Joni the Change Agent Int.

Late Rear Admiral David Baderinwa Alabi (rtd)  If Rear Admiral David Baderinwa Alabi (rtd) had been a politician who helped himself  to the public till, pocketed jumbo salaries, received mind-boggling allowances and took dubious pensions, the nation would have stood still in his memory on May 17. There would have been a barrage  of activities, sports competitions, colloquium, music, dance, the nation’s flag flying at half mast and the media awash with paid for in memorial adverts all in his memory. But Rear Admiral Alabi was never a politician. He was a detribalised Nigerian, a naval  officer, a visionary, a community leader, a philanthropist, a change agent who in his lifetime did more for humanity than several politicians in the country lumped together. And sadly, ten years after his very painful death on May 17, 2008 at 58 years, not one event was organised in his memory, in spite of his multitudinous contributions to nation building. There was a remem...

The security man that once banished me away from this prestigious Eko Hotel and Suites Victoria Island Lagos because he just hate seeing me attending free seminars, conferences etc was still the one that was posted to secure the event hall that I rented for #baef's 2016 annual lecture at the Eko Hotel.  He was shocked and surprised upon  seeing me resurfacing and doing great, three months after he banished me.  The security man didn't know that I'm not the type of person he can molest and ridicule and go away with it.

Moment of Truth 🗣🗣🗣 Your ability to solve problem determine your personal and societal capacity of usefulness. There are Some people that have the capacity to solve their personal problems.  Another group have the capacity to solve their community problems.  A higher group has developed the capacity to solve national problems. An advanced small group have developed the capacity to solve global problems. We call them global figures.  But there's another higher level of problem solvers, they are occupying their minds with creating solutions to Universal problems - finding ways to harness potentials in other planets. These category of problem solvers are selectively few in our world at large. We call them universal solution providers Now let's get real.... There's a huge group who can't solve their own personal problems. They have an entitlement mentality. They want to be spoon fed in this dynamic generation. They are the problem of our ecosystem.  Those ...

"Wherever you find quality, you will find a craftsman, not a quality-control expert." Jonathan Olakunle Olanlokun is a social entrepreneur, the Founder of Barbara Abike Epperson Foundation (BAEF), a non-profit organization, who aims at immortalizing the works of his American foster grandmother. He is also the Founder of BJB EPPERSON (NIG) LTD and Joecan Aluminium, a technical company established in the year 2000. Furthermore, Jonathan is an active member of the Bring Back Our Girls (#BBOG) movement. Evidently, he is a Nigerian with keen interest in community and national development. His passion is borne out of the need to see the poor live a decent life. As an advocate of poverty reduction, Jonathan is well known for rendering selfless service to his community and the people he finds on the street. On several occasions, he has been found on the streets, giving food, financial support, and most importantly, giving hope to the hopeless. Jona...

I called myself "THE GREAT ACHIEVER" in my last post of yesterday, for the fact that I have been able to overcome many turbulences in life.  As at March 2015, my unexpected and orchestrated journey to greatness started just after my enterprises folded up and I also got tired of my locality and I decided to move out. With courage I left Osogbo, my comfort zone to Lagos in search of greener pastures. With just N1,500 naira only, I landed in Lagos like a scavenger, spent a week with my friend in Ajuwon, and immediately after that one week, I became a homeless visionary that needed clarity. I slept in motor parks and under the bridges. As a vision bearer and mover, I didn't let my challenges and circumstances terminate my vision, despite how big and overwhelming my challenges was, I didn’t let go off my dreams.  The attempts I made to get temporary accommodation with three different individuals, whom I once helped in different occasions was jeopardized, as they tu...

Throwing trash or garbage on the floor isn't prohibited here, but this unlawful acts, is  supposed to be prohibited in any ideal society.   It sadden me to say, It's is our culture to litter. This culture of littering is a bad culture, that must be abolished at all cost, if all stakeholders involved in the work of sensitization does their work very well.  Some months ago, I met this amazing boy that was selling round fried fish 🐟, he was sipping yogurt as he walked around. I took time to ask him few questions about how he will be disposing his empty yogurt schatet, in one of his reply he said "I will just drop the yogurt schatet on the ground". That sound shameful and truthful. I admonished him to dispose the yogurt schatet inside the nearest dustbin 🗑. He agreed with me and we both smiled.   ● Benefits of a litter-free environment/society.          ■Shows respect for others, the environment and yourself. ■...

NIGERIA and Dream killers. There is no hope for a better tomorrow in NIGERIA.  That's just the raw reality. You're free to call me an unrepentant pessimist or say I am not a patriot. Straight to my points,  I just spent 23 days in NIGERIA and I witnessed many things. I discussed issues and exchanged ideas with ordinary people on the street. I entered the public transport to listen to the daily struggles of fellow Nigerians. I am speaking the harsh reality on ground not just propaganda against any government. In NIGERIA of today, it's very hard to see majority of people uniting against Illegalities.  You will surely still see supporters of evils around you who are ready to use one absurdity to validate another abnormality. For example, look at the revolutionary initiative of Chief Sunday "Igboho" Adeyemo who recently declared "Fatwa" against the marauding nomads, rapists, assassins and kidnappers in Yoruba land. I am not sounding as an atheist...

THE ROAD TO MY TRANSFORMATION~ Story of Jonathan Olakunle Olanlokun.  "Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scar."~ Kahlil Gibran Whenever I see someone depressed and wandering all about due to issues of life, I look back to the darkest time of my life and thank God and wish such persons a quick turnaround for good ~ Jonathan Olanlokun. June 2015, was just three months into a Season of my life, which I believe was ordained and orchestrated by God to help face and overcome my seemingly insurmountable challenges of life.  In October 2014, I received signals to migrate from Osogbo to somewhere else. There was no particular place in mind, though. I made every possible effort to prevent my relocation, but all my attempts were proved abortive. On top of that, my business crashed: as a serial/social entrepreneur, my business was over-burdened due to high demands to singlehandedly fix stuffs without external aid or...

RISING STRONG  (Long post) "Vulnerability is about showing up and being seen. It’s tough to do that when we’re terrified about what people might see or think.” ~ Brené Brown. "Vulnerability is not winning or losing; it's having the courage to show up and be seen when we have no control over the outcome. Vulnerability is not weakness; it's our greatest measure of courage,” ~ Brené Brown. “Yes, I am imperfect and vulnerable and sometimes afraid, but that doesn’t change the truth that I am brave and worthy of love and belonging,” ~ Brené Brown. “I was reminded that shame is a liar and a story-stealer. I have to trust myself and the people I care about more than the gremlins, even if that means risking being hurt."~ Brené Brown. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ <> At a time of being very vulnerable was the same time my work as a change agent came to limelight.  <> On 23rd March, 2015 after I chose Lagos in place of Abuja. I migrated to Lagos bec...