The child of a deer is a deer, and the child of a lion is a lion. This is one of the many principles of nature that we see around us. Animals bear animals, humans bear humans, and business people bear business people. Of course, Adenuga bears Adenuga, and this has been the case for three generations, starting with Chief (Mrs) Oyindamola Juliana Adenuga.
To most people, the seemingly supernatural genius of Globacom boss, Dr Mike Adenuga Jnr, is something that comes once in every three generations. You don’t cultivate it, emulate it, or even expect it. But Chief (Mrs) Oyindamola Juliana Adenuga, the mother of the man known alternatively as the Bull, broke common sense and trained it into her child. This, among other reasons, is why no year goes by without the good mother getting an honourable mention from her son.
This year also, Adenuga commemorated the memory of his late mother, inadvertently challenging other mothers to be like his own (when she was alive). Although Madam Juliana passed away in 2005, her son’s yearly remembrance makes it seem as if she were still around, still pulling his strings, guiding and correcting him. To anyone who knows the basics about Adenuga, it was his mother that shaped his business sense and style.
The legends told to this effect are numerous: she forced him to hawk goat feed to get him accustomed to people; she harassed him to no end over what to study, what industry to work in, how to make the most impact and profit, what to wear to functions (and why he should attend them), what to eat, and many, many more. But no one can say the same about his impactful corporate presence and profit-making.)
So this is how Adenuga always remembers his mother. It’s about celebrating her influence and endeavours in his life, including those of his siblings and children. The legacy of Chief (Mrs) Oyindamola Juliana Adenuga, accomplished mother, Iya Alaje of Ijebu-Igbo and Yeye Oba of Ijebuland, lives on in every one of them.
