“This No Be Ordinary Energy”: Charly Boy Hails Obasanjo’s Ageless Fire at 89
Maverick entertainer Charles Oputa, popularly known as Charly Boy, has paid a glowing tribute to former President Olusegun Obasanjo after a day-long visit to Abeokuta that left him in awe of the elder statesman’s energy at 89.
Charly Boy, who visited Obasanjo on April 27 to finalize arrangements for the launch of his new book, _999: The Memoir of CharlyBoy described the former president as “the biggest spiritual wizard alive” and marveled at his stamina, wit, and discipline.
According to Charly Boy, he arrived at Obasanjo’s residence around 8 am to deliver the guest list for the book launch and to request a one-minute video endorsement.
Despite a house “crowded like a market square,” Obasanjo made time to receive him, review the list, and hand it to his long-time secretary, Mr. Taiwo.
What followed was an unexpected road trip. “Next thing, Baba practically dragged me into his car. ‘I want you to ride with me to a town called Ilaro,’” Charly Boy recounted.
The journey took nearly two hours on bad roads, yet Obasanjo insisted on inspecting a construction site under “satanic sun” for about 40 minutes. “Dust. Heat. Wahala. Baba was in that sun for at least 40 minutes,” he said.
Back in Abeokuta, in Ogun State, southwest Nigeria, Charly Boy jokingly asked Obasanjo to change into traditional attire for the video shoot, prompting the former president to report him to ex-Governor Donald Duke. “Donald, see this stubborn person telling me to go dress up because he doesn’t like what I’m wearing,” Obasanjo said, leaving everyone in laughter. “This man na comedian aswear,” Charly Boy added.
When cameras rolled, Obasanjo spoke on the Charly Boy brand for nearly an hour instead of the planned five minutes. By the time Charly Boy returned to Lagos past 6 pm, he said his body “had already given up.”
The next day, he learned Obasanjo had played squash and attended to nearly 60 visitors after he left.
“What amazes me about this man is his energy,” Charly Boy wrote. “While some of his mates are in wheelchairs, some can’t walk without a stick, some are riddled with all kinds of ailments… keeping up with him is an assignment.”
He dismissed notions of “juju,” attributing Obasanjo’s vitality to “a healthy lifestyle plus blessings from above.”
“So stop telling me I look good for my 70 something years,” Charly Boy said. “If an 89-year-old still has this kind of drive, still moves like this, then I haven’t even started. I’m still showing up.”
He ended with a prayer: “Because if life takes me to that age, I pray I still have this kind of fire.”
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