Date: 2015-01-22

The premises of Radio Kwara wore a gloomy mien on Wednesday, the 21st of January 2015, when artistes, family, friends and fans of late Mayowa Akanbi Orisatola converged to give him a befitting farewell night of tributes.

Setting the ground rules for the tribute night, the Kwara State Chairman of Freelance and Independent  Broadcasters Association of Nigeria (FIBAN), Kwara State chapter, Alhaji Sulyman Ayodeji in his address urged every artiste to be mindful of time and shun every temptation to show off his/her talent. He stressed that the night was basically to mourn a departed colleague and not a talent exhibition night.

In his very brief address for the night, Prophet Oluyori urged the gathering to live right as death was a debt every living being must pay.

The man of God who spoke on the topic ‘After death there is judgement’ stressed that “death is the ultimate end of everything that breaths. As humans we must also be aware that after death we will be made to account for both our actions and inactions here on earth and that is why we are always urged to live right.

“We have heard what everyone is saying about our departed brother, what will people say concerning you when you die? This question should continually be at the forefront of our mind every day because nobody can predict when it is time to die.

“A day will come when each and every one of us standing here today will witness what our brother has witnessed. The question then is if that day is tomorrow what will people say about us?”

The cleric also prayed for the family of the deceased, FIBAN and artistes in general for God to stop the tide of untimely deaths.

The tributes night featured requiems and dirges from numerous artistes that cut across religious backgrounds. Some popular artistes that performed on the occasion include Diekola, Ayo Inawole, Torotoro, Gabson,Alhaji Kamoru Jasola, Alhaja Seidat Fatimoh Al-jafariyat and a host of others too numerous to mention.

A cross section of Aditu crew who spoke to The Herald Arts on the occasion debunked speculations that the late artiste was involved in unwholesome practises. According to Bode Ayanda and Baba Okodoro, “whatever you hear from the Aditu crew is authentic because we ate, slept, played and worked together.”

Recounting the events preceding the death of Mayowa Orisatola, Bode Ayanda told our reporter that, “Mayowa had been battling with a recurring illness for a long time and he had been in and out of hospitals many times but the last occurrence which claimed his life started late last year, around November precisely.

“By late December he was better and infact that was what allowed me to travel home for the festivities. It was while I was home that I called him again and he told me his health had deteriorated again. We took him to hospital and also continued to pray for him infact there was a time all of us were in the church praying for him. During that time there was significant improvement but again we had to take him to the hospital for medical treatment. That was when we lost him.”

According to Odua popularly called Baba Okodoro, “Mayowa’s death is like a bad dream to me. One thing I will always treasure about him is that he does not keep malice. If you have a quarrel with him today he will be the first person to call you, whether he is right or wrong he will be the first to call on you.

“I strongly believe he is a special creation of God and everyone who has had any contact with him will testify to the fact that he is a peace lover who wants the best for others. When I hear the rubbish people are saying about him I just laugh.

“Mayowa discovered his talent in church which was where he started from. He is a lover of God and does not joke with his relationship with God. Anybody can say anything but let us remember that God will judge everyone according to his/her utterances.

“The only thing about Mayowa is that he is a workaholic. Since I have known him he rarely sleeps 3 hours in a day he loves to work round the clock. His only pastime was watching wrestling and even at times while watching the wrestling he will be drawing inspirations from it.

“One thing that I console myself with is the story of King Hezekiah in the Bible. You will remember that when God sent a Prophet to him on his sick bed that he should put his house in order because he was going to die. He cried to God to increase his days on earth.

“God did so by adding another 15years to his years but it was during these additional years that he gave birth to a son who did evil and even he himself made many fatal mistakes during that time. So I believe that God knew better and that was why he did not answer our fervent prayers.”

Highlight of the occasion was the airing of some selected works of the late OAP which attracted much tears and sighs from the gathering. Those who gave testimonies concerning him described him as a humble, generous and selfless young man.

While giving the vote of thanks FIBAN BOT Chairman, Alhaji Abdulfatah Adeniyi Dankazeem thanked the management of Radio Kwara for permitting the association to hold the night of tributes in their premises.

Dankazeem also urged those peddling destructive rumours about Mayowa Orisatola to desist pointing out that “those who were at his death bed testify to the fact that this was the very thing he kept on       repeating that if he died like this people will say he had indulge in unwholesome practises.”

The anchor for the night was Sunday Adekojo the immediate past Chairman of FIBAN in the state while the Deputy Chairman of the association, Taiwo Akinmoladun read the single lesson for the day. Earlier the procession, clad in black and armed with candles, had taken off at the secretariat of FIBAN located at Amilegbe area.

The tributes night came to an end with another candle lit procession to Ministry of Works roundabout where a prayer was said for the late broadcaster.

The final burial took place yesterday at his home town in Modakeke Osun state. Earlier in the day the corpse of the deceased left Omosebi Hospital, Gaa-Akanbi for a funeral service at Evangelical Baptist church behind Ara-Oje Filling station.

The Herald Arts crew joins other well-meaning Nigerians to pray for the repose of his soul, even as they pray God to also comfort all he left behind. Amen!