THE MAN, MKO ABIOLA & HIS TRADE SECRETS

NEW MKO ABIOLA BOOK ON SECRET OF HIS BUSINESS ACUMEN, OUT AS TOLD BY KING OF LAGOS,OBA RILWAN AKIOLU

JUNE 12,2023 ©  CERUTTI MEDIA & BOOKS In

All right reserved.

PART 1: PROLOGUE

 Many years after his death, the name Mko Abiola has become a recurring decimal among, not only Nigerians, but the entire African continent as a whole.

Indeed a lot of articles, essays, papers and even books have been written on the enigma called Abiola, whose passion to touch the lives and  soul of anyone he comes  across with , has no equal

On June 6th  2018, Nigeria's Ex- President Muhammadu Buhari made history when he  directed that effective 2019 Nigeria’s Democracy Day, marked every May 29 for the past many years, be shifted to June 12 to honour Moshood Abiola, the winner of the 1993 presidential election.

Election data showed  Abiola won the polls but he was never formally declared winner and was not sworn into office by the military government of Ibrahim Babangida.

 Abiola was later imprisoned by the Sani Abacha’s military regime as he struggled to actualise his mandate. He died in prison in 1998.

Successive governments have brushed aside calls for Mr Abiola to be honoured and for the federal government to recognise June 12 as democracy day.

The Buhari government said Chief Abiola will now be conferred with nation’s highest honour, the Grand Commander of the Federal Republic, GCFR. The honour is exclusively conferred only on presidents and former presidents.

This book is not a biography or one of those conventional book, it is a book aimed to  awaken the positive side of Abiola and inspire the birth of more Africans to have a heart for philanthropic gesture like the late In truth, the book is a project that arose by accident, and was never a long time planned effort  

The inspiration emanated from a long chat this author once heard with the imperial majesty, the Oba of Lagos, Sir Rilwan Akiolu…

As the interview with this writer and  the Oba kept proceeding, the king kept mentioning late Abiola’ s name over and over, he could not hide it, he later revealed why

” Africans as a whole have been blessed with many givers or what you call philanthropist, but I seek to say without fear or favor that late Mko is the greatest among them, he remains one of the few men that gave and gave with no condition attached to his giving “

. This revelation alone by the Oba is a topic worthy of a book cover on its own, hence next day we returned again to the Oba to kindly tell us some few trade secret of late Mko i.e. the qualities that made him a super business tycoon and philanthropist per excellence.

That is the thrust of this mini success book in your hands, and it our hope and aspirations  that you can tap/ learn a lot from the qualities that set Abiola apart,   as told by the Oba of Lagos, whom shared a lot of struggles and triumph with the late philanthropist.

*THERUTTI MEDIA AND BOOKS THANK THE OBa FOR THE USEFUL INFORMATION

PART 2: Brief Profile on the man MKO Abiola

Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola (August 24, 1937 – July 7, 1998), often referred to as M. K. O. Abiola, was a popular Nigerian Yoruba businessman, publisher, politician and aristocrat of the Egba clan born in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Moshood was his father’s twenty-third child but the first of his father’s children to survive infancy.
MKO showed entrepreneurial talents at a very young age, at the tender age of nine he started his first business selling firewood. He would wake up at dawn to go to the forest and gather firewood, which he would then cart back to town and   sell before going to school, in order to support his old father and his siblings
  

He later established a band at age fifteen where he performed at different functions in return of food. He in the end came to be acclaimed enough to begin requesting money for his exhibitions and utilized the cash to uphold his family and his optional instruction at the BaptistBoys High School Abeokuta, where he outperformed. He was the editor of the school magazine The Trumpeter, Olusegun Obasanjo was deputy editor. At the age of 19 he joined the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons apparently as a result of its container Africanist office,   inclining toward it to the Obafemi Awolowo-led Action Group’s keep focus on investment and educational advancement for the Western Region of Nigeria, where the Yoruba were in the majority.
 

 In 1956 Moshood Abiola started his professional life as bank clerk withBarclays Bank plc in Ibadan, South-West Nigeria. After two years he joined the Western Region Finance Corporation as an executive accountsofficer before leaving for Glasgow, Scotland to pursue his higher education. In Glasgow he received 1st class in political economy, commercial law and management accountancy. He also received a distinction from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland. On his return to Nigeria, he worked as a senior accountant at the University of Lagos Teaching Hospital, then went onto Pfizer, before joining the ITT Corporation, where he later rose to the position of Vice President, Africa and Middle-East of the whole partnership, which was head-quartered in the United States. Therefore Moshood Abiola invested a considerable measure of his time and money in the United States, whilst holding the post of executive of the corporation’s Nigerian subsidiary.
 

 Abiola invested heavily in Nigeria and West Africa He set up Abiola Farms, Abiola bookshops, Radio Communications Nigeria, Wonder bakeries, Concord Press, Concord Airlines, Summit oil international ltd, Africa Ocean lines, Habib Bank, Decca W.A. ltd, and Abiola football club. In addition to these, he also managed to perform his duties as Chairman of the G15 business council, President of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, and Patron of the Kwame Nkrumah Foundation

  

Moshood Abiola sprang to national and global prominence as a consequence of his humanitarian exercises. The Congressional Black Caucus of the United States of America issued the following tribute to Moshood Abiola 

  

“Because of this man, there is both cause for hope and certainty that the agony and protests of those who suffer injustice shall give way to peace and human dignity. The children of the world shall know the great work of this extraordinary leader and his fervent mission to right wrong, to do justice, and to serve mankind. The enemies which imperil the future of generations to come: poverty, ignorance, disease, hunger, and racism have each seen effects of the valiant work of Chief Abiola. Through him and others like him, never again will freedom rest in the domain of the few. We, the members of the Congressional Black Caucus salute him this day as a hero in the global pursuit to preserve the history and the legacy of the African diaspora”

From 1972 until his death Moshood Abiola had been conferred with 197 traditional titles by 68 different communities in Nigeria, in response to the fact that his financial assistance resulted in the construction of 63secondary schools, 121 mosques and churches, 41 libraries, 21 water projects in 24 states of Nigeria, and was grand patron to 149 societies or associations in Nigeria.

Moshood Abiola was twice voted worldwide businessman of the year, and gained various honorary doctorates from universities all over the world. In 1987 he was given the golden key to the city of Washington D.c., and he was bestowed with an award from the NAACP and  the King center in the USA, and also the International Committee on Education for Teaching in Paris, around numerous others. In Nigeria, the Oloye Abiola was made the Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland. It is the most noteworthy chieftancy title accessible to everyday citizens around the Yoruba, and has just been given by the tribe 14 times in its history. This basically rendered Abiola the ceremonial Viceroy of the greater part of his tribes /people. According to the folklore of the tribe as recounted by the Yoruba elders, the Aare Ona Kakanfo is expected to die a warrior in the defense of his nation in order to prove himself in   the eyes of both the divine and the mortal as having been worthy of his title

 

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PART 3:LESSONS FROM JUNE 12

June 12, 1993 to this moment seem just like yesterday, but it is not just another calendar day in Nigeria; because in progressive ideological circles, today is regarded as the authentic ‘Democracy Day’ as against the ‘May 29′popularly celebrated by the federal government

Here are twelve important facts you need to know about this date.

1.      The date is celebrated in honor of an annulled presidential election in June 12, 1993.

Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola, often referred to as M. K. O. Abiola, ran for the presidency in 1993, and is widely regarded as the presumed winner of the inconclusive election since no official final results were announced till date.

2.      The election was annulled by Ibrahim Babangida, because of alleged evidence that they were corrupt and unfair, a development that ushered in a political crisis that led to General Sani Abacha seizing power later that year.

3.      In 1994, Abiola declared himself the lawful president of Nigeria in the Epetedo area of Lagos island, an area mainly dominated by Lagos Indigenes, after he returned from a trip to solicit the support of the international community for his mandate. After declaring himself president he was declared wanted and was accused of treason and arrested on the orders of military President General Sani Abacha, who   sent 200 police vehicles to bring him into custody.

·         4. Moshood Abiola was detained for four years, largely in solitary confinement with a Bible, Qur’an, and fourteen guards as companions.

5.      Nigerian Pastor T.B. Joshua is said to have predicted the annulment to Abiola and warned him against contesting.

6.      Abiola’s involvement in politics started at a young age. He was  19-years-old when he joined the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons (NCNC) in 1979.

7.      For the June 12, 1993 presidential elections, Abiola’s running mate was Baba Gana Kingibe. He overwhelmingly defeated his rival, Bashir Tofa of the National Republican Convention.

8.      Abiola died on July 7, 1998 on the day he was due to be released from incarceration under suspicious circumstances shortly after the death of General Abacha. The official autopsy stated that Abiola died of natural causes, but Abacha’s chief security officer, Al-Mustapha alleged he was beaten to death.

9.      MKO Abiola used a ‘Hope’campaign which President Barrack Obama also used.  Many people may have paid attention to the word ‘Hope’ being used to convey a message of possibility during Obama’s 2008 election in America, but 15 years before then in Africa’s most populous nation, MKO Abiola became a rallying figure for many Nigerians with his ‘Hope’ campaign.

10.  MKO Abiola died for the June 12 mandate but he was not the only June 12 casualty as General Sani Abacha also died in mysterious circumstances on June 8, 1998.

11.  Chief MKO Abiola’s memory is celebrated in Nigeria and internationally. June 12, remains a public holiday in Lagos and Ogun states and other All progressive Congress party states. MKO Abiola Stadium was named in his honour.

12.  The election was declared Nigeria’s freest and fairest presidential election by national and international observers, with Abiola even winning in his Northern opponent’s home state.

June 12 is thus a day to remember chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola as well as other democracy martyrs.

PART 4: QUALITIES THAT SET ABIOLA ASIDE,AS TOLD BY OBA OF LAGOS

 

1: Abiola was man of colors

Unknown to many, but in words of the Oba of Lagos, Abiola had a very A pleasing personality. The late publisher had acquired the art of making himself agreeable to other people because he knows that the prospective buyer must buy the salesman as well as the merchandise he sells or no sale can be made.” To Abiola he sees any encounter with anybody like an encounter to sell his good product, and he does not waste time

“It is like a game of    Showmanship.  Abiola was   also a super-showman! He has the ability to reach the mind of his prospective buyer   or listener  by dramatizing his presentation and by giving it color sufficient to arouse intense interest through an appeal to the prospective listener or guest’s imagination, I see this in him all through my encounter with him “

2: Man of Courage

The Oba described late Abiola as a most courageous man and warned that anyone who aspires to be great must move to also be a man of peak courage for 

Courage must be the part of every man or woman who succeeds in any undertaking, especially that of  surviving in those trying times of intense competition after a devastating period of discouragement

3: power of hard work

The oba revealed that because his unfortunate start of in  life, late Abiola realized that the only way he can get to the top is hard  work for hard work is  the 

Only thing that will turn day dreaming and fantasy into money. No amount of good health, courage or imagination is worth a dime, Abiola used to say unless it is put to work; and the amount of pay a  man gets is usually fixed by the amount of very hard, intelligent work that he actually puts out. Many people sidestep this factor of success. The above principles are simple. There is nothing unusual or impossible or even striking in them separately or collectively, unless perhaps it is the fact that most people fail to possess one or more of these five primary requisites. Some salesman may work hard even intelligently, using their imaginations well until they meet a succession of rebuffs and turndowns. It is here that the salesman with sand in his soul, stamina in his backbone, and courage in his heart comes right back and whips the salesman who hasn’t these qualities, so courage is essential. Then again, many salesmen have been known to possess courage imagination, and hard work, yet by dissipation and bodily excesses handicap themselves so as to be physically unfit half the time to carry on their work. 4.       Knowledge of the merchandise he sells: Abiola is a super salesman who analyzes carefully the merchandise or service that he sells and understands thoroughly every advantage that it embraces, because he knows that no salesman can sell successfully with which he, himself, does not understand or believe in. He   Belief in the Merchandise or service he offers, he  never tries to sell anything in which he does not have implicit confidence because he knows that his mind will broadcast his lack of confidence to the mind of the prospective buyer, regardless of what he many say about his wares. 5.  Ability to close a sale is Abiola’s strong point. Here is a man that is an artist at reaching and successfully passing the closing point in selling. He trains himself to sense the psychological moment when terminal facilities may be reached successfully. He rarely, if ever, asks his prospective buyer if he is ready to purchase. Instead, he goes on the assumption that the buyer is ready and conducts himself in conversation and general demeanor accordingly, I was once with him abroad and watched him closed a deal, I was moved 7.   Self-Control. Abiola  has and exercise complete control over his head and his heart, at all times, knowing that if he does not control himself, he cannot control his prospective  audience 8   Initiative. Abiola understands the value and the principle, of initiative. He never has to be told what to do or how to do it. Having a keen imagination, he uses it and creates plans that he translate into action through his initiative. He needs but little supervision and, generally speaking, is given none. 9.  Abiola, a master thinker. Accurate thinking is his weapon . He thinks! Moreover, he takes the time and goes to the trouble gather facts as the basis of his thinking. He does no guessing when facts are available. He has no set or immovable opinions that are not based upon what he knows to be fact. 10.    Enthusiasm. Abiola is full of life and has an abundance of enthusiasm that he can use at will. Moreover, he knows that the vibrations of thought that he release through his enthusiasm will be picked up by the prospective audience or guest and acted upon as if it were his own creation, it is this giant enthusiasm that left him to be a very  great giver, he love to make people happy all the time, the Oba said •ABOUT THE AUTHOR : MIKE CERUTTI  OSAGIE also known as  The King of Pen” is the very definition of a "Grass to Grace" brand of success stories writer.  Originally a Sports' Writer, he was dramatically converted by Africa’s foremost publisher, Chief Nduka Obaigbena, Chairman and Editor-in-Chief of THISDAY newspaper to a People and Life Style Writer. Mike Cerutti Osagie has since expanded his talent to deeper areas of writing from Styles to Branding, Business, Inspirational, Politics and is today carving out a niche as a premier modern day Abundance Mentality Author.   A well-traveled writer - Osagie  has been on the wings from the word go and is the current award winning Best Style Writer, Best Celebrity Prolific Writer, Africa's Most Outstanding Humanitarian Writer by RAHF and only recently voted as Teens Favorite Young Charity Personality of the Year. This is on account of his tireless efforts of bringing the world's attention to the plight of the blind , disadvantaged and orphans in society.  An avid reader and prolific writer, Cerutti Osagie remains one of the few Pen Pushers who regularly writes about the rich and famous globally, and what they passed through on their way to the top. He has written on a large number of famous people over the last few years on his online blogs: www.worldindustryleaders.com  and today has over 10 books to his credit, including the highly controversial and globally accepted book GOOD, BAD AND GODLY SIDE OF DONALD TRUMP  He can be contacted on global roaming number + 234 7042631895 or chiefcerrutti@gmail.com for any important media/books commissioning project. He has also authored several other books and literary works.