Once Is Chance

It is allegedly my country’s Independence Day tomorrow and in commemoration of that, I will be sharing a list of people who escaped the shores of this country and went on to do great things in the world.

1. Sade Adu

Helen Folasade Adu was born in Ibadan, and escaped the shores of this country when moved to Essex. Recognized as one of the most successful British female artists in history. I believe the inspiration for Smooth Operator would not have come so easily over the noise of her neighbor’s generator.

2. Hakeem Olajuwon

He was born in Lagos and then went to the US to play for the University of Houston and his story changed forever. He is considered to be one of the greatest basketballers of all time.

3. Bennett Omalu

Born in Anambra, he got his medical degree from UNN, Nsukka. After MKO Abiola failed to win the election in 1993, he saw that Nigeria was not a serious place to be. He searched for scholarship opportunities in the US, and moved to Washington. He is now a world-renowned pathologist, and the movie Concussion is based on his work.

4. Divine Oduduru

a.k.a Mr. I Never Experredit. His ancestors exported his funny interviews to America and this man is now an ambassador for Puma. Enough said.

5. Yvonne Orji

You might know her as Molly in the TV show Insecure. She was born in our very own Port Harcourt and migrated to the US, to become an Emmy nominated actress.

6. Oluyinka Olutoye

He was born in Nigeria, studied Medicine at OAU and left to seek greener pastures. He was in the news a while back for performing a surgery on a fetus and returning it to the mother’s womb.

7. Hugo Weaving

Remember Agent Smith from the Matrix? Well, he isn’t of Nigerian descent but you should know he was born in UCH, Ibadan.

You know what they say: Once is chance, twice is coincidence, three times is a pattern. And what’s four? I think four warrants escape action.

Though it yet to be verified by science, a school of thought postulates that there is something about being born in Nigeria, and leaving that causes a person’s glory to shine brighter.

Arise, O Compatriots.