Though in Yoruba, Igbo or English attire, you could mistake him for a Hausaman. Abraham Oluwafunso Balogun speaks fluent Yoruba, Hausa and English. Currently living in Magboro, Ogun State, Balogun is well-travelled within Northern Nigeria and has lived in towns and villages such as Tudun Wada, Kachia, Barnawa, Narayi. Kafanchan, Zonkwa, Gyadi, Gyadi, Yankaba, Talese, Nassarawa, Zamfara, Sokoto and Abuja. Down South, Balogun sojourned in Otta, Calabar, Uyo, Port Harcourt, Yenagoa, Auchi and Lagos in his perambulations plying or seeking a means of livelihood..
The father of two was born and raised in Zaria, the firstborn of the family and the only one with sickle cell anaemia. His birth was a long-wished-for dream come to pass.
‘My dad always wanted a male child as firstborn to steep in Islamic custom and tradition,’ says Balogun.
Balogun’s dad was a fiery preacher and an imam at Zango, near Samaru.
‘I was declared wanted – dead or alive,’ Balogun recalls. ‘I escaped to Bomo, a town far from my home base of Samaru, Zaria.’
By the time he was seven, Ibrahim Balogun knew the Koran by heart. At 10, he was following his father to Islamic conferences in northern Nigeria, hotbed of Islamic fundamentalism. His mom, a Christian who at marriage converted to Islam was none too pleased but tradition sealed her lips. Who was she to criticize the religious upbringing of a child!
A conscientious family man and talented photographer, Balogun now works on appointment. If you are in Lagos, Ogun or Oyo State and you need excellent photography and video services, Funso Balogun is your man. Reach him on 08026190002 and whatsapp on 08149371991.