Queen Ure Okezie, who was a banker
for more than a decade, is an interesting personality. This diva, ex-pastor,
celebrity, ex-wife of Soul-E, a musician, whose marriage crashed after a few
years, is a great beauty. In this interview with Adaeze Amos, she reveals why
she stopped being a pastor and how she regained her composure when her marriage
crashed.
Please, tell us a little about your
growing up
Growing up was awesome. I have a
beautiful family. I was born in the 1970s. My late father used to be in
government; he was a minister twice - the Minister of Agriculture and then
Minister of Health. I’m the only girl and the last born. I was pampered, loved
but not spoilt. I attended Federal Government Girls’ College, Owerri, Imo
State. My dad started giving us books to read very early in life.
Were you then born with a silver
spoon?
I would say I was born with a silver
spoon. My father wasn’t just a government person, he was a medical doctor. He
owned his own hospital, a big central hospital and most people from Umuahia,
where I come from, were coming there. My dad was their family doctor. He
practised for 50 years. He became a doctor when he was 25 and died at the age
of 77, still practising. My dad was a disciplinarian, an academic. Having a
doctor as a father entailed a lot of reading.
How about your mum?
Oh yeah, she is a female activist.
At the moment, she is the special adviser to Abia state governor on human
mobilization. She is still strong, she is less than 70 and she is even lighter
in complexion than I am. I have a very wonderful mum. She is a fashionista too.
What’s your discipline in the
university?
I studied Physics at the University
of Jos. I’m a scientist and I’m abreast with all the scientific new findings.
When people learn that I studied Physics, they usually tell me that I look like
someone who studied Theatre Arts. My best subject, growing up in school, was
Mathematics. I enjoyed studying Physics too.
You were once in the banking sector;
what were some challenges that confronted you then?
Well, I was in the industry for over
a decade. Immediately after my youth service, I got into the Diamond Bank, then
Zenith Bank, after that Platinum Bank. That was before it became Bank PHB,
after that Fin Bank. It was wonderful, no regrets at all. The corporate world
would give you that proper foundation of discipline, of being goaloriented. It
would give you the experience of being a subordinate and a supervisor. You
would learn how to work with people and it would increase your interpersonal
relationship skill. You would have knowledge of how to run your own company or
organisation when you want to. Waking up early and going home late just became
part of my lifestyle. You start doing something and you get used to it. At 4
a.m., your alarm rings and you are not getting home until 10 p.m. I knew that
it wasn’t something I would keep doing for a long time, until retirement. I
knew it was strenuous and it was something I would just do for a while and let
go. But it was good while I was there.
How did you develop the passion for
music having studied Physics and worked in the banking sector for over a
decade?
Music has always been part of me
right from childhood. My mother is a great singer but she would just sing in
the shower and then in the church. Music is something in our family. I have
been writing songs but hardly ever publicised them. I had a music group on
campus known as Rubies. Basically, I have been into music, although I have been
doing other things. But now, I want to face it squarely.
You were a pastor, why did you step
out from pastoral work?
Most of last year, I was out of the
country and I handed the ministry over to someone. You know how it is when you
are not the one there, they had some challenges and they couldn’t continue. I
still go to church every Sunday. I have gone back to my former church which is
Household of God Church, owned by Pastor Chris Okotie.
Is that why people are insinuating
that you have an intimate relationship with Pastor Chris Okotie; is it true?
Well, I think that both of us
(Pastor Chris and myself) are two people who God’s hand is upon. So, in our
lives, only the counsel of God will stand. I’m in Household to worship. I have
been a householder for years. Pastor Chris is a man of God that I hold in high
esteem and I respect him a lot.
When you are down, what do you do to
derive your inspiration?
I can’t be down for five minutes, it
is not possible. I mean why should I be down in this beautiful world?
Don’t you cry?
I cry sometimes. I can’t sit down
for five minutes brooding. Five minutes is too long for me to be down. If there
is anything, maybe it would just hit me that moment and then I remind myself
that I’m here on earth to enjoy and not to cry. Crying doesn’t change anything.
I don’t stay down.
What do you do when you are
heartbroken?
Why should people be heartbroken? Is
it that you are in a relationship and the person walks out or when a person is
not getting enough attention from the person she loves? Well, you are bound to
feel bad for a while. I don’t think it is right to desire to be with someone who
doesn’t want to be with you. It doesn’t even make sense to begin to cry over
someone. There are over a billion people on earth and then you choose one
person and begin to cry over the person, it doesn’t make sense.
Haven’t you been heartbroken before?
I have but I didn’t get heartbroken
for long because I’m a wonderful person, I’m a loving person, I’m fun to be
with and anyone who has me is blessed. That is the way I look at it. Someone
should know your value and if the person doesn’t know, it is his loss. Women
should begin to value themselves and you should be a woman that a man would
need, not a woman that needs a man. That doesn’t mean I can’t fall in love and
I’m like, ‘oh my God I would like to be with this person’. I’m a very open
person; if I like you, I would tell you I like you and the whole world would
know I like you. I’m not someone who hides my feelings. But if you didn’t feel
the same way, before you know what is going on, I’m done with you.
When your marriage with Soul-E
crashed, all sorts of things were written about you and…
I didn’t even let that bother me
(cuts in). Yes, if you meet a million people, they would have a million
opinions about you. And those opinions have nothing to do with who you are.
From my early childhood, I grew not to bother about what people think of me
because time would eventually unfold who you truly are
