How My Dad Lived With 32 Wives In One House � Adegoke Adelabu�s Son

 

Nurudeen Adelabu is only surviving son of the late prominent politician from Ibadan, Oyo State, Adegoke Adelabu. In this interview with PUNCH, he revealed that the death of his father in 1958 denied him and his siblings quality education. Read excerpts from the exclusive interview below;

How much of your father do you know?
I am the only surviving son of the late Adegoke Adelabu. I was two years old when he died but it is difficult to forget what he looked like and the affection he gave us. I also learnt a lot about him through my siblings and the life he led. He was a political hero and contemporary of the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo. They were at the centre of the country’s politics at the same time. When Awolowo was the Premier, my father was the pillar of the opposition at the time.

He put Awolowo and his Action Group on their toes with constructive criticisms as the opposition leader in the Western Region House of Assembly. He is still regarded as a hugely successful politician of his time because of his hard work to ensure that governance was felt at the grass roots. If there is no criticism, government will shirk its responsibilities. My father provided the necessary ingredient needed to make the Western Region breathe at the time.

How did he treat his family?
Like I said, I was just two years old when he died. But my brothers and sisters attested to his generosity, kindness and fear of God. He loved children and did a lot to unite his large family. He loved his children so much and if not for his death at the age of 43, we would have had the best education anyone could think of.

 

He was a father who cared for his children. He had a solid foundation for all his children but death denied him the opportunity to actualise what he had for them. They were mostly female, many of who have died. We lived in one house despite the fact that my father married many wives. The house is located at Oluokun in Ibadan. Despite his wealth, it was the only house he built.

What were the challenges the family faced after his death?
It was difficult but God sent some of his friends to us. We got scholarship from them. Credit must also be given to my mother and my father’s other wives. They struggled to ensure we went to school. They bore most of the tuition. My father was the only child of his parents hence there was none of his relations to assist us. We would have loved the government to come to our aid because of what our father represented in Nigeria but we had little help from the government. He was an unrecognised nationalist. What we expect from the government is to recognise him as a national hero like some other distinguished Nigerians. He was a patron of Nigerian politicians.

What kind of relationship exists among his children after his death?
With the name he established in Nigeria, we have no reason to fight one another. The family is united. The first generation of his children is aged. Some of them are dead but the grandchildren continued in the family tradition of oneness. We appreciate one another and that is why we are still one family.

Does being Adelabu’s children put any burden on you?
The truth is that when people realise who I am, they accord me special treatment. At the Local Government Service Commission where I work, my bosses respect me for who I am.