OBITUARY: Michael Ibru, Nigeria’s King Solomon who made a success of selling ‘mortuary fish’

Men die, kings ascend, and gods are forgotten in history. But Olorogun Michael Christopher Onajirevbe Ibru may never fade from the memories of those who loved him dearly.

The octogenarian, who passed less than four months to his 86th birthday, remains one of the greatest figures of hope, wealth, and leadership for Urhobo people and Nigeria as a nation.

THE ‘THREE HEADS’ OF IGBOBI COLLEGE

As the first child of Epete Ibru, a missionary, who also worked at the Igbobi Orthapaedic Hospital, Lagos, education was non-negotiable for Michael.

He attended Igbobi College from 1948 to 1951, spending less than four years in the five-year secondary education at the time.

He served as the head boy or senior prefect of the revered college, which is notable for producing the likes of J.F Ade Ajayi, Ernest Shonekan, Yemi Osinbajo, T.O Elias and Babatunde Fashola.

After blazing the trail, Bernard and Felix Ibru, Michael’s brothers, also went on to lead the school as head boys. Alex Ibru, the first chairman of Guardian newspaper, and Michael’s younger brother who died in 2011, also attended Igbobi.

KICKING OFF THE IBRU CONGLOMERATE AT 24

Upon his graduation in 1951, Michael joined the United African Company (UACN) as a management trainee, learning the rudiments of business very early in life.

By 24, he registered his own company, LaIbru, which grew to become one of the biggest indigenous conglomerates in West Africa. LaIbru was a partnership with Jimmy Large, a friend he met at UACN, during his nearly four-year stint at the standing conglomerate.

Olorogun, as he was fondly called, said in one of his very few interviews that he was seeking solutions to the problem of child malnutrition when he stumbled on his fish business.

“I thought of a way to combat this (malnutrition); fish is a source of animal protein, the price of beef was very high, and even relatively well-off people could only afford chicken a couple of times a week,” he had said.

“Fish was much cheaper, so I went into the business of importing frozen fish from Holland and Russia while simultaneously exporting tiger prawns to Japan.”

A FISHERWOMAN’S SON SELLS “MORTUARY” FISH

Though she later worked with her husband as a nursing superintendent at Igbobi Hospital, Janet Omotogor Ibru was a fish trader who scouted the creeks of “clean” Niger Delta to get money for her family.

Following in his mother’s step, Olorogun thought of ways to get fish to the driest parts of Nigeria, where rivers and creeks were luxuries.

As he ventured on, Michael met a Ghanaian businessman who was grossly interested in the fishing business, and they both set up the South Atlantic Fisheries.

The mainstay of the business was to import fish to Lagos from across the world in standard cold rooms. On arrival in Lagos, the fishes were then transported to different parts of the country for sale as frozen fish.

His trade faced a whole lot of criticism. Meat sellers and other critics referred to Ibru’s fish as “Oku eko”, which literally means “Lagos corpse”. He was seen as the “mortuary” fish seller.

OLOROGUN, THE ‘WEAPON DEALER’ SUCCEEDS WHENEVER HE FAILED

His detractors never stopped attacking him on every front for attempting to sell Lagos corpse (Oku Eko), where many other similar businesses had failed.

A septuagenarian who spoke to TheCable about his knowledge of the “Oku Eko trade” said Olorogun was accused of smuggling weapons into Nigeria via his cold rooms, which were barely opened in transit.

He said the Ibru critics said – at the time – that the family was not just trading fish but also carting weapons through Nigeria’s waterways. ?But Michael, after facing a hard time in his initial year in business, always saw the victory in his losses.

“After a year in the business world, I took stock. I had lost almost all my capital. In return for this I gained experience – a greater fighting spirit – and friends who believed in me,” he said.

As he pressed on, the business got better. Nigerians became more receptive of the Lagos corpse, and it gradually became very popular across the country.

NIGERIA’S KING SOLOMON

As a success in the fishing line, he ventured into other businesses, including oil and gas, media, real estate, building construction, banking, aviation.

He said in his life that riches, wealth and success came from charitable works, like it worked for the famous King Solomon in the Holy Bible.

“Those who give to God will always be satisfied. Success in life depends on willingness to give in support of God’s work,” Ibru said.

“king Solomon flourished as a monarch in ancient Israel because he out gave every other person in his time,” he once said.

In following in Solomon’s footsteps, Michael gave generously to education, donating vehicles, classroom, and in fact, a whole college – Ibru College – to his people.

SURE TO GET AN ONOSODE-AZIKWE-NKRUMAH HOMECOMING

If River Urhobo were a pool of ink, it would be grossly insufficient in writing about the life and times of this great Deltan who defied the odds in his days and built a dynasty his people can be proud of.

In his lifetime, he was seen – alongside Gamaliel Onosode, a boardroom guru – as the eminent men who brought great repute to the local culture.

Onosode is elder in death; he went to be with his ancestors on September 29, 2015, and should be more than willing to receive his kinsman who passed on Tuesday.

Also in his terrestrial years, Michael won, among many awards, the Nnamdi Azikwe leadership prize, and the Kwame Nkrumah Excellence in Enterprise Award.

Azikwe and Nkrumah are also at the peaceful end of the tempestuous gale called the universe, and should be willing to welcome their awardee home.

Men have lived, men are living, men will live, but some will be forgotten even in their lifetime, while some will forever be remembered in death. You already know where Olorogun belongs.