Encomium
EVER joyous TV presenter and newscaster, Foluso Ogunjimi of Sokoyokoto fame, has formally resigned her appointment with LTV 8, Agidingbi, Ikeja, Lagos. According to the Ekiti State born woman, the decision to call it quits with the establishment was taken out of her own volition, and will take effect from January 2011. In an exclusive chat with ENCOMIUM Weekly in Ikeja, on Saturday, October 9, 2010, she gave the reasons she threw in the towel with the TV station and more…
How true is it that you have called it quits with LTV 8 as a broadcaster?
It is true, but it has not taken effect. It is going to take effect come January 2011.
For you to have taken that kind of decision, there must have been a form of frustration or intimidation from the top?
Nothing like that at all. I wasn’t in any way frustrated out.
When exactly did you conceive the idea?
Oh, I should have resigned since last year, but based on the advice from the PS and my director of programmes that I should stay till when I clock 10 years exactly in the job, so that I can be entitled to collect all my benefits, that is why I had to wait till this time before I resigned.
Are you sure that the benefits will actually come as expected?
If they come, fine, if they don’t, it is all well and good. At least, I have been coping even before I became a staff. So, I can’t allow that to bother me.
You shocked us when you said your service would be clocking 10 years, but we learnt that you have put up to 20 something years into the job at LTV 8, how true is it?
Definitely, I have put in up to 25 years in service with the station, but for 15 years, I was just an artist. The 15 years of service were not on record. Throughout the period, I wasn’t staffed, no promotion, nothing. I was just like a contract staff.
But were you not qualified then or what do you think could have informed working for 15 years and not being staffed by the same establishment?
Maybe this issue of not been an indigene of Lagos State could be the factor. It is not that I was not qualified then, I was able to cope till I was finally staffed and I thank God for where I am today.
When exactly did you join LTV 8?
That was in December 1985. I joined the station as a newscaster, but I wasn’t staffed until March 2000. Just like I told you, I was a contract staff for 15 years, but now I am only 10 years old in the establishment officially. Throughout my 15 years as a contract staff, it wasn’t all that easy. It was then I had my second born. I was at home for three weeks instead of the normal maternity leave.
Since you took the decision, has there been any cause for regret?
Not at all. No regret taking the decision. I thank God for that. The God that has been with me all this while I believe will continue to be with me in all my endeavours.
Now that you have thrown in the towel, what is going to happen to your popular programme, Olobe lo loko, Sokoyokoto?
Sokoyokoto is not an LTV 8 programme. It is a programme that is shown in other stations, it is an independent programme. It is only shot about three times in a year and we transmit it in all the stations including LTV 8. My quitting LTV 8 has nothing to do with Sokoyokoto.
What is going to happen to your personal relationship with the authority of LTV 8 after your resignation from the establishment?
That does not disturb our relationship at all. It is still going to be very cordial.
Are you sure there is nothing you are hiding concerning your resignation because some still think it came so soon?
There is nothing I am hiding, no quarrel at all. Let me tell you one thing, you don’t have to wait till you get old before you resign your appointment in any establishment so that you can enjoy the rest of your life. It is when you’re still very agile and vibrant that you can still be relevant to yourself. So, quitting one job or one establishment should not necessarily come when you are already old. I believe I took the decision at the right time.
What is the next thing on your agenda, now that you have resigned?
Just like I told you, my resignation is taking effect from January 2011. I am into events and engagements and all that, so I want to concentrate on those things. I am also into training those who want to venture into the business. I will start fully from January next year.
How would you describe your overall experience as a broadcaster?
Thank God, it has been wonderful.
This story was first published in Encomium Weekly on Tuesday, October 19, 2010
