EXTRA-ORDINARY NIGERIAN SUCCESS IN THE UK - CHAMPION JULIANAH BALOGUN-OKE

By: Dr Olayiwola Ajileye

JULIANAH BALOGUN-OKE

Never before in living memory has one person sinlge-handedly achieved this extra-ordinary feat. It can only be a Nigeria, this time around a 52 year old Nigerian woman in the United Kingdom. Champion Julianah Balogun-Oke against all economic, prejudicial and social odds, raised a set of quadruplets, Tolu, Tobi, Tosin and Tayo to simultaneously achieve an outstanding success in the recently released A' Level results in London and gaining direct admissions to various top league Universities, Cambridge, Queen Mary, Goldsmith College and Manchester. The electronic and print media (BBC, ITV, Daily Mail etc) went into a sort of a frenzy in celebrating and recognising this exemplary achievement. In one of her interviews she graciously and humbly stated "Its is not where you live, but how you live".
 
Regardless of all the negative vices associated with children for Ethnic minority group in the inner city of London, where drugs, violence, under-achievement and teenage pregnancy are reported to be of statistical significance, this hardworking Nigerian mother has produced these national icons. One cannot isolate this from her dedication, sacrifice, prayers, consistency of purpose and determination to succeed where giants have failed. Granting me an exclusive interview she enthused further "It really does depend on how you bring up your child. How they see you live your life and the values you instil in them from an early age. Too many single parents, of all colours and creeds, are content to collect state benefits and let their children run wild. I have been a single mum since the quads were born. I was 34 and on my own but I was determined I would open up as many opportunities for them as possible. They have seen how hard I work. I have never relied on Government handouts. They have learned by example that commitment and dedication will get you a long way”. 
 
Talking to the children, they have amply blended the imperatives of learning and character in achieving this superlative success. They have immune themselves from gang-culture, negative peer pressure, crime and other unproductive vices many of their age-group are notorious for nowadays and chose to focus on their studies with dogged determination to excel, a virtue that is very uncommon in the environment prevailing in the inner the inner city of London. With detailed attention to planning her children's future she mentioned "

My goal has always been that they would break down barriers and excel academically. But I also wanted them to do so in schools with a strong moral code, to complement my work at home. So I have always sent them to religious establishments.

I chose St Francis Xavier School, despite it being a long way from our home, because it has a great reputation for academic achievement. Its exam results are consistently well above average and the majority of its students progress to higher education, including Oxford and Cambridge.

When I visited, the facilities stood out above the rest. I was especially struck by the principal’s mission statement, which says ‘to be successful in today’s world you must develop skills and abilities at a higher level than was ever necessary in the past’. That is what I’ve always told my children: to stretch themselves beyond what is expected.

I am constantly being told children in black communities are failing because 59 per cent of them are raised by lone parents. But, although I accept children are largely better off when they grow up with both parents, just having a man in the house does not mean they will go on to become pillars of society"
 
Julianah Balogun-Oke is a good example of a Nigerian success in the diaspora, a worthy ambassador for so many other hardworking and dedicated Nigerians living in the diaspora. Her story is very uplifting, not only did she do this for her children, she did not leave herself untrained, she has also braced all challenges to advance her professional and educational life, showing that it is possible to do it if you want it. Listen to her again "

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Although my background is not a wealthy or privileged one. My father was an illiterate Nigerian farmer and my mother was one of his seven wives. She ran a shop in a small town in the state of Osun. There were 24 children in all – five my mum’s.
I can remember my parents telling us that becoming educated would mean we did not have to work as physically hard as they did. However, they could not afford to send us all to higher education.

I went to an Anglican grammar school and ended up doing teacher training in Nigeria, before getting my first degree in social work education from the University of Paris in 1984.

After moving to London, I lived in a single room and did various odd jobs before I could get my footing. I was a social worker in Lambeth when, to the shock of everyone including myself, the quads were born.

I took a year’s maternity leave, put them into nursery and went straight back to work.

I continued studying child care because I wanted to open a nursery. I now manage a business that cares for 20 youngsters up to the age of five and have a staff of four"
 
People think being a single parent means your children have to fail. I live by my own code and my own notions. I tell my children they are individuals, that they do not have to be like everyone else.

What has held a lot of black families back is that they have accepted the stereotype. They do not realise they can achieve anything they want, that the sky is the limit, that class or colour should not classify who they are"
 
Julianah Balogun-Oke and her shining Quads have made Nigeria proud and her story would serve as a good elixir for all other parents not to neglect the future of their wards and that things don't just happen, but you can make things happen with careful planning, prayers and maternal sacrifice and also that honour and shame from no condition rise, act well your part, for there your honour lies. She and her children today has been recognised as a Champion, a worthy Ambassador of Intellectual and Moral Achievement, a true Nigerian mother and a success story in a foreign land.
 
Dr Olayiwola Ajileye writes from Birmingham, United Kingdom