How IBB's Zodiac Sign earned Ayo Ositelu a suspension

Late Ayo Ositelu

Call this an Exclusive if you like. It came straight from the lips of Late Deacon Ayo Ositelu, a consummate journalist and all round Sportsman, who excelled in Football, Tennis and Table Tennis.

The man who had a popular column called Arena, related how he incurred the wrath of IBB over a publication in the Punch during the period he acted as Editor.

As told from the horse's mouth, the week IBB came into office, the Punch carried a story with the headline - IBB is a Snake. Later events proved the Punch right but they were not being prophetic but merely using the Chinese Zodiac to tell a story.

Well, the Headline was really provocative but what happened was that the sign of IBB's birth Month according to the Chinese Zodiac is a Snake. Perhaps if the Punch had relied on the sign of a Leo to say - IBB is a Lion, no offence would have been taken.

But offended the Powers that be were but in their response they proved the Chinese very right.

The first response was that his employers rewarded his bravado with a suspension. It did not end there. According to Ayo Ositelu, much later when he thought everything was forgotten, he got another shocker. Every Sallah, the government used to share Sallah Rams among Editors - he got none, but others got.

The worst of them all, was during the inauguration of the Junior World Cup organizing committee to which he was named. Ayo Ositelu said he was so excited that he stationed a photographer to take a photograph of him shaking hands with his snaky Head of State but it was not to be. The Camera did not malfunction. Light did not go off, but it was not to be. 

If IBB had refused to shake hands with him it would have raised suspicion. So indeed IBB shook hands with Ayo Ositelu but according to the man in the middle of the storm, quite unlike IBB who revelled in populism, he received the briefest of hand shakes, hence the photographer could not achieve his brief.

He said with that, he had to heed his elder brothers advice and lay low. Much later after the IBB regime, Ayo Ositelu became the Chairman of Ejigbo Local Government. May his Soul continue to rest in Peace. Amen.