Sanusi persecuted me as he thought I wanted his job at CBN – Cecilia Ibru

For the first time since her travails in the court, the
former Managing Director of the defunct Oceanic Bank, Mrs Cecilia
Ibru, speaks on life after she left the bank, her ordeal and what
she has been doing, in this interview with TUNDE AJAJA

For years, you have been absent from the social
scene; what have you been up to?

I would say I have been retooling and reinventing myself by
taking on new challenges. I’m in the education sector now, which I
think is worth going into, because everything about development
revolves around education. If done properly, our nation will not be
complaining too much because human capital would have been well
developed. So, that is where I am now and it’s like an experiment
for me. My late husband (Michael Ibru) and I started with nursery,
kindergarten, primary, secondary and now a university. We are
trying to raise talents in a way that it would produce excellence
because education across the world is not commensurate with the
speed at which we are growing here. We cannot expect people to
become champions overnight without being nurtured and trained, even
if they have the right talents. That informed part of what we are
doing with the Michael and Cecilia Ibru University.

You spent years in the banking industry but now in
education, have you always had the passion for the
sector?

I would say I was born into education. When I was growing up, I
used to hear my mother call my father principal and one day I asked
why she called him that and she said he was one of the pioneers in
that sector in Warri (Delta State) area. Also, he had a primary
school and a technical college. Till date, there are people who
tell me that if not for my father who encouraged and supported
them, they wouldn’t have been where they were. He ended up being a
lawyer, but I went to his primary school before I went to St
Margaret’s High School, Ilesha, Osun State for my secondary
education. I got married and then I went to the university in
London.

You left Warri for Ilesha for your primary school
education, what informed that move?

(Laughs) I know you would ask me how I got there. In those days,
we did common entrance and you could choose schools anywhere you
wanted. The belief then was that missionary schools were better, so
St Margaret was an option for me and we actually loved it because
it was far from home.

Why did you want a school far from
home?

Not that I really wanted to, but now in retrospect, it was good
my sister and I did. If you were far from home, the pressure from
home was lesser. Besides, they couldn’t visit anytime they liked
and so we were able to concentrate on our studies since we didn’t
have many visitors from home. That exposure also helped us because
that was where I learnt to speak Yoruba.

From what you said earlier, it seems you got married
so early.

Yes, I did and I thank God for it.

How old were you then?

I got married before 20. I think I was 18-plus then because I
had my first son in January before my 20th birthday. When I clocked
70, my first son was 50. So, I was 18-plus.

Can we say yours was early at the time or that was
the norm?

Well, if a man wants you and your parents agree to it, you would
go ahead. After all, in our days, they didn’t expect that girls
would go very far in education, so early marriage was accepted.
Interestingly, I didn’t have to choose between him and any other
person. My dad used to say I should aim to be a lawyer and I said I
wanted to be a doctor and he agreed. So, I went to the School of
Nursing, Idi Araba, Lagos and it was when I was there that my
husband met me and he went to see my parents that he wanted to
marry me. That was how it started. He did what he had to do and
that was it. He was in business then and he was already an
established person. So, I married into his business as well and he
began to put me through certain things. When we got married, he
wanted me to do something different from medicine; he suggested I
should become a social scientist. We deliberated on it and that was
how I ended up studying sociology. After studying, I joined the
Ibru Organisation in the United Kingdom because we had an office in
the UK then and that was it.

After decades of being married, he died in 2016
after a prolonged illness, how did you cope at that
period?

His death was a great shock to me. I had just come back from a
trip abroad and the previous night everything seemed to be alright.
He had been sick for a long time, but we felt he was getting
better, so we continued to be hopeful believing that he would
totally recover over time. I travelled that night and I got home
that same night and then I went to bed, but somehow it wasn’t a
restful night. I couldn’t tie it to anything anyway. That morning,
around 7am, my daughter called. I asked after my husband and she
said she didn’t know what was happening. I asked what she meant by
that; she wasn’t so plain about it. So I said, what step have you
taken, she said she had called an ambulance and I said, so what are
they doing about it, she said they had been resuscitating him. I
said how do you mean resuscitating him? This was the same person
who looked alright the previous night when I was with him. The most
painful part was when my daughter called again and broke the news
to me. She told me those resuscitating him said they had to take
him to the mortuary. Unknown to me, he passed on while we were
talking. It was a shocker and a very difficult moment. It was very
painful because we were expecting him to get better, not for him to
die, but God knows all things. I’ve yet to recover from his death.
Someone who was consoling me then said I should try and forget it
and I said how? How do you just forget somebody you lived with for
over 50 years? Till today, I still go to his office to redecorate
the place the way he would have loved it. Perhaps, one thing that
has helped to deal with it is the university which we established
two years before he died. We were already preoccupied with running
the school even before he died. However, when you withdraw into the
room and you are alone, what you are missing dawns on you afresh.
We adopted a boy six and half years ago, and if not for him it
would have been worse. My husband would be two years gone in
September. Taking care of the boy has been of help. He’s still
small, so there are times he would do something naughty. That keeps
you busy and distracted. Before you know it the day is gone. I miss
my husband a lot. He was very analytical and anyone would love him.
Even though he’s left us, when taking decisions, I still look at
things the way he would have. So, I really miss him.

He was ill at the time your case in court was on, do
you think the trauma that accompanied that case affected him some
more?

Till he died, he never knew about that incident. I didn’t tell
him about it throughout. He was sick, so I couldn’t have told him
so that it wouldn’t worsen his health. I needed a lot of strength
to stay strong and it got to a point I asked God what I could have
done wrong to deserve such a treatment. Someone said I should read
the book of Job and I declined, but I did eventually. I read the
Bible from cover to cover and found words of wisdom.

Since your conviction and the sentence you served,
one has rarely seen you at social functions. Is that
deliberate?

I spend most of the time now in the university and while I’m
there, I don’t have the time to go out as much because it’s a new
university. Being the proprietor and co-founder, you know what you
want, how you want it and you try to make it conform with world’s
standard and even become a reference point in the world. That won’t
come easy and you would need to get involved and work harder. What
really occupies me now is administration, especially in the area of
providing infrastructure and making sure things are in order in the
school.

The drama that ensued when about eight of you were
eased out of the banking industry at that time was an episode
people may not forget on time. Have you been able to live past that
time?

You cannot; the intensity of it would be obliterated but it’s
not as if you would forget. I have not forgotten them but it’s no
longer an issue for me by the grace of God. God has saved me from
it and He has enabled me to move on. I can’t be stuck in that rot;
it would be anti-Christ. He said wherever you are, pick up yourself
and move on, and I live by the word. It’s a pity it happened, but
then if it didn’t happen, would I have been in the university. I
probably would not. I probably would still be stressing myself
about things I shouldn’t bother myself about. So, for me, I thank
God for everything because it could have been worse. Also, God
showed himself to me in all that terrible drama. Like a Christian
brother told me that even Jesus was persecuted. They even killed
him (Jesus). If it was not for God, would he have resurrected and
then what would have happened to him? That could have been the end.
So, in a way God has given me some kind of resurrection and I’m
grateful to God for bringing me out of it.

The information available at that time suggested
that there were serious issues, but you mentioned something about
persecution. Do you feel you were persecuted?

Yes, I was.

What would you tie that to?

For me, they just wanted the banks. An envious fight does not
end, but that is a big story that I would prefer to write about
later. You find that when people knock you down, they don’t expect
you to get up again. So, when you get up, they have mixed feelings.
After all that happened, people became curious. In 2015, which was
about five years after the court judgment, the university started.
Other levels of the school had been running, but you know the
university is the showcase of the whole enterprise. My husband was
very ill, I had to look for money to treat him, but you see, when
you believe in God, He would cater for you in mysterious ways. I
believe that the God who has seen me through till today will
continue to do so until He comes.

You took the plea bargain option and some people
would feel you simply wanted a soft landing. Was that the
case?

You see, when they offered me plea bargain as the way out, many
people said I shouldn’t take it. Many of my pastors even said don’t
accept it, fight it till the end, but I just told them I was fed up
already. I was tired of the whole thing. I thought to myself that
why should I be fighting with my whole heart when there was an
alternative, even though not a nice one; pleading that you are
guilty when you know that you are not. You are pleading as if you
are guilty and you are agreeing with whatever they wanted when you
know you didn’t do anything wrong. It wasn’t easy; my husband was
sick and I didn’t want to be sick too. So, I decided to do what I
had to do so I could be able to function. That was it.

You were in the hospital for the most part of your
sentence.

By the time I left that hospital, they had to fly me to London
for treatment. The experience in the little time I spent there
impacted negatively on me so I was in the hospital most of the
time. Maybe the emotional aspect of it made the medicines they were
giving to me not to work effectively. As soon as they discharged
me, they flew me straight to London. I can’t even describe how I
looked. When people saw me, they asked what happened to me and I
said I didn’t know. They ran series of tests on me and I tell you
that in a matter of two weeks, my eyes became clear. Meanwhile, all
I did was to just lie down and walk in the garden and I went for
check-up twice a week. They advised me not to think about the whole
thing so as to keep my blood pressure normal. And here I am by the
grace of God. If you saw me then, I looked like an 88-year-old
woman. I looked at myself in the mirror then and now and I say God
is awesome.

During that trial, were there people you relied on
that betrayed you?

I won’t say betrayal, including (Lamido) Sanusi (the then
Governor of the Central Bank) himself, but people that I thought
would come and help me did not do so. However, God raised other
people to help me. Back then when I was in office, if I was at
home, you wouldn’t find a parking space in my compound; it was
always filled with cars and people who wanted one favour or the
other from the bank. But after that episode, everywhere became
empty. One day, a man came to visit me at home and when he was
going, there were no security personnel or driver. So, he asked
what happened to them and I said the bank had withdrawn all of them
on the order of Sanusi. They withdrew everything. He said that
wasn’t good. The man asked me what it would cost me to put in place
some security measures and I said about N1m. He said I was a
popular personality and I couldn’t go around without some form of
protection. He paid that N1m every month until I went to London.
And when I got there, I informed him I had travelled. I can’t
forget that kind of a person, and guess what, he is a Muslim.

Was that episode the first time you would go through
such?

Definitely, it was. I got married as a young girl and so what
problem could I have had. My husband was like a big umbrella over
me so I didn’t have any problem. For me, they just wanted the
banks. For those who heard about it on time, they quickly did
something about theirs, but I didn’t see it coming. It was even one
of us – one of those affected – that told me about it. That
colleague called me one day and asked where I was and I said I had
travelled to see my husband, who was sick at that time, he briefed
me what we were up against. I was even planning to retire in March
the following year (2011) when I would have been about 65. So, when
it happened, I couldn’t travel anymore. I will put the details in
my memoirs and it will be in volumes.

What lessons did you learn about that period of your
life?

I learnt that you never know who your enemies are until you have
a problem. That underscores the prayer that God should show us our
enemies so we could do what is necessary before it is late. Also, I
found that you are on your own when you have problems. I was
deserted. Remember I said my compound and even outside the premises
used to be filled with vehicles when I was in office. I mean people
who needed all kinds of favour. One of the foremost banks in
Nigeria today got the N3bn loan they used to start at that time
from our bank. They came to me one day; I was even travelling that
day, so I told them we should reschedule, but they insisted they
had to see me that day. They told me they needed N3bn loan for the
bank and I told them to let us meet in the office to do the paper
work and go through the process. But when the problem arose, God
showed me that He’s the only one you can depend on. The only person
you can depend on in this world is God, and maybe a few people who
are committed to you.

Have you forgiven those who, according to you, put
you through that ordeal?

I have done so already because they didn’t know that they were
simply promoting me. I run a university now and it is exciting
impacting lives. Yes, in the bank, we helped businesses grow and
people became rich but in education, you are dealing with human
beings; moulding lives and I see that as better. God used it as a
stepping stone for me.

When you look back at what the then Oceanic Bank
transformed into, do you still feel pained that you lost
it?

Let me put it this way; you cannot forget it because it was like
losing a child you had watched grow. In the beginning, it was very
painful but as time went on, the pain began to fade away and I
began to regain myself. I also lost a son after that episode and it
was painful. The consolation is that there is nothing that happens
in this world that God does not know about, and there are things He
allows you to go through for His own reasons.

In your social circle, are there people who still
look at you in funny ways?

Of course, but that is their opinion, it has nothing to do with
me. Your opinion cannot affect the person that I am. When such
happens, some people tend to become distant because of that and I
say maybe you probably didn’t need those friends anyway. I know
that God uses things like this to show you the friends you need and
those you don’t need. Just do what God wants you to do, try and
live a holy life and study the Bible so you are continuously
redefined. If it were not for God, I wouldn’t be sitting with you
for this interview and I probably wouldn’t come across you. It was
tough and I don’t wish it for anybody.

At that level, bank CEOs and the governor of the
Central Bank are usually colleagues before one of them is elevated
to head the apex bank. Was that not the case
then?

We were friends, seemingly, but it doesn’t mean they like you.
There is also competition.

What could have been the basis of the competition
when the then CBN governor already left as the GMD of First
Bank?

He (Sanusi) thought I wanted his job but I didn’t. I was offered
the position, but I said no.

Why did you decline?

My husband was sick and I needed to be with him. That was the
reason, and I didn’t think much about it anymore. Remember I said I
was planning to retire in March of the following year to go and
stay with my husband. When he (Sanusi) was appointed, I
congratulated him. He even told me at that time they had not given
him a letter and I told him not to worry that it would come. So,
these are some of the things you live through that make you
stronger. Sometimes you feel hit but you have to let go.

If you look back at all that happened, is there
anything you wish you had done differently?

To be frank with you, I would say nothing. I did everything with
my whole heart. I genuinely wanted to help people grow their
businesses and a lot of people and businesses were empowered. We
floated Econet, Oando, we built MMA2, Iba Expressway, we put
guarantee down to build Toll Gate and the project at the Bar Beach.
So, we did a lot under public-private partnership and I enjoyed it
because I knew that if there were about three to four banks doing
what we were doing at that time, Nigeria would have been
industrialised by now. Look at Dangote at Obajana, we did (funded)
it, and it was after we had finished that we began to sell the
credit to other banks; the same with Econet, MMA2 and others. I
enjoyed it all because we created real and sustainable value
because those businesses are still there till today. Looking at
individuals that also benefited from the bank, we assisted people
like Dapo Abiodun, Jimoh Ibrahim, (Aliko) Dangote, etc.

Are you still in touch with them?

Yes, though they don’t call me; whether there is nothing to
discuss, but I call them when I want to.

You spent most of your working years in the bank,
but now you are in education. If we are to compare, which do you
enjoy more?

One has to do with money while the other has to do with human
beings and I think the latter is more interesting because you see
developments in a fellow human, like helping them to unlearn bad
habits, imbibe good habits and help to refine their character.
Children are very easy to work with and when they get it right, you
would be happy being part of that process. My children went to
school abroad and I have often admired the way the schools there
groom their students, so we felt we should bring that back home so
that the students that come out from our school can be different,
including their dressing style. Education has certain expectations,
in terms of appearance, conduct, speech, composure and how to go
about their business or career. It teaches a more ordered way of
living and those things don’t come easy if you didn’t go to school.
I’ve yet to see a child that came to us and was badly behaved that
did not change within a year. We are not a reformatory; it’s just
character moulding and personality shaping so that they become
acceptable and sociable in the society.

There are very many universities already, is there
anything you want to do differently?

First of all, I want our students to be passionate because it is
important, and that is one virtue many people don’t seem to have.
They start one thing and then jump into another. But we want
determination and once you decide what you want, we chart the path
for you. In the early schools, students do all sorts of subjects
and that is to expose them to different things so we could see
where their strength, interests and passion would be executed and
then we begin to help them on that path. So, we feel the earlier we
discover the strength of the child, the better. In our school, we
have more people doing science subjects than arts and I say let’s
balance it. Even if you are doing science, you must do music
because music has been known to do something to the mind which
enables people to be sharper and humble. For you to learn those
notes in music, you’ve got to persevere and that is a trait that
many don’t have.

Having been an employer of labour and now a
proprietor, would you say the challenges in the sector are as bad
as presented or there is a bit of exaggeration when people say
graduates from Nigerian universities are not
employable?

We cannot generalise because there are many products of our
education system that are excellent, but maybe quite a proportion
of them are not. Saying our graduates are not employable is an
exaggeration. I can speak from the little we have done so far and
in September we would have our first convocation, where 30 students
would be graduating, which is not bad for a start. One of the
things Michael (my late husband) wanted to see in the university is
that all our graduates must be employable. It’s either they go into
their own business, get an employment or we get one for them in the
school or other organisations. We do not want to turn out students
that would become a nuisance in the society. That is why we do
entrepreneurial training and equip them with skills that employers
look out for.

From your experience so far, what are the typical
challenges facing the education sector?

First, I must say government is doing a lot, especially as most
public schools are virtually free. But, even so, I think power,
Internet availability and funding need quick attention. I think we
are not putting enough resources into education and apart from
that, government should make Internet available to all
universities, including private ones a priority. In over world
today, you can’t go very far without power and good Internet
connection. Government should give us these. On Google, you can
teach yourself anything, but if there is no access, that knowledge
is gone. And no doubt, power would reduce the cost of education and
it is the bedrock of civilisation. Also, if you don’t have constant
power, you cannot go very far. Thus, for a better and vibrant
education sector, we need power, Internet accessibility and
funding. There are other challenges, but if those three are
available, it would help a lot, and the idea of lecturers not doing
research would be a thing of the past and then students can also
teach themselves.

There is the perception that private schools pamper
students. What is your thought on that as a
proprietor?

Public universities are virtually free, but when parents are
ready to spend more money on their children in private
universities, it means they want their children to get the best and
be nurtured the best way. I don’t know what happens in public
schools but in the private schools, every child has somebody to
talk to. If that is what you mean by pampering, well yes, and in my
view that is how it should be. We believe in counselling to see
whether they can help you to achieve the objective of being in
school. The point is that counselling is not pampering, but a means
to make you aware that there are better choices than the ones you
were trying to make. We all need some form of indepth guidance, so
I wouldn’t say we are pampering them.

You clocked 73 on March 22, yet you look beautiful
as ever, is there a formula you like to share?

(Laughs) When I was much younger, I was doing a lot of aerobics
but that has reduced now. I think it is also genetically
determined. My father was 92 years old when he died and he didn’t
really have grey hair. Beyond these, you should eat right. You
shouldn’t eat heavy meals all the time. For instance, I do more of
vegetables and fruits. For breakfast, I could have avocado peer,
pineapple and pawpaw, together with ginger drink. And usually I eat
twice a day. My second meal could be Edikang Ikong, Efo riro and
guinea fowl and I try not to eat the fatty areas. Now, at my age, I
do light exercises, maybe for like half an hour. I was very slim
before I went into banking and I wanted to keep it that way, but I
used to feel so stressed after each day at work, and so going for
aerobics became a challenge and I didn’t want to fall down on the
treadmill someday (laughs). That was how I put on more weight.
Drinking plenty of water also helps. I try not to drink juices
unless occasionally when I feel like taking sweet things. Lifestyle
has a role to play in people’s looks and I think people have to
study theirs because beyond looking good, good lifestyle is also
capable of extending their years on earth.

Culled from Punch

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