ud-Deen, for the Central Mosque, and all that because she was involved in all of them. They said they wanted to be part of the programme and they’re allowed.
What would you say you miss about her?
The way she disturbed my life, her cooking, jokes and handled way she things that concerned me.
What would you like to remember her for?
Everything. I cannot pick one but I would miss her everything. As I told you, she could not talk and I called her mama! mama!!, she looked at me and smiled and that was the end.
-TADE ASIFAT
