Former Governor Olusegun Osoba of Ogun State and several others on Thursday showered encomium on veteran journalist Folu Olamiti as he clocked 72 and presented a book titled A Peep into the Past.
Osoba, who was chairman of the book presentation held at the University of Ibadan Conference Centre, spoke highly of Olamiti and commended his ability to balance his religious and work life.
“I want to thank all of you that were here today to honour a great man.
“Folu Olamiti is different. How he manages to be a good Christian and a very active member of the Anglican Communion, I don’t understand.
“This is because for we journalists, Sunday is the most difficult day for us because there are no activities on Sundays and you must produce paper for Monday. How he manages to do that is extraordinary.
“I have a high regard and respect for him,” Osoba said.
In his remarks, chairman of Ovation Media Group Dele Momodu, noted that it was important to mentor others as exhibited by the author in the media space.
“God has given him the grace of staying relevant and I am here to congratulate him, and to offer my encouragement that when you are good you must encourage others.
“The reason our country sometimes can be the way it is, is because we don’t encourage good people and Uncle Folu is a very good man. I want to thank him for mentoring me like he mentored so many people.
“It is not always easy but he is able to do it effortlessly,” Momodu said.
Also speaking, Maye Olubadan of Ibadanland Chief Lekan Alabi extolled the virtues of the author whom he said he met in 1973 when journalism reflected the level of people’s intelligence and physical appearance.
In his goodwill message, Yinka Fasuyi, a chief in Ijesaland, eulogised Olamiti for sharing his life’s work and opinion with the public.
He urged media practitioners to be up and doing in fulfilling the ethos of their profession.
Also present was the Orangun of Oke Ila Oba Abolarin Adedokun.
The Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP) of which Olamiti is a member was represented by a delegation which included two former presidents of the association Musikilu Mojeed and Dotun Oladipo.
In his review of the book, former media aide of ex-President Muhammadu Buhari, Femi Adesina, said the 303-page 12-chapter book contained the author’s memoirs, articles and reports.
He said the book unraveled insights into the life of the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo and other dignitaries in Nigeria, as well as the lives of lowly people.
Adesina said the book contained essays by Olamiti on restructuring Nigeria, foreign issues and Idanre land in Ondo State, as well as his days in the Nigerian Tribune newspapers and the ICPC.
“Are you proud of where you hail from? Do you contribute to its development? Let us all take a cue from Olamiti,” Adesina said.
While responding to the remarks, Olamiti not only appreciated all who made the book presentation a reality but all those who have supported him at one point or the other in life.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the author retired from the Tribune Group of Newspapers where he worked for 32 years.
He was at the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) for 10 years and has now been working with the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion) for the past eight years on media-related activities.
