People
GFF Reunion in Ijebu Ode Revives 25 Years of Memories
GFF reunion brings former members and ex-students together in Ijebu Ode as the Gateway Front Foundation prepares for its 25th anniversary
Old friendships, familiar faces and new connections came together at Obalofin Court, GRA, Ijebu Ode, Ogun State, on Sunday, 9 August 2026, as former members and ex-students of Gateway Front Foundation and Political Academy, POLA, gathered for a special reunion and to begin preparations for the foundation’s 25th anniversary.
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The gathering brought together old and new members of the Gateway Front Foundation, GFF, including several people who had not seen one another for nearly two decades.
What began as a meeting to discuss the foundation’s anniversary plans quickly developed into an emotional homecoming, with members reconnecting and reflecting on the journey that began in 2000.
The historic residence of GFF Founder and Chairman, Otunba Senator Gbenga Daniel, provided a fitting setting for the reunion. The Obalofin residence is closely associated with the foundation’s early years, having served as the place where its activities first took root.
Since its establishment in 2000, GFF has maintained a continuous presence in Ogun State, building a network that has brought together people from different generations and professional backgrounds.
Among those who attended the reunion was a delegation led by former GFF Executive Secretary, Chief (Mrs) Folake Marcus-Bello.
The delegation included several longstanding members of the foundation, among them Hon. Ladi Adebutu, Mr Kehinde Sogunle, Prince Lekan Tejuoso, Hon. Wale Ogunbanjo, Hon. (Arc.) Kayode Adebayo, Otunba R.A. Adenaike, Engr. Ayinde Awobadejo, Chief Tola Odulaja and Otunba Stiles.
Their presence represented a link between the foundation’s early years and its current generation of members.
Daniel personally received the visitors at Obalofin, where the reunion provided an opportunity to renew old relationships and welcome newer members into the foundation’s expanding network.
Earlier, Adebutu and members of the GFF delegation had paid a courtesy visit to Daniel, during which members signed a resolution on state creation.
The delegation also included Ambassador Folake Marcus-Bello, a former commissioner and the foundation’s second Executive Secretary; Kehinde Sogunle, a financial member of GFF and Chief Knowledge Officer of Lead Resources; Prince Lekan Tejuoso, a former Commissioner for Cooperative Development; and Femi Omotayo.
The meeting also produced a practical step towards the foundation’s next major milestone.
A 25th Anniversary Special Implementation Committee was constituted to coordinate preparations for the anniversary celebrations.
Sogunle was appointed chairman of the committee and is expected to lead the planning process ahead of the landmark event.
The anniversary will provide an opportunity for the foundation to reflect on its 25-year history, recognise those who contributed to its development and consider its direction for the years ahead.
For many of those who attended the Ijebu Ode gathering, however, the significance went beyond the anniversary plans.
The reunion offered former colleagues, friends and associates an opportunity to reconnect after years apart, while allowing newer members to meet some of the people who helped shape the foundation in its formative years.
The atmosphere also highlighted the enduring relationships built through the organisation over a quarter of a century.
With the anniversary committee now in place, attention will turn to organising a celebration that brings together the different generations of the Gateway Front Foundation community.
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The Ijebu Ode gathering has already provided a meaningful beginning, bringing old members back to a place closely connected to the foundation’s origins while creating space for new faces to become part of its continuing story.
How much do you really know about Aisha Achimugu? To some, she is a successful businesswoman; to others, a philanthropist with a generous heart. In high society, the Kogi State-born entrepreneur is equally a familiar face, commanding attention in influential business and social circles. But beyond the boardroom, philanthropy and society engagements lies a rather intimate side of her personality: a woman with a remarkable gift for expressing love.
Who would have imagined that beneath her glamorous public persona resides a romantic soul capable of turning grief into poetry?
Indeed, who would have imagined that she had worshipped at the temple of Venus, the Greek god of love, so much so that she knows the spirit and letter of love this much.
Last Tuesday, Achimugu offered a glimpse into this deeply personal world when she penned an emotional tribute to commemorate what would have been her late husband’s 70th birthday. It was no ordinary birthday remembrance. Rather, it was a moving love letter to the man she fondly described as her handsome husband, best friend and forever Honey.
“Today, you would have turned 70. Seventy beautiful years. A milestone I imagined celebrating with you, surrounded by our children, laughter, love, and the beautiful memories we would have continued creating together,” she wrote.
In words that tugged at the heart, the businesswoman confessed that even the strongest hearts have a place that only one person can fill. For her, that place will forever belong to her departed husband.
Beyond the emotional outpouring, Achimugu celebrated his professional accomplishments, describing him as an exceptionally brilliant engineer whose contributions to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company and the oil and gas industry remain significant.
She recalled how he mentored young professionals, opened doors for deserving individuals and helped nurture talents without regard to family background or connections.
She also acknowledged his influence on her personal journey, declaring that he gave her wings and that the strength he planted in her continues to sustain her.
Her husband’s death during the COVID-19 pandemic, she admitted, left an irreplaceable void in the family.
Yet, through her heartfelt prayers and renewed declaration of love, Achimugu demonstrated that some bonds transcend the boundaries of mortality.
For a woman accustomed to the demands of business and the spotlight of high society, this was a different kind of unveiling. One in which the language of love, rather than the currency of influence, took centre stage.
Indeed, some love stories do not end with death; they simply become memories that refuse to fade.
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