By Chioma Gabriel
First daughter of late multi-billionaire diplomat
and businessman, Antonio Oladeinde Fernandez,
has shed more light on the personality of the late
billionaire diplomat, dismissing allega-tions of
mystery being built around him.
The one-time commissioner under Fashola’s
administration in Lagos State, Mrs Teju Philips,
said her late multi-billionaire father was born into
the royal Olumegbon family in Lagos.
“My late father was a typical Lagosian, born and
brought up at Isale Eko, Lagos. You may say the
younger generation doesn’t know about him but a
lot of people do know him. He was raised in
Lagos in Isale Eko here and he worked in Nigeria
in the Ministry of Works in the early years.
“My father lived a normal life as a diplomat and
that made him a global citizen. That was why he
worked with the governments of Angola and
Mozambique and represented Central Africa
Republic in the United Nations. You don’t call a
man who attained that height a mystery man or
a very private person,”she said. Commenting on
her father’s lifestyle.”
Further elaborating, Mrs Philips said: “Besides,
as a Yoruba, he worked very hard and prayed
hard too. You cannot excuse that traditional
owambe lifestyle from him because he was
rooted in the traditional lifestyle of the Yoruba
and believed so much in the culture and tradition
of the Yorubas.
“Before he began life as a diplomat, he used to
have a company in Nigeria that was producing
fridges and deep freezers and he was never
discriminatory. He worked with both white-men
and black-men.
“He was not the ‘away-away’ person many
painted him to be. He fraternised with many
Nigerian presidents and presidents of other
countries, although he was never a politician.”
Recalling her early days with her father, Mrs Teju
Philips said her father did the traditional things
as a Lagosian before work kept him very busy.
“He did all the egungun masquerade things and
the Eyo masquarade festivals here at Isale Eko
before he started his work life. My father actually
had moments that he threw back his head and
laughed. He loved family life and the people
around him but always expected things to be
done properly. My father would tell you not to
denigrate anybody because ‘nobody’ of yesterday
could become ‘somebody’ tomorrow.”
Was he strict?
“Well, you can say that again. He was a strict
disciplinarian and you wouldn’t appear before him
looking tattered or casual. You must be prim and
proper if you were female and your hair must be
neatly packed and bonded. A female must
appear before my father in skirt suit and healthy
shoes. A woman must not wear trousers and as
my father’s daughter, I never wore trousers. Even
now, I find it difficult to wear trousers because
he never allowed that.”
Children
“My father loved all his children. We are nine and
we all resemble him character wise. As his child,
you must be firm and very strong in character
like him. These are the virtues he held sacred in
life. I read Accounting and as a student, woe
betide me should he call and I wasn’t in the
library studying.
Love of jewellery
My father could not call you and you tell him you
were in the dormitory. The days he caught me in
the dormitory, I had to come home to explain to
him in person why I had to be in the dormitory at
a perceived odd time and after I had convinced
him, he would take me back to the school
personally.
“My father loved jewellery and many of his
children do. But if you have to use them, you
must use quality jewellery and not cheap looking
ones. If you must wear sunglasses, you must use
very good mature frames, not cheap looking or
funny-looking ones.”
Membership of Ogboni fraternity?
I told you his life was rooted in the culture and
tradition of the Yorubas. He was a traditional
man to the core and promoted the Yoruba
culture.
He was a Christian and Catholic. His name was
Antonio and that is a catholic name. He will be
buried by Christians and as a Catholic.
Exotic life of private jets, yacht, wealth, burial
This is not the time to talk about that. We are in
mourning. My father will most likely be buried in
Nigeria. I spoke with him the day he died and we
discussed family issues.
Signature sunglasses
They were medicated glasses. His eyes could
not take the bright lights and so he must use
those dark glasses like mine. I think it’s a
genetic thing because I too use medicated dark
glasses. No, they were not for fashion and there
was nothing else to them.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2015/09/antonio-oladeinde-fernandez-life-as-daughter-of-billionaire-bizman-teju-philips/

Cc: Lalasticlacla

' Power may make many earthly gods,
Where gold and bribery's guilt prevails,
But death's unwelcome, honest odds
Kick o'er the unequal scales' - - - - John Clare

Hmm

... died as a leader of Ogboni and catholic church benchwarmer

G

Hmmmm