It was very sad for me to hear of the passing of the mother of my boss and friend, Mama Ruth Afolabi Bashorun. But it is so obvious from the outpouring of emotions across the country and indeed the whole world that she lives. God blessed her with so many years on earth, But she was not great because of her longevity.
For, it is not how long one lives but how well. But mama used every minute of her sojourn on earth wisely and well. She lived a long fruitful life that benefitted all who were fortunate enough to come into contact with her.
Everywhere she went and everything she touched, she left better than she found them. She added and never subtracted. She made and never destroyed. Her light consistently shines and the darkness could never comprehend or extinguished it. God gave women a tremendous creative force and that force lived in mama until her last day’s on earth. She was to my friend not only a mother. She was his Hero. Most people knows her as the “Iya Ibeji”,”Iya Adura”,”Iya awon Omo”,Iya Jesu Falala” and very generous and godly and very numerous to list but she was more. She was a powerful, progressive public figure in her own right. She help mould and organized the people in her community into a potent force for justice and social progress not just for their own interests but for the good of the weak, poor and downcast.
The mother of my friend and boss I know did not matriculate in the halls of some renowned University. She never had to. A student of the wisdom of our great traditional culture. She inherently knew things that the universities never teach. She was a philosopher, pragmatist and a captain who knew how to navigate our complex system, but she never did so not for selfish reasons or private gain. She did so for a higher purpose. To lead her constituency to a better place.
Mama demonstrated her character of integrity, loyalty, commitment, fidelity to lofty principles which to her was the loftiest values in life.
You always at every point in time what Mama stood for. Some say she was popular and respected because of the kind of children she had and groomed especially my boss who is a director in the federal civil service but I say she was “Iya Jesu Falala” because she was popular, honest and respected. She never demanded or craved respect and honour. She earned it.
For all the good she did as a public figure, what you witnessed was but a fraction of this remarkable woman. You see, I had the privilege and honour to be one of the greatest admirer of her son. As a mother to all is where she truly shines. She did not just provide food, she nourished all that calls her Mama. She did not just manage the house and help give her children roof over their heads, she gave them a loving home from where they all excelled. She did not only instruct them on what to do, she took the time to teach and sculpt them and to let them drink from her deep reservoir of wisdom and experience. Above all, she set them on their path.
Whenever times get tough, she held up a lantern so that the children may see their way forward and she encourage them as a loving mother can do for her children. Without her guidance and tutelage, they could not have done what they have been able to accomplish so far.
Yes, the mother of my friend and boss is gone but her soul has been taken to a better place. However, the spirit by which she lived and instructed others continue to live in the hearts of the people she touched.
Yes, my boss shall miss you, he may not have always been the best and perfect son but you have always been to him the best and perfect mother. God could to me certainly not have given him a better gift than such a wonderful soul as a mother. I only wish other people could know the special joy he felt in having a special mother like her. In this tough world, the word “Love” is not used enough.
Mummy, I want to assure you that my boss was proud and honored to say to us always as our boss that you raised him with love and that he loves you, maami, you are the best. To me you came like a comet leaving through a trail of light for other mothers to follow and emulate. As Mama is laid to rest on Saturday 14, November 2025, may God grant her soul eternal rest.
– Musa Wada
Abuja
