

Emeka Okonkwo popularly known as E-money is the younger brother to Kcee Limpopo. In an explosive interview with PUNCH, he and his wife, Juliet talked on how they stuck with each other even though they came from different backgrounds. Excerpts:

How did you meet your spouse?
Juliet:
I met my husband at a video shoot by Julius Agwu, in 2003. I was at the
shoot to support Agwu as a long-time friend of his. Prior to meeting my
husband, I was already friends with his brother, Kcee.
Was your first impression of him favourable?
Juliet:
He bore a striking resemblance to Kcee, so I imagined they were twins. I
liked him when we met for the first time and we started out as friends.
We dated for four years and decided to get married afterwards. He was
very mature for his age and had a kind heart. He was very reserved,
welcoming and spoke affectionately about his family.
E-Money:
When we met, I was a young man who was struggling to make ends meet and
she was equally very young. She was in her sophomore year at the
university. Because she was my first girlfriend and the first woman I
ever loved, I remained faithful to her. I was looking for a God-fearing
lady who wasn’t excessively concerned with material possessions and who I
could plan a future with. Fortunately, I found those qualities in her.
Even though I lived in Ajegunle, with my brothers at that time, she
visited me on several occasions. I remember that on one of those
occasions, she fell into a gutter in a flooded street.
Why did it take you so long to propose to her?
E-Money:
I was only waiting for the right time to ask her to marry me but I knew
where the relationship was headed from the outset. I had met other
ladies in the past, but they all lacked the qualities I mentioned
earlier.
How did you propose to her?
E-Money: I presented her with a car as an engagement gift.
Why did you accept his proposal?
Juliet:
My family and I were on the verge of relocating to the United Kingdom,
but I was happy that I was already in a relationship with him. I felt it
was a good reason to always visit Nigeria given that I had fallen in
love with him and his personality. On one occasion, I was cash-strapped
and he willingly parted with the last N1,000 he had on him. I was
completely taken aback by that act of generosity.
Did you think he would become this wealthy?
Juliet:
When we started dating, my friends were surprised that I sidestepped
all the rich guys in Lekki, where I was resident for a man who lived in
Ajegunle but I was not bothered. I looked forward to getting a good job
upon my graduation from the university. He didn’t even have enough money
to take us back to Lagos after our traditional marriage.
E-Money: Kcee was the one who lent me N20, 000. I used it to pay our fare to Lagos.
At what point did you begin to experience a turnaround in your finances?
E-Money:
We were on our way to Lagos when I received a phone call informing me
that I had been awarded a $2m contract and that is how our lives changed
forever.
Did you face any challenges owing to the differences in your backgrounds?
Juliet: My parents were already deceased when we met but other members of my family blessed our union.
You do not live in Nigeria…
Juliet:
I’m a British citizen and I love the environment over there. I like the
quality of education which is good for my children. I tried to settle
in Nigeria but I could not fit in. When I am away, my husband and I have
unhindered communication. It is so good that we do not really feel any
vacuum.
He visits us every two weeks and he’s actively involved in the lives of our children. We are okay this way.
How do you handle disagreements?
E-Money:
We don’t invite anybody to act as a go-between; we manage to resolve
disagreements ourselves. I won’t say we are saints or angels but we
hardly ever quarrel. I may want to be by myself whenever we disagree,
but she won’t allow it. We always find a way to resolve our differences
amicably.
Juliet:
A lot of people don’t know that my husband is a closet comedian; he
always finds a way to cheer me up when we disagree. I owe the success of
my marriage to Kcee; he understands me so well. Although we hardly
invite a third party to intervene when there are issues, but I invite
Kcee sometimes.
What would you want to change about your spouse?
E-Money: I don’t want to change anything about her; I love her just the way she is.
How do cope with advances from the opposite sex?
Juliet:
We laugh about it and sometimes, I tease him about his female admirers.
If anyone gets a bit out of hand, I step in and put them in their
place. We operate an open-door policy.
Do you have access to each other’s social media accounts?
E-Money: Yes, we do but we don’t have any reason to go over each other’s account. She controls our social media accounts.
Do you both run a joint account?
Juliet:
We do and I was the one who initiated it. My husband doesn’t like to
carry cash so, I control and manage our finances. I am very involved; I
know who he works for, his clients and other details of his business.
Can you keep secrets from each other?
Juliet: No, I don’t and if it is something that would affect him, I make sure I go about it in a diplomatic manner.
E-Money: I don’t keep secrets from her because I don’t have any reason to do so.
Describe your marriage?
Juliet:
Our marriage is built on the fear of God and founded on love. We are
friends to ourselves, children and staff. He has a heart of gold even
though some people like to take advantage of him. There is nothing I
have asked for that he has not provided. Sometimes, he makes things
available even before I ask.
E-Money: Juliet is God’s gift to me.
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