How ‘witches’ chased Charly Boy out of Lagos

   …now sneaks in and out

AUSTIN FAIR NWAULU

Unknown to many maverick showbiz all rounder, Charles ChukwuemekaOputa better known by his brand name, Charly Boy or the Area Fada, actually fled Lagos, his former base due to what he calls the ”menace of witches”.

The controversial Oguta, Imo State-born artiste had, on his return from America, settled for the Centre of Excellence as a base after a failed attempt to establish himself at the local axis of Owerri and Oguta.

His first abode in Lagos was in his late father’s Ikoyi residence from there he moved to the embattled Gbagada rented home quarreled with the area council over the naming of a bus stop there after his name. Till date both transporters still orefer to call it Charly Boy Bus Stop.

And before he eventually left Gbagada where his fame and fortune soared to the brim, the ”Nwatamiss” crooner allegedly fought dirty with the landlady over irreconcilable differences.

Apparently to show that his eale hand, Charly Boy who severally defended and won the hearts of okada riders in Lagos, stepped into one of the big boys areas, Ogudu G.R.A where he occupied an expansive bungalow that played host to many celebrities and and other bigwigs.

However, the Area Fada’s most daring battle was with colleagues in the music industry when he became the president of the Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria where he stepped on many toes.

In fact the in-thing, backbiting and witch hunting there was so tense that he was forced to forgo a second term bid. And the reasoning by many was that the PMAN impasse was the major reason he had to flee the city.

”Ole boy, I had to give way to them. I tried my best in everything I did and everybody I related with. It was not just a battle for self survival but mainly for the oppressed and downtrodden yet the witches amongst them did everything to frustrate me,” he said of the ugly development.

In Abuja, the nation’s capital where he found succor, Oputa lives in opulence in his personal twin duplex luxury home in Gwarimpa. He is also seen as one of the influential celebrities in the FCT.

Although he still shuttles between Abuja and Lagos, the man who said that he has no business with politics, simply comes, executes whatever brings him and leaves. He also avoids posh hotels and ”unworthy friends.”