“
I’m a simple person that likes to stand out. Sounds oxymoronic right? But that defines my personal style.
”
62
So I thought of heading an organization aimed at propagating sustainable practices and reducing acts of degradation to earth’s ecosystem and came upon the Miss Earth franchise. The Miss Earth Beauty Pageant is an international event that was brought to the fore with a vision to channel the beauty pageant entertainment industry as an effective tool to promoting environmental awareness and finding a lasting solution to the dangers posed by wrong environmental practices, and since 2002, after I obtained the franchise from the MISS EARTH BEAUTY PAGEANT, I have through my firm Serendipity Media Limited organized and launched the MISS EARTH NIGERIA BEAUTY PAGEANT, an annual earth-themed beauty event which has had the singular privilege of presenting the winners of the contest to the annual showpiece event held at the Philippines.
What will you consider the most challenging moment in your life or your saddest
It’s obviously the accident of 2006. It still remains the most challenging and saddest chapter of my life and if I could turn back the hands of time, I would gladly embrace every other challenge in my life and reverse the events of that day. I have never gotten over the eventual death of Dr. Giwa Suraj and I don’t think I ever will. It is a part of me that will never go away. I still have panic attacks whenever I go by that spot. I have never really cared about the innuendos or the attacks on my person after that fateful day; the only thing that has tormented me is a series of questions beginning with, ‘What if?’ Nobody should ever get to ask his or herself that. I have times without number asked God why I didn’t come down with an illness that would have confined me to bed that fateful day even as I remember the words of Barrister Giwa, the late doctor’s eldest brother who told me ‘Ibinabo you were at the wrong place at the wrong time.’ It’s near impossible proving what really happened that day and I’ve come to the poignant conclusion that people will always believe what they want to believe. But if I had one wish in life, I’d without a thought wish Dr. Giwa Suraj back, but I sadly do not have the power of that miracle. What of your happiest moment
My happiest moments will always remain the day my children were born. Their births always seemed to come at a time I desperately needed hope and the infusion of a new birth in my life.
50 LOOKS GOOD ON YOU, HOW DO YOU FEEL
What do you love about being a celebrity
What I love most about being a celebrity is the populist platform it offers one as a visibly recognized agent for change. It is a huge privilege and responsibility to have people looking up to you. It kind of regiments your thought process and actions towards making the very best decisions. At all times! As a celebrity you can open doors and talk to those that matter and depending on your personality you can use that to affect humanity. What do you hate about being a celebrity
Your life as you know it is never yours anymore. Privacy is tossed out of the window. In extreme cases you and your family become fair game for unjust opprobrium. Your mistakes are amplified which gets you judged even
before your side is ever heard (if ever). And whenever stories about you are found to be unfounded, nobody ever apologizes to you. You are expected to take it as one of the consequences of stardom. With the glam et al, it’s easy to forget we also hurt and have feelings. Many times, it’s really a lonely life. But I tend to focus on the positives that being a celebrity has brought me.
How did you get involved in the Miss Earth Pageant, tell us all about it
I have always worried about the environmental degradation and had always pondered effective ways to make my voice heard and contribute my veritable quota towards the preservation of mother earth, towards the conservation of its limited resources and towards the cessation of unmitigated pollution.
I feel so blessed. Many people I know never made it to 20 or 30 or even 50. 2020 was an instructive year for me in being manifestly grateful for the next breath. I’ve been breathing for the past 50 years and I’m still breathing, still alive and I’m deeply grateful to God for that. This is no flattery. You look stunning for your age. Let us into your beauty secrets. I really have no beauty secrets in the sense of the word. I hardly go for beauty therapy or hit the masseuse’s table. I pray a lot. I relax a lot and I try to find positives a lot which is good for mental health. If you’re mentally balanced, I think it does a lot for your physical appearance. Everything starts from the mind.
What are the key things you have learnt from life at 50
I have learnt maturity at 50. I have learnt to be more patient. I have learnt to be more positive in outlook. Oh, I do get rattled in the first instance like every human being would when faced with an unsavoury circumstance, but such unease never lingers anymore unlike before. I know God better now, so I just simply
63
“
”
I’ve read so many books, but I’ll easily point to two. They are the Bible and The Purpose Driven Life
light a candle in any darkness that looms. I don’t wallow amidst negative energy any more. And for the instigators of negative energy, the enemies and rabble-rousers, I can only pray for them, I can only be courteous to them, but I can never linger with them. I wrote a book last year Inner Springs Volume 1, in which I documented my contemporary thought processes which were fuelled in large parts by my life experiences. I think if you want to understand my extant philosophy going through the pages of my book will help. How will you describe your personal style
I’m a simple person that likes to stand out. Sounds oxymoronic right? But that defines my personal style.
Now to motherhood. Tell us about the arrival of your children
64
As I insinuated earlier, the births of my children always seemed to come at a time I desperately needed hope and the infusion of a new birth in my life. Their delivery was without incident and left me with no post trauma. They gave me joy carrying them and they give me joy still with each striving to carve a niche in their respective lives. It’s been a humbling yet strengthening aspect of my life and it is one I am
interesting.
grateful to God for. It’s been hard work since their arrival especially as regards the process of nurture, but it’s been
How have you coped with motherhood
How have I coped or how am I coping? Motherhood continues to the grave. I have handled motherhood well by God’s grace and it has been an exceptional experience for me. I couldn’t have asked for more from Him. God has always provided me with both material and spiritual resources to fulfil my obligation to them and they in turn have been a blessing to me and have been supportive through my travails and through my aspirations. My kids each have differing temperaments and I have had to meticulously understand each one and learned to deal with them according to their unique personas. It can be tasking but then I sincerely believe that when God gives you children, he also gives you the grace to do the needful. Our contemporary world has made it more difficult to raise kids, with emerging and radical ideologies which clash with our erstwhile cultural way of life. Parents have to adjust to new trends and strike a balance in creating a model to positively impact the kids. Sometimes I wonder how our parents would have fared in this new world. It’s tough, but then the tough
gets going.
Tell us about your marriage experience.
I’d like to keep that aspect of my life personal. My marriage involved two people and just as I respect my privacy, I’d also like to respect his.
What happened to that phase of your life
Probably what happens to that part of your life that isn’t meant to be. Don’t get me wrong, there are no hard feelings, but I just believe now in retrospect that it wasn’t meant to be. What do you admire most in men
I admire sincerity, compassion, diligence and drive. I admire a man that takes responsibility. You are a very beautiful woman, how do you handle male attention? You know these days the attention comes from both male and female, and of course in line with my persona, I treat each and everyone with the respect and courtesy they deserve. But I’d like to stress that the attention I need these days are the sort that should propel me to the next level. I need the attention that should make me a better person. I am at that stage of my life where mundane affections don’t impress me anymore. But let me reemphasize that I really do appreciate the attention when I get them.
Any plans to try marriage again
For now, I do not plans for marriage. But I look forward to falling in love again.
“
What I love most about being a celebrity is the populist platform it offers one as a visibly recognized agent for change. It is a huge privilege and responsibility to have people looking up to you
”
65
How do you relax? What kind of music do you like
I relax to music and being with family and friends. I pray a lot. My current love is Korean movies. For music I love cultural or folk music. I’m a proud member of the Seki Dance Drama Foundation led by the inimitable Yibo Koko. I also love Naija music. What books have inspired you
I’ve read so many books, but I’ll easily point to two. They are the Bible and The Purpose Driven Life: What On Earth Am I Here For by Rick Warren. You are no doubt a role model. What advice can you give the youths of today to encourage them not to lose hope in a better tomorrow? I’ve always tried to encourage the youth wherever I can and in whatever way I can. The rigours of the present day realities make it even difficult for the most optimistic of them, but we must never lose hope. The only advice I can give to them is the same thing I have always said; never give up. The Bezos, the Gates and the Dangotes of this world have one thing in common; they never gave up even in the face of daunting challenges. A particular trait of the Nigerian youth is innovation. Ergo, I call on the youth to tap into that trait and find a way round seeming obstacles. What have you learnt from the youths of today
66
“
I have learnt resilience and hard work from the Nigerian youths of today. I have learnt passion, innovation and the can-do spirit
”
I have learnt resilience and hard work from the youths of today. I have learnt passion, innovation and the can-do spirit. The Nigerian youth and what he represents is the biggest export we have in this country and I strongly advise the government to do more to create an enabling environment for these youths to do fulfil their potential and improve the country’s net worth. We are fast moving to a technologically driven world which can only be propelled by youth. What is your philosophy of life
It’s simple. Live and let live.
Who is b? Describe her in a few words.
IB is potentially enigmatic, mercurial, lovable, ambitious and easy-going.
“
My happiest moments will always remain the day my children were born. Their births always seemed to come at a time I desperately needed hope and the infusion of a new birth in my life.
”
67
68
“
I relax to music and being with family and friends. I pray a lot. My current love is Korean movies. For music I love cultural or folk music.
”
69