Seun Oloketuyi, the producer of ‘Last Man Standing’, a biopic of the ex-governor of Lagos State, Bola Tinubu, has said that the movie was not propaganda.
The famous Yoruba actor, Lateef Adedimeji, is playing Mr Tinubu, in his (Tinubu’s) soon-to-be-released biopic, “Last Man Standing”.
Mr Oloketuyi disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Lagos.
He told NAN that the movie was not produced as propaganda for Mr Tinubu.
Mr Tinubu, a national leader of the APC, will be among the frontrunners who want to succeed Muhammadu Buhari, whose tenure as president, ends in May 2023.
He formally declared his intention to run for the country’s president in 2023 on January 10, 2022.
Inspiration
Mr Oloketuyi, who is also the producer of ‘White Lion’, a biopic on Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi, said that making movies was his priority.
“When we did ‘The White Lion’, a lot of people said it was propaganda for Yahaya Bello, and I asked them to wait until they saw the movie.
“It is a movie that seeks to entertain. In entertainment, a lot of history is embedded.
“I made up my mind last year that we were going to make some historical movies. Apart from this, we are also doing one for the late Adedibu, Lateef Jakande and Prof. Peller, all of these will be released within the next 12 months.
“I believe that it is time to bring our stories to life, especially for our children who don’t know these histories,” he said.
On difficulties encountered when writing the script, he said it was not an easy task.
“We had to change scriptwriters four times, most of the scriptwriters did not even know what happened in 1999, that is the truth.
“Even getting books about his time as governor was difficult. I sent some of my people to all the major book stores and they did not have a book on Tinubu.
“If it is difficult to get books on a man like Tinubu that is alive, how can we hope to get books for those who are no longer with us but are a key part of Nigeria’s history and story? That is the gap we are trying to fill with the film,” he said.
NAN reports that the plot of the story started when Mr Tinubu became governor and the challenges he faced as a governor.
The movie also highlights his academic controversies, local government issues, the Fashola debacle, up to the time Mr Buhari became president. (NAN)
