The legal icon and founder of Afe Babalola University Ado-Ekiti(ABUAD), Aare Afe Babalola, will be the first person to feature in the Impact Series, a digital TV show that will hit the airwaves in no time.
The founder and CEO of Akin Fadeyi Foundation( AAF), Mr Akin Fadeyi, made this disclosure on Wednedsay at a virtual media briefing announcing the launch of the news story telling digital platform.
Fadeyi, who is also the convener of “Corruption not in my country” campaign, gave an insight into the project and motive behind it.
According to him, there are many people in our society who as nobody becomes somebody in life through their personal struggles. They, against all odds, weathered the storm and rode on their challenges to get to the top. Many of them are either unsung or faintly sung.
“We want to identify and celebrate such people when they’re still alive.
“We don’t want them to die unsung. Because we don’t believe in celebrating people after their demise. It is more honourable to celebrate people when they are alive.
“We are talking about people, who moved from zero opportunity to become an hero.
“People who have made impact in other people’s llives. People from humble beginings and later become heroes and heroines. They are the kinds of people Special Impact Series meant for. “The Impact Series is not for people with questionnable character, not for people who jumped fence to get to the top. Not even for politicians, who have no other address than politics. Not also for people, who get to the top because of having all the opportunities around them, maybe were born into the rich homes, or went to the best of schools in town, or their parents are friends to somebody or people in the position of influece, or who get rich through dubious means such as Yahoo Yahoo or scammers and so forth.
“Those are the kinds of people for Impact Series and Aare Afe Babalola is perfectly fit into the description.
“He is somebody who rose from nobody to become who he is today, a global icon.
“The man, who did not attend more than Primary School, a Standard Six certificate School of those days just because his parents could not afford to send him to secondary school. He had wanted to attend Christ School, Ado Ekiti for secondary education but his parents could not afford to send him there. Yet on his own, he got educated up to the university level through correspondence courses. And today, he is a legal icon, a school proprietor, a big term farmer, a philanthropist of note and a community leader, among others.
“Baba Afe indeed has given so much to the society and he is still giving on daily basis and there is nothing too much to celebrate him.
“We don’t know of any other individual in the entire Ekiti State, for example, who has given so much as him to the people of Ekiti.
“Even though I have never met him one-one-one in my life before and till now, I admired his story so much.”
Fadeyi however, pointed out that it was not that the Foundation wants to feign ignorance that many have celebrated Aare Afe Babalola before now and not that he wants to do a PR story for him, but the fact is that the foundation way of celebrating him and others to be featured subsequently will be unique.
“That is even why we are starting the Impact Series with him so that people will know and understand what the concept is all about.”
Fadeyi explained further on the overall objectives of Impact Series, saying it is to promote and stimulate the culture of tenacity, perseverance, hardwork, due diligence, integrity, forbearance, spirit of not giving up among youths.
“It is to contribute to the building of the society we will all be proud of irrespective of ethnic, religion and social strata.
“Nonetheless, we won’t let the cat out yet until we hit the airwaves.”
Fadeyi, however, pointed out that the platform would not limit to people who are heroes or heroines as many other people in the society particularly the less priviledged and those who are diligent but find it difficult to break forth would alao be featured.
“We will use the platform to impact their lives positively. “The ordinary people on the streets such as roadside vulcanisers, carpenters, tailors, market men and women and so forth.
“We will tell their stories for people to support them,” he noted.
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