Veteran actor, Adebayo Salami, popularly known as Oga Bello, on Monday, said the death of Nigerian comedian, Babatunde Omidina, fondly called Baba Suwe, has left a huge vacuum in the Nigerian comedy industry.
Salami, while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria, paid tribute to late Omidina, describing him as an extraordinary comedian.
He said he believed that late Omidina would recuperate soon only to be confronted with the news of his demise.
“We thank God for everything. Baba Suwe is someone we have been looking forward to that one day, he would get well, but almighty Allah has taken His decision. There is nothing we can do about it. We can only pray that his soul rests in perfect peace and may almighty Allah forgive his shortcomings and stand by his relations to bear the huge loss.
“Unfortunately, his demise left huge vacuum in the Nigerian comedy industry. His fans started missing him a long time ago, when he became ill. He was a talented person; a clown. Whatever he did or said appeared funny. His colleagues, too, will miss him greatly,” he said.
Some Nollywood celebrities took to their Instagram pages to mourn late Omidina. Kolawole Ajeyemi wrote, “Rest on legend. Sad!” Actress Ayo Adesanya said, “Rest in peace Baba Suwe.”
Also, Yomi Fabiyi wrote, “The king of comedy, you are a star. Rest in peace.” Saheed Balogun said, “Goodnight Babatunde Omidina, rest in glory.”
Similarly, Biola Adekunle wrote, “Thank you for blessing my childhood days with great comedy. Rest in peace Baba Suwe.”
NAN reports that Omidina, who hailed from Ikorodu Local Government Area of Lagos State, was born on August 22, 1958 on Inabere Street, Lagos Island, where he grew up.
Omidina began his career in acting in 1971 but came into limelight after featuring in a movie produced by Obalende, titled, ‘Omolasan.’
He became more popular after he featured in ‘Iru Esin’ in 1997. He had featured and produced several films, including ‘Baba Jaiye Jaiye.’
In 2011, he was accused of cocaine trafficking by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, an allegation that was described as false and defamatory by the ruling of the Lagos High Court.
Omidina suffered poor health in 2018, prompting many Nigerians, including Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, to donate funds for his treatment aboard.
(NAN).
