Egbon mi, Chief Ayòbámidélé Àbáyòmí Ojútelégàn Àjàní omo Momodu,
“Omo won ni Ile-Ife
Ife ooye lagbo
Omo olodo kan oteere
Omo olodo kan otaara
Odo to san wereke,to san wereke
To dehinkunle oshinle to dabata
To dehinkunle adelawe to dokun
Onikee ko gbodo bu mu
Ababaja won ko gbodo BuweOnikeke ko gbodo jo
Ababaja ko gbodo yese
Kikida onisoboro ni yio jo ilu naa ya
Ogun ko see da gbe
Baba taani ko mo wipe irin ti po lagbede
Oun ti o ba mu alagbede,ko ni mu eni to n fin ina.”
I’m not sure Bob Dee as we fondly call him can even remember how, where and when we first met and I know we have never discussed it. I met him for the first time around 1996 in OAU, Ife. When he came around for one of those shows or talks he used to organise in Ife, then.
He was staying at the then prestigious Conference Centre Guest House, inside the campus. I went to visit him with a friend, a fellow AIESECer to do what we then used to call Marketing in AISCEC. He was very warm,very attentive, left us with his advice, and I could remember him giving us N100 (that was a lot of money then) as “thanks for coming”. That was my first contact with him, and our paths kept crossing after that day.
We have an exceptional relationship that I really can’t explain, Bob Dee is this kind of person that knows how to bring your self worth to your consciousness. He knows how to make you feel good and wanted around him.
He is selfless: He is the kind of person that would stoop low for you to climb and shine. He will use his platform for any form of talent to excel without any expectation.
He is generous with everything but do not cross him because he won’t let that pass either. He likes to put everything and every perspective down for the record.
He recognises and promotes talents as soon as he discovers them. If he was born as a millennial, I’m sure he would own a platform bigger than INSTAGRAM.
Bob Dee had seen the value of pictorial storytelling in journalism before Instagram made it a big deal. He changed the face of journalism in Africa with Ovation. His middle name should be CONSISTENCY, Bob Dee is consistently consistent, and that is how he has become the phenomenon that he is today. He also understands the power of relationship management, and he deserves a PHD in that.
I have too many memorable experiences with Uncle Dele, the one that baffles me the most till date is that he has never missed my calls and not return it. How can a man so busy and highly placed take and return almost every call? Something to learn from there, one has to always be accessible to everyone and make yourself available only to people that you care about. What I like about him the most is his versatility, there is always something to learn from Bob Dee when you sit with him. Bring up any topic, he would literarily school you on it. He is an orator, a salesman and most importantly a reliable friend to his friends.
Funny enough, things I don’t like about him are things that I have come admire about him. Egbon is a BULLY but his style of bullying is different. He bullies for what he believes in and mostly for his friends. It doesn’t take a lot to win him over, just be yourself around him and he will take you for who you really are. A very wise man with a child-like heart, always with good intentions, even when it doesn’t look that way.
Six decades of being alive and coming from this part of the world, witnessing the generational transformation and still maintaining this high level of relevance is no child’s play but a deliberate attempt by him to keep impacting lives. Happy 60th Birthday, Bob Dee!!! I wish you the best life can offer in good health, sound mind and wealth. You will not bury any of your children by the grace of God. “E ti n d’agba, e ni di agbaya! IREE O!”
Love Always
Ogbeni Abisoye Fagade
