What people don’t know about my late husband- Adenike Aderemi-Fashikun

By Oluwafemi Dosu

About eleven years ago, in the willingness of God, He decided to call to glory a gospel Actor and Director, Evang. Aderemi Oloninisi. To some, it seems world crumbling on the wife and only son he left behind while some see it as God’s delight.

In an exclusive Interview with Gospel Film News, the wife of the deceased who is also a movie director and Actor disclosed what many people don’t know about the late Aderemi Oloninisi.

She told our correspondents that late Aderemi Oloninisi was a humble man very unique in nature, saying she was privileged to be married to a man like that just for two years and the impacts of his life are still very much evident on her life, although, they’ve worked together for more than ten years, he was her President and teacher.

“He trained me in the way of film making apart from other trainings outside. When you talk about the day to day training that I had in the Drama Ministry, it was by following Bro Remi. He met me in the Drama Ministry in 1995 and We started working together on projects and other assignments in His Supremacy Christian Ministry which I finally joined around 1997 but we have been working together from 1995. If you work together with someone like that and got married to him after so many years of friendship you should be able to say something about him,” she said.

According to her, up till date, she still marvel at his life because he had some characters that she sees as not common. “He was so dedicated, so sacrificial in nature, peaceful and calm. He was very intelligent, he doesn’t get angry easily even though can be very strict. When it comes to the work of God, people that grew up in the ministry with us knew that he actually handled us well. He was a no nonsense man but at the same time he was very friendly and simple. All members of the ministry then eat together in same plate, do things together but when it comes to giving instructions and following it up, he paid much attention to details.”

Adenike continued: “He was a man of his word, very transparent in nature and one thing I discovered about him is when it comes to handling other people’s job he valued transparency and integrity (that’s where I picked what I’m doing today). Although, my parents taught me truthfulness; my Mum was very accountable during her life time, she handled so many financial accounts. We saw her neatly writing down so many details, so accountability and the ability to present things the way it is are part of what I learnt from my Parents. However, in a greater dimension, Bro. Remi taught me transparency and truthfulness. When it comes to production he didn’t collect anybody’s money.

“He started all these “From Script to Screen”. He will tell you, “we can’t produce this script like this, can you allow us to rewrite?” not even talking about money. He would re-write the whole script and carry you along on what you will need. He will tell you where you will get equipment, give you the number and tell you to forward the money to the equipment owner. He was not after money. At a time, some people started saying “if you don’t have money don’t come to me because I won’t direct your job, you can go to Bro. Remi, he’s the one that does “God bless you jobs,” But this man on his own will not take you for granted when you work with him. He insisted on good welfare for whoever worked with him.

Aderemi Oloninisi

“Few days to his homecall he just called me at the hospital and smiled, because we joked a lot even while he was hospitalized. He told me several things and we just laughed and prayed over together. On one of those days he said ‘Mine do you know that God bless you work pays more than people giving you money?’ I just smiled and asked why he said that, he then replied “Have you seen me lack? No. ‘God bless you job pays.”

The female Director also noted that where she’s coming from she was raised to believe that she doesn’t need money to get on a job, adding that she doesn’t need to be paid to get on a projects, either she’s given or not and she grew up knowing that the work of God must be done.

She revealed to Gospel Film News that: “I know he has joined that cloud of witnesses watching and would be proud that we are still keeping the legacy. The legacy of transparency, commitment, dedication, sacrificial giving and the likes.

“It’s been eleven years but you can see the passion with which I’m speaking. Sometimes I don’t like coming public for any reason. There are so many things he started. He was a man full of vision. He started ‘The Flame Commission’ in Minna while schooling. He was the President of ‘His Supremacy Christian Ministries’ even before he went to Minna and then ‘Trinity Communications,’ Meanwhile In the late 90’s we started a programme in Ilorin called ‘Christian Drama Breakthrough Power Service’ a quaterly programme held at the Indoor Sports Hall of the Kwara State, It’s always a three day programme where the likes of EVOM, VDG, HISSUM and several others ministered.

“In 1997 we held an open air Drama Crusade tagged ‘The Greatest Event in 97.’ So many programmes like monthly Drama Outreaches ,The Altar Galeanings that he writes every morning. He was everywhere directing movies for people and teaching people. If he gets a new information today, he will pass across to people. He will gather his friends together, those that are younger, his mates and even older friends. We were together. I know several persons who actually passed through him when it comes to training, receiving instruction and all that,” Adenike noted.

Speaking further, the Female Movie Director stressed that when her late husband taught at The Trinity Film Institute (then it was called The Film Institute, TFI) people saw the passion with which he taught at that time as if he knew his time was short, noting that he was a man of excellence.

“I remember in those days when you want to make photocopies, it must be very clean, he pays attention to details. I remembered one day I went to make some photocopies of over a hundred pages of film scripts. It was a neat photocopy as far as I was concerned but with a thin line that run from the top to bottom, my President just called me and said ‘Sister Nike you know we don’t do our things like this, this thing can’t go out like this. Everything coming out from here represents His Supremacy Christian Ministries, if you don’t mind you have to find a means of getting another photocopy without this mark.’ He was as strict as that despite the fact that we were courting but yet he was very loving.

“All these experiences only taught me and till date before I get satisfied even when I work, I sit down to ensure I’m satisfied unless when I don’t have a choice rather than to go with what is obtainable, I leave it that way. I’m not easily satisfied with just anything.

Adenike revealed that Late Aderemi Oloninisi once handled a production for some people at a time and brought in some of his close friends to act in the film. Those people finished their roles and they gave him back the honourarium that was given to them. Oloninisi took the money to the producer and returned the money. He called to appreciate them, after doing that they spent some money for the location and the money remained a few thousands and he called the person in charge of the project and refunded it. After the film location, they only thanked him and said “God bless you Sir” and he went home.

“My husband was such that he will give me details of everything. Right from our courtship, I knew I wasn’t going to have much challenges with him. He had told me a lot of things long before we got married. Even before I met some people in their family I know virtually everybody including his cousins. I knew them by name and thank God I married a man like that, I would have run into so many problems after he left.

“A friend once came into our house sometimes and said every time we come here and I look at the kind of food you serve us; I marvel. The brother was a close friend and had to voice out and asked that how were we surviving and I told him my husband doesn’t collect money from me despite the fact that I was working except I want to spend it on my own. I may buy things for the house but he’s not a man that will be demanding for my money or salary. One thing I also know about him is that he was a good planner. He planned a lot as per spending. If he travelled anywhere he will account for his spendings when he comes back including the transport fares. Few months ago, I still saw something like that in one of the books I was reading. When he gets home he will just place the sheet of paper and balance on the table,” she explained.

She recalled that: “Bro Remi was very jovial. Many times he will sing for me until I burst out laughing but when he’s serious you have to be serious too and most of the time when he gets serious it’s on the work of God. He never had to talk to me twice on any issue. I can’t remember how many times we had to go for different outreaches like that, experience so many things together. Many times, we slept on the road when vehicles breaks down. He forsook his Civil Engineering career for God’s work. Other opportunities were coming from outside the country but he insisted staying with the work of God, so that’s the kind of man I married. I thank God that I have the priviledge of helping a saint to fulfil his ministry because he was actually fulfilled.

“I once wrote that we didn’t know that he was an angel sent to us. He left before we realized that. While we were there in the hospital, he would tell me “mine, give me my phone, I want to check on somebody” I will laugh and say “who is expected to be checked on if not you. Why are you the one checking on people’s welfare. He is the type that will not hold grudges against anyone. You know as a woman sometimes you feel people did this to your husband and you want to take it up and he will tell me to calm down, not to worry about that. I remember when we wanted to get married, we went to see Daddy Mike Bamiloye and he told me “Sister Nike, you have run so fast and so well, now allow this man to lead.” Then I had already started a women ministry called ESCOM and already had some programmes and some other assignment but he was now seeing a man coming into my life now and he gave me that counsel. I’m glad I listened. I am happy to say my husband never had to speak to me twice on any issue, when he said dropt it, I dropped it. He was a calm man but had this nature of carrying people along easily. He was a man of faith. I first took that aspect of him as complacency. If he we needed to get something done he prays about it and moved on but when the testimony comes he will now tell me that I told you this will be done, you can’t fix it and since you have tabled it before the person that can do it , you leave it with him.’

“It was the same way he handled death when the challenge came. People said a lot of things. In fact, people asked us to go to different places during that time but he stood his ground as a child of God. A family member suggested we carry him to a popular prophet but he refused and the person refused calling him. He always said “If it pleases the Lord to call me home, then so be it, but if not no one can take my life” Everything he was telling me then were like pills swallowed for such a time like this because I saw it all. I saw a man who wasn’t giving up, who was still full of vision on his sick bed even when the enemy thought he was challenging or afflicting him.”

According to her, “the doctor came the morning he passed on and said ‘Mr. Aderemi hold on, you’ve been a great fighter, please hold on’ because he saw that my husband wasn’t even looking at the situation. My husband kept on praying and declaring every day except for two days to when he passed on that he stopped declaring, and I guess he has seen the angels around him in the room or something. Few days after he died one of our Sisters told me that he saw Bro. Remi telling her how beautiful heaven is and I said that’s just an addition, yet other people called to share theirs. Which just confirmed what I knew. I’m so sure he made it home because everything happened in my presence. My prayer ever since has been ‘Lord help me to make it home.’

“Aderemi Oloninisi was a selfless man, he was not selfish, in his thinking he will take over other people’s burdens. Sometimes, I get bothered that he was doing that work without even looking back. I could remember a particular location he was directing many films together for someone and at the end of the day it was “God bless you”, that he got. You know, when somebody accept “God bless you” outside and he gets home not murmuring or bothered. If you like grumble around, he doesn’t care, he won’t even revisit the issue and when you see that you are talking to somebody and the person is not saying anything you will have to keep quiet and accept the fact that “the Lord will bless us indeed” Do you know that indeed, God blessed him.

“He told people not to contribute for him when he was sick, he said he was fine and asked them to keep praying because already if we were to travel out, we had people who have said they will make the money available, though a few still did what they could for the love they had for him. So the issue wasn’t money. I guess the people taking care of him knew his time was up, so they were delaying to give us the referral needed to take him out of the country. They told us the result of the test to certify him fit for surgery will be out on a particular Tuesday and on that Tuesday around 5:30 am on 27th of October 2009, it happened! We just finished praying, my siblings too had a vigil where they prayed and got a word from the Lord that everything is settled. My elder Sister came to the Hospital to see him the previous day and he asked her to give him the lyrics of a song

“Alive, Alive my Saviour is alive
Alive forever more
The sting of death is gone
And now He lives
I have eternal life
Since Jesus is Alive

“He sang that song all through. My sister wrote the lyrics of the song on a jotter for him and he sang it again and again on that faithful Monday. You know when you are praying and full of hope for something, even if God is asking you to open your eyes to see that this person is dying, you might not see what He is saying. I didn’t see death because there was no way I could see it, I love him so dearly. So there was no way I could see death. I couldn’t just fathom it that he was going. It was after our prayers and he blessed me that I won’t be put to shame. That’s why I know that God is not done with me, it might have taken this long years for me to get to my destination but the man I served God with said I will not be put to shame. He told me so many beautiful things and still, I did not know he was going,” she narrated.

Adenike also told Gospel Film News that her late husband was so selfless and very hard working and can’t count how many script he wrote and shot for people without acknowledgement. “I lived with him, I know him and today when I sit back and look at his life, I thank God for the numerous lessons learnt from him.

“We tried everything possible as believers, prayed fasted, spent money on quality medical attention etc. At a time, someone very close to him called me and was accusing me of spending so much on him, I said I’m not wasting money but only believing God for him. We did everything possible under God without stepping out of our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. We didn’t go to any other place than only praying to God and Pastors praying for us. At some point some people suggest we take him to places I don’t blame them they really love him, he rejected. It takes a man who is READY to do that. It was though at some point but he held on to God till he breath his last. I was a living witness to the peaceful exit into glory of a Saint. what an experience, very different from what we sometimes portray in movies. So difficult and impossible to erase.

“I’m privileged to have nurtured a saint home. I’m just privileged. It’s a very painful experience but as I speak to you now, I’m so grateful to God. Today marks the eleventh year he passed on, I kept thanking God, counting our blessings, appreciating God for for his faithfulness and the gift of a wonderful son who look so much like him,” she stressed.

In her words: “One thing people can do on his remembrance is not to pity us because we are moving forward. For me, I’m moving on, I can see a glorious future ahead. We are no longer mourning. His brothers are no longer mourning; we are only giving thanks to God that we had the priviledge to have someone like him in our lives at a given time.

“I want to thank God for the blessing of my late Parents, my Pastor of over two decades, a unique servant of God, Pastor Dr. Bola Payimo, my Siblings who has been to me a very strong support system. Also some wonderful men and women of God too numerous to mention who had impacted my life, Daddy Mike and Mum Gloria Bamiloye, You both are more than a mentor. My Daddy Elijah Olusoji, My Daddy and Mum, Prophet and Evang Mrs Funso Akande cannot but be mentioned. Thank you all.

“What can I say about my Daddy and Mummy, Pastor and Mrs J.F Odesola To the glory of God, he has been a wonderful father. Words will fail me to describe how much I honour and respect him. He is a rare kind, he encourage everyone around him to fly as high as they can. Apart from my assignment with Faith Lift Productions, he is my father on whose shoulder I’m flying. It’s a privilege having him as my father.

“I’m no longer mourning; I’m moving on. Just keeping the legacy. Preaching the gospel ….that’s what we are doing. He told us the storyline of “Tarry NOT” When it flashed recently I remembered “Tarry Not” but couldn’t remember anything about the script and I prayerfully built on the scene I remembered, so we came up with script and it was shot to the glory of God. Now work is ongoing on the post production, 1st of December by His grace, it will be out in his memory. A number of projects are coming up soon from Trinity Communications by God’ grace.”