I won’t recognise father who abandoned me for 22 years – Tope Alabi’s daughter reacts to paternity scandal

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Ayomikun, the first child of a popular gospel singer, Tope Alabi, speaks with Ademola Olonilua and Mobola Sadiq about the claim by Mayegun Olaoye that he is her father.

Mr Mayegun Olaoye claimed to be your father, what do you think about his claims?

I do not think his name is Mayegun Olaoye but maybe that is his name. I think the story is outrageous. My mum had told me about my father because you cannot keep a thing like that from a child.

Did you try to reach out to him to hear his side of the story?

I will only reach out to someone that has reached out to me. I  know that my mum had told me about him but I have never met him.

You have a father-figure who has been there for you all through, how will you balance the situation?

Why would I ever see my father as my stepdad?

How do you feel about the whole situation?

I feel normal, I will only feel bad if I was not told but I was (told). It is not news and I am not shocked.

If he reaches out to you to patch things up, what will be your response?

I don’t think I want to patch things up (with him) but I will definitely want to meet him in court if he ever wants to talk.

Why in court, don’t you want it to be a civil matter?

Did he make it a civil matter when he came out to talk? I have never met this man in my 22 years on earth. I will like to know why he never reached out to someone he claimed to be his daughter for 22 years.

Have you ever been curious about him?

If you truly care that I am (your) daughter, or you know that you have someone somewhere, you are supposed to look for me. I am not meant to be the person to look for him.

How do you feel that he went to social media to claim that he is your father?

I feel like he has completely lost the chance of reconciliation. That was the last tie and he has cut (it). I have spoken to my mum about it and we are all fine. It was not something that we were shocked about.

Do you think he is trying to blackmail your family?

No, he is not blackmailing the family; he is just an example of a very terrible father. He is a father that is not trying to make it up but wants to get back at someone else.

Do you think he is doing this to get back at your mum?

I don’t know what he is trying to do and I don’t see the point. But I know that his recent actions showed he did not care about my feelings which make it obvious that he is not a good father.

God knows my real father and everyone knows who my real father is. I did not know this man when I was in the crèche, daycare, primary and secondary schools or during my university days. I graduated and did not get a congratulatory message (from him). (I got) absolutely nothing from him. It is just a story about a… father and he is trying to cut every relationship he could ever build with his so-called daughter. I genuinely do not know why he is coming out after 22 years. I am just grateful that I and my mother have a close relationship. I am thankful for the mother and father that I have. They have been the best people on earth. After God, my parents are the biggest people in my life.

Why do you think he is coming out to talk now?

I don’t know why he is coming out to speak out after 22 years. Maybe he can explain his reasons himself.

In the viral reports, your father claimed that Tope Alabi blocked all the avenues to see you?

My mother never blocked the avenues for us to see. My mother even tried for me to have a relationship with him. I remember when I was about 15 years; she used to encourage me to talk about him. When we discussed marriage, they (my parents) tell me that they want him to know that I am about to get married. I never had any conversation with this man before.

You father also claimed that your mother changed your surname?

I cannot bear his surname. How can I bear the surname of someone that I have never met? There is no sense in that. I do not even know his surname. I know and will always know that my father is Soji Alabi.  I don’t know any other person and never met any other man. I cannot blatantly deny him because I have heard about him.

What’s your opinion about men who did not reach out to their children and suddenly come to claim them after many years?

I would say that fathers should be responsible. If you have children take care of them. If you have stayed away from your children, try to fix things with them if you don’t want to be absent on the days of their celebration. And for children, stay strong. One day, everything will be fine.

What do you think your father wants?

I don’t know what he wants but I know that he was not there for 22 years and now he is coming up to say he is my father?

Do you think he is deliberately doing this?

Obviously, who goes to a blog if it is not deliberate?

Can you forgive him for coming online to make these claims?

You’ll be hurt by something that you did not expect. But it was not something that really surprised me.