Olajumoke Orisaguna: Another chance for former Oni buredi
Olajumoke Orisaguna , remember her? The former Agege-bread seller popularly known as ‘Olajumoke Onibread’, who trended across social media platforms a few years back, is in the news again with a much bigger story after a hiatus.
The former ‘oni buredi’ turned model is on her way to becoming a super On Air Personality as she joins the City FM Radio, hosting her own talk show, “Kilon Shele”.
Olajumoke’s recent transformation is being handled by Cardinal Foundation, a transformative initiative of Cardinal Broadcasting Ltd led by the CEO of City FM, Mrs. Adedoja Allen, and CSR arm of Cardinal Broadcasting Limited. Cardinal Foundation is collaborating with the duo of the CEO of Mediaroom Hub, Azuka Ogujiuba and renowned photographer, TY Bello who have been instrumental to her fortune. This is clearly a beautiful case of ‘women supporting women’! The Cardinal Foundation held a media conference titled “The Comeback of Olajumoke (Oni Buredi), on Wednesday at the Radisson Blu hotel Ikeja, Lagos. The conference afforded the former bread seller the opportunity to share with Nigerians what took her off the spotlight and the future.
She first expressed gratitude to her supporters, TY Bello, Azuka Ogujiuba who were instrumental to her rise to fame in 2016 and now, Managing Director of City FM Mrs. Adedoja Allen, for championing a second chance for her. Speaking in Yoruba Language,Olajumoke, begged to be forgiven for deviating from the vision of her trustworthy mentors and benefactors, promising not to mess things up again but to make the most of the second chance given to her. At the moment, Olajumoke is excited about going back to school. She narrated how lack of formal education dealt with her when the lady, a movie producer that led her astray, exploited her, made her drop out of school sponsored by her benefactors and even helped her waste the funds Azuka and TY Bello assisted her to gather from good-spirited Nigerians.
She explained that if she were educated, that lady wouldn’t have scammed her and led her away from her genuine helpers. She then advised parents to ensure that they send their children to school no matter how little their means of livelihood is, noting that it has dawned on her that education is the key to success. Sharing her own side of the story of Olajumoke’s life, CEO of Mediaroom Hub, Azuka Ogujiuba, recalled how OlaJumoke began trending, with her story inspiring millions after she accidentally walked into a photo shoot while hawking her bread.
That was the beginning of her encounter with Azuka and TY Bello in 2016. Azuka described her as a fast learner and a child of Grace as they a c c e p t e d her; she became a daughter to t h e m . According to her, Olajumoke didn’t bother about her two c h i l d r e n ’ s upkeep, house rent, etc; they were all well taken care of. However, fame soon got into her head and she was swept off by the Nollywood lady who asked to have her host a programme. It happened that the lady was a scammer like m o s t fraudsters who pose as helpers but end up exploiting helpless people. Continuing, Azuka said the lady brainwashed Olajumoke, exploited her seriously, even to the extent of confiscating her Instagram account where she had almost a million followers. Things got so bad that she began snubbing Azuka. She refused to take her (Azuka’s) calls. When the chips were down, Olajumoke, not having anyone else to go to, came back ‘home’.
Azuka revealed that at some point, she didn’t want to have anything to do with Olajumoke but due to the commitment to ensure she is saved, she connected Adedoja Allen and expressed her desire to have her help with Olajumoke. Fast forward to today, the bread seller is having her own radio show, “Kilon Shele” on City FM Radio. The programme is designed to inspire people with her story, personal experiences and those of other people who share similar stories with her. OAP with City FM, Bybisasa who has been in charge of OlaJumoke’s training corroborated Azuka’s description of her as a fast learner, expressing delight at her progress towards becoming a renowned OAP. Speaking during the event, Mrs Allen expressed joy that Olajumoke has been given a second chance to be whom she is destined to be.
According to her, the “Landmark event marks the beginning of a new chapter for Olajumoke Orisaguna, whose story of grace and resilience first captured the hearts of Nigerians and the world. Through this initiative, Cardinal Foundation is empowering Olajumoke with tools and opportunities to rebuild her life, including resuming her formal education and undergoing professional training at the City Media Academy, where she will acquire skills in radio presentation, news production, and digital content creation.
Upon completion of her training, Olajumoke will be given employment at City 105.1Fm where she will also launch a new talk show, ‘Kilon Shele’ which will air on City FM every Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., as she takes on a role as a radio presenter, inspiring others who may have lost hope.” “We believe in the power of second chances and the importance of mending broken lives. Olajumoke’s story is a testament to resilience and grace, and we are committed to restoring her dignity while inspiring others to pursue their dreams,” she added.
Allen further explained that the restoration of the former bread seller was in line with Cardinal Foundation’s mission which is to restore hope and transform lives. She hinted that the Foundation is also rolling out other humanitarian initiatives, including: skill acquisition programmes for women in underserved communities, entrepreneurship workshops for disadvantaged youth, food relief drives for vulnerable families, scholarships for students from Bethesda School for the Blind to receive free media training at the City Media Academy, fostering inclusivity and empowerment. Entertaining with a most inspiring Spoken Word performance was Anita Nwokoji, with stage name, The Purpleheart Girl. Her performance celebrated Olajumoke’s moving story as well as women who are making giant strides in their different fields in spite of all odds, while encouraging them to keep impacting the globe.
