The fairy tale rise-to- fame of Olajumoke Orisaguna in 2016 inspired millions of Nigerians, captured the interest of international media and served as a prayer point for many who desired such overnight transformation.
Olajumoke became the modern-day Nigerian
Cinderella when she accidentally strayed into a photo shoot helmed by TY
Bello, a Nigerian singer/photographer, while hawking bread on Olonode
Street, Yaba, Lagos.
Following her accidental encounter with the
photo shoot, TY Bello and Azuka Ogujiuba, a former senior reporter with
THISDAY Style, collaborated to make a model and celebrity out of
Olajumoke.
Subsequently, companies rolled over themselves to
favour the 30-year-old. At the end of the media blitz which included
features on CNN and BBC, the bread seller got a five-year rent of a
fully furnished apartment bankrolled by Sujimoto, a luxury apartment
construction company. She also secured modelling contracts with
e-commerce company, Payporte, and Zenith Bakery.
The
interventions and series of accompanying developments saw the fortune of
the bread seller take a leap – but three years down the line, things
are not as rosy as expected in the life of the mother of two.
eelive
can reveal that she is struggling economically and her relationship
with Sunday Orisaguna, the lover for whom she has her two children, is
on its way south as well.
At the moment, Olajumoke cannot boast
of any concrete means of livelihood. At home, things are not easy.
Sunday said life has been incredibly tough, and that help is farther
from him because many people assume that Olajumoke has made it big, and
that consequently, he’s also rich.
He lamented that Olajumoke and
her family have refused to agree to the formalization of their
relationship despite having two children together.
Although
Olajumoke and her erstwhile manager, Azuka Ogujiuba, would not discuss
the details of their parting of ways, both maintained that they remain
friendly and accessible to one another.
Sources close to both parties, however, insist that the severance of their relationship has left the former bread seller at sea.
This
suspicion was confirmed by Sunday who told eelive that “I think she was
better when she was with Azuka because Azuka and TY Bello have great
connections that paid Olajumoke more”.
Sunday also complained that he is often kept out of the loop of Olajumoke’s activities.
He
said: “I just know her manager calls her, they go out and return late.
Sometimes she returns as late as past 12am and without explanations. She
doesn’t even tell me where they go and what happens.”
The former bread seller herself confirmed that things are not as promising as they were three years ago.
Although
she has no job and savings, Olajumoke spoke of her desire to have a
home of her own before the existing rent expires in two years and to
establish a haircare business before the end of 2019.
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