The famous yoruba actress, Late Folake Aremu popularly known as Orisabunmi passed on last week. Within one week of her death, her two siblings also kicked the bucket.
Recall that the late actress died on January 6, 2021. Barely 24 hours after her demise, her 71-year-old brother, Steve Onisola also kicked the bucket.
Onisola who was the Technical Director of Kwara Falcons Basketball Club, Ilorin, reportedly died after a brief illness.
On Saturday, January 9, 2021, news then broke that her sister and only surviving sibling identified as Janet Ademola had also passed on just three days after the actress’ demise.
Since the deaths occurred, rumours have been making the rounds with many claiming that the deaths were COVID-related.
According to unconfirmed reports, Orisabunmi had allegedly contracted COVID19 at an event where a popular gospel artiste, Esther Igbekele, performed in Ibadan, Oyo State in December.
The report added that Orisabunmi later infected other family members.
The late actress’ nephew has now come out to debunk any such rumours that the actress and her siblings were all casualties of COVID-19.
While speaking to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ilorin about the multiple deaths, Mr Onishola, who is the son of the late Kwara Falcons Basketball Club technical director, Steve Onishola, stated that the multiple deaths were “just mere coincidence’’ and the actress had died naturally.
“It is not true that my father, late Nollywood actress, Orisabunmi and their younger sister, Janet died of COVID-19 complications,” he said.
“My dad has been on admission since last year and he was diagnosed for another thing entirely. It has nothing to do with COVID-19 at all.
“Basketballers are aware, they came visiting, I was with him for a month at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH), taking care of him.”
Onishola further said the last sibling, Janet had been battling with high blood pressure for a long time.
“I think the shock was too strong for her, she has been managing BP (high blood pressure) for long,” he said.
He said that neither his father Steve nor his siblings, Orisabunmi and Janet Ademola died from the disease. He also noted that he takes solace from the fact that his father lived a worthy life because he touched many positively within the basketball circle and beyond.
News of Orisabunmi’s passing was announced on January 6, 2021, by Nollywood Circle on social media.
“We have just received the news of the demise of Veteran Actress, Orisabunmi. May her soul rest in Peace. Folake Aremu popularly known as Orisabunmi has been a phenomenal part of the film industry for more than four decades. She starred in productions including Arelu, Yanponyanrin, Oluweri Magboojo and a list of other movies,” Nollywood Circle wrote on Twitter.
The actress died at the age of 60.
The President of the Theatre Arts And Motion Pictures Practitioners Association of Nigeria (TAMPAN) Bolaji Amusan, known as Mr. Latin, confirmed that the actress died on Tuesday night.
Also, another senior TAMPAN member Tunde Ola-Yusuff also stated that “She left without a goodbye” in a post on social media.
The Kwara-born actress was popular for her roles as a priestess, pacifist, or the good witch in movies.
Nollywood Stars Turn Up En Masse As Orisabunmi Is Laid To Rest
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