As a banker, what was the inspiration for going into philanthropy?
I did not start philanthropy after I became a banker. I was just about 36 when I set up some scholarship funds to train students in some schools in Ijebu. I gather that at the last count there are no fewer than 300 university graduates that have benefitted from my scholarships. One of the scholarships is in honour of my father, another in honour of my mother.
But why particularly am I showing interest in children? Many years ago, the management of the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, saw the dilapidated condition of their equipment and the whole environment and started inviting some distinguished Nigerians to the hospital to see what they could do in form of assistance. I was also invited.
We were being taken round the hospital and a cousin of mine, a physician, Professor Olumade Adeuja, said I should come to the children’s ward. I followed him. When I got there, a drip stand was being passed from one bed to the other and before it could get to the other bed, the child who was to receive the drip died. Tears rolled down my eyes and from that day I swore that I would spend most of the rest of my life seeing to the welfare, survival and healthcare of children.
These days you talk so much about God. At what point did you turn to God?
I have always been close to God. Let me tell you a bit of my background. My two parents were very religious but they were Muslims. When I was at Igbobi College, I was drawn to attend church service. Incidentally, my late mother was educated. I confided in her that I was going to convert to Christianity. The late Bishop Segun, who was a priest at Porogun Church in Ijebu Ode, converted me at the age of 13. Having accepted Jesus, I just found myself loving Him. I was confirmed at the age of 19. However, I love reading the scriptures; the more I read the more I get to know God and the more I love Him. I became so much involved in talking about Christ.
After 80 years of sojourning on earth, there must have been some things that you did then which with the benefit of hindsight you would wish you had not done. What are those things?
I have a very strong character. There is nothing that I did that I wish I had not done. I have no regret over any of my past actions. When I was starting FCMB, I said I was coming with a culture of excellence and I defined what the culture of excellence would be. I was the first to create a special dining room for banks. I was the first to insist that my staff should be wearing dark suits. I wouldn’t say that I am anything more than a human being but there was the unseen hand of God holding me. If I come again, I would do all that I have done again.
At 80, are there things you still want from God?
I want my God to use me. I want to spend the rest of my life giving my service to God and humanity. I want my God to give me the opportunity of showing my appreciation. This birthday is an occasion of giving thanks. I am not asking for anything again in life. All the beautiful things of this life God has given me. I now have a duty to devote the rest of my life to serve my God, to serve humanity and to continue to do things like what I have done with the Otunba Tunwase National Paediatric Centre because at the end of the day none of us will drive a Rolls Royce to the grave. You won’t carry your house to the grave. When the final call comes, you will just open your hands and say, “God, here I am.” To be able to do that, you need the grace of God.
You are called the Grandmaster of Banking. How did that appellation come to be?
I had just retired from the bank when suddenly we were told to raise our share capital to N25billion. I told my people in the bank that I was going to lead the campaign to raise the capital. I told a highly revered statesman that I wanted to come and see him to sell some of our shares to him. He said, “You have been selling other people’s shares, now you are coming out of retirement to sell your own?” I said, “Yes.” He said, “Do you play chess?” I said, “I don’t play chess.” He said, “That is what we call the Grandmaster.” I liked that name and I asked that T shirts be made for everybody; staff and relations. We went about town with the T shirts. That was how the name stuck. Many people did not give us any chance but our shares were oversubscribed. We even ended up acquiring six banks. Later we acquired Finbank, which was an amalgamation of four banks. These are some of the wonderful things that God has done for me.
You are a man of style. Is it something that has been with you right from the beginning or something you developed later in life?
I think it is God-given. People talk about my wearing white. I just felt at a point in life that I wanted to be pure and the nearest to purity is white. So I choose white as my colour. Beyond houses, my cars, my everything is white.
Style has to do with being enlightened. Style is something unique to you; something that can be ascribed to you alone. How did you meet your wife?
God gave her to me. Like all young men I sowed my wild oats. One day, I was with a friend of mine and there were two girls coming. I told my friend, “Taiwo, I am no longer interested in running after these ladies. Look at that young girl coming, I am going to date her and mould her to what I want.” My friend did not believe me. But the moment I picked one of the two girls, I believe there was a manifestation of God’s influence on my choice.
When I told her she ran away. I went into a particular ministry where she was working, she had just left secondary school then. The permanent secretary saw me with her and said, “Subomi, you are a cradle snatcher.” I said, “Let me be.”
When I noticed that she was having interest in me, I told her, “I am a Prince and you will be an Olori. I served a notice on all my friends, “This is the lady I am going to marry, call her Olori.” Since then everybody has been calling her Olori. This was before I was made Otunba.I think it was God. She had just left St. Annes and was going to further her studies when we met. I believe that God guided me. Luckily for me, God also influenced her own reaction, not only was she devoted, she quickly learnt the ropes. She was in her early twenties when we got married and in quick succession, we had four sons. By the time my wife was 26, we already had all our children and we started travelling around the world.
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