By Chidiebere Nwobodo

“Great men are like eagles, and build their nest on some lofty solitude” – Arthur Schopenhauer

In Igbo etymology, eagle is reverred, adored and celebrated, not because of its nature alone but its large-than-life personality. An eagle is a majestic bird famed for beauty, strength, vision, etc. In all its sterling qualities, an eagle most stunning virtue is its ability to keep itself out of circulation at will. It soars in the sky at its dictated time, fends for food from a position of advantage and retrieves to cliffs beyond reach of humans and other animals to hibernate and regenerate. Solitude is the fuel that rekindles an eagle.

Otunba (Dr.) Mike Adenuga, Jr., comes to mind. He is not just an eagle but a golden one. His magnificent nature vis-a-vis his reclusive lifestyle needs to be understudied by social scientists. The chairman of Nigeria’s largest indigenous telecom company, Globacom, was in the news recently. He went viral on social media and became an interesting topic in the court of public opinion. He was not launching a new product or company, he grabbed headlines just for being seen in the public first time in a long time. Can you imagine! Just a video of his appearance!

Chief Mike Adenuga, Jr., surprisingly showed up at a mini-birthday party in honour of Bright Igbinedion held recently at Lekki, Lagos. Like an eagle that is rarely seen, he stole the show. All attention beamed on him as he casually strode the venue, albeit majestically, exuding ambience of royalty and reverence. Immediately he entered, it was as if the whole place became electrified. His personality dazzled both celebrant and the guests who were held spellbound by the appearance of the golden eagle.

There is an Igbo adage that implies that, the eyes that see an eagle should adore and reverence it because it is not seen often. It could be this philosophy behind this adage that elicited surprised reaction from the public, especially on social media just because Otunba (Dr.) Mike Adenuga, Jr., decided to come down from his mountaintop of abode like an eagle to socialize with the Igbinedion family and guests. There are many adults today that have not had rare privilege of seeing an eagle live, since birth.

Everything they got to know about this beautiful creature was either told to them in TV documentaries or they read it in books. Even as I write, I have not had the opportunity of seeing a live eagle let alone a golden one. Imagine waking up in the morning, casually opening your door to witness appearance of this august visitor; a huge eagle with a windspan of feathers looming over your promises unannounced. What would be your reaction? Shout? Scream? Flabbergasted? Gyrate? Grab your phone to take shots and videos?

If you could do this for an eagle, imagine for a minute what you would do if it were to be the golden eagle himself, Otunba (Dr.) Mike Adenuga, Jr., the spirit of Africa! The bull that ignites bull run wherever he shows up; be it in telecom industry, oil, gas, construction, real estate, etc. I bet, you will be starstruck for a minute before it dawns on you that you need to quickly take many photos and videos before the golden eagle spreads its 9.3-feet windspan and ascends back into the sky, soaring on an altitude beyond reach enroute its fortress, Adenuga Villa.

So, it was not a surprise that video of his recent appearance at a highclass birthday party created such buzz in the media. It was a rare opportunity, especially for younger generations of Nigerians on social media to grasp what Otunba (Dr.) Mike Adenuga, Jr., looked like in a recent live video. On X ( Twitter), @Mautii01 wrote: “First time I’ll be seeing a video of Mike Adenuga in a very very long time.” While X (Twitter) was buzzing, I opened my Facebook only to discover that the viral video was already trending on Mark Zuckerberg’s app.

Adamu Shiroro posted: “Mike Adenuga has mastered the art of making his appearance rare and valued.” Ejike Awgu followed with his own comment: “I have heard a lot about Mike Adenuga, this is my first time of experiencing what he looks like in a live video.” Jonah Shagba wrote on Instagram: “Like the big masquerade, Mike Adenuga’s appearance takes even the most curious unaware.” Tiktok was not left out. Somto Eze reacted: “I am in my early 30s, this is the first time I am seeing Adenuga in a video casually exchanging pleasantries with some people in public.”.

Ace comedian, Seyi Law crowned it on X (Twitter) by reminding Nigerians of philanthropic virtue of this mythical golden eagle that dazzles: “This is the man that God used to make my covid year look like a paid luxury holiday. God in everything, please prolong the life of Otunba (Dr.) Mike Adenuga. May anything that concerns him not spoil in his lifetime and even when he is gone”. While I say amen to the prayers of Seyi Law, I want to reiterate that Adenuga’s biggest philanthropic gesture to all Nigerians, including those unborn, was liberalising telecom industry in the country.

If not what he did with Globacom, by breaking duopoly of legacy mobile operators, many Nigerians would not have had the opportunity of owing mobile lines today. We would still be charged using per a minute billing system.