Mr Emmanuel Adejumo, one of the sons of Iconic filmmaker and actor, Baba Sala who passed on Sunday night spoke to NET about the last moments of his iconic father before he passed on.
The foremost comedian and actor reportedly died on Sunday night after several bouts of illnesses over the years.
Speaking exclusively to our correspondent, Emmanuel described Baba Sala’s final moments as peaceful, smiling just as he lived his life.
“My father was a peaceful man. I saw him two weeks ago during our family harvest thanksgiving and surprisingly, he kept praying for me before I left. He asked us not to quarrel amongst each other. He literally begged us to be united and remain one big family,” he said.
For a few years now, there had been several reports of Baba Sala dying in various media outlets. In 2015 he was said to be in a critical condition at the University College Hospital. The last rumour of his death was last year, leading another of his sons to tell us that “he was hale and hearty and living out his days in peace.”
His eventual transition yesterday was termed by the family to be as a result of old age.
“He had been ill for a long time and was already getting weary. Thus, on Sunday night he was given his dinner by our household, but by the time she went to check on him again, she called him twice, but he was not responsive. It was then that she called us and told us Baba had passed on.”
READ: ‘I am Proud To Be Your Daughter’- Baba Sala’s Daughter Mourns Legendary Actor
“We thank God he dared to live an impactful and eventful life. The world knows that Baba Sala travelled the road that was less travelled and we are very proud to be his children. I never knew he was this loved because a lot of people have been calling me from all over the world,” Emmanuel added.
The body of the legendary actor has since been deposited at the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospital Complex Annex, (Wesley Guild Hospital) in Ilesha while the family says his burial arrangements will be announced at a later date.
Baba Sala was Nigeria’s first successful comedian, starting his Awada Kerikeri drama group in the early 1960’s after a short stint in the civil service as a sanitary inspector. This he combined with a part-time teaching work and the daily thrift collection popularly called ‘Ajo’ among the Yorubas. In the late evenings, he would transform from a thrift collector into a highlife musician. And in 1964, he led a group known as the Federal Rhythm Dandies, which was the band through which Baba Sala launched himself into stardom. The band was known for its quality Juju music which was always on hand at different social gatherings.
Some of his best work include Mosebolatan, Aare Agbaye, Agba Man, Obe ‘Gbona, Return Match, Diamond and Ana Gomina.