I don’t know when I was born, but my father, Alhaji Jimoh Alabi Sunmonu, son of Sunmonu Akinsipo, swore to an affidavit at Ikeja Magistrate Court in 1968 claiming his son, Raobilu was born on 19th April 1955. Whosoever doubts this should ask my father, his grave is Ata, Agboole Akogun Oke, Totoro Owu, Abeokuta.
I really don’t know when I joined NTA Abeokuta. Admin should be able to help out here. You see, I was a student at Ogun State College of Education, Igbeba Road., Ijebu Ode. Noo! I didn’t attend Tai Solarin College of Education o. We just finished the end of session examinations and because we resumed studies in January 1979 instead of September 1978, we ended the session late and students from other institutions of higher learning had grabbed all available vacation jobs; that was June 1980. I was desperately looking for a place when NTA Abeokuta advertised the position of Announcer/Presenter. Over two hundred candidates attended the audition and we were pruned to about fifteen. As I was entering the audition room on the day of the final audition, Mama Okesola said ‘baba oni Yoruba yen niyen’ (That is that Yoruba language master) so it was English delivered in Yoruba.
Poor NTA, of the four eventually selected, only one, Doyin Kaka, was not looking for vacation job. I was moved to full presentation when my English was not ‘English’ enough and then viewers started ‘congratulating the station for the new ‘discovery. Our “Oga” Akin Sofoluwe became so
elated he was building hope on me, cuddling, promising all good if I made broadcasting a career. But the bubble burst when he discovered I would be going back to school. Well I wriggled out of the scandal and continued as a freelance presenter but I had the letter of appointment from NTV Abeokuta which made me a staff wef 1/8/1980. So I went back to school, wrote my final exams and with the support of NTA Abeokuta, got redeployed to Ogun state from Rivers for my NYSC, presenting about three programmes for the station and post NYSC. I was given another letter of appointment wef 1/8/82. So when did I join NTA, Abeokuta?
elated he was building hope on me, cuddling, promising all good if I made broadcasting a career. But the bubble burst when he discovered I would be going back to school. Well I wriggled out of the scandal and continued as a freelance presenter but I had the letter of appointment from NTV Abeokuta which made me a staff wef 1/8/1980. So I went back to school, wrote my final exams and with the support of NTA Abeokuta, got redeployed to Ogun state from Rivers for my NYSC, presenting about three programmes for the station and post NYSC. I was given another letter of appointment wef 1/8/82. So when did I join NTA, Abeokuta?My NTA years were very memorable. “Melo la fe ka?” But I must talk about ‘Fogbon Yo’. You see, it was while I was winding down at Ijebu Ode and I was coming to Egunya to present ‘Iroyin’, Gbenga Gbesan just grabbed me to a corner and broached the idea of a Yoruba quiz programme. I jumped at it and my younger brother at Afro Grams brought his friends to form studio audience and participants. Noo! I didn’t get any girl on or from Fogbon Yo o, it’s only the camera guys but I became a household name and even up till now, people still call me Fogbon Yo. About two years ago, a senior nurse at FMC Abeokuta accosted me and said her father would compel all his children to be glued to the TV set to learn any time Fogbon Yo was on, she claimed that helped her to pass her Yoruba examination in WAEC. And then drama, and then Olowolayemo. Aah! The day I had serious altercation with Baba Seidor! That day I bragged. Mrs. Adekoya, the Programme Departmental Secretary was pleading. Many people believed Ïsola was a great medicine man. I knew Seidor would beat the hell out of me but I sharpened my mouth.
During my three years shuttling between Abeokuta and Ilorin for my degree programme, Akin Sofoluwe gave me the magic. Record your programmes during the weekend, miss some lectures on Monday or Friday when you show face at Ogbe to do your bookings and trouble ladies in virtually all the offices. Hardly did people know I was not around. God bless Dr. Akinsola Sofoluwe. The other gender on drama, no, I won’t swear any swear. Accounts Department. It’s Account ‘refusable’ because there was always no money for your Account Receivable and when you got it, Accounts wanted you to retire everything even before you spend.
Oh! Mallam Oble, remember him? The day he demanded to see what I spent money for; I placed props of a big sacrifice on his table, he ran.
Programmes staff, Alhamdulillahi. God bless NTA Abeokuta. And on the day mobile policemen disrupted our “Sit Down Strike”, you can’t know how Kayo and Isola disappeared.
*Fogbon Yo
*’baba oni Yoruba yen niyen’ That is that master of the Yoruba language
* Melo la fe ka? How many stories shall one tell?
