The well-known actress Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde has discussed how the death of her father affected her in ways she could not have anticipated or coped with.
In an exclusive interview with media personality Chude Jideonwo, the screen diva talked about losing her father when she was 12 years old.
Because she was sent to Kaduna at a young age, she claimed, they never had the chance to develop a close relationship like a father and daughter did. Before his death, she claimed she hardly knew she was going to die.
The mother of four claimed that having to deal with such realities at such a young age nearly broke her as she became emotionless, attributing her fearlessness and confidence to the “life-changing” occurrence.
The mother of four admitted she almost turned to prostitution to make sure no one was able to succeed in pulling her brothers apart from one another. She was forced to care for her brothers and safeguard them from anyone who would seek to separate them.
She said that they approached her in class right before their JSS3 and senior secondary exams, telling her she had to go for home in Lagos.
Omo Sexy, as she is often known, spoke about her father’s loss and its impact on her, saying: “I simply started to see a crowd when I came to my neighborhood and I thought, certainly there’s been a death.
“So I mentally navigated the crowd until I arrived at my complex, which was enormous. It was just like a movie with all these people. I had to pass through them to get there. Everyone is turning to stare at you as you walk, some of them crying. I can still feel it when I see something in slow motion.
“And I kept asking myself, who will meet me first? Who will I remove from the list? Suddenly I came to my young brothers. I then ascended the stairs and encountered my mother. Then I froze because I realized it was my dad at this point.
“Thus, I was unsure about how to respond. I wasn’t sure if it was my guilt for believing he shouldn’t be the one. I wasn’t old enough to understand it. Or the fact that I genuinely missed him and won’t see him again now that he is dead? Or that I’m upset I didn’t have enough time to spend with him. Because I was sent to Kaduna, he didn’t spend enough time with me. I therefore had no idea how I was feeling. I simply stood there, numb. I felt incredibly numb.
And now that I’m older, I suppose I understand it, but I didn’t then, she said. I consequently stopped feeling anything, and I’m still affected by it. You rarely say anything that can make me feel anything. “You no reach” is how self-assured I am of who I am.
“Well, I’ve said it previously to presidents who invited me. I don’t respect anyone since I have no reason to be afraid of them.
“I am aware that my father was a strong man. I was 12 when he passed away. And I believe that everything I’ve done, whether it was good or bad, was painful as a result of my father’s passing. To be honest, I don’t fear for my life.
“I was so desperate today, I think I probably would have become a prostitute. When I reached a certain stage, I told myself, “I’d rather sell my body than have anyone dissect my younger brothers.”
