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Dateline was Friday,26th of July 2024 The venue was the conference Hall of the Ogun State  Housing Corporation. The event was the sent forth for the retiring Assistant General Manager of the Ogun State Broadcasting Corporation, Mr. Mobolaji  Fajounbo as present  and past colleagues, childhood friends and well wishers especially members of the OGBC Chapel of the Nigerian Union  of Journalists in conjuction with the Ogun State Council of NUJ  staged a fantastic reception to honor one of their own, a newsroom guru.

The event was well attended even as those present showered encomiums on the celebrant who graced the venue with his amiable wife, Mrs Lydia Bola Fajounbo who is a Permanent  Secretary in the Ogun State  Civil Seevice.

Opening the floor to shower encomium on the celebraht is  one of his Childhood friends, Mr  Kolawole Isola who stunned the gathering by declaring that the soft-spoken Bola Fajounbo  whose many know and see as a complete gentleman was at a time very rascally. He said: ” While we were growing up, Bola Fajounbo  had a rascally behaviour and along the line, whether he met Jesus Christ just like Apostle Paul on his way to Damascus or vice versa, he suddenly became a changed man, very serious and dedicated. I must let you know that if he had continued in his pre- 80 days ways, he would have been dead by now". Mr Kolawole Isola has a candid advice for his old bossom. He enjoined him to find something good doing  upon retirement.

Another childhood friend, who breezed into the venue unannounced to the surprise of the Organising Committee, Deputy Commissioner of Police who is in  charge of SWAT, Kayode Ayilara recalled some of the childhood fantasies he had with Mr Bola Fajounbo  while growing up at Oke- nla ifo,  saying though the Organisers did but extend invitation to him, he must be there to honour his childhood friend.

Mr  Ayilara also recalled how Mr. Bola Fajounbo  of old will clutch a copy of James Hardly Chase novel in his pocket while walking around, saying he was one of the best hands in the literary and debating society way back and he was unbeaten.

Corroborating the  views earlier shared by his other childhood friend, another very close friend, Honourable Kunle Adeyemi who was a member of the House of Representatives  representing ifo State Constituency said Mr  Fajounbo was indeed rascally at a point in life to the extent that his late father always told him  to advice him. He said: ” Mr. Fajounbo  is more than a friend, but a brother. He is a humble man, ready to  assist at all times and ready to deny himself to satisfy others". 

Hon. Johnson  Olu- Fatoki is another childhood friend who recalled their days as young boys in Oke- nla ifo. Hon. Fatoki also burst everyone's  brain when he said Mr. Fajounbo  is lot the gentleman that everyone know him to be as far as he is concerned. According to him , he concluded he is not a gentleman  because Bolaji Fajounbo  will not accept to be insulted..He described him as a disciplinarian who has impacted many lives, praying to God to grant him good health and long life in retirement.

Other childhood friends who also spoke on the occasion were Pastor Tunde Adebiyi who recalled how they were the rave  of the moment when it comes to literaty and debating society in their time as well as a retired senior Director of the Ogun State Agricultural Development Programme, OGADEP also in Abeokuta,Mr.Femi Kudoro

Another elderly friend  of Mr. Bola Fajounbo, Alhaji Ambali Isola who  retired as a Permanent Secretary  in the Ogun State Ministry of Education said the  celebrant is a good family man who will always ask about the welfare of each members of the family at wvery point in time  Alhaji Ambali said:” Fajounbo  is a man who always care about other people's  family. My children always talk about him and he is always involved in their personal lives.When he calls you, he would ask after the welfare of each members of the family one after the other”.  That is Bola Fajounbo  for you, He said. 

A former Assistant  General  Manager of the Ogun State  Broadcasting  Corporation who incidentally was one of the people who took Mr. Bolaji Fajounbo  in when he was newly employed, Prince Toyin Gbadebo  said it was a shocker to him when he learnt through the post of one of the Junior staff,Mr. Waheed Ogunjobi  that Bola Fajounbo  is retiring. "It was a surprise  because I said , when did we employ him that he is now retiring. I call him Bolaj. Bolaji is a meticulous guy. Let me recall this story, when he came to the newsroom, due to his meekness, i wondered aloud if he would be able to survive in the newsroom, but he surpassed my expectations. I never even believed that He had any rascally attitude until it was mentioned by Kolawole Isola and confirmed by his other friends. He is a man such that when you give him a job to do , you can go to bed and sleep tight.

In his remarks, the Publisher and CEO Penpushing Media, Prince Dimeji Kayode - Adedeji said he knew him way back while they worked together as a member of the Press Crew attached to Governor  Olusegun Osoba between 1999-2003. Prince Kayode- Adedeji said he is  a fine reporter, very meticulous and swift. He added that he is a reporter that any editor will send to an assignment and sleep with his two eyes closed. Prince Kayode-Adedeji stated further that Mr Fajounbo  is a peace maker who always mediated each time there are disagreement on the Penpushing platform, while his intervention always calmed his nerves and put paid to the settlement of  matters.

The Ogun State Council Chairman of the Nigerian Union of Journalists, Comrade Wale Olanrewaju  while contributing said although he had never worked with Mr. Fajounbo, but confirmed that all the comments passed about his person were enough to make a deduction about who he is, saying he is someone who love to encourage others. Wale Olanrewaju popular with  the sobriquet, Walecentrism said he has not seen a man as humble as Mr. Mobolaji Fajounbo, saying his hunility is infectious. He said the Nigeia Union of Journamists, Ogun State Council is proud  of his accomplishememts, while saying that he would be celebrated at the nexr congress.

The General  Manager of the Ogun  State  Broadcasting Corporation, Mrs. Toyin Sogbesan who was ushered into the venue with dance by staff of the Corporation  described Mr. Fajounbo  as a complete gentleman. She said: ” I call him a gentleman because you would hardly hear him speak loudly or audibly and I harrass him most times on this, just to make him speak out. I do not know much about his rascally nature which some of his friends spoke about, but the Bola Fajounbo  that I know that is OGBC brand is a complete gentleman. Another thing that no one has spoken about concerning Mr. Fajounbo  is that he has a very good dress sense, such that I sometimes use him to chastise others asking them to emulate him”. Mrs  Sogbesan prayed for him to continue to see the face of God in all his endeavours.

Responding, the celebrant, retiring General Manager of OGBC, Mr. Mobolaji Fajounbo  while appreciating everyone for the kind words and  the honour done to him attributed the  ideals which someone like him upheld to what was entrenched in him by some of his late Boss, such as Mr. Funso Sogbanmu and the late Uncle Deji Odunlami of blessed memory, while urging those he left behind to continue to  uphold the newsroom culture and nurture it