Nigerian actress, Sola Sobowale has revisited the persistent rumors that once swirled around her alleged involvement in drug trafficking in Saudi Arabia.
Speaking on the ‘King of Talk’ podcast with Teju Babyface, the actress recounted the period when she left Nigeria for the United Kingdom, only to be met with a barrage of negative speculation, including false reports of her death in Saudi Arabia.
It was alleged Sola Sobowale was arrested and subsequently killed in Saudi Arabia for drug-related offenses after she relocated to the UK to pursue menial jobs.
Dismissing these falsehoods, the 58-year-old actress expressed her shock at the rumors and the relief of those who were surprised to see her alive upon her return to Nigeria.
She said, “The worst of the rumours I heard about me was when they said Sola Sobowale had been killed in Saudi Arabia. That I carried cocaine.
“It was written here in Nigeria. That I was arrested in Saudi Arabia. That there, they amputated my leg and my hand. And I said to them that I am a star in Nigeria and that they should kill me.
“So when I now got to Nigeria, at the airport, they said ‘Sola Sobowale is dead’. I said do you believe in abracadabra? I said I am alive. I have never been to Saudi Arabia.
“I do not even know where it is on the map. So many negative things. But to God be the glory. God has compensated me.”
She, however, said the negative reports did not bother her, saying, “So far I’m at peace with God, then I’m good.
“Remember, when I was in the UK doing my thing, they wrote a lot of things in Nigerian newspapers – from grace to grass.”
She equally recalled how her name was dragged in the mud as reports had it that she was selling food in a London restaurant owned by her elder sister, Kike Oyelami.
“So, I go there anytime I’m off work. I make eba, pound yam and help my sister to serve food. They saw me. They wrote ‘Sola Sobowale now sells eba,” she chuckled.
In a separate account from 2022, Sobowale shared her journey of sacrifice and resilience, recounting how she left behind a lucrative acting career in Nigeria to undertake menial jobs in the UK to support her children’s education.
Despite earning substantial sums from acting—over N5 million in a matter of months during the early 2000s—Sobowale made the difficult decision to pursue humble employment abroad.
During her time in the UK, Sobowale worked tirelessly in various roles, including cleaning, cooking, and office maintenance, earning just “7.5 pounds per hour” to make ends meet.
She said some people who knew her were surprised that she left acting in Nigeria to work as a carer in the UK.
“It was confusing because my tag read ‘Olu’. Because I did not put Olusola. Especially one of the top Ogas looked at me and said ‘have I met you before’ and I said no,” she said.
“Then he looked at me and walked away. After I saw him in the office, I went there and asked may I know you sir and he said his name is Seye Fadipe. And I said yes, you have met me before. I said my name is Sola Sobowale. You met me on the television.
“He looked at me and said ‘are you crazy?’ I said I am not crazy. He asked what are you doing? You are up there in Nigeria. But there was something better than that. My future. My children are my future. There will be a time when the energy that Sola Sobowale will no longer be there. Then it is what you sow that you reap.
“At that time, Sola Sobowale was baba carer. Carer that there was nothing you will not do. Not senior carer or team leader. You will wash. You will carry. You will clean. You will do everything. That was what I was doing. The following week, my name was called to go to college and register.”
Sola Sobowale is married to Oludotun Sobowale, with whom she shares five children.
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KanyiDaily recalls that Sola Sobowale recently opened up about her relationship with a male colleague, Titi Kuti, popularly known as Ade Tiger.
