June 12, 1993 – Odolaye Aremu

June 12, 1993.

… after we concluded our civic duty that day. Just on a whim I closed up the street with my family and buddies. We commenced on a game of street ball. 3 or 5-a-side primarily based on the emptiness of everywhere.

Right from Watchtower, Fadeyi all across Yaba, Onike, Iwaya was that peculiar feeling of Xmas in June. It simply permeated the air that day.

I commissioned about two beer parlors around my hood to keep supplying my dad, uncles and some of his street friends whatever brand of lager they wanted. Iya Mukaila, our in-house cook served food to everyone at my expense. Iya Gbenga who sold Ẹwà Agonyin and hot, fluffy, yams too.

Ocean, a fair-skinned, athletically-built Igbo guy dealing in cosmetic products at Aládé Market but was a tenant in Baba Olomi’s house – across from me was doing free shots. Bottles and Bottles of Remy and Black Knight littered a huge table he set on the huge terrace of his house. Just walk up and toss down shots if you were able and if your liver was up to it!

As if pre-planned, the weather was beautiful. Compliant. Sunny, yet breezy. A nice weather one could eventually regret not taking advantage of, if allowed to go to waste. To cap it all – NEPA cooperated all day!

My house at Odunlade was a stone throw to the Police Station at Aládé Market. I was good friends with the then DPO. I personally delivered to him about three crates of Trọvi for a job well done that day.

My hood on an election day could pass off as Utopia. I remember coming off the street as we played soccer to steal kisses from Muni, (one of the day’s cheerleaders on the sideline) – then a visiting girlfriend and to take tokes on a fat blunt rolledup by Jagu, one of the area hoodlums who was still a good friend. I was high on so many things that day. I was high on the moment, on love and I was high on that fat jumbo rolled up by Jagu!

By the evening, I organized a Fuji jump on our street through the networking of some of my younger brothers. They pestered me endlessly to assist this friend of theirs with his music. One of them is reading this piece, I am certain about that. Yes! Him and some of his friends knew one upcoming Saje-Fuji star that lived two streets down from us. His name – Mutalubi! They brought him to me and he asked for some silly coins, and I gave him far more. In a jiffy he came back and set up his instruments on the street. We partied till the following day.

It was a general consensus that Abiola won the election, way before the end of the day. Even before counting of votes commenced. Scenes like our street, we later learned happened nearly everywhere across the nation. In Shomolu we voted massively for SDP. And we partied like mad people. To us that day, we foolishly concluded that the:

“Egyptians whom ye have seen to-day, ye shall see them again no more for ever!”

Alas We Were Fooled!

Baba Ibadan, Baba Shodiya, Alhaji Soju and many others
– May Your Souls Rest In Peace!