Late Nollywood actress, Mojisola Christiana Raimat Olaiya who died on 18th May 2017, exactly 2 months after she gave birth to a bouncing baby girl in Canada has been buried. She was buried at Ebony Vault, Ikoyi, Lagos last Wednesday 6th June 2017. However, what Moji will be remembered for is the legacy she left behind which many of her colleagues, including the legends and veterans in the Yoruba movie industry are talking about. At the service of songs, held at the Blue Roof Events Place, Ikeja, Lagos, City People movie reporter, GBOLAHAN ADETAYO spoke with the key players of the industry and they shared the below attributes about her.
Excerpts:
“Moji Olaiya’s Death Is Like A Fallen Tree In The Forest” -OGA BELLO
Moji was a very respectful woman, who doesn’t open her mouth anyhow. She was part of the industry ladies I can boldly identify with in the public. If you invite her to your movie location, she will arrive at the appropriate time you gave her. She was much disciplined. I am very pained that we lost such an amazing woman among us. I got to know her in 2003. I can say I brought her into the job because I was the one who signed her membership form. I worked with her at location so much. Hardly will you see someone that will complain about Moji Olaiya in her life time because she was too humbled. Her matter is like a beautiful tree in the forest, it will never last and that is what death has just done to her.
What do you have to say about actors who are dying in the industry recently?
There is nothing because I want to believe it is their time to leave. But I will use this privilege to advise my colleagues to take cognizant of their health conditions. There has never been a time we stopped praying, if you are very close to God, you know that once it is your time to go you will go. We pray often in the industry. May the lord stop this among our members. A lot of things will be missed about her because hardly would you see somebody with her qualities.
“I Thank God For The Life She Lived
-CHIEF YEMI ELEBUIBON
Moji Olaiya was a very shy person. I thank God for the life she lived and we are praying for God to be with the children she left behind and her parent. May God grant them the gratitude to bear the loss.
What is your view about the sudden death looming the industry recently?
Whenever death visits any home, there is no option than to take heart. Though, we don’t pray for the youth to die but death kills both the young and old. We should be praying to God to stop the sudden death of the youth among us. May the Lord answer our prayers. My advice for Nollywood actors is that we should take easy wherever we find ourselves. We should be careful of the food we eat, alcohol, and other stubborn attitude that can affect our lives. We only know what we lay our hands upon in the secret but my advice is that we should take it easy in every situation.
“Death Is Inevitable” OKIKI FILMS & MUSIC
CHAIRMAN
Death is inevitable and a certainty for everybody. The death of Moji was a shock to all of us. It was agonizing for those of us very close to her. I remember the good times we had together, our laughter and the way we often cried on each other’s shoulder. No matter how tough a man is, he is human after all, when with a close pal and associate.
I however found myself lost when she died. I was on sleeping pills and couldn’t think right. Just like when I lost my Uncle in 1995, I was depressed.
But a group of her friends and colleagues rose to the occasion and quickly brushed aside their tears to champion the cause for her burial ceremony.
I want to sincerely appreciate all the members of Moji Olaiya’s burial committee. Thanks for being her friend indeed. Thanks for doing the needful, even with your heart full of sorrow and your eyes full of tears. The good Lord will comfort all of us and make us live long to our old age.
While thanking and appreciating you for your selfless efforts, I appeal to you to please be with her family. This is the time we need to stand by her mum and children. We need to do this for the sake of our friend. God will help us and be with us all.
“Moji Olaiya Was All In All“
-OSHODI OKE
Moji Olaiya’s death is a great loss. Her death has taught us all so many things because it can happen to anybody at any time. It was when Moji died that I knEw anybody can die. Moji was all in all. A Yoruba adage has it that when we are still alive, we don’t know how important we are until when we can’t find ourselves again. She was very gentle and calm. All she always talked about was her daughter. She will say Adun wants to pay her school fees, especially when we want to buy jewelry and other ladies’ accessories.
When you invite her to party she will come to honour you. She goes to parties more than myself. She touched people’s lives in her own little way. I went mad when I got the news of her death. It was like a dream. I still called her number about 3 days ago, to see if she will pick it up. I spoke with her about 4 days before her death but to God be the glory, there is nothing nobody can do about it.
As I am sitting here now, I am just praying to God to let my mother go before me, because Moji’s death has taught me many lessons. She was very young at 42. She didn’t die when she was giving birth, she wasn’t sick, then why will such person die just like that? Her death came as a shock. It is not only in the Yoruba movie industry people are dying. Anybody can die at any time. After Moji died another person died from the NURTW which is another industry entirely. Uncle Olumide who died was sick for so many years, same with Pastor Ajidara. It is death which is inevitable to humanity. I am going to miss so many things about her.
“Death Is A Secret God Kept Away From Us“
-MUYIWA ADEMOLA
I feel sad about her death. I feel like what is the essence of this life, the fame, what is the essence of living and all that, because Moji was such a nice person, a fantastic actress. Just think about all those good adjectives and qualify her with them.
I was at a movie location when someone called me that he learnt Moji Olaiya has passed away. I was like what are you talking about, then I put a call across to Fathia Balogun, she was crying, she picked the call but couldn’t talk. I called Bimbo and she was also crying and that was how I confirmed it.
I don’t want to believe that death is rampant in the industry, I want to believe that people die every day but like we do say, it is because our job and your job has to do with fame, any small thing about you will be everywhere and that is why people will say they die one after the other.
However, in between you and I, we over stress ourselves, and we fail to give little time to pay attention to our health. My thought about death is that it is inevitable. It is an unexpected visitor. It can come any time. Death is a secret God kept away from us, and it is a cloth we must wear, there is nothing we can do about it, all we need to do is to live like tomorrow will never come, and to pray your time or mine should not come now.
Younger people should stop dying again in our midst, in the society and in the industry. We have always been praying and also organize medical gathering for actors. The association is liaising with some health insurance companies to give us the needed kits and we organize prayers every January of the year. And immediately this happened, the president of the association, Prince Dele Odule actually called the elders in the industry to organize special prayers.
“Moji Was A Calm & Respectful Woman”
-OLAIDE OLABANJI
I don’t know how I can describe Moji Olaiya. Among her female set, she was THE only person who was very calm, shows respect to everyone, she wasn’t a blunt person. I was pained when I heard about her death because she wasn’t the kind of person you would will die young. I met Moji in 2002, her first appearance in Yoruba movies was in my movie titled Mawoju E.
I used to see her in soap operas, then she was known as Ireti in those series, and I said to myself that I appreciate the way she act, my film was her first Yoruba movie she appeared in. she wasn’t wayward, she was very jovial and very humble. We human don’t think, if we do especially in our industry, the life most of us live are fake. The ladies in the industry behave like they will not die. With this sudden death of Moji, a lot of them are supposed to learn through her story, they will never, they continue living their fake life until death visit them and there will not be an opportunity for them to amend their wrong doing.
I will continue to use death to preach to people. Sometimes when you are asleep, you know nothing again, same thing with death. So, I don’t know why people can’t change their attitude and live a better life. Today, everyone is saying good things about Moji, my brothers and my sisters in the industry, what do you want people to say about you when you go? Moji was not sick before this happened, then why can’t we do good? May God be with her soul wherever she is right now. She lived a better life.
“Her Death Has Taught Me To Take Things Easy”
-FEMI ADEBAYO
Her death was extremely shocking, and I must be sincere that nobody saw it coming. What most of us saw coming was celebration the moment she returns to Nigeria on the arrival of her new born baby, but unfortunately her sudden death got to us which was very shocking.
I was right in my bedroom when I heard the news and I broke down because I couldn’t hold it, I had to make several calls to some of our colleagues for confirmation or I was actually dreaming, looking at the circumstances surrounding her profession, can it be true? Can Mojisola die? And the responses were yes, she has gone.
I got very terrible. It looked as if I never lost anyone in my life. Moji’s death was really shocking. The simple lesson I have learnt so far is to take everything in life very easy, because I used to see Moji as someone who cannot die in the next 20 years. We went for holy pilgrimage in Mecca 3 years ago and we became close. Anybody can die, she was extremely young and that is a big lesson for me to take things very easy.
What would you tell actors who keep malice?
I am very sure this must have been a good lesson for such actors who does that, because nobody can tell who is next. We only pray to almighty God for us to live long. People should stop keeping malice because even Mojisola who was free with everybody died just like that.
“No Matter What We Do, Moji Has Gone To Rest
“-PRINCESS {COMEDIAN}
When someone dies, one of those who write condolence messages will follow him or her. It’s not a curse but fact. Around this time last year, when we were paying our last respect to late Henrietta Kosoko, I know a lot of people would have said I am busy, I am not really sure if I will go and this is a year after. All the preachings to us by the Islamic and Christian clerics who came have been erased from our mind.
They advised us to take things easy because we don’t know what will happen in the next 30 minutes. We really need to change our attitude especially to people. There is no reason to be proud or see somebody as nobody because even you yourself is nobody when the spirit leaves your body. Instead of continuously crying we should all be thinking of our last days on the planet earth. No matter what we do today, Moji has gone to rest; we are the one now left with the Nigeria problems.
“Why I Produced A Special Album For Moji Olaiya”
-TOYOSI ADESANYA
Her death is so scaring. We have lost a rare gem. Moji was a force to reckon with. I remember when we were all growing in the acting industry, she vowed that she will be a versatile actor who will be operating from both English and Yoruba movie world and God made it work for her and that was when she appeared in No Pain No Gain. Her lead character was in Sunmibare produced by Dimeji Ijaduade.
She has since then been hitting it big in the industry. I can remember when myself, herself, Bimbo Oshin, Fathia Balogun, Oshodi Oke and others go to locations, when she offends you, she will keep begging you because she doesn’t like people to see her fault. Moji happened to be one of the very first actresses to visit Canada which God said she will later die in the country.
God is a decider and death is inevitable in the life of people. My prayer is that may God almighty grant the family the fortitude to bear the loss. She is a great loss to the industry. I still don’t believe that she has died, you know she normally play this kind of roles in movies. Moji is very young but see the type of burial she got. There are lots of Nigerians who died abroad that could not be brought back but her own case is different.
Why did you produce a special album for her?
I have my reason for that because she was very good to me. Anytime I have issues with anyone in the industry, she will be the person to first call me to settle it. Away from that, she will say Toyosi you know how to sing, you are gifted with talents, I wish I can be like you. That was why I dedicated the album to her. I did the album on behalf of committee of friends and according to our discussion; all our friends will have their copies. It is going to be free because we contributed money to produce it.
“She Was A Wonderful Person “-JAYE KUTI
Well, I can only say wonderful things about Moji Olaiya. She was a wonderful person. One thing I like most about her and I will keep talking about, is the fact that she doesn’t behave like an artiste to you, she behaves like a sister and she was very kind hearted. Unfortunately, God took her away from us. I was abroad when I heard the news and I thought it was fallacy. I didn’t believe it and started calling people to confirm before I saw it on Bimbo Oshin’s BBM Display Picture and she confirmed it to me when I called her. I dropped. Fear gripped my heart all through the day I got the news, I was so afraid like is this life? Life is so short, if Moji could die at this age, what are we now talking about? It is so sad.
“Her Death Has Taught Me To Be Good “
-BIMBO OSHIN
Her death was a really big shock to me and everyone in and outside the industry. I never imagined this, I still spoke with her after she delivered her baby and I couldn’t believe it the day I read that she is no more. I still can’t comprehend it, I can’t imagine that I will never see her again or hear her voice.
Her death has taught me to be good. As human, we should all have it at the back of our heart that a day like this will come to pass in your life. We don’t have any other options than just to be good, because whatever people will say after you is very important. A lot of people have been giving tributes about her and I tell you, that was the way Moji was. She never for one day saw herself as a celebrity, but it’s just unfortunate that she is gone.
I am sure that everybody present here today could have learnt one or 2 things. You don’t need a Pastor to tell you about what happened today. Whatever people will say after you is very important and leaves a very good legacy. Don’t keep malice, love one another. It is very important because after this world, there is another one where we are going to give another account of whatever we do on this planet. You know what Gbolahan, I am sure that a lot of people have died today but nobody is talking about them because they are not celebrities, but something happens to a famous person, the news will be everywhere but we just pray to God to put an end to this gory events taking place in our industry
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