Pa Francisco Branco.
Photo: Ayodele Ale
You would think he had just won a lottery when a reverend sister in charge of the Regina Mundi Centre for the Aged called out to him and told him that some lawyers had come to pay him a visit. “Barristers?” he exclaimed in response to the piece of information from Reverend Sister Antonia Adebowale.
Dressed in a native attire, Pa Branco rose with some difficulties from his wooden bed and took measured steps towards the visitors. Then Adebowale volunteered a brief introduction to the group of young lawyers who had come from a Lagos-based law firms to extend their seasonal love to the less privileged: “Pa Branco is one of the old people in this home. He has been living here for the past three years.”
As the visitors presented their gifts of food items to him, they had not the faintest idea that the octogenarian hailed from the famous Branco family who have streets named after them in Idumota and Mafoluku areas of Lagos, until Adebowale dropped a hint.
“I got to know that Papa (Branco) is a member of the popular Branco family in Lagos,” she said.
But old age had not robbed Pa Branco the memories of his good old days with his wealthy parents. “My father was very rich. He had more than 35 houses in different parts of Lagos,” he boasted. “I represented Lagos State during cricket competitions in the 50s.”
He may have had a swell time as a young man living on the fortune bequeathed to him by his parents, but he currently lives at the mercy of the Catholic church which had to rescue him from penury and take him to the home.
Telling Saturday Punch how Pa Branco became a member of the home, Adebowale said, “The church is divided into groups of people who attend to individuals in peculiar situations. One of them is the St Vincent de Paul, which was taking care of him at St Jude’s Catholic Church in the Mafoluku part of Oshodi before they brought him to the home about three years ago.”
The leader of St. Vincent de Paul, Mr Longinus Amadi, disclosed that they met Pa Branco in a pathetic condition on a day they paid him a visit as a member of the parish. “His condition was too pathetic. He was living in a hut. We doubted if he had a family because no one was looking after him. His clothes were very dirty and there was no one to assist him in washing it. The room was stinking. There was no one to fetch water for him.
“We decided to shoulder the responsibility of taking care of him. Apart from providing for his basic needs, we also sent young people occasionally to tidy up the place.”
Longinus said the group was surprised to discover that the old man actually had three grown up children.
The Riches to Rags Story
Pa Branco told our correspondent that he got married to Madam Williams Olaitan in 1943, a union that produced three children–Mausi, Florence and Olatunde. “They have all forgotten me. They said I did not take care of them when they were still young.”
Asked whether he actually did not take care of the children, he admitted that he he did not. He said although he was based in the northern part of the country then, he was sending money to the children through one of his sisters named Mrs McCauley, after the death of his wife.
The priest in charge of St Jude Catholic Church, Reverend Father Abiodun Ademoye, said the church had tried to reconcile Pa Branco with the aggrieved children without much success. “We asked for their addresses in the house where he was living but none of the people had the contacts of the children. But we later located a woman who is his eldest child and she levelled so many allegations against him.
“We also learnt from other people that the children are particularly angry that their father sold his own share of the property of the Branco family, some of which he ought to have bequeathed to them.
“But whatever the man must have done to the children, they should please forgive him. We almost succeeded in getting them to meet face to face, but somehow, the negotiations broke down and we never saw her again.
“Eventually, we had no option but to take him to the home. It was a choice between two evils and definitely, one of them must be better. Faced with the choice of keeping him in the old people’s home or leaving him to be suffering in his house at Mafoluku, we chose the former.”
Amadi says he believes that the old man is happier in the home than he was at his former place. “Even in the advanced world, when people become old, they are taken to old people’s home. So, I believe he is happy where he is now,” he said.
Adebowale recalled that one of the grandchildren once came to see the old man but did not return. “Some days ago, the old man called me and told me that a particular man who was leaving the premises of the church after the morning mass was his younger brother. The following day, a woman also came and he identified her as his relation, but we did not have the opportunity of speaking with them.”
Some members of the home told Saturday Punch that the old man was desirous of seeing his children. Adebowale said, “On many occasions, he told us that he wanted to go back home to see his children. You know, old people are always happy seeing their children around them. But anytime he feels like that, I would buy soft drink and rice for him and he would be happy.
“But the man will be happy if the children reconcile with him before his death.”
The windowless wooden room where Pa Branco was living at Mafoluku before he was rescued by the Catholic church had already been occupied by another tenant when our correspondent visited the place.
Asked the whereabouts of Pa Branco and his children, an old woman in the neighbourhood said she did not know. “I am not a member of the Branco family; I am an original tenant,” she said. “The man left this place more than two years ago.”
When our correspondent visted No 10, Ogunmokun Street, Mushin identified as the shop of one of Pa Branco’s relations, the tenants also said there was no one bearing Branco in the house. Some of the church members also said they did not know the whereabouts of any of the children or siblings of the old man.
Ademoye noted that what the chidren needed was the spirit of forgiveness. “Let them forgive the old man, no matter what. After all, he is the one who brought them into this world,” he said.
© Copyright 2006 The Punch
December 21, 2008
NIGERIA: Abandoned by his children, homeless 87-year-old member of popular Lagos family finds respite in old
.
LAGOS, Nigeria / The Punch / December 20, 2008
By Ayodele Ale
There was absolutely nothing to suggest that 87-year-old Pa Francisco Branco is a member of one of the most affluent families in Lagos. Apart from living in an old people’s home maintained by a Catholic church, the once wealthy octogenarian lives purely on charity and has been completely abandoned by his three children.
Pa Francisco Branco.
Photo: Ayodele Ale
You would think he had just won a lottery when a reverend sister in charge of the Regina Mundi Centre for the Aged called out to him and told him that some lawyers had come to pay him a visit. “Barristers?” he exclaimed in response to the piece of information from Reverend Sister Antonia Adebowale.
Dressed in a native attire, Pa Branco rose with some difficulties from his wooden bed and took measured steps towards the visitors. Then Adebowale volunteered a brief introduction to the group of young lawyers who had come from a Lagos-based law firms to extend their seasonal love to the less privileged: “Pa Branco is one of the old people in this home. He has been living here for the past three years.”
As the visitors presented their gifts of food items to him, they had not the faintest idea that the octogenarian hailed from the famous Branco family who have streets named after them in Idumota and Mafoluku areas of Lagos, until Adebowale dropped a hint.
“I got to know that Papa (Branco) is a member of the popular Branco family in Lagos,” she said.
But old age had not robbed Pa Branco the memories of his good old days with his wealthy parents. “My father was very rich. He had more than 35 houses in different parts of Lagos,” he boasted. “I represented Lagos State during cricket competitions in the 50s.”
He may have had a swell time as a young man living on the fortune bequeathed to him by his parents, but he currently lives at the mercy of the Catholic church which had to rescue him from penury and take him to the home.
Telling Saturday Punch how Pa Branco became a member of the home, Adebowale said, “The church is divided into groups of people who attend to individuals in peculiar situations. One of them is the St Vincent de Paul, which was taking care of him at St Jude’s Catholic Church in the Mafoluku part of Oshodi before they brought him to the home about three years ago.”
The leader of St. Vincent de Paul, Mr Longinus Amadi, disclosed that they met Pa Branco in a pathetic condition on a day they paid him a visit as a member of the parish. “His condition was too pathetic. He was living in a hut. We doubted if he had a family because no one was looking after him. His clothes were very dirty and there was no one to assist him in washing it. The room was stinking. There was no one to fetch water for him.
“We decided to shoulder the responsibility of taking care of him. Apart from providing for his basic needs, we also sent young people occasionally to tidy up the place.”
Longinus said the group was surprised to discover that the old man actually had three grown up children.
The Riches to Rags Story
Pa Branco told our correspondent that he got married to Madam Williams Olaitan in 1943, a union that produced three children–Mausi, Florence and Olatunde. “They have all forgotten me. They said I did not take care of them when they were still young.”
Asked whether he actually did not take care of the children, he admitted that he he did not. He said although he was based in the northern part of the country then, he was sending money to the children through one of his sisters named Mrs McCauley, after the death of his wife.
The priest in charge of St Jude Catholic Church, Reverend Father Abiodun Ademoye, said the church had tried to reconcile Pa Branco with the aggrieved children without much success. “We asked for their addresses in the house where he was living but none of the people had the contacts of the children. But we later located a woman who is his eldest child and she levelled so many allegations against him.
“We also learnt from other people that the children are particularly angry that their father sold his own share of the property of the Branco family, some of which he ought to have bequeathed to them.
“But whatever the man must have done to the children, they should please forgive him. We almost succeeded in getting them to meet face to face, but somehow, the negotiations broke down and we never saw her again.
“Eventually, we had no option but to take him to the home. It was a choice between two evils and definitely, one of them must be better. Faced with the choice of keeping him in the old people’s home or leaving him to be suffering in his house at Mafoluku, we chose the former.”
Amadi says he believes that the old man is happier in the home than he was at his former place. “Even in the advanced world, when people become old, they are taken to old people’s home. So, I believe he is happy where he is now,” he said.
Adebowale recalled that one of the grandchildren once came to see the old man but did not return. “Some days ago, the old man called me and told me that a particular man who was leaving the premises of the church after the morning mass was his younger brother. The following day, a woman also came and he identified her as his relation, but we did not have the opportunity of speaking with them.”
Some members of the home told Saturday Punch that the old man was desirous of seeing his children. Adebowale said, “On many occasions, he told us that he wanted to go back home to see his children. You know, old people are always happy seeing their children around them. But anytime he feels like that, I would buy soft drink and rice for him and he would be happy.
“But the man will be happy if the children reconcile with him before his death.”
The windowless wooden room where Pa Branco was living at Mafoluku before he was rescued by the Catholic church had already been occupied by another tenant when our correspondent visited the place.
Asked the whereabouts of Pa Branco and his children, an old woman in the neighbourhood said she did not know. “I am not a member of the Branco family; I am an original tenant,” she said. “The man left this place more than two years ago.”
When our correspondent visted No 10, Ogunmokun Street, Mushin identified as the shop of one of Pa Branco’s relations, the tenants also said there was no one bearing Branco in the house. Some of the church members also said they did not know the whereabouts of any of the children or siblings of the old man.
Ademoye noted that what the chidren needed was the spirit of forgiveness. “Let them forgive the old man, no matter what. After all, he is the one who brought them into this world,” he said.
© Copyright 2006 The Punch
Pa Francisco Branco.
Photo: Ayodele Ale
You would think he had just won a lottery when a reverend sister in charge of the Regina Mundi Centre for the Aged called out to him and told him that some lawyers had come to pay him a visit. “Barristers?” he exclaimed in response to the piece of information from Reverend Sister Antonia Adebowale.
Dressed in a native attire, Pa Branco rose with some difficulties from his wooden bed and took measured steps towards the visitors. Then Adebowale volunteered a brief introduction to the group of young lawyers who had come from a Lagos-based law firms to extend their seasonal love to the less privileged: “Pa Branco is one of the old people in this home. He has been living here for the past three years.”
As the visitors presented their gifts of food items to him, they had not the faintest idea that the octogenarian hailed from the famous Branco family who have streets named after them in Idumota and Mafoluku areas of Lagos, until Adebowale dropped a hint.
“I got to know that Papa (Branco) is a member of the popular Branco family in Lagos,” she said.
But old age had not robbed Pa Branco the memories of his good old days with his wealthy parents. “My father was very rich. He had more than 35 houses in different parts of Lagos,” he boasted. “I represented Lagos State during cricket competitions in the 50s.”
He may have had a swell time as a young man living on the fortune bequeathed to him by his parents, but he currently lives at the mercy of the Catholic church which had to rescue him from penury and take him to the home.
Telling Saturday Punch how Pa Branco became a member of the home, Adebowale said, “The church is divided into groups of people who attend to individuals in peculiar situations. One of them is the St Vincent de Paul, which was taking care of him at St Jude’s Catholic Church in the Mafoluku part of Oshodi before they brought him to the home about three years ago.”
The leader of St. Vincent de Paul, Mr Longinus Amadi, disclosed that they met Pa Branco in a pathetic condition on a day they paid him a visit as a member of the parish. “His condition was too pathetic. He was living in a hut. We doubted if he had a family because no one was looking after him. His clothes were very dirty and there was no one to assist him in washing it. The room was stinking. There was no one to fetch water for him.
“We decided to shoulder the responsibility of taking care of him. Apart from providing for his basic needs, we also sent young people occasionally to tidy up the place.”
Longinus said the group was surprised to discover that the old man actually had three grown up children.
The Riches to Rags Story
Pa Branco told our correspondent that he got married to Madam Williams Olaitan in 1943, a union that produced three children–Mausi, Florence and Olatunde. “They have all forgotten me. They said I did not take care of them when they were still young.”
Asked whether he actually did not take care of the children, he admitted that he he did not. He said although he was based in the northern part of the country then, he was sending money to the children through one of his sisters named Mrs McCauley, after the death of his wife.
The priest in charge of St Jude Catholic Church, Reverend Father Abiodun Ademoye, said the church had tried to reconcile Pa Branco with the aggrieved children without much success. “We asked for their addresses in the house where he was living but none of the people had the contacts of the children. But we later located a woman who is his eldest child and she levelled so many allegations against him.
“We also learnt from other people that the children are particularly angry that their father sold his own share of the property of the Branco family, some of which he ought to have bequeathed to them.
“But whatever the man must have done to the children, they should please forgive him. We almost succeeded in getting them to meet face to face, but somehow, the negotiations broke down and we never saw her again.
“Eventually, we had no option but to take him to the home. It was a choice between two evils and definitely, one of them must be better. Faced with the choice of keeping him in the old people’s home or leaving him to be suffering in his house at Mafoluku, we chose the former.”
Amadi says he believes that the old man is happier in the home than he was at his former place. “Even in the advanced world, when people become old, they are taken to old people’s home. So, I believe he is happy where he is now,” he said.
Adebowale recalled that one of the grandchildren once came to see the old man but did not return. “Some days ago, the old man called me and told me that a particular man who was leaving the premises of the church after the morning mass was his younger brother. The following day, a woman also came and he identified her as his relation, but we did not have the opportunity of speaking with them.”
Some members of the home told Saturday Punch that the old man was desirous of seeing his children. Adebowale said, “On many occasions, he told us that he wanted to go back home to see his children. You know, old people are always happy seeing their children around them. But anytime he feels like that, I would buy soft drink and rice for him and he would be happy.
“But the man will be happy if the children reconcile with him before his death.”
The windowless wooden room where Pa Branco was living at Mafoluku before he was rescued by the Catholic church had already been occupied by another tenant when our correspondent visited the place.
Asked the whereabouts of Pa Branco and his children, an old woman in the neighbourhood said she did not know. “I am not a member of the Branco family; I am an original tenant,” she said. “The man left this place more than two years ago.”
When our correspondent visted No 10, Ogunmokun Street, Mushin identified as the shop of one of Pa Branco’s relations, the tenants also said there was no one bearing Branco in the house. Some of the church members also said they did not know the whereabouts of any of the children or siblings of the old man.
Ademoye noted that what the chidren needed was the spirit of forgiveness. “Let them forgive the old man, no matter what. After all, he is the one who brought them into this world,” he said.
© Copyright 2006 The Punch
