By Olusegun Adeniyi
Globacom Chairman, Dr Mike Adenuga Jr is 68 today. Anybody familiar with the story of Nigeriaâs telecoms industry cannot but salute his doggedness even when very few gave him a chance at the beginning of his adventure. In an environment that has become suffocating for entrepreneurship, where industry is no longer encouraged by governmentâs penchant to create bubble jobs that can only worsen our economic problems in the long run, we need to interrogate the value of men like Adenuga. Especially at a time like this.
I have known Adenuga for more than two decades. Yet I cannot recall a time I could directly reach him. Certainly not as THISDAY editor. Nor as presidential spokesman. Or even as THISDAY editorial board chairman. The last time I had any direct contact with him was in June 2010. That was at the Bloemfontein stadium during the World Cup in South Africa which I attended as a member of the presidential task force. Then on 18th January last year (2020), I received a call from a regular Glo number which I didnât have in my contacts. Â So I didnât pick. The person then sent a text message: âMy Bros, MA Jr called.â Despite a strong feeling as to who the caller could be, I was not prepared for anybody to scam me so early in a new year so I ignored the message. When on 27th February 2020, I received a similar message, I decided to call the number. The moment Adenuga picked, I couldn’t mistake his distinctive voice in the roaring laughter. What followed was a long conversation after which he said we should continue to keep in touch. In the course of one of our interactions, he specifically thanked me for the support I gave him when he was fighting for a telecoms license two decades ago. I found that quite touching.