Omotunde Koffi – ‘Sister’ Reveals Segun Awolowo’s Birth Name, Last Days

The final farewell rites for Segun Awolowo Jnr, the man who bore a legendary name without arrogance, have begun.

The three-day funeral for the grandson of Chief Obafemi Awolowo opened on December 1, 2025, with a solemn night of tributes at Harbour Point, Victoria Island, Lagos.

One of the most touching moments of the evening came from his cousin – informally addressed as his sister , Mrs Yemisi Subair, who revealed a little-known detail about his identity.

“Segun was not named Segun; he was named Omotunde Koffi. When he learnt about his dad, he chose to be called Segun. He was never named Segun Awolowo,” she said.

Segun’s father, Segun Awolowo Snr, a lawyer, died in July 1963 in a road accident on his way from Ibadan to Lagos. He had lived in Ibadan while his father, Chief Awolowo, was detained in a Lagos prison on trumped-up charges.

The trip that claimed his life was meant to link him with his mother, the late HID Awolowo with the plan to visit the late sage.

Segun Awolowo jnr was birthed the same year.

Reflecting on her brother’s final days, Mrs Subair described his deep spiritual awakening shortly before his passing:

“Man Sege, what can I say? Thank you for the beautiful memories. When Segun was about to travel for treatment, he called me — I think a night or two before.
Even though I sorrow and I grieve, I know Segun is with the Lord because he started hearing from God in the last month of his life.

He said an old song kept coming to him, and I had to search for it on YouTube. That song captured the essence of his last days: Iku òrò tí mba kú, ìyà èṣè tí mba jẹ, gbogbo e ló tì kó lọ; Jesu Olúwa, ó má ṣe o, torí mi ló ṣe jìyà. (The painful death I should have died, the suffering that sin should have brought upon me — all of it has been taken away. Lord Jesus, thank you; you suffered for my sake.)

For two days, he couldn’t stop singing it. I know he entered heaven singing it.”

Segun Awolowo Jnr passed away on November 20, 2025.

A beloved figure, he served as Executive Director of the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (2013–2021) and, since 2021, as President of the National Trade Promotion Organisation, a role to which ECOWAS member states unanimously elected him. His work made him a central voice in regional trade advocacy.

A wake-keeping service will hold on Wednesday, December 3, at Harbour Point, while the final funeral service is scheduled for December 5, 2025, at Our Saviour’s Church, Ikoyi, Lagos.