Adenuga: A story of the blind men and the elephant

Trying to deconstruct the enigma called Dr Mike Adenuga, Jr. reminds one of the Indian allegory, “the blind men and the elephant”. The parable, a metaphor for the diversity of views and the dangers of clinging to “absolute truth”, tells the story of a group of blind men who had never come across an elephant before.

According to the story, when they heard that one had been brought to their town, they said to themselves: “We must inspect and know it by touch, of which we are capable,” since none of them was aware of its shape or form. So, they sought it out, and when they found it, they groped about it. They touch different parts of the animal, such as the tusk, leg or trunk, and each man describes it based on his limited experience.

The first person, whose hand landed on the trunk, said, “this being is like a thick snake”. For another one whose hand reached its ear, it seemed like a kind of fan. The man who touched its leg, said, “the elephant is a pillar like a tree trunk”. The blind man who placed his hand upon its side said the elephant “is a wall”. Another who felt its tail described it as a rope. The last felt its tusk, stating that the elephant is “that which is hard, smooth and like a spear”.

They are unable to agree on what the elephant looks like, and, in fact, in some versions of the story, the men accuse one another of being dishonest, and they eventually come to blows. In another version, a sighted man enters the fray and describes the entire elephant from various perspectives. The blind men then learn that they were all partially correct and partially wrong.

The story illustrates the limitations of human perception, the importance of complete context and the need to respect different perspectives. Just like the elephant in the parable, Globacom Chairman, Dr. Adenuga, who turned 71 on April 29, represents different things to different people. He has, as his personal totem, the Bull which shares similar characteristics with the elephant.

If you ask his business competitors, especially MTN and Econet (now Airtel), Adenuga is trepidation in human form. They will not forget in a hurry the uppercut he dealt them with the launch of per-second billing and crashing SIM costs when they were intent on continuing the exploitation of Nigerians by charging N30,000 for a GSM line and N50 per minute for calls even if the call dropped off after a second.

For governments across the world, he is an inspirational icon and treasure. Ghana’s former President John Dramani Mahama, who conferred Ghana’s highest civil award, The Companion of the Star of Ghana (CSG), on Adenuga in 2016, said it was in recognition of his “unique and outstanding contribution to business enterprise both in Ghana and the continent of Africa at large. Through your creative business exertions, you have touched many lives in Ghana. You have provided employment for our teeming youth, artists, footballers and many more”.

French President Emmanuel Macron, who also conferred France’s highest honour on Dr Adenuga in 2018, described him as “an incorrigible risk taker, who at 26 was already a millionaire due to his resilience, dedication, hard work and focus,” adding that his outstanding entrepreneurship and business ingenuity has “today created so many jobs for Nigerians and, more importantly, value for the country”.

Former President Muhammadu Buhari, while celebrating Adenuga on his 70th birthday last year, noted that he was an entrepreneur, whose charity and goodwill continued to inspire, attracting local and global recognitions, including three national honours, OON, CON and GCON. He affirmed “the impact of Adenuga’s visionary leadership on Nigeria’s economy, setting the pace for investments in oil and gas, telecoms, real estate, banking, construction and hospitality, with remarkable presence in supporting entertainment, sports and African culture, within and outside the country”.

“Entrepreneur extraordinaire”, “Spirit of Africa”, “Africa’s business icon”, “the Great Guru”, “Mr. Per Second”, “The Bull”, “Unrivalled Philanthropist”, “Business Wizkid”, “Recluse Billionaire” and “Chairman of Chairmen” are some of the superlatives employed by his admirers to describe him. That is just how larger than life he looms.

Public policy analyst and former Delta state commissioner for information, Magnus Onyibe, in his tribute to Dr Adenuga two years ago, wrote: “The truth is that what the telecoms czar lacks by shying away from being physically present in public events, he makes up by embarking on bold ventures that positively disrupt the traditional norms in industries in favour of the masses.” From commodity brokerage to merchandising, from banking to real estate, from aviation to oil and gas, the business guru had conquered all. But it was his audacious entry into the telecommunications sector that shot him into national consciousness. The story of how he caused a revolution in the sector with per-second billing and crashing of SIM acquisition costs and usage tariffs has been well documented.

However, Dr Adenuga lives a very private life. He is hardly seen in public, does not attend public functions, and even some of the workers at his numerous businesses have never set eyes on him. Indeed, he is as reclusive as a hermit. Efforts by veteran journalists, Mike Awoyinfa and the late Dimgba Igwe, to publish his biography a few years ago were unsuccessful as the chairman bought up all the copies before they could go public with the book.

In spite of his legendary wit and ingenuity, he hardly grants media interviews or delivers lectures. So, the man remains largely inscrutable. Because of this, his ideals are misunderstood by some who are not fortunate enough to get close to him, and his accomplishments are, at times, not fully appreciated.

Just like in the story of the blind men and the elephant, an opinion poll conducted on March 18 by Pulse.ng on its Instagram page saw respondents offering different perceptions of the billionaire businessman to the question: “As an aspiring business mogul, if you could, who would you choose as mentor?”

Many of the respondents who chose Adenuga commended his humility and low profile despite his enormous wealth. For instance, _Iwale said, “Adenuga; lowkey billionaire, no noise”, while _my_011 noted: “E no dey kiss feet of political figures”. But a few of the respondents differed: deltabass1, “One thing you no go learn…Person wey no get time…You should be able to learn from your mentor”, while big_kvng3193 said: “Persin wey nor dey pay moni”. Also, Uzohodaniel submitted: “Go and check how he treats his workers…you no go talk wetin you just talk now”. However, stichesbymattdor disagreed with them, saying, “he treats his workers well o”.

The single story told by those who do not have the full picture is that Adenuga hires and fires at whim! Yet at the 20th anniversary party held in January, 89 staff members were rewarded for working with Globacom for 20 years, while those who had done between 15 and 19 years in the company were in their hundreds!

The chairman, who Uzohodaniel claims does not treat his staff well, regularly doles out millions of naira to high-performing staff and to employees who are facing one difficulty or another. Indeed, the first brand new car I bought for my wife was from the proceeds of a cheque he gave to me on the arrival of my first son in 2008.

A strange response was the one by faizee_interiors who wrote: “…Adenuga knows without Dangote and OBJ and co. he won’t be Chairman of Glo…” Quite hilarious! The same OBJ that hounded Adenuga into exile and made him lose $20m by allocating an encumbered spectrum licence to his CIL?

Similarly, on April 12, osazenoo asked on X (formerly Twitter), “Am I the only one who has noticed Mike Adenuga hardly publicly meddles in politics even though he’s the second richest man in the country?”

@Princeikembajr replied: “Men with power are always invisible. If u do better check he might be the one Dangote is working for.” @InnocentBassey7: “That’s to tell you his wealth is not genuine, he has Lords behind pulling the strings for him. If he dares venture into politics his masters will place him where he belongs. It’s very common among Yorubas – eternal loyalty”.

From @LadejoAdewunmi came the reply: “People like Adenuga don’t need approval from politicians, he has a business conglomerate, Nigeria needs him”, while @Ekhome2 responded, “He is my favorite billionaire I tell you !. He gives and does a lot without making a single noise. He is just there doing his thing and staying on top of his game. I love that man so much!”

There were some uncomplimentary responses, too. @Interestview says: “Maybe he’s not a good guy”, just like @iamobiamaefule: “Naaa… they fraternize and lobby behind the scene with every government even if it is not performing well”. @Italian0147 responded: “Person wey dey owe debts”, while @opirus_oritz wrote: “Ijebu man .. dem no dey like spend anyhow.” Again the danger of a single story!

Yes, Adenuga does not throw his money about “anyhow”. While he is stupendously wealthy and has a generous spirit yet to be matched by any (he regularly doles out houses, expensive cars, and millions in cash gifts), he can also be “stingy” with his money when he suspects he is being cheated. He will not pay for a shoddy job or a job not executed to the terms of the contract, but he also rewards vendors who deliver with gifts that are worth more than the value of the contract.

So much has also been written about how wealthy Adenuga really is, and some of the respondents on X expressed their views on this. @SolipeeBaba: “I can bet you this man is the richest man in West Africa if not Africa, forget media and rating, Adenuga is xtra large”, with @Gb_Supa: quipping: “The problem I have is that 2nd richest. He’s probably the richest in Africa”. @capt_shegs replied: “He’s low key the richest man….if you know, you know”.

They may just be right. His close associates argue that his worth is grossly undervalued by Forbes which estimates his wealth to be $6.7 billion estimate. According to the insiders just his real estate which is scattered across the globe is worth more than half that figure. His many businesses such as Globacom, Conoil Producing, Cobblestone, Glo 1 and Moneymaster, are not on the stock exchange, so how do you estimate their true value? No wonder the man spends money “as if there is no tomorrow” like we say in local parlance.

Adenuga is by every measure a fulfilled man. As we celebrate this worthy son of Africa at 71, it is so easy to forget that Adenuga’s rise as one of Africa’s wealthiest and most powerful men is attributable to his industry, unflinching optimism, the inclination to hang on in the face of daunting challenges, to hold on to hope despite all odds.

As he looks back on his 71 years, especially how he has positively affected lives through his businesses and personal interventions in people’s lives, the thought that should weigh heavy on his mind is how to document his eventful odyssey for posterity.