For the Ekeindes and Idibias, it’s marriage made in heaven

She didn’t spare anything to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary. No entertainer would spare any moment. Not even when there are so many cases of divorce and separation involving notable entertainers.

So, from sunrise to sunset, the Diva Omotola Jalade Ekeinde shared pictures of herself and her husband Captain Ekeinde on her social media timelines to mark their 25th anniversary as man and wife.

“25 years strong. Happy anniversary to us,” was how the accomplished actress and mother of four captioned the initial anniversary post. The subsequent post, one of which was captioned: “Should I stop… cause we just starting oh…25 years aint beans,’’ trended the whole day and it has continued to trend with fans and colleagues hitting the timeline to rejoice with the Ekeinde’s who became man and wife in 1996.

But the Ekeinde’s were not the only couples celebrating. Elsewhere, actress Annie Idibia and her husband and pop singer Tuface Innocent Idibia aka 2Baba celebrated their eighth wedding anniversary. Like Omo T, as Omotola is simply called, Annie shared picture of herself and 2Baba during their white wedding, which held in Dubai on March 23, 2013.

Congratulatory messages have continued to pour in for the Idibia’s and for the Ekeindes who seem resolved to remain together as one. Celebrity salutes the Ekeinde’s and the Idibia’s on their anniversary. Their success story as couples has been an inspiration to many. In fact, industry observers seem to agree that they have become something of a good example of what a celebrity relationship should be like.

Omotola Jalade and Captain Matthew Ekeinde
ACCOMPLISHED actress Omotola Jalade Ekeinde and her husband Captain Matthew Ekeinde have been married for 25 years and they are still counting. The couple agreed to be man and wife in 1996 and in 2001, the couple held a white wedding ceremony on-board a Dash-7 aircraft flying from Lagos to Benin.

To mark their anniversary, the Academy voting member, UNWFP Ambassador and CEO of Double Doors Studios took to her social media platform to share beautiful photographs of herself and her husband whose birthday coincided with their anniversary. This was how the multiple award-winning actress, Member of the Federal Republic (MFR) and philanthropist, eulogised the trained Pilot whom she affectionately calls ‘Honey Boy’: “Happy birthday to a rare kind of man. You need to be studied. Your type is probably one in a century. Live Long King. Love you forever my captain.”

An actress who is passionate about empowering women, particularly women in entertainment, Omo revealed in an Instragram post that Captain Ekeinde convinced her when they met and he proposed that “it would be worth it.”

She also wrote: “No pressure… I am not trying to change you, he said. Can you handle her, they all said. Now what do you think? Is he doing a good job?”

Of course, she got a ‘yes he is’ from so many fans who replied to the post.

Founder of The Entertainment Fair and Festival (TEFFEST), established to scale African talents in the entertainment and creative industries, Omotola has consistently maintained that for her and the father of her children, divorce will never be an option. The actress of vast credit has also consistently maintained that her marriage to Captain Ekeinde has worked and will continue to work because for her, ‘Honey Boy’ is and will always remain the head of the home, while she will always be the assistant.

“I don’t believe in gender equality; I don’t believe that God made man and woman to be equal in any way. I believe that in any organised institution, there is always a head and an assistant. It doesn’t mean that one should take another for granted or disrespect the other. I believe that the husband is the head of the home and the wife an assistant,” the Time 100 personality said in an earlier interview, adding that couples must try and be so close to each other and must not allow a third party in their marriage.

A screen star who is constantly besieged by fans almost to the point of suffocation, particularly by the youths who view her success story so far as an affirmation of their own success especially if they work very hard at it, Omo T is not only greatly loved, but she has continued to receive accolades for her straight and convincing runs on the screen. Indeed, Omotola’s popularity and acceptance is to say the least overwhelming.

Annie and 2Baba Idibia
ACTRESS Annie Macaulay Idibia and her pop star husband Innocent Idibia aka 2Baba celebrated eight years together as man and wife. The couple got married in Dubai in 2013 and they have two children together-Isabella and Olivia.

In spite of the temptation that comes with the terrain, Annie and 2Baba, who are both active players in the industry, have continued to wax stronger together. In an Instagram post, which she shared to mark their wedding anniversary, the brand ambassador and founder of Aircare Foundation, Annie expressed their love story thus: “Yes! I married my first crush. I married my first love. I married the baby daddy to my first child ‘my sunshine’. I always knew it was you. How it would happen or work out?? That was the puzzle I never ever wanted to solve. But I knew it had to be you, it just had to be you… whether in this lifetime or another, it would have been… and it has always been you. Happy anniversary ‘a guy’, 23rd March 2013.”

Hailed as a supermom by close friends, Annie was born in Ibadan, but she is originally from Eket in Akwa Ibom State. Annie and 2Baba met in Lagos in early 2000, they became friends, but by the time she featured in the African Queen video in 2004, they had started dating.

The relationship got on and off with some other ladies coming in between them. But the turning point for their relationship, which suffered two break-ups, came in 2012 at a club in Victoria Island, Lagos. There, 2Baba proposed to Annie Idibia. They sealed their union at quiet ceremony at a registry in Lagos on May 1, 2012, had their traditional wedding in Akwa Ibom on March 8, 2013, and followed by an elaborate white wedding ceremony, which took place in Dubai.

They have been living happily as man and wife, ever after. Star of Front Door, White Chapel, Love and Age, Married Women amongst others, Annie attributes the success of her marriage to the ‘grace of God’, effective communication between her and 2Baba and knowing 2Baba likes and dislikes.