Teco Benson and his Children - 5 son's.
Teco Benson Is a top Nollywood Producer and Director who also acted in some movies, especially old Nollywood movies.
Cute kids he has got.
He calls them his '5 defenders'
Read his interview with the punch
How did you meet your wife?
I got married in 2001 but prior to that time, I was working with the Anambra State Environmental protection Agency. I started my life there. I think I moved to the place in 1995 and coincidentally, my wife’s parents live two blocks away from my house.
I was then observing my wife who was then a young beautiful girl who was still in secondary school; I wasn’t a paedophile because I was also young then and at the same time, I never went close to her. I only observed her from afar. She had the characteristics that I wanted in my wife whenever I was ready although I wasn’t ready then. I noticed that after meeting her, I always looked for ways to run into her, I wasn’t talking to her but I derived pleasure in always running into her. I was equally shy then so I didn’t fix my gaze at her 100 per cent. But even at that, I derived happiness in looking at her. One day, my spirit told me that she fits into everything I wanted in a woman; possibly she could be my wife. But that was it. I still didn’t talk to her.
How did you then meet her?
Later, I left Onitsha for Lagos in 1997. I started making films in Lagos. Before I moved fully into Lagos, I ran into her in Onitsha then and invited her to my house because I had earlier run into her while she was going to the saloon with her elder brother but I never said anything to her. I got home feeling bad. I ran back to the street trying to find her.
I spoke to her and invited her to my house. That was the first time I asked her for her name. I knew her parents were strict, she said it was impossible because her parents were always monitoring her but I pleaded with her to try that I had relocated and no longer lived on that street. That day, we agreed to meet on Saturday. When the day came, my heart was beating fast and I was restless till she came in company with her friend. That day, I had a little interaction with her. I wanted to know what she wanted to study among other questions. The questions were deliberate so I could know the kind of person she was.
I never saw her again after then until in 1998 when I was on the same vehicle with her and her uncle going for holiday. Because her uncle was there, she didn’t greet me. Something happened on the bus that day. I sat at the back while she was in the front. I bought some snacks on the bus and told people to help me pass it across to her. But she rejected it so everyone who helped passed the items later helped to return it. I felt ashamed and humiliated. I have never been so embarrassed that way before. After then, I made up my mind to forget her and not to have anything to do with her again.
In 2001, when I made up my mind to marry I remembered what my spirit said to me back then. I went back to Onitsha to look for her but I never found her. I had to talk to an agent to help me get her. Fortunately, the agent got in touch with her sister who connected me to her and told me that she was already at the University of Nsukka. I invited her to come over and she came around May or June, I proposed to her straightaway; I told her I wanted to marry her.
How did she react to the proposal?
She shuddered at the news and said that she didn’t know what to say but all she could say was that if it was the will of God; it was fine. But her problem was her parents because her father wanted her to marry from their village and she knew that I was not from their village. I told her not to worry about her father that as long as she gave me her consent all would fall into place. We fixed a date to meet her parents and from there we fixed that date for the bride price payment and that was how we got married.
You didn’t have the regular time for courtship?
Nothing like that happened; I had confidence in what I heard that day. I believed in my conviction because at the time I was taking those daring steps, I didn’t know if she had changed. If she was still beautiful, married or seeing someone. Funnily enough, she told me that more than 10 suitors came to meet her but she kept turning them down because inside of her, she knew I would come to ask for her hand in marriage.
What did you enjoy the most about your wedding day?
My traditional marriage was in September 2001 while my white wedding was in February, 2002. Both days were eventful for me. The entire Nollywood relocated to Ozubulu, Anambra State; my wife’s parents’ hometown. My family and the people I love were all there. We had an entourage. Our white wedding was at the VIP lounge at the National Theatre. It was beautiful; it’s a day I cannot forget in a hurry. Since then, we have been together and God has been faithful.
Post a Comment