After almost four decades of
silence, Nigerian-born globe’s richest black woman, Mrs. Folorunsho Alakija,
has revealed the many pains, rejections and frustrations she had to bear with
equanimity in the hands of her mother in-law, prior and after their marriage.
The stylish oil baron and fashion
connoisseur, unknown to many, fought and won several battles while trying to
settle down with her darling husband, Modupe, especially in the early stages of
their affair.
She met a very stiff opposition in
her now late mother in-law, who blatantly kicked against her walking down the
aisle with her son.
Surprisingly, unperturbed and
determined Alakija, who was and is still madly in love with her man, the
founder of Famfa Oil, stuck to her gun and refused to let go that which meant
so much to her.
Alakija, the boss of Rose of Sharon
Foundation and Famfa Oil, made this chilling confession, while delivering a
lecture on marriage, as the guest speaker at the 21st wedding anniversary of
Bishop Isaac Idahosa, the general overseer of God’s First Ministries
(Illumination Assembly). The event held on Sunday, at the Lekki Light Centre of
the church along Ajah/Badore road.
Speaking to a jam-packed church, she
said her mother in-law never wanted a Yoruba woman and Muslim as a daughter
in-law.
“My husband’s mother was Igbo, while
her dad was from South West here. And because of this, my mother in-law never
wanted a Yoruba woman to marry her son. She was not comfortable also with my
Muslim background then. She wanted an Igbo daughter in-law, but my husband said
it’s me or nothing. It was a tough battle until God finally prevailed...
Whenever she wanted something from my husband and was not getting it
immediately, she would start attacking me and saying I’m the one stopping her
son from doing her biddings. It was also an issue when she asked for a baby
girl from me and I could not give her. I have four boys in my marriage... At
some point, I was encouraged to fight back by my husband, but I refused and
kept praying to God to change her. Despite my mother in-laws opposition towards
me, I made sure we took her to US and UK on holidays with us severally and kept
showering her with unconditional love. My joy is that we settled before she
passed on,” she recounts in a voice filled with emotions.
Alakija, who quoted copiously from
her book, University of Marriage, while delivering her lecture, which lasted
for over one hour on the pulpit, also disclosed some of the secrets that has
kept her marriage going in the last 37 years, despite challenges and
oppositions, mostly from within.
She maintains that these “special
secrets” were the ingredient that keeps endearing her darling husband to her,
thus helping to renew and strengthen their undying love for each other on a
daily basis.
“My husband is my best friend,
biggest adviser and supporter. We’ve known each other for 40 years and have
been married for 37 years now with four boys. Even though we work in the same
office, I always ensure that we kiss twice in a day, morning and night. I still
wash his undies until six years ago that he insisted I should stop. I also
prepare his special vegetable dish, does his manicure and pedicure regularly. I
also go to the airport to pick him whenever he is returning from foreign trips.
It gives me joy whenever his friends praise my vegetable dish based on what my
husband tells them during discussions...” she further discloses with a gentle
smile on her famous face.
While rounding off her well
applauded lecture, which equally got her a standing ovation from the entire
congregation, the amiable woman of means, whose foundation is very passionate
about widows and orphans, urged women to be loving and submissive to their
husbands.
Alakija, who was visibly emotional
and was moved to tears, while her intimidating resume was being read, also
challenged husbands, to continually support, provide and pamper their wives
with unconditional love and affection.
“No marriage survives without love,
respect and support from the couple,” she insists.
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