Juliana Olayode, the famous Nigerian actress and former Jenifa’s Diary star, has come out to tender a very public apology to her former boss, Funke Akindele.
Juliana and Funke fell apart some years back and this saw her being removed from the popular sitcom.
In a post shared on her Instagram page on May 27, Juliana stated that God used Funke to put her in the limelight just after she left secondary school. She said the fame she had at such a tender age was too enormous for her understanding, as she asked the actress to forgive her.
She also stated that her manager at the time wrongly advised her and also sent a mail to Funke’s company which she never knew about. She added that she has met Funke and they have mended fences but she still decided to publicly apologise.
Her post reads; As a teenager, my career in the mainstream entertainment industry started where many people who have put in years of hardwork could only dream of, how could a neophyte even start from the mainstream, if not for a miracle?
In my own case, the mercy of God and unmerited favour was evident, I broke into the industry by playing a friend and co lead with a screen goddess who had put in decades of hardwork and unprecedented creativity even as at that time.
God used Aunty Funke Akindele @funkejenifaakindele to put me into the limelight. It was a shocker for me, especially at that tender age, when I had barely left secondary school, the kind of fame I earned from playing Toyosi in Jenifa’s Diary was too enormous for my understanding.
However, the lack of industry nitty gritty started manifesting in me, coupled with the fact that I had a guardian (manager) who didn’t understand how the entertainment industry works, and I believed anything he feels and says.
My guardian sent an email to Scene One TV, the producers of the Sitcom, which entire content I wasn’t aware of until recently.
The story of my goofs at the take off of my career can not be exhausted in a million words, I want to use this opportunity to apologize to Aunty Funke Akindele, ọmọdé ò lè mọ ẹ̀kọ́ jẹ, kó má ra lọ́wọ́, I am incredibly sorry for how I hurt you and how the email that was sent hurt you.
Please forgive me for my childish mistakes of the past, I am deeply sorry for everything.
I love you eternally Aunty Funke.
NB: I just feel the burden to make this official, it’s not an attempt for people to help me beg her, I have met Aunty Funke, she has forgiven me, she hugged me, prayed for me, cooked for me like she used to in those good old days, Jollof rice elemi meji, fried rice and sweet chicken.(lol)
I am her baby forever. She is such a sweet soul. The good days are back and you should probably anticipate. I love you all, thank you.