Folorunso Alakija Loses Sight Completely – Sahara Reporters
EXCLUSIVE: Nigerian Billionaire Folorunso Alakija, Former Protégé Of Babangida, Loses Sight ‘Completely’
Nigerian billionaire Folorunso Alakija has misplaced her sight, in line with clinical reassets concerned in her care.
Sources discovered to SaharaReporters that the 73-year- antique founder and Executive Vice Chairman of Famfa Oil [b] started experiencing fitness troubles after a close to air mishap. She turned into traveling together along with her husband, Modupe Alakija, Chairman of Famfa Oil, while the incident prompted a spike in her blood stress .
The distressing occasion is stated to have affected her imaginative and prescient .
Following the incident, Alakija reportedly ordered a brand new jet to keep away from traveling at the equal flight as her husband. However, her imaginative and prescient persevered to go to pot till she in the long run misplaced her sight completely.
“She had a close to air mishap together along with her husband on board and her blood stress reportedly shot up affecting her eyes,” one of the reassets stated .
“She has been having eyesight troubles however in place of treating the illness, she selected to begin a church to assist her.
“Now she can’t see.”
Folorunso Alakija is a Nigerian billionaire businesswoman and philanthropist who started web website hosting a small fellowship in her domestic round 2004, which ultimately grew into the Rose of Sharon Glorious Ministry International. On her 69th birthday, she turned into ordained as an Apostle.
She is the founding father of Famfa Oil, a Nigerian corporation with a great stake in OML 127, a rather worthwhile oil block positioned at the Agbami deep water oilfield in Nigeria.
According to Forbes, her internet really well worth turned into envisioned at $1 billion as of 2020. In 2015, she turned into ranked because the 87th maximum effective female withinside the global with the aid of using Forbes and turned into one in every of simplest African ladies on Forbes’ listing of the richest human beings in Africa.
Alakija pursued secretarial research at Pitman Central College in London withinside the 1970s. She started her profession as an govt secretary at Sijuade Enterprises in Lagos in 1974.
Her wealth is pondered now no longer simplest in her enterprise ventures however additionally in her flavor for luxury.
One of the plane connected to her is a Bombardier Global Express XRS ( version BD-700-1A10) with serial variety 9416, registered to Wings of Grace Limited on November 25, 2011. This jet has the tail variety VP-CEO.
Flight information display that it departed from the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos on February 26 for an undisclosed location.
She additionally owns a Bombardier Global Express 6000 personal jet acknowledged for its long- variety competencies and steeply-priced amenities. It gives quite a number as much as 6,000 nautical miles with a cruising pace of Mach 0.89.
The jet’s cabin is designed for max comfort, providing superior enjoyment systems, completely geared up workspaces, and top class seating. This plane is registered beneathneath the tail variety VP-CTO.
Records received with the aid of using SaharaReporters display that it departed Lagos at 11:34 WAT on February 24 and arrived in London, UK at 4:18 GMT on February 25.
Folorunso Alakija is concerned in numerous agencies , along with Famfa Oil Limited, Rose of Sharon Group and Dayspring Property Development Company Limited.
Connection To Babangida
Alakija’s first corporation turned into a style label whose clients blanketed the spouse of former dictator Ibrahim Babangida.
The Nigerian authorities presented Alakija’s corporation an oil prospecting licence in 1993, which turned into later transformed to an oil mining lease.
The Agbami area has been running considering the fact that 2008.
Folorunso Alakija’s adventure to obtaining an oil block is intently connected to her reference to Maryam Babangida, the past due spouse of the previous dictator.
In the past due 1980s, Folorunso Alakija turned into a a hit style designer, walking a high- give up style label, Supreme Stitches, which catered to Nigeria’s elite, along with Maryam Babangida.
Through her style enterprise , Alakija advanced a near courting with Maryam, who turned into influential as Nigeria’s First Lady on the time.
In 1993, Folorunso Alakija carried out for an oil prospecting licence. At that time, Nigeria’s navy authorities turned into granting oil blocks to indigenous agencies to inspire nearby participation withinside the petroleum industry.
She turned into presented an Oil Prospecting Licence (OPL) with the aid of using General Babangida’s regime.
It is broadly believed that her near courting with Maryam Babangida performed a great position in securing the license.
Initially, the oil block turned into taken into consideration high- hazard and of low value. However, after partnering with Texaco (now Chevron) for exploration, it turned into found to include great reserves, remodeling it into one in every of Nigeria’s maximum beneficial oil blocks.
This discovery appreciably elevated her wealth, making her one of the richest ladies in Africa.
The Nigerian authorities tried to reclaim the oil block in 2000, however Alakija fought a criminal warfare to keep her stake. In 2008, the Nigerian Supreme Court dominated in her favour, restoring her 60% percentage withinside the block.
So her reference to the Babangida own circle of relatives performed a pivotal position in her adventure from a style entrepreneur to a billionaire oil magnate.
IBB Book Launch
On February 20, 2025, Alakija attended the release of Babangida’s book, A Journey in Service, held on the Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja. The occasion additionally served as a fundraiser for the IBB Presidential Library. While Alakija made a donation, she selected now no longer to publicly divulge the amount.
The occasion turned into graced with the aid of using severa dignitaries, along with President Bola Tinubu, former Nigerian leaders Olusegun Obasanjo, Goodluck Jonathan, Yakubu Gowon, and Abdulsalami Abubakar, in addition to former Vice Presidents Atiku Abubakar, Namadi Sambo, and Yemi Osinbajo. Notable enterprise figures consisting of Aliko Dangote and Abdulsamad Rabiu additionally attended, with Dangote pledging N8 billion, which can upward thrust with the aid of using a similarly N2 billion yearly if the venture prolonged past 4 years and Rabiu donating N5 billion closer to the library venture .
Meanwhile, there were reviews suggesting that Alakija and her husband, Modupe Alakija, have separated after over 30 years of marriage. These reviews , which emerged round March 2024, suggest that the couple has been residing aside because of private differences.
However, there was no reliable affirmation from the Alakija own circle of relatives concerning their marital status.
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