The recent post humous honour accorded Olorogun Michael Ibru with a memorable plaque jammed on the walls of the St John, Notting Hill, one of London’s most iconic neighborhood where Ibru lived in one of his British residences between between 1974 and 2007, attest to the legend of Ibru as a pioneering African industrialist and philanthropist of global repute.
I don’t want to dwell on his biography which would be better documented by his family. Michael Ibru was a pride of every Urhobo son and daughter. Mere mentioning his name opens doors widely even more that eights years after his passage.
In the 70s, the first business organisation in Nigeria one will know when flying Nigeria Airways is Ibru Organisation with its inscription boldly written in front and back page flight tickets of Nigeria Airways. He made sea food, particularly the ‘ice fish’ known to the common man.
Michael Ibru was the greatest Urhobo industrialist and merchant in the history of Urhobo nation. He was not a billionaire with no source of income. He was a known fisherman of the 21st century whose trade impacted on Nigeria society and far beyond.
He made several people whom he tutored. He made people who worked in his organisation. He made people who associated with him in his life time. He was humble to a fault. He didn’t look down on people. He thought his associates and workers the importance of hard work.
He was an institution whose business was not built on connection to people in government. He didn’t behave like Nigerian politicians who took to politics as private business to amass wealth. He was a rare man. In the 60s, 70s and 80s, there is no town/city of Nigeria in which Ibru fish business was not firmly rooted.
Ibru organisation was the first Nigerian indegenous business organisations to declare annual profits in US dollars. He made Nigeria proud. He made his Urhobo tribe proud. He was the greatest Nigerian business man of this era in my opinion. Today most of the Nigerian business people are extention of politicians in power as fronts. Micheal Ibru was not linked to any of such scandalous wealth.
His foresight and simplicity was uncommon. I still remember the Ibru geisha as a secondary school students favourite. He had uncommon business wisdom. He was not boastful of his wealth and didn’t flaunt it recklessly. In most social events he would wear his simple white shorts and people wouldn’t notice him until when he had left or about leaving.
When Sam-Warri Essi of Igbudu, Warri urban died 1975, Ibru came for the funeral event but it was as he was about leaving the event many who were present knew it was him, and his participation became instant talk of the town then. He was not scared of his nativity as a freeborn of Agbarha-Otor of Ughelli North locality. His presence was felt in his home town and mixed freely with the folks.
He was a great man with uncommon wisdom. He didn’t brag about being a true Lagos boy. He related with his mother’s home town locals of Ovwor-Olomu of Ughelli South as well. He related with every person. He had no class discrimination despite his rare fame and fortune.
He was unlike most urban business people/elites of Nigeria who have lost touch with their roots and brag about being township/city people who don’t take their children to their home communities, most of their children don’t know their ancentral home communities. The Ibrus are proud of their Agbarha-Otor town of Ughelli North and Ovwor town of Ughelli south.
Michael Ibru brought up and tutored his younger siblings known as Ibru brothers and they became the most united, perhaps wealthiest, business family in Nigeria in the 60s, 70s down to the early 90s. Ibru brothers became a household name in business.
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