The President of the National Union of Road Transport Workers, Musiliu Akinsanya, known widely as MC Oluomo, has responded to the viral backlash over his recent mispronunciation of the word “kudos,” which he mistakenly called “kundusi.”
In a video circulating online, Akinsanya addressed the incident while speaking to members of the union. Rather than being embarrassed, he stood by the slip, attributing it to his lack of formal education. He explained that although he might not be fluent in English, he has worked hard to succeed and has provided his children with opportunities he never had.
“If you and my children come out to express yourself, I’m not sure you can beat them, they are highly educated. I trained my children properly with money. My children are citizens of America and the United Kingdom. I worked hard to get there,” he said.
The union boss used the opportunity to reflect on his humble beginnings in the transport industry. He recalled starting as a bus conductor and gradually rising through the ranks to his current role as the national president of NURTW.
“I started as a bus conductor, then as a treasurer of a unit of NURTW, to unit chairman, to branch deputy treasurer, to branch treasurer, to branch chairman, to state chairman, and then to national president. I worked hard to get here. I am not educated,” he noted.
Reacting to the online mockery, he questioned the motives of those who ridiculed him over his verbal error. “So they are mocking me for saying ‘kundusi’, is my child not Qudus? You that you are educated, what did you do?” he asked.
MC Oluomo also dismissed the idea that one must speak perfect English to succeed in life. “Grammars are too much. Grammar won’t finish Nigeria, I might not understand the English language, but I understand Yoruba,” he added.
His children have often defended him in the past, especially when he’s been criticized online. In 2022, one of his sons, King West, came to his defense after someone called his father a lout. He wrote on Instagram, “For those calling my father a tout, if my father was your father, you would never lack love, care, protection. Get a father like mine.”
