The Other Side of Ayo Omotade.

Ahaoma Kanu

The first time I heard about the man called Ayo Omotade, I admired his courage; for standing up to restore the dignity of his fellow human being was not only courageous but religious considering the Parable of the Good Samaritan.

The incident was inside British Airways (BA) Flight BA075 on the 27th of March 2008 when Ayo stood up to stand against oppression of the worst nature being perpetuated by some officials of the British Immigration when they attempted to commit murder on board the aircraft of a Nigerian deportee by applying the same inhuman measures that got Osamuyi Aikpitanhi lying six feet deep today. Out of the many passengers on board that plane who were being traumatized by the cries of the man who was slowly being suffocated, Ayo stood up and said politely with respect to the fact that all human beings are born equal, “Please don’t kill him!”

That caution was later interpreted by the BA officials and the Metropolitan Police to mean many things; he was labelled a terrorist, accused of attacking BA officials and so on but thank God that the recent court ruling at the Brent Magistrates Court on Tuesday, 6 May, 2009, the District Judge, Deborah Wright, Ayo Omotade was found not guilty of the charge and he was therefore discharged and acquitted.

Well, I must confess that I was never afraid of Ayo being convicted because he was innocent in the first place and I was confident in the saying that a clear conscience fears no foe. So when I got an sms on the day the verdict was delivered from VOR,(the Agunwanyi 1 of Oboroland), I nearly jumped down from the Okada I was riding on at Awka, Anambra State where I had gone for an assignment.

That night my mind went back to the 19th of February 2009 when I met the Hero of March 27th 2008 in flesh and blood; all the while I had been talking to him on phone and he even called when I was on a live TV show a day after we commenced the Boycott of BA services worldwide and made the BA office in Nigeria understand how prepared we were on the campaign. That singular act made me understand a bit how dedicated Ayo was.

But on this day we were supposed to meet, I was expecting to see an Aluta kind of person but his pictures I saw on some of the interviews he granted concerning the issue in the UK was playing tricks on my perception of the man.

I gave up and waited for us to meet. He called later that there was a mild accident at the area he was staying so asked where I was and guess where I was; at the Down Syndrome Association of Nigeria (DSAN) office at Ogunlana Drive, Surulere office.

“Baby Andrew and Baby Victoria,” Ayo said excitedly and asked, “Will the children be there?” I informed him I am playing with one of the boys there.

Ayo came in about an hour later; he was on a golf shirt and jeans, a typical Aluta attire and was very cheerful. He was just everywhere and shook hands with all the staff and children at the centre unlike most of the people that try to be cautious on their first visit to the centre; Ayo was just different.

As we went into Mrs. Rose Mordi’s office, the President of the DSAN, Ayo started narrating what transpired inside the plane and we were all laughing because the story was more of a comedy than criminal as BA and the Met police wanted the world to believe.

Coincidentally, the day Ayo came was the day one of the latest babies in the centre with a hole in the heart came around; Baby Ajoke, the 6 months old baby girl lost her mother some few hours after coming into the world and her Aunt took over and has been caring for her since. They met with Ayo and I was watching his countenance; Ayo’s eyes never left that of Baby Ajoke and he carried her in his arms and said some things that were not audible. When he was told that we had another two babies that were not present; I think I saw some tears in Ayo’s eyes.

“Kanu, how far have you gone with the funds for these babies?” Ayo asked me privately.

“We are in a fix honestly,” I answered and told him that Baby Victoria’s surgery took away most of the fund and that the surgeries were hampering the smooth running of the association. The facility at Ogunlana was very small and with many of the children now staying over there in a boarding arrangement that most of the parents wanted them to adopt, the centre was kind of falling apart.

“The money we were supposed to use and get a bigger apartment went partly to Baby Victoria’s surgery so we are still here in the small place,” I let him know.

“How come they are increasing?” he asked.

“Since the Baby Andrew success story and recently Baby Victoria, LUTH refers families to us and these families come to us with a plea to help. It is difficult to tell them to go as we don’t have the funds to attend to their babies but then if you tell them to go, where do you expect them to go with their Down Syndrome children when we are the only association that takes care of people with DS,” Mrs. Mordi asked.

“The reason is this, nobody amongst us wants to take up the responsibility of telling these mothers and fathers to go,” I made him know.

“How can I help,” Ayo asked and made me know that his wife was working for a Charity organisation in the UK and could help in the aspect of fund raising for the babies exactly.

“Look, we might not provide all the facilities you need but these children especially Ajoke and the others, we need to fix them and let them live,” Ayo told me and I wondered what manner of man he was. This saying reminded me of Bono.

“I can help coordinate in the UK and I believe NVS members will help as well because they showed that zeal when you put the Baby Victoria story online,” He said.

We went on and on and talked about the various activities; the trial, the many protests and the fights we had in the BA Planning Committee room at NVS and laughed. I was thrilled that at least I was part of Ayo’s story in a way.

What moved me most about Ayo was when one of the children came to him; the child was about two years and had running nose with his face all messed up, Ayo gently got out his personal handkerchief and cleaned the boy up after which he carried him and continued our discussion. He might not be aware of that action but I exchanged glances with Mrs. Mordi who was watching also.

The association has presently four DS babies with holes in the heart requiring surgery but unfortunately, one of them, Baby Favour, died yesterday, 13th May 2009. We will be starting the fund raising campaign next week and hope that every villager will be part of this life saving effort.

And from all the members and staff at the Down Syndrome Association of Nigeria, we want to use this opportunity to congratulate Ayo Omotade on his victory over British Airways and the Metropolitan Police in the UK.

Ayo with members and staff of DSAN

He told us about his experince on board British Airways

Ayo was friendly with everybody

He went round the centre chatting everybody up like Obama

Ayo Omtade with Baby Ajoke who has a hole in the heart

Ayo with the DS child he cleaned up with his personal hankerchief

I had my 15 minutes with the Hero

Posing with the staff and members of the Down Syndrome Association of Nigeria

Ayo with the members of DSAN

With new friends

Ayo carrying Baby Ajoke and posing with Mrs. Mordi and Baby Ajoke's aunty.

Robot  # 1 | 14.05.2009 22:53

The Other Side of Ayo Omotade. Ahaoma Kanu The first time I heard about the man called Ayo Omotade, I admired his courage; for standing up to restore the dignity of his fellow human being was not only courageous but religious considering the Parable of the Good Samaritan. The incident was inside British Airways (BA) Flight BA075 on the 27th of March 2008 when Ayo stood up to stand against oppression of the worst nature being perpetuated by some officials of the British Immigration when they attempted to commit murder on board the aircraft of a Nigerian deportee by applying the same inhuman measures that got Osamuyi Aikpitanhi lying six feet deep today. Out of the many passengers on board that plane who were being traumatized by the cries of the man who was s...Read the full article.

Anioma777  # 2 | 14.05.2009 23:27

Kanu you dey waka pass me!!!!! Greta to see an article from you and even better to see it one concerning Mr Omotade the Nigerian hero. Nice pictures of staff and residents of DSON. Mrs Mordi and her team are doing a great job. Let me know when the fund raiser starts. Keep up the good work.:hail:

emj  # 3 | 15.05.2009 07:08

Ahaoma...Great piece...keep up with the good work......You're a good and selfless Nigerian. Thanks's for those pics...Pictures speaks volumes of a person....thanks for using it to speak truth to power....and more power to Ayo for visiting DSAN.....and May Mrs Mordi and Members and staff of DSAN continue to find favour with God and men.:cool: Thanks for keeping us informed about all the going ons at the centre...we thank God for every little and Giant steps:eek:

Ochi Dabari  # 4 | 15.05.2009 08:09

Good work. I have given up on Nigeria as an entity but not the people. We need more like Ayo, to stand up for black people, wherever they come from. ochi

Albany  # 5 | 15.05.2009 09:02

Ayo is a great guy with a natural passion for people, especially people in need. BA was out to villify him but he was not only exonerated, he also emerged a hero and, in my opinion, a goodwill ambassador for Nigeria. Ahaoma was without doubt so overwhelmed by Ayo's 'awesome presence' that he inadvertently failed to highlight how urgently funds are needed at the DSAN. Only towards the end of the piece did the fund-raising/donation aspect get mentioned, albeit, without much detail. It won't be out of place for Ahaoma to write a fresh article on the Down Syndrom, with adequate attention on the activities of and the challenges facing the DSAN, as well as how and where to make a donation. It is not enough to assume that everybody already knows about the DSAN and their activities. All the same, we appreciate your selfless service to humanity.

datuouwadaberechi  # 6 | 15.05.2009 10:54

how can one contribute to the DS project in Lagos or Abuja?

okenikpoto  # 7 | 15.05.2009 15:10

=Albany;356111>Ayo is a great guy with a natural passion for people, especially people in need. BA was out to villify him but he was not only exonerated, he also emerged a hero and, in my opinion, a goodwill ambassador for Nigeria. Ahaoma was without doubt so overwhelmed by Ayo's 'awesome presence' that he inadvertently failed to highlight how urgently funds are needed at the DSAN. Only towards the end of the piece did the fund-raising/donation aspect get mentioned, albeit, without much detail. It won't be out of place for Ahaoma to write a fresh article on the Down Syndrom, with adequate attention on the activities of and the challenges facing the DSAN, as well as how and where to make a donation. It is not enough to assume that everybody already knows about the DSAN and their activities. All the same, we appreciate your selfless service to humanity. Thanks Albany for your observation. I will put out a post next week on what you pointed out. The plan is to mention it in Ayo's message to create some measure of awareness and interest just like it did to you so that by next week when we start with the fundraising, you will know what and why we are doing what we are doing. Anyway, thank you for being a brother.

Dziree  # 8 | 15.05.2009 16:33

Well done Ahaoma. Very nice piece:hail:

okenikpoto  # 9 | 15.05.2009 16:36

=Dziree;356250>Well done Ahaoma. Very nice piece:hail: Thanks my Sister, I have you to thank for getting this oppurtunity to affect humanity

okenikpoto  # 10 | 15.05.2009 16:42

=datuouwadaberechi;356140>how can one contribute to the DS project in Lagos or Abuja? Datuouwadaberechi, I will keep you posted on the information you need. It will be out next week. Thanks and keep the faith.

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