By Wale Ojo-Lanre, Esq.
Haa!
Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, CON, why?
Asiwaju of Ikere-Ekiti, why are you doing this to Ikere’s mothers and children?
Why now?
Is this fair?
Is this just?
Where is equity in this ?
What have they done to you?
Do you think they deserve this kind of treatment?
Is it because you no longer have a mother?
Is it because your own children are already grown, blessed and established that you have now decided to treat other people’s children like this?
Honestly, I am being pushed, provoked and compelled to ask: what exactly have Ikere’s mothers and children done to Chief Wole Olanipekun that he has decided to wage this kind of war in the town?
What sin did his people commit that this legal colossus has chosen to punish them so heavily?
What have Ikere mothers and children done that Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, CON, has decided to rise against their threats?
Is this fair?
What is his problem with mothers ?
Why can’t he fight for the children alone ? Even if the mothers have offended him, why extend it to the children?
Agreed, the mothers and children may be under threats. Agreed, danger may be lurking around pregnancy, childbirth and infancy. Agreed, ill health may be waiting at the door of vulnerable families. But should his reaction be this massive?
Why not just do a token palliative?
Why not simply donate a few items, take photographs, receive applause and go home?
Why must a man wake up and say, “Since you are my people, I will fight your sickness. Since you are my town, I will confront maternal danger. Since your children are my children, I will build a sanctuary where mothers can deliver safely and babies can breathe hope”?
Haa! This is too much.
But before we do the unveiling , let us ask again: who is this man?
Of course, you know Chief Wole Olanipekun.
You should know him.
He is not one of those noisemaking lawyers who mistake volume for value and propaganda for profundity. He does not need to shout to win an argument. He does not need media thunder to prove legal lightning. He does not weaponise noise. He weaponises intellect.
Chief Wole Olanipekun is not fiery in appearance, but he is thunderous in jurisprudence. He is smooth in carriage, but devastating in legal strategy. He speaks gently, but his logic can uproot mountains. He smiles calmly, but his submissions can unsettle opposition. He is calculated, strategic, persuasive, razor-sharp and magnificently grounded in the temple of law.
And yet, behind that majestic legal mind is a silent philanthropist.
A hush giver.
A man who does not advertise charity with a brass band.
A man who does not turn benevolence into television drama.
A man who does not joke with Ikere-Ekiti.
That is why one is shocked by what he is planning again.
For years, Chief Wole Olanipekun has been punishing Ikere with development. He has been committing what I may call serial philanthropy against his own people. He has not allowed Ikere to rest from his kindness.
He built a court complex in Ikere.
He built an NBA Centre.
He built a church.
He planted a radio station, thereby giving the people a voice, a platform and a channel of public awareness.
He has empowered over three thousand people, including widows, the vulnerable, the struggling and those who simply needed a hand to rise.
He has awarded thousands of scholarships, opening the gates of education to children whose dreams could have been buried by poverty.
He has remained a solid pillar of Bamidele Olumilua University of Education, Science and Technology, Ikere-Ekiti, lending his name, wisdom, influence, network and resources to the dignity of that institution and the growth of the town.
He is even planning to enhance the Ugele Rock Shelter, one of Ikere’s priceless heritage treasures, thereby extending his developmental vision into culture, tourism and historical preservation.
Haa!
What kind of offence is this?
Education, he is there.
Empowerment, he is there.
Religion, he is there.
Law, he is there.
Public awareness, he is there.
Culture and heritage, he is entering there.
And now, health.
This is no longer ordinary philanthropy. This is a complete circle of service. This is a rounded architecture of love. This is development with head, heart, hands and soul.
Chief Wole Olanipekun has not merely given to Ikere; he has touched the total life of Ikere. He has touched the mind through education. He has touched the pocket through empowerment. He has touched the spirit through religion. He has touched justice through law. He has touched information through radio. He has touched heritage through Ugele.
And now, he is touching life itself.
This time, Chief Wole Olanipekun has decided to fight disease.
This time, he has declared war against maternal affliction.
This time, he has chosen to confront danger around pregnancy, childbirth and child survival.
This time, he is not going to court to defend a client.
He is going to the theatre of humanity to defend mothers.
He is going to the birthplace of destiny to defend children.
He is going to Ikere to unveil the Newcruse Mother & Child Maternity Complex.
Haa! Chief Olanipekun, why?
Why must you protect mothers like this?
Why must you give children a safer beginning?
Why must you bring relief to families?
Why must you reduce tears?
Why must you turn philanthropy into a weapon against sorrow?
Why must you make development look so natural?
This is not ordinary generosity. This is a direct attack on suffering. This is a calculated assault on ill health. This is a legal luminary leaving the courtroom of law to enter the courtroom of life, where mothers, babies and families are the clients.
And the judgment is clear: Ikere must live. Mothers must survive. Children must flourish. Health must win.
That is why one does not expect him to be at loggerheads with his town. A man who does all these cannot be fighting Ikere. No. He is loving Ikere aggressively. He is embracing Ikere with action. He is telling the world that a true son does not need to make noise before he serves his source.
On Tuesday, 26th May, 2026, at the State Specialist Hospital, Ise Road, Ikere-Ekiti, this unusual “offence” against suffering will be formally unveiled by His Excellency, Chief Adebisi Akande, CFR, former Governor of Osun State, under the auspices of His Excellency, Mr. Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji, Governor of Ekiti State.
So, let us all come and witness this matter.
Let us come and ask Chief Wole Olanipekun why he is doing this to mothers and children in Ikere.
Let us come and see how one man has chosen to repay his town with love instead of excuses, service instead of noise, action instead of empty grammar, and legacy instead of vanity.
Because truly, if this is punishment, may Ikere receive more of it.
If this is revenge, may more sons and daughters of Ekiti revenge like this.
If this is how Chief Wole Olanipekun treats his people, then may God raise more men and women who will treat their towns with schools, hospitals, scholarships, court complexes, radio stations, empowerment programmes, churches, heritage preservation, dignity and hope.
And that is why Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, CON, will live long.
That is why his name will not fade.
That is why his children will soar beyond his image, rise beyond his shadow and carry his honour into higher realms of grace, distinction and fulfilment.
For it is written in the book of communal truth:
“He who serves his people, he who serves his town, does not die; his body may bow to time, but his name becomes a transgenerational reverence.”
Chief Wole Olanipekun has served Ikere.
He is serving Ikere.
And by this uncommon act of love, he has written his name, not merely on buildings, but in the womb of memory, in the breath of mothers, in the cry of newborn babies, in the mind of scholarship beneficiaries, in the hope of widows, in the dignity of law, in the voice of radio, in the soul of heritage and in the grateful heart of a town that will never forget.
Haa! Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, CON, why are you doing this to Ikere’s mothers and children?
Now we know.
Because a true son does not abandon his source.
He waters it.
He lifts it.
He protects it.
He gives it life.
God bless the Asiwaju of Ikere-Ekiti.
Signed:
Wale Ojo-Lanre, Esq.
Usi-Ekiti