Comedian,
Babatunde Omidina, otherwise known as Baba Suwe, has carved out his own
niche in the Yoruba movie industry. The veteran actor here speaks on the
aftermath of his ordeal at the hands of the National Drug Law
Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), issues around the Association of Nigeria
Theatre Act Practitioners (ANTP), the death of his lawyer, Bamidele
Aturu, among other things. Excerpts:
You have been in the movie industry for decades. Would you say it has been fulfilling?
I would be an ingrate to God if I said I am not fulfilled on the job. It has been a worthwhile experience and I appreciate God for that. There have been lots of opened doors through it and in fact, my first trip abroad was through theatre.
People used to invite me to perform abroad, but I often declined. Then one day, some people brought a letter to my office from Afro-Hollywood, but I told them I wasn’t interested. There was no mobile phone then, so, they later called my land line and my wife was the one who answered. They told her I did not respond to their offer and when she told me about the call, I told her I wasn’t interested, but she persuaded me to go and see them and I did. I went to their office at Marina for audition and I was picked. Then, I travelled abroad.
Many are of the opinion that your style of comedy is not relevant anymore. What is your reaction to that?
I believe that the industry is big enough for everyone to showcase their skills. I met some people in the industry as well. The likes of Aluwe, Papalolo, Jacob and Aderupoko were there before me. I made a name for myself while they also remained relevant. We all have different styles and can fit into different acts in the industry. I have been in this industry for close to 40 years and my fame has gone ahead of me.
What has kept you going in the 40 years you have been in the industry?
For me, being in the industry is not just about acting. I made a very good profit from my first movie production. And with the profit, I bought a camera and started a business. Now, I have cameras, projectors, editing equipment and about 12 apprentices.
I had a big office then with a location bus and I ensured that I bought more equipment every trip I made abroad. I bought cameras, cassettes, microphones, speakers and other theatre equipment, started a rental business and that gave me more money. I make sure I bought a piece of land and a car after every movie I produced. When other people in the industry saw this, they too started acquiring properties. I really loved Michael Jackson and wanted to be like him. I wanted to achieve the way he did in showbiz, but I thank God for where I am.
The rate at which you feature in movies has dropped. Is it a decision you made or the tune of the demand now?
I did not stop acting and I believe there is time for everyone. There are more people in the industry now and we are all doing our parts, unlike those days when we were few. But in spite of everything, I remain in the industry.
How did your ordeal with NDLEA begin?
It is a long story. What they did tarnished my image. It really hurt me. Theatre is the only way I make money and when my films hit Idumota, it makes the most sales in the industry. I make money from my rental business and as a master of ceremony within and outside Nigeria. The incident affected all that.
The trip I wanted to make when the incident happened was for a friend’s baby’s naming ceremony. I was asked to be the MC at the christening ceremony. I just got back from London about a month before then, from a movie production with Sanyeri. I was at the airport that day with my sibling and a friend. My friend even had with him, dundu (fried yam) and akara (bean cakes) which we ate at the airport. That was around 8.30 p.m.
I had got a camera from someone around 10.30 p.m. and was about to board when the incident began to unfold. I had walked past NDLEA officials when a lady among them called me, ‘Baba Suwe, go and see the person standing there.’ I went to see the person she pointed at and was surprised when the person took me directly to their scanning machine. I was even more surprised when he told me I was positive. He said I was a drug pusher and I told him I was not. It all seemed like a setup to me. Before I realised what was going on, I was taken upstairs, to their boss’s office and the boss started throwing accusations at me. ‘Baba Suwe, you are a drug pusher. You deal in cocaine,’ he said and I immediately refuted the accusation.
As if that was not strange enough, he ordered one of his boys to give me 24 lashes of the cane. I couldn’t believe my ears. I asked what that was for and the guy he ordered to cane me just looked at me, smiled and left.
It was when he came back that I realised that the situation was serious. They sat me down for a thorough interrogation which lasted till the next day. In the morning, I pleaded with them to, at least, release the man who was arrested with me because he had to be at his child’s christening. They eventually released him that morning and then transferred me to their hospital where they flushed my system but did not find any drug in me.
At this point, their boss even pitied me. He told me he heard they did not find any drug in me and I answered in the affirmative. They took me back to the airport and I thought they were going to release me, but I was again taken to the general hospital, where they conducted series of tests on me but still couldn’t find anything. The only thing they did not do was to open me up and I would have been happier if they had done that because I am sure they still would not find any drug in me. At least, by then, it would be clear that there was nothing in me.
How were you treated while you were being held there?
They maltreated me for the 19 days that I was there. I slept on metal chairs. I was taken to another hospital again and yet, nothing was found. At this stage, my son had got a lawyer for me. The lawyer, in confidence, asked me if I was dealing in drug for real so as to know how to run their case and I told him that I was doing no such thing. I told him I had travelled to many developed countries with sophisticated and automated airports and I had never had any case with them.
I was eventually charged to court and it was then that it came to light that they had gone to court behind my back even when I was in detention and had gotten judgment. I had no idea. It was the judge in this (new) court that blew things open and told them that he was giving them three days and if they did not find any drugs in my system, I would be discharged.
I was taken to another hospital in Victoria Island the next day where tests were conducted on me again and nothing was found in me. They scanned and flushed me and they almost killed me this time around, but still, nothing was found.
We appeared in court the third day and the judge, having heard what happened, asked the NDLEA the result they got from the hospital, but there was nothing to show. The judge then asked me if I could identify the NDLEA official who took me to the hospital and I did. The official I identified, in his own defence, said it was an order from his superiors. Eventually, the judge ruled in my favour and charged NDLEA with defamation of character and ordered them to pay me N25 million as compensation and make a public apology in two national dailies to clear my name. But they are yet to do any of those things.
What is the situation on the case now?
That case is on as we speak. We don’t know how it will end. I am yet to get any compensation from NDLEA and they did not even apologise. Even if they did not pay me a dime but only apologised in the newspapers, I would be satisfied. I hate being implicated and that was exactly was happened.
I actually excreted more than 25 times the first day and nothing was found in my faeces. All the faeces were kept for record purpose.
I believe that someone was behind it all. I don’t know who or why he did it. It could be jealousy, but there is no smoke without fire.
Many believe that you used charm to hide the drug…
I did not use any charm. If there was a charm for drug dealing, I believe the herbalists would be the ones doing drug business themselves. It is said that nobody could have cocaine in their system for more than two days and survive it. I was in detention for 19 days. I love being in company when travelling, so, would I be dealing in drugs and be travelling with people, different people for that matter? I did not use charm. I am not a cocaine pusher, so, I need no charm to cover anything up. God has blessed me in the movie industry and all the wealth and fame I got was from making movies.
Many people made money off the situation and I can see a calendar with a cartoon of you in NDLEA detention here in your office. Why did you keep it?
I keep this here as a remembrance for myself and for anyone that comes around to see it. Anytime I see it, I remember the ordeal I went through at the hands of NDLEA officials. They all wanted to make money, not minding whether what they were selling was true or not.
Do you have any plan to make a movie about the incident?
As a matter of fact, I will still shoot a movie about the whole ordeal. I want to show Nigerians what actually happened.
You recently lost your lawyer, Bamidele Aturu. What kind of person was he?
Aturu was very good to me and I pray his soul rests in peace. He was a good man. He was not particular about money. He was trustworthy and dedicated. He stood by me and I am forever grateful. He was God-sent and I am really pained by his death.
I’m sure you really miss your wife, Moladun. Where did the love story begin for both of you?
May her soul rest in peace. I met her on the job. Although I didn’t really know her, the first day I saw her at a location, I really liked her, but she refused my advances. She thought I just wanted to play around and as God would have it, we met again and I persisted and when she realised I was serious, we got closer and that was it.
She was like my best friend. The best part was when we were on set together. I really miss her a lot. It was not a good experience at all. When she was alive, we were always together. There were days we would just be in the sitting room talking till I left in the afternoon for my office.
Are your children following in the footpath of your career?
I have two children in the industry. When I realised one of them wasn’t serious with his studies, I stopped him from acting. But the senior one, Adesola, has great love for this job and has plans to promote it and take it to a higher level. He has produced a movie but had to travel to America to further his studies.
Do you think the government is doing enough to support the movie industry?
I would say yes, to some extent. But the issue of piracy still needs to be look into. We need the support of the government on that.
Many actors now are now delving into politics and given your close relationship with a couple of politicians, do you intend to do the same?
No I don’t. I am not interested in politics and I have no intention of delving into it at all.
How do you relax?
I love to play ludo and table tennis, and I love to swim.
Do you have plans to marry again?
Marriage takes patience, and I have not seen anyone that can fit into that place in my life. So, I am taking my time.
I would be an ingrate to God if I said I am not fulfilled on the job. It has been a worthwhile experience and I appreciate God for that. There have been lots of opened doors through it and in fact, my first trip abroad was through theatre.
People used to invite me to perform abroad, but I often declined. Then one day, some people brought a letter to my office from Afro-Hollywood, but I told them I wasn’t interested. There was no mobile phone then, so, they later called my land line and my wife was the one who answered. They told her I did not respond to their offer and when she told me about the call, I told her I wasn’t interested, but she persuaded me to go and see them and I did. I went to their office at Marina for audition and I was picked. Then, I travelled abroad.
Many are of the opinion that your style of comedy is not relevant anymore. What is your reaction to that?
I believe that the industry is big enough for everyone to showcase their skills. I met some people in the industry as well. The likes of Aluwe, Papalolo, Jacob and Aderupoko were there before me. I made a name for myself while they also remained relevant. We all have different styles and can fit into different acts in the industry. I have been in this industry for close to 40 years and my fame has gone ahead of me.
What has kept you going in the 40 years you have been in the industry?
For me, being in the industry is not just about acting. I made a very good profit from my first movie production. And with the profit, I bought a camera and started a business. Now, I have cameras, projectors, editing equipment and about 12 apprentices.
I had a big office then with a location bus and I ensured that I bought more equipment every trip I made abroad. I bought cameras, cassettes, microphones, speakers and other theatre equipment, started a rental business and that gave me more money. I make sure I bought a piece of land and a car after every movie I produced. When other people in the industry saw this, they too started acquiring properties. I really loved Michael Jackson and wanted to be like him. I wanted to achieve the way he did in showbiz, but I thank God for where I am.
The rate at which you feature in movies has dropped. Is it a decision you made or the tune of the demand now?
I did not stop acting and I believe there is time for everyone. There are more people in the industry now and we are all doing our parts, unlike those days when we were few. But in spite of everything, I remain in the industry.
How did your ordeal with NDLEA begin?
It is a long story. What they did tarnished my image. It really hurt me. Theatre is the only way I make money and when my films hit Idumota, it makes the most sales in the industry. I make money from my rental business and as a master of ceremony within and outside Nigeria. The incident affected all that.
The trip I wanted to make when the incident happened was for a friend’s baby’s naming ceremony. I was asked to be the MC at the christening ceremony. I just got back from London about a month before then, from a movie production with Sanyeri. I was at the airport that day with my sibling and a friend. My friend even had with him, dundu (fried yam) and akara (bean cakes) which we ate at the airport. That was around 8.30 p.m.
I had got a camera from someone around 10.30 p.m. and was about to board when the incident began to unfold. I had walked past NDLEA officials when a lady among them called me, ‘Baba Suwe, go and see the person standing there.’ I went to see the person she pointed at and was surprised when the person took me directly to their scanning machine. I was even more surprised when he told me I was positive. He said I was a drug pusher and I told him I was not. It all seemed like a setup to me. Before I realised what was going on, I was taken upstairs, to their boss’s office and the boss started throwing accusations at me. ‘Baba Suwe, you are a drug pusher. You deal in cocaine,’ he said and I immediately refuted the accusation.
As if that was not strange enough, he ordered one of his boys to give me 24 lashes of the cane. I couldn’t believe my ears. I asked what that was for and the guy he ordered to cane me just looked at me, smiled and left.
It was when he came back that I realised that the situation was serious. They sat me down for a thorough interrogation which lasted till the next day. In the morning, I pleaded with them to, at least, release the man who was arrested with me because he had to be at his child’s christening. They eventually released him that morning and then transferred me to their hospital where they flushed my system but did not find any drug in me.
At this point, their boss even pitied me. He told me he heard they did not find any drug in me and I answered in the affirmative. They took me back to the airport and I thought they were going to release me, but I was again taken to the general hospital, where they conducted series of tests on me but still couldn’t find anything. The only thing they did not do was to open me up and I would have been happier if they had done that because I am sure they still would not find any drug in me. At least, by then, it would be clear that there was nothing in me.
How were you treated while you were being held there?
They maltreated me for the 19 days that I was there. I slept on metal chairs. I was taken to another hospital again and yet, nothing was found. At this stage, my son had got a lawyer for me. The lawyer, in confidence, asked me if I was dealing in drug for real so as to know how to run their case and I told him that I was doing no such thing. I told him I had travelled to many developed countries with sophisticated and automated airports and I had never had any case with them.
I was eventually charged to court and it was then that it came to light that they had gone to court behind my back even when I was in detention and had gotten judgment. I had no idea. It was the judge in this (new) court that blew things open and told them that he was giving them three days and if they did not find any drugs in my system, I would be discharged.
I was taken to another hospital in Victoria Island the next day where tests were conducted on me again and nothing was found in me. They scanned and flushed me and they almost killed me this time around, but still, nothing was found.
We appeared in court the third day and the judge, having heard what happened, asked the NDLEA the result they got from the hospital, but there was nothing to show. The judge then asked me if I could identify the NDLEA official who took me to the hospital and I did. The official I identified, in his own defence, said it was an order from his superiors. Eventually, the judge ruled in my favour and charged NDLEA with defamation of character and ordered them to pay me N25 million as compensation and make a public apology in two national dailies to clear my name. But they are yet to do any of those things.
What is the situation on the case now?
That case is on as we speak. We don’t know how it will end. I am yet to get any compensation from NDLEA and they did not even apologise. Even if they did not pay me a dime but only apologised in the newspapers, I would be satisfied. I hate being implicated and that was exactly was happened.
I actually excreted more than 25 times the first day and nothing was found in my faeces. All the faeces were kept for record purpose.
I believe that someone was behind it all. I don’t know who or why he did it. It could be jealousy, but there is no smoke without fire.
Many believe that you used charm to hide the drug…
I did not use any charm. If there was a charm for drug dealing, I believe the herbalists would be the ones doing drug business themselves. It is said that nobody could have cocaine in their system for more than two days and survive it. I was in detention for 19 days. I love being in company when travelling, so, would I be dealing in drugs and be travelling with people, different people for that matter? I did not use charm. I am not a cocaine pusher, so, I need no charm to cover anything up. God has blessed me in the movie industry and all the wealth and fame I got was from making movies.
Many people made money off the situation and I can see a calendar with a cartoon of you in NDLEA detention here in your office. Why did you keep it?
I keep this here as a remembrance for myself and for anyone that comes around to see it. Anytime I see it, I remember the ordeal I went through at the hands of NDLEA officials. They all wanted to make money, not minding whether what they were selling was true or not.
Do you have any plan to make a movie about the incident?
As a matter of fact, I will still shoot a movie about the whole ordeal. I want to show Nigerians what actually happened.
You recently lost your lawyer, Bamidele Aturu. What kind of person was he?
Aturu was very good to me and I pray his soul rests in peace. He was a good man. He was not particular about money. He was trustworthy and dedicated. He stood by me and I am forever grateful. He was God-sent and I am really pained by his death.
I’m sure you really miss your wife, Moladun. Where did the love story begin for both of you?
May her soul rest in peace. I met her on the job. Although I didn’t really know her, the first day I saw her at a location, I really liked her, but she refused my advances. She thought I just wanted to play around and as God would have it, we met again and I persisted and when she realised I was serious, we got closer and that was it.
She was like my best friend. The best part was when we were on set together. I really miss her a lot. It was not a good experience at all. When she was alive, we were always together. There were days we would just be in the sitting room talking till I left in the afternoon for my office.
Are your children following in the footpath of your career?
I have two children in the industry. When I realised one of them wasn’t serious with his studies, I stopped him from acting. But the senior one, Adesola, has great love for this job and has plans to promote it and take it to a higher level. He has produced a movie but had to travel to America to further his studies.
Do you think the government is doing enough to support the movie industry?
I would say yes, to some extent. But the issue of piracy still needs to be look into. We need the support of the government on that.
Many actors now are now delving into politics and given your close relationship with a couple of politicians, do you intend to do the same?
No I don’t. I am not interested in politics and I have no intention of delving into it at all.
How do you relax?
I love to play ludo and table tennis, and I love to swim.
Do you have plans to marry again?
Marriage takes patience, and I have not seen anyone that can fit into that place in my life. So, I am taking my time.
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