Greetings from Freetown, Sierra leone. To my big brother, my big friend, my mentor, my very own guru, Chief Dele Momodu. Sorry I cannot be with you in Lagos. We have known each for 22, 23 years and I remember the first day we met like yesterday, through a mutual friend. You had your big dreams about your magazine and had my own very big dreams, we were both in hiding in London, we were both running from political pressure.
And that was the instinctive pull that bound us and that was what made you my mentor. You celebrated with me, you mentored me, you encouraged me. I watched you grow from having very little, except your big dreams, and you also watched me grow from having very little but my massive dreams.
We have travelled together, you went ahead to make your big dreams become a reality, celebrating greatness not with pomp and grandeur but with humility.You celebrated others who struggled that had big dreams, you helped them make those dreams come true and helped me make my dreams come true and that is why, when Ovation started becoming the big publication it was destined to become, you came to The Gambia.
I was a refugee, I did not know any better, but we both chased the dream, we were there with Yahya Jammeh, in his house, in his office, everybody who was any body, we captured their success stories together.
You came to Sierra Leone just after our war and you met all the Presidents and met all the big achievers too, those were the dreams you had, indeed, you are dream chaser.
Dele, I want take this opportunity to thank you for being a big inspiration. Apart from my father, who is my oldest and longest best friend, you are my big mentor, my brother. Thank you for all those days, I wake you up at two in the morning crying, not knowing what to do. Thank you for telling me off, and putting me in my place at times. May God give you many more years, I hope in 10 years time, we can look back at today and celebrate, in 20 years time, too we can celebrate again. Bless you and have a very happy birthday.
