‘Popular But Not Important,’ Obasanjo Gives Reason He’s Unfamiliar With Don Jazzy, Carter Efe, Other Celebrities

● Yorubas without tribal marks were from poor Families; Nigerian ex-president speaks on how he coped with insults, Jaga jaga Charly Boy, among others on Curiosity Made Me Ask

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has recounted how entertainer Charles Oputa, popularly known as Charly Boy, changed his perception of him through the care he gave to his late father, Justice Chukwudifu Oputa.

NOP NIGERIA reports that Obasanjo spoke on an episode of the podcast Curiosity Made Me Ask hosted by comedian Isbae U on Saturday, where he explained why he often describes Charly Boy as ‘jaga jaga’.

He said he had great respect for the late Justice Oputa but initially had no regard for his son.

“Well, Charly Boy is so jaga jaga that I don’t know anything about him,” Obasanjo said.

“He has a good father, Justice Oputa. Oh, what a great man. I wish Charly Boy had resembled him,” he stated.

“When I first came to know Charly Boy, I had no iota of regard or respect for him,” he added.

Obasanjo narrated how he visited Justice Oputa without knowing the late jurist was living in Charly Boy’s house, and was put off by a heavily decorated motorcycle parked in front.

“But when I went to visit Justice and it was in Charly Boy’s house. I didn’t know it was in Charly Boy’s house. So the first thing that put me off in that house, I saw a motorcycle in front of the house. The way the motorcycle was dressed and all that, I said, ‘What is this?’” he said.

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He said his impression changed immediately he entered the house and saw how the retired Supreme Court justice was being looked after.

“And then I went inside the house. I saw how Justice was being taken care of and by who? Charly Boy. Ah, so I started changing my mind about Charly Boy and until Justice Oputa died, Charly Boy took perfect care of him, looked after him and he really behaved like a good child would give to his father,” Obasanjo said.

The former president said Charly Boy extended the same care to his mother, whom he described as a “great humorous woman” whom he frequently visited.

“He didn’t stop there. He did the same to his mother. And I used to frequently visit the mother, who was a great humorous woman. Charly Boy took care of her. Then I started changing my mind. I changed my mind about him,” he said.

Obasanjo said he later confronted Charly Boy about his eccentric lifestyle, and was told it was a means of livelihood.

“Then one day I asked him, I said, ‘Look, Charly Boy, what is all this?’” he said, adding that Charly Boy explained: “all those jaga jaga things that I see, is to make chop-chop.”

Obasanjo described Charly Boy as intelligent, noting that sustaining such a persona as a career requires intelligence.

“It’s an intelligent boy, that Charly Boy, all jaga jaga, because you cannot do jaga jaga to earn a living without being intelligent,” he said.

He concluded that he now has some affection for the entertainer, albeit limited.

“So now I like him a bit, not too much,” Obasanjo said.

The former president also humorously explained why he is unfamiliar with several popular Nigerian entertainment figures, including music executive Don Jazzy, dancer Poco Lee, and content creator Carter Efe.

When asked if he knew Carter Efe, Poco Lee, or Don Jazzy, Obasanjo replied that he did not know any of them.

In response to Isbae U’s suggestion that the entertainers likely know him even if he does not know them, Obasanjo jokingly quipped that it might be because they are not important enough for him to follow.

“So you know people that I don’t know,” Obasanjo remarked. “Maybe because they are not important people, that’s why”, he said.

Speaking further, Obasanjo claimed that only the rich Yorubas could afford traditional tribal marks in the olden days, saying those who could not get the marks were considered poor.

According to Obasanjo, traditional tribal marks were once used as a means of identification, especially during the slave trade era.

He added that the markings made it possible for people to recognise members of their own communities, even after they had been separated from their homes.

He said: “Tribal marks in those old days were used so that people, even when they were sold into slavery, could identify their own people. That is the purpose of tribal marks.

“If you are a Yoruba man and you don’t have tribal mark, you must be very poor, because you no get money to make mark.”

NOP NIGERIA