Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has disclosed how Charly Boy’s devotion to his late father, Justice Chukwudifu Oputa, and his mother changed his perception of the controversial entertainer.
Obasanjo made the disclosure on Saturday,while featuring on Isbae U’s podcast, Curiosity Made Me Ask, where he also dismissed the suggestion that he shed tears when he was leaving office.
The former president said he initially had reservations about Charly Boy’s unconventional “Area Fada” persona, but later discovered that the public character was different from the man he encountered within the Oputa family.
Obasanjo recalled that his first impression of Charly Boy was shaped by his appearance and lifestyle, particularly a power bike he saw parked outside the entertainer’s residence.
He said he was initially reluctant to visit Charly Boy’s home but changed his perception after meeting his father, the late Justice Chukwudifu Oputa, whom he described as one of the few Nigerians he genuinely respected.
According to him, he was particularly struck by the attention Charly Boy gave his father despite his unconventional public image.
“I came close to you through your family. You took care of your father so well,” Obasanjo said.
He recalled that Charly Boy subsequently explained that the persona associated with his public image was a creation, stressing the difference between the character and the person behind it.
“Until you explained it in detail today that Charly Oputa is you, and Charly Boy is your creation. Fiction is not reality,” he said.
Obasanjo said his respect for Charly Boy deepened after the death of Justice Oputa, when the entertainer gave his father what he described as a befitting burial.
He added that Charly Boy also took care of his mother after she came to live with him.
“When the old man died, you gave him a befitting burial. Then your mum came to live with you, and I continued with her.
Again, you took care of your mother so well. That made me change my mind about you,” Obasanjo said.
The former president said the experience made him distinguish between Charly Boy’s public persona and Charles Oputa, whom he came to know as the son of Justice Oputa.
He described the entertainer as having two distinct personalities, with the character presented to the public differing from the person he encountered privately.
“You are two personalities in one,” Obasanjo said, adding that it was the latter personality that endeared Charly Boy to him.
The former president also addressed his departure from Aso Rock after completing his two terms as president.
Responding to a question from Isbae U about an allegation that he cried when he left office, Obasanjo rejected the suggestion that he was forced out of the presidency or left office unwillingly.
He said he left office when his tenure ended, rather than being removed from power.
The exchange formed part of the wide-ranging and unconventional conversation between the former president and the podcast host, who is known for combining humour with questions directed at prominent personalities.
Obasanjo was president of Nigeria from 1999 to 2007, completing two terms in office before handing over to the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.
