Nigerian actors gather in prayer for Ogogo as he battles stage four cancer

No fewer than a hundred star actors on Friday gathered at the BOS Hall (Babajide Olushola Sanwo-Olu Hall), LTV 8, Agidingbi, Ikeja, Lagos, to pray for their ailing colleague, Taiwo “Ogogo” Hassan.

PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported that Ogogo was diagnosed with stage-four cancer and was receiving treatment in a hospital. His daughters, Kira and Haleemah, appealed to Nigerians to help explore further medical options, including traditional treatment, following an alleged refusal by the hospital to treat him.

The prayer session, which was ongoing as of the time of filing this report, came days after some of Ogogo’s colleagues appealed to people who had offered to treat him through traditional and other means not to take offence over their inability to move him from his current hospital.

According to his colleagues, the actor could not be moved from the hospital despite receiving hundreds of offers of medical assistance.

Those currently at the gathering include the National President of the Theatre Arts and Motion Pictures Practitioners Association of Nigeria (TAMPAN), Bolaji “Mr Latin” Amusan; Jide Kosoko, Yinka Quadri, Fausat Balogun, Antar Laniyan, Bukky Wright, and Yomi Fash-Lanso.

Others include Hassanat Akinwande, Lateef Adedimeji, Toyosi Adesanya and Yemi Ayebo, alongside several other prominent figures in the Yoruba film industry.

Islamic clerics leading the session urged the attendees to pray for Ogogo’s recovery and presented their requests during the prayer.

One of the clerics prayed for healing to reach Ogogo wherever he is receiving treatment and for him to recover from the illness.

Backstory

The prayer session came after Ogogo’s colleagues rallied around him after his daughters revealed that he was battling stage-four cancer and could not travel abroad to seek treatment.

The actors appealed to Nigerians to help the family identify medical specialists and hospitals with the expertise and facilities needed to treat the actor. They stressed that the family was not seeking financial assistance.

According to the actors, Ogogo required specialised medical care, and they urged anyone with information about a qualified specialist or suitable healthcare facility to contact his family.

His daughters also expressed fears about losing their father, saying they were desperate to secure the appropriate treatment for him as quickly as possible.

They disclosed that doctors diagnosed Ogogo with cancer about three weeks earlier and said the actor remained determined to survive. The daughters added that he had repeatedly expressed his desire to live.