Pastor David (PD) and I (Pamela McLean) have known each other since the early days of the Ago-Are Information Centre project. PD lives in Ago-Are and has told me of discussions he had with Peter Adetunji Oyawale long before the Information Centre came into being. He continued to try and take the centre forwards, after David Mutua left and succeeded for several years, but it was a hard struggle with no kind of external support, and in late 2010 or 2011 it was closed down "for political reasons".
In 2010 we resumed contact briefly, when he had the use of a smart phone and could access the Internet from Ago-Are. September 14, 2010 - Reverse charges for yahoo chat?
Early meetings
Probably PD and I were both at Peter Oyawale's funeral but not in a way to recall meeting there.
The first time we met to speak to each other - and it was a very brief meeting - was when I was in Ago-Are on a working holiday early in the history of the project. I was taken to visit the Oba (local hereditary ruler, or king). As we were crossing the compound a tall young man approached us to catch my attention and have a few words - because, as he said, he wanted to make sure I would remember him. I imagine he was there because of his connection with the present Oba.
Obas and Princes
i do not pretend to understand the details, but I know that PD also stands for Prince David, and the present Oba has now been Oba for over thirty years. Obas don't seem to inherit the title simply through being the oldest son of the previous Oba. It seems more complicated, and that there are "king makers" who decide who, out of various possible rightful heirs, should take the role. I think that "Ade" at the start of a surname is a clue that the person's family may be influential in king making. I imagine the process is additionally complicated because men of the status to be possible Oba's are often polygamous, although polygamy seems less in evidence among modern younger men. I think PD's father was a possible choice for Oba. I have no idea if that means that the present Oba is PD's uncle - but we did meet in the Oba's compound. (I share my current best understanding but I do not assume i'm correct -I just offer just my best guess based on fragments of knowledge.)
Email follow-up
Many months later I got an email that caused me some confusion. I forget if it was signed with the title Prince David or Pastor David, or even with his family name which is used so seldom I am not sure of it (possibly Benze). The email referred to how David Mutua was getting on - assuring me that the writer was watching progress on my behalf and was giving a good report. Some time later I got an email from David Mutua referring to someone in Ago-Are who was interested in the project and who turned out to be PD (but the name David Mutua mentioned meant nothing to me - as it was not the name PD had used on the bewildering email - so it took me some time to link the two together.)
Face to face meetings and deep discussions
PD and I got to know each other well during my last couple of working holidays in Ago-Are before David Mutua finished his placement there. Subsequently when I visited Ago-Are I stayed with Pastor David. We have had many long heartfelt discussions about the project.
Given PD's long term involvement with Peter's vision it was my hope that he would take over the management of Information Centre when David Mutua left and the COL/IITA/OCDN project came to the centre, but this did not come to pass.
Teachers Talking
PD attended one of my Teachers Talking courses at Fantsuam Foundation (in 2006 or 2007) and has run his own mini-versions for teachers in Ago-Are and Okeho. I have been involved in these during my "working holiday" visits to Ago-Are. The original TT course design in 2004 was built on my knowledge of schools in and around Ago-Are and the work I had done in Ago-Are on what PD and others called "computer orientation".
Ongoing
We were both strongly influenced by Peter's original vision to bring the benefits of ICT to Ago-Are and have worked to move that vision forward.