Encomium
‘I rejoice with her’
MONTHS after studied silence on the news of Nike Oshinowo’s surrogate twins, estranged husband, Dr. Tunde Soleye has finally felicitated with her, wishing mother and children well.
In an exclusive phone interview with ENCOMIUM Weekly on Mnday, May 12, 2014, Dr. Soleye said: “Dear Editor, thanks for the courtesy to enquire and obtain facts. Adenike and I have very cordial, private and continued relationship. I rejoice with her and the twins on this grace, which is a milestone achievement for this much loved one. Let’s pray in gratitude for mother and children. Thank you.”
He, however, declined comments on why Nike Oshinowo kept him in the dark all these while, even as he avoided inquiries on the likelihood of resuscitating their troubled union.
Nike again kept to herself when ENCOMIUM Weekly on Sunday, May 18, 2014 asked her reaction to Dr. Soleye’s warm wishes. She also didn’t respond to the previous questions we sent to her.
Nike and hubby, Dr. Soleye amicably separated months back. Though the latter had wished and hoped they would eventually sort their differences in no distant time, the gulf between the celebrity couple had rather widened since they parted ways.
Nike Oshinowo would go on to secretly hatch and execute a plan to have babies, obviously without Dr. Soleye’s consent. And in a matter of months, the 47 year-old former Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria (1990/91), model, fitness expert, socialite and serial entrepreneur welcomed twin babies through gestational surrogacy.
Though she initially denied this when ENCOMIUM Weekly confronted her with the report, she confessed to it in the current edition of Hello! Nigeria. In the exclusive interview, Nike happily unveiled her bundles of joy, explaining how she had them. She also unbuttoned her heart on the reason, nature and circumstances of the birth of her controversial twins.
She also explained why she kept the amazing twins away from the prying eyes of the public. “This is the only interview I’m going to give about it because my children didn’t choose to come into this world or choose to be famous that way. I’m the one who is famous. My children are not famous. I’m hoping they are going to be able to live very normal lives.”
The mother of twins who explained she is not supposed to be able to have children due to her medical condition (endometriosis), gave a frank account of her miracle babies: “I think one thing you should know with me is that I will tell you the truth. If you dare to ask a question, I will answer. The answer might freak you out, but I will answer you as honestly as I can. It can happen to anyone, I’m not special. I’m very close to my Creator, and to be close to your Creator, you don’t have to go to church or to any special pastor, you just form a one-on-one relationship with God. I was out of marriage and I was lying in bed, talking to my God. Okay, so here I am, is this what you want for me? Please, tell me the next step. What am I suppose to do now? And I fell asleep. As I slept, I felt a tug on the bedding and I opened my eyes…
“I’m saying you have to choose. I chose to have children that look like the rest of my family. I chose to have my children look like my cousins, the children of my sister, the children of my brother all the same complexion. I did what I needed to do to make that happen. My children bear Oshinowo. It’s a very good surname to have.”
Nike also said she has no regrets marrying Dr. Soleye whom she described as a man with a great mind. “The attraction to Dr. Tunde Soleye was his mind. He had and still has amazing mind. I can’t really explain it, but I’m not a highly sexual person and I’ve not been able to be. If you are not, you have to be able to be attracted by other things and he has a phenomenal mind. Don’t forget I wasn’t 18 or 20 or even 25 at that time. I was 40! But I have to say I was very much in love. Was I guided? More by my heart than my head. Isn’t that to be sometimes? Am I embarrassed by that? No. Do I regret? I don’t. I’m very grateful to have experienced it. It doesn’t happen that often. Would I do it again? Probably not in such a hurry. It took seven years for me to agree to date him. When I say I wouldn’t do it again in a hurry, I mean I wouldn’t rush into another marriage because all the love in the world is still not enough to sustain a marriage. There are other very components.”
Ms. Oshionwo rounded off her interesting interview with Hello! Nigeria taking her interviewers through how she dealt with pregnancy, the delivery process, her twins’ names, their paternity and her future…
Dr. Soleye on his part has now for the first time reacted to the arrival of Nike’s twins, wishing mother and children all the best.
ABOUT DR. TUNDE SOLEYE
Dr. Tunde Soleye owns Duro Soleye Hospital on Allen/Opebi Road, Ikeja, Lagos. The famous medical doctor and socialite is also a businessman.
Previously married with children before he decided to spend the rest of his life with Nike, the relationship lasted for only six years before it officially crumbled in 2013.
“We are no longer living together. Nike and I have sent a joint statement on the issue. It is simple and clean. This is not a scandal. We had three options, the best of which is to tell the world the truth that we now live apart. We have been living apart for a couple of months now. We see occasionally. She calls me when she wants and I speak with her too. There is no fight. I’ve been to where she lives. We are still friends. We are going through a difficult time and we will come out of it,” Dr. Soleye had told ENCOMIUM Weekly back then,
Very much at peace with himself, the flamboyant entrepreneur may have accepted his fate as he now rejoices with estranged wife, Adenike Asabi Oshinowo who was blessed with twins who bore her family name. And no Soleyes!
– UCHE OLEHI
