After more than four decades of silence and separation, Fatai Okoya, the alleged first child of billionaire industrialist Chief Razaq Akanni Okoya of Eleganza Group, has opened up about what tore them apart.
In a recent live session, Fatai and his wife explained the long-standing family rift, the failed attempts at reconciliation, and why peace has remained elusive for so long.
SEE ALSO: Razaq Okoya: His Wives, Children and Business Empire
The Reasons for the Estrangement
Fatai Okoya admitted to taking a small amount of money that belonged to his father while managing his father’s industries as the first child. He clarified that it was not a large sum; in his words, it was “not even enough to buy a car, house, plane” and something he believed could have been forgiven.
Apart from taking from his father’s company, Fatai believes that one of the major points of anger for Chief Okoya was his decision to marry a woman his father did not approve of.
The 66-year-old Fatai said he was young, reckless, and in love at the time, and that the marriage went ahead despite the opposition. The woman in question has since passed on.
Fatai believes that the money and the marriage are the genesis of a rupture that lasted over 40 years.
Fatai Okoya’s Blocked Access and Futile Attempts to Make Peace
Fatai said he has made repeated efforts over the years to reach his father, even via his friends, to make peace. He also added that his grandmother, Chief Okoya’s mother, tried to intervene before she passed, but to no avail.
He recalled that he attended his father’s birthday celebration earlier in January and was initially welcomed, but when he tried to approach and greet his father properly, Shade Okoya (Chief Okoya’s youngest wife) allegedly stopped him from seeing him.
Fatai said his father saw him but could not say anything, suggesting that access to the billionaire is tightly controlled.
His daughter, Zee, who is over 40 years old herself, said she has never had a two- or five-minute conversation with her grandfather. Anytime the family tried to reach out, they were shut out.
Fatai stressed that they are not asking for money or material things; instead, they are asking for peace in the family.
The Public Plea by Fatai Okoya After Forty Years
The revelation comes after Fatai first released an open letter apologising and asking for forgiveness, putting pride aside and describing the pain of the lost years.
The video conversation followed, with his daughter adding her voice and the host urging influential people close to Chief Okoya, including friends, to help facilitate a meeting.
Fatai reiterated that he and his father were once close when he was growing up, and that he remains the only child his late mother had for the industrialist. He asked for just one opportunity to see his father again and make peace.
“To err is human, to forgive is divine,” he said.
Neither Chief Razaq Okoya nor Shade Okoya has publicly responded to the claims so far.
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