Vital lessons from Jumoke George’s ordeal

It was my wife @ashabiidazzle who first forwarded the viral video of veteran Nollywood actress Margaret Olatunde, popularly known as Jumoke George, to me about a fortnight ago about the interview she granted to fellow actress Abiola Adebayo. As someone who greatly detests seeing women, especially mothers, cry, I couldn’t summon the emotional muscle to watch the video. Luckily for me, many media houses made news from the video, which I then read. Her plight was heart-rending – homeless for six years, battling severe illness and confronted with the ordeal of a missing child.

As reported by TheCable, George said, “Everyone, please pray for me. I have never done evil to anyone. I need your prayers. I can no longer bear it. I do not have a home or anything. I even lost a whole child. I do not have good health. I am tired and exhausted. I have tried as a Christian. My first child, Adéolá, has been missing for the past four years. She clocked 41 years. Her children are with me.”

“I have been ill since January 2. I have tried my best as a human. I have done several tests. The only one remaining is for the brain and heart, which will cost ₦400,000. I do not know where to get it. I cannot sleep. I feel pain anytime I try to sleep. I have been indebted. I have borrowed money up to ₦2 million. I do not have a home. I have been living in a church for the last five to six years, and the church priestess has been feeding me.”

Without wasting time, I visited @biolabayo1 ‘s Instagram page, where I got hold of Madam Jumoke’s account number. I sent her my widow’s mite, and many good people who were equally shocked by her plight financially supported while those who couldn’t assist in monetary terms offered her their heartfelt prayers. How much she realised is immaterial to me, but my greatest joy is that she has been reunited with her long-lost daughter, Adeola, whom she had lost hope of ever setting eyes on again.

There are many vital points to learn from Madam Jumoke George’s story, and I will highlight three major ones. The first is that people should learn to speak out while going through hard times rather than remain mute and die a needless death. Like the young man, Honour Oriretan is wont to say, it is unwise to be ashamed and die in silence when help is around the corner. I’ve read stories of people who decided to end it all by drinking sniper and jumping into the Third Mainland Bridge over issues that could have been solved if they had spoken out.

Yes, learn to soro soke when life happens to you. Nobody will know you are going through any pain if you keep masking or faking it. It’s akin to someone desperately searching for a job in order to pay his bills, yet he refuses to apply for jobs or tell anyone about it. Will recruiters bring the job to him in his bedroom? Nigerians are very good people, and no matter the economic hardship being experienced in the country, they are willing to assist people, irrespective of whether they are celebrities or not, when they cry out for help. Social media has made the world a global village. Take judicious advantage of it.

Many people going through hardship have this feeling that ‘I’m so scared that if I did open up, people would think less of me and I would lose respect.’ In reality, that is the natural human instinct, especially for introverts, people who are reticent and those who were once wealthy but fell on hard times. I remembered the interview granted by veteran actor Kola Oyewo in February 2024, where he recounted his battle with prostate enlargement, which made him impotent. Oyewo said another Nollywood actress visited him after the surgery, but he instructed her not to solicit money on his behalf, as his children could support him. The truth, however, is that not everybody can be lucky like Oyewo, with loved ones able to financially shoulder medical expenses or carry other financial burdens.

In the case of Madam Jumoke, she needed just N400,000 (less than £200) for her brain and heart tests. Her condition could have worsened if she had remained silent, and I doubt if she would have had the opportunity to set eyes on her daughter again. Her reaching out to Abiola has changed her story for the better. A vital lesson.

Another vital lesson one can pick from the story is Madam Jumoke’s scandal-free lifestyle. Having practised her profession in an industry that is plagued with all manner of sordid tales, ranging from drug peddling, money laundering, amorous relationships, political brickbats and all manner of vices, Madam Jumoke’s good name was not in any way smirched. I read most comments from people, and nobody said anything negative about her. Only a few fault-finding, ill-mannered individuals, with their boorish attitude, accused her of lying about her missing daughter, but they have been silenced.

In an interview she granted in 2022, when asked why she took a break from acting, Madam Jumoke, who has spent 51 years in the entertainment industry, said she wasn’t given a role in Nollywood for 14 years because she refused to sleep around. Her words, “I did not leave (the industry) of my own volition. Some people in the industry wanted to sleep with me, and I stood my ground that I would not do that with anyone in that sector. Because of that, I was not used or called for acting jobs for 14 years.” What a woman of virtue!

Whatever your hands find doing, do it well. That is another lesson one can learn from Madam Jumoke. Her professionalism in interpreting her roles as an actress is top-notch. She doesn’t just memorise her lines and deliver them; she truly embodies the character, creating a lived-in reality that feels authentic and believable. I watched one of her movies when she acted as a judge, and I thought I was seeing and listening to the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun. As a public official, artisan or private business owner, how well are you handling that role?

The last lesson one can pick from Madam Jumoke is that you shouldn’t judge people’s lifestyles by what you see on social media. That people post pictures looking posh doesn’t imply they don’t have personal issues they are dealing with. While Madam Jumoke was going through serious health and financial challenges, her social media pages were being managed with nice pictures of herself. I’m sure some online miscreants would have even privately messaged her to do a ‘giveaway’. Given her refined looks, a friend of mine, Ayo Ashubiojo, said he was shocked when he saw her video seeking assistance because he had always thought she was a wealthy woman. So, don’t judge people by what you see on social media.

Lastly, I must commend Abiola Adebayo for the great job she’s doing with her Talk To B show. She first caught my attention with the role she played in securing the release of Segun Olowookere, a young man who was arrested at the age of 17 in 2010 for allegedly stealing a fowl and eggs in Osun State and sentenced to death. Well done, Biola, you have elongated Madam Jumoke’s life with your show. Kudos also to Kunle Afod and Foluke Daramola-Salako, and others too numerous to mention, for the roles they have played in getting support for their senior colleagues in the movie industry. Yakubu Oyiza Hope, Folake Flakkyfaj and NidCOM under the leadership of Abike Dabiri-Erewa also deserve commendation for facilitating Madam Jumoke’s daughter’s return from Mali.

However, there are complaints that there are still other trafficked girls in Mali who wanted to return home, but NidCOM only singled out Madam Jumoke’s daughter in order to shine and take the glory, because it is a trending matter. That should be looked into and urgently addressed. Together, let’s put smiles on people’s faces. That is the essence of humanity.

Akinsuyi, a former group politics editor of Daily Independent, writes from the United Kingdom.