Living
Wale Alonge: Celebrating Yinka Fasuyi, Man Absolutely Obsessed with Delivering Development for ljesaland
Dr. Wale Alonge, renowned world-academic and professor of entrepreneurship, is the President of the Egbe Omo Oduduwa of South Florida, and the Florida Association of Egbe Omo Obokun. He is also the Vice President of the Ijesa Global Alliance for Development.
As a man with a shared vision with Asiwaju Olayinka Fasuyi, the Asiwaju of Ijesaland, as a man who eats, drinks and breathes development like the Asiwaju, Dr. Alonge is pretty much at home writing a flowery yet factual tribute to a man he says is absolutely obsessed with delivering development for his homeland, Ijesaland.
Please, read on:
When I was invited to write a 70th birthday tribute to a man with a larger-than-life personality, a record of greatness and of accomplishment like Asiwaju Yinka Asiwaju, I pondered for a very long thinking what do you write about an enigmatic personality like Asiwaju Fasuyi.
The phrase that kept coming to my mind was greatness. Then, the words of incomparable William Shakespeare in his iconic Twelfth Night Play came streaming to my mind, where he wrote “Be not afraid of greatness. Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and others have greatness thrust upon them”. That started me thinking what makes Yinka Fasuyi great? What sets him apart from his contemporaries? Then I began to write.
Yes, Asiwaju Yinka Fasuyi was born into the illustrious and iconic Fasuyi family, from where he learned early in life that mediocrity was antithetical to the Fasuyi DNA. Yet, that was not makes him great. After all, human history is filled with sad biographies of many who were born into great families and who ended up
as absolute mediocrities. He didn’t attain the stupendous success in his professional and business endeavor as a titular inheritance given to him on a platter of gold, unearned or unmerited.
The initial honorary chieftaincy title bestowed on him by our Imperial Majesty, Late Owa Obokun Adimula of ljesaland, Owa Dr. Gabriel Adekunle Aromolaran, first as Asiwaju of Ilesa and his subsequent.elevation as Asiwaju of ljesaland were not titles of inheritance or circumstance. Unlike Malvolio, the steward of Countess Olivia, who was been pranked, and who unbeknown to him was being made the butt of the joke of the other servants who he looked down upon, Asiwaju Yinka Fasuyi has achieved his greatness not by circumstance, but by redefining every enterprise he has laid his hand upon.
When His Imperial Majesty Late Owa Adimula Aromolaran, first appointed then
Yinka Fasuyi, as the Asiwaju of Ilesa, before he elevated him as Asiwaju of ljesaland, he did so because of the transformative leadership scorecard of Asiwaju Fasuyi. Not in His Royal Majesty’s wildest dream could he have imagined that his appointment of Yinka Fasuyi as the Asiwaju of ljesaland would be recorded in the history book, as arguably his single most consequential royal decision, one that would forever redefine his own scorecard of achievements as the Paramount Ruler of ljesaland. Asiwaju Fasuyi has not only set a new benchmark for what is to be expected as Asiwaju of ljesaland, it would not be an exaggeration to say that he in fact has redefined that role permanently across Yorubaland.
Anyone who has spent any amount of time with Asiwaju Yinka Fasuyi, would see clearly that he has imbibed the essence of the quote often credited to that great American Icon Walt Disney who wrote “To succeed, never give up and above all, cherish a magnificent obsession”.
Asiwaju Yinka Fasuyi is absolutely obsessed with delivering development for ljesaland. He wakes up and goes to bed dreaming of what new project, what new frontier, what new problem needs solution in ljesaland, no matter how outlandish or seemingly unattainable by his many critics, Yinka Fasuyi simply plows in heads on, defies gravity, takes no prisoner, discountenances any skepticism until his vision becomes a reality. He has an unquenchable energy, drive, passion and obsession for accomplishing whatever it is he puts his mind to.
He leads by example, with integrity, with passion, transparency and accountability. Even for the many who have stylistic difference with him, no one can deny his undying love, passion, commitment, and unbendable dedication to ljesaland and its development. His record speaks for itself. The list is legendary, and it is out there for all to see.
Asiwaju Fasuyi works hard at everything he does and by the same token he is not bashful or shy about letting people know about his accomplishments.
My first face to face encounter with Asiwaju Yinka Fasuyi left me in no doubt that this was a man who not only truly obsessed with Ijesaland development but obsessed with showcasing it in his manner of dressing. It was at the 2019 Convention of the National Council of Egbe Omo Obokun of ljesaland in Atlanta. I was the coordinator and moderator for the ljesa Development symposium, which we organized as part of that convention. Asiwaju Yinka Fasuyi was the Special Guest of Honor and keynote speaker at the symposium.
In hot Atlanta August summer heat, sweating like a marathon runner on the last lap of a race, Asiwaju was decked in what appeared like a 50-pound Aso Etu. As hot as it got, Asiwaju Fasuyi pressed on with his passionate plea for the ljesa in the Diaspora in North America to join hands with him in his ambitious plan for transforming and redefining the economic landscape of ljesaland. Hispassion, his positive obsession for ljesaland and advocacy for it won me and many other ljesa in North America to his team.
So, as you mark your landmark 70th birthday, we celebrate you for your love for our Ijesa motherland, for your passion, commitment, drive, sacrifice, energy, leadership and positive obsession to and with its development.
Your scorecard of development of Ijesaland is a testimony to your steadfastness, resilience, doggedness, creativity and ingenuity.
As you mark this milestone age, I wish you good health, continued joy, and long life as you continue to serve our Motherland and our nation at large.
I cannot complete this tribute without singling out your beautiful wife Yeye Asiwaju for her steadfastness, her love, commitment and sacrifice. No man commits so much of their being to community development without a supportive and dedicated wife.
Here is another seventy years of making the world and especially our beloved ljesaland a more wholesome, united and prosperous land.
Best wishes on your birthday.
Dr. Wale Alonge.
