Baba Otolo has recalled how a N4 million bank loan, intended for a movie project, spiralled into a N16 million debt that forced him to flee his home and seek refuge in Ogbomoso, Oyo state.
In a recent interview on Divine TV, the 68-year-old thespian, born Mustapha Bakare, detailed a series of unfortunate events that began in 2019. He explained that he secured a N4 million loan from Eco Bank to produce a star-studded movie titled Ise Oru.
According to him, the project, however, met with tragedy just two months after its release, following the death of his marketer Lady Prince.
Lady Prince’s sudden death, he said, crippled his ability to repay the loan, as the expected revenue from the movie vanished.
The filmmaker added that the situation was exacerbated by the marketer’s husband, who he described as uncooperative and intent on taking over his late wife’s properties.
I once had a marketer, those days called Lady Prince. She was very different among the marketers. I released a movie to her titled Ise Oru. The movie was star-studded. We shot it for 15 days, he said.
So, I collected a loan of N4 million from the bank. Marketers usually pay us after three months. After two months, the marketer suddenly died.
She was not sick. She just fell and died. And her husband was not responsible. The husband recently died about three months ago. The wife was the family’s breadwinner. The husband was always looking for ways to take over his wife’s property.
I asked him to help secure the agreement documents I signed with his late wife, but he refused. We were told that his lifestyle contributed to his wife’s death.
The actor disclosed that with the repayment default, Eco Bank initiated legal action. He said his name was published in newspapers while the debt ballooned to N16 million due to accumulated interest over three years.
Baba Otolo revealed that his salvation came from the foundation owned by Agbala Daniel Cathedral, an Ibadan-based church.
He said the foundation settled N14.5 million of the debt, leaving a balance of N1.5 million.
I could not pay back the loan to Eco Bank. They started giving me problems by releasing my name on paper. Then I moved to Ogbomoso. After that, I met with Agbala Gabriel. He was the one who paid for me. Although they did not pay everything, the bank left the rest, he added.
The interest accumulated for about three years. It was the interest that weighed me down. We could not pay N1.5 million. They collected N14.5 million.
