It was in 2002. I was tasked with an urgent, significant mission: deliver a confidential letter from the Chairman, Dr. Kolade, to President Olusegun Obasanjo at the fabled Aso Rock Villa in Abuja. This meant picking up the letter that evening and catching an early morning flight.
The alarm woke me pre-dawn. As I prepared to leave home at 5.00 am, my phone rang. It was Dr. Kolade. He apologized profusely for disturbing my sleep and for whatever disruption the trip was causing. He gave clear instructions for navigating the Villa protocol. Then, astonishingly, he asked to speak to my wife.
My wife, though momentarily horrified by the gravity of the call, composed herself. Dr. Kolade then apologized to her for disturbing her sleep and taking her husband away at such an ungodly hour, assuring her that he would ensure my return home that very same day. (In my mind, I naughtily wondered why the “old man” just deftly blocked any fun overnight stay in Abuja!)
I completed the mission, delivered the letter, and returned to Lagos, adding a successful Aso Rock visit to my CV! Hehehe!
Weeks later, while watching NTA Network News, in Abuja on a different assignment, the news broke: Dr. Christopher Kolade had been appointed the Nigerian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom (2002-2007).
I called immediately to congratulate him. Instead of accepting the praise, he thanked me for “making it happen.” Confused, I asked how. He reminded me how, just weeks earlier, I had graciously delivered his acceptance letter for the appointment to the President. My joy was boundless. What a man!
People like the man whose life we have always revered and now celebrate never die; they live forever in the hearts and minds of millions whose lives they touched by their exemplary conduct. And so it is with Dr. Christopher Kolade.
Every single testimony speaks to his integrity and forthrightness and I dare add his remarkable fortitude, having survived the immense pain of his sons who predeceased him. He bore his losses with exemplary grace and dignity.
Therefore, on behalf of my family and myself, I express profound gratitude for the lessons learned from his life of exemplary leadership and service as well as his fatherly love. Lest I forget, CK did come with a great sense of humor, sometimes diabolical, especially when masked by his sometimes unsmiling face. That unsettled only the uninitiated.
May his illustrious soul rest peacefully in paradise.
And may his memories be always s blessing to all who knew and loved him.