By Bamidele Ademola-Olateju

At a time like this, I miss the taunts and gloats of my late friend – Pius Adesanmi. As an unwritten rule, we don’t often attack persons, we address their behavior. We find away to deride the actions and inactions of public figures without getting personal. It is a fine line we tread. For Pius, he did it so well with satire. When Chief Femi Fani-Kayode started breaching his internal guardrails, my friend wanted to write an Op-ed focused on what he has become. He sought my opinion. One of the core nuances of the Ọmọlúwàbí ethos is sensibility. In our discussions, we often navigate these nuances and relate them to how we address issues. I told him our fathers often say; b’ọ̀mọ ó jọ ṣòkòtò, á jọ kíjìpá. Of course, the study of genetics confirmed it; a child takes after the father or mother, with some leeway for aberrant behavior. I delved into history and my friend got the memo. The Op-ed was never written. Until his death, for every headline FFK made, he would often call or send a message; Bamidele! Ó tún ti bẹ̀rẹ̀ o! (He has started again!). One day, I told him, fi Fani-Kayode sílẹ̀, wèrè Ilé ni. Leave him alone, he is our resident lunatic.

We have Wèrè ilé and Wèrè ìta. We often need a resident lunatic to confront the itinerant, nomadic or roving lunatic whenever the occasion arise. FFK is the true son of his father. I learnt he went gauzy again. Well, this thing often flare up. When the flares come, we understand. He is our Wèrè Ilé.