Comedian Ali Baba (Atunyota Akpobome) has revealed how his plan to have one more son with his wife Mary at 59 resulted in triplets.
Ali Baba said his wife wanted another son especially after their children had left the house and it felt empty.
He shared this on Monday’s Leadership Podcast with Stephen Akintayo.
Initially his wife thought of adopting but later decided she wanted her own. So they decided to go for In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) and they fertilised two eggs hoping at least one would result in a pregnancy.
But things took a different turn when one of the fertilised eggs split and they had triplets instead of what they planned.
“Mary had always wanted a son. She had two daughters and we discussed it. I told her I wasn’t too keen on school runs or joining Wizkid fans at PTA meetings. But when all the kids left to study abroad, the house felt empty and the idea came up again,” he said.
“She initially wanted to adopt two or three children to take care of them but one day she said, ‘Why don’t we have our own instead?’ I hesitated, citing the economy, but she reminded me of all the people we support. She asked, ‘Have you stopped paying rent for others? Are you no longer covering school fees?’ And I had to admit we were still supporting many through our foundation.”
The Purple Girl Foundation founded by Ali Baba and his wife supports over 120 students from primary school to university and others through law school.
“So she convinced me that our purpose might go beyond ourselves and we decided to try for one more. She then suggested we fertilise two eggs in case one fails.”
I agreed and we went for IVF.
“One of the eggs split into two and we had three embryos. Mary and the doctor knew this but didn’t tell me right away. They said sometimes when you ask God for one blessing He gives you more than you ask for.”
When she told me, I was shocked. “We were expecting two and now we had three. That’s how we got three boys.”
He shared the news of the triplets on April 1 but many thought it was an April Fools’ joke. It wasn’t until the babies were dedicated in Lagos that people believed the news.
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