The Grassroots Movement for Tinubu (GMT) has mourned veteran Nollywood actor Taiwo Hassan, popularly known as Ogogo, and said his death is a significant loss to Nigeria’s creative community and Yoruba cultural storytelling.
Hassan, 66, died on Sunday, August 23, after a battle with stage-four cancer. His death was confirmed by veteran actor Jide Kosoko and was followed by an outpouring of tributes from colleagues, political figures and admirers across the country.
In a condolence message issued by the movement, its Director-General, Hon. Prince Abd. Rahman Adebisi Yusuf, portrayed Hassan not only as an accomplished actor but as a creative practitioner whose career helped carry indigenous Nigerian narratives to generations of audiences.
Yusuf said Ogogo belonged to a generation of artistes who contributed to the preservation of language, identity, history, and indigenous storytelling through their work.
“Ogogo was a rare creative force,” Yusuf said.
He noted that the late actor had spent more than four decades breathing life into characters that became familiar to millions of viewers.
Hassan built a reputation in Yoruba-language cinema through his commanding screen presence and distinctive delivery. His career extended beyond acting to filmmaking, production, directing, and screenwriting, giving him influence across several stages of the creative process.
The GMT Director-General, however, said Hassan’s significance to the movement was also rooted in his conduct away from the screen.
He described the late actor as “a gentleman” who carried himself with dignity, approached his responsibilities with discipline, and made a quiet impact on the people around him.
That personal connection, Yusuf said, was particularly evident during Hassan’s time with the Grassroots Movement for Tinubun(GMT), where he served as Director of Creative Arts.
According to him, Hassan understood that creative expression could do more than entertain. It could communicate ideas, connect with communities, and give cultural meaning to public campaigns and movements.
“He understood the power of creativity in communicating ideas, connecting with people and giving expression to a movement’s message,” Yusuf said.
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Hassan’s death came only days after his daughters, Kira and Lima Taiwo, publicly sought medical assistance for their father after disclosing the severity of his illness. Reports later confirmed that his condition had deteriorated before his death on Sunday afternoon.
His remains were subsequently taken to his hometown, Ilaro, Ogun State, where he was buried on Monday in accordance with Islamic rites. Family members, colleagues, and prominent figures in the Yoruba film industry attended the funeral.
For GMT, Yusuf said the loss was personal because Hassan had been both a colleague and a contributor to the movement.
“Today, we mourn a colleague, a brother, a creative professional and a man whose presence enriched our Movement,” he said.
Yusuf also acknowledged Hassan’s contribution to Yoruba cultural expression, saying his passing should prompt Nigerians to appreciate the body of work he left behind.
“Ogogo has taken his final bow. But the curtain does not fall on his legacy,” he said.
The GMT leadership extended its condolences to Hassan’s family, friends, colleagues, and members of the Nigerian creative community.
Yusuf prayed for Allah’s mercy upon the deceased, asking that his shortcomings be forgiven, his good deeds accepted and his soul admitted into Al-Jannatul Firdaus.
For an actor whose career stretched across generations of Nigerian cinema, the tribute places Ogogo’s legacy beyond the characters he portrayed. It frames his contribution as part of a longer cultural record in which Yoruba language, customs, and indigenous narratives found enduring expression on stage and screen.
