Last Friday, Sunday Sun caught
up with Mercy Johnson at the
Boys Correctional Center,
Oregun, Lagos, where she went
to speak to the boys and
donate some gifts, courtesy of
her new project – the Mercy
Johnson Foundation.
And here's what she told
Sunday Sun in a brief chat.
You were at OJB’s
house to see him
and donate
money, now you
are here to
donate to the
Boys Reform
Home in Lagos.
What’s the idea?
No idea, we are just promoting
the ideals of Mercy Johnson
Foundation. The idea is to
identify the needs, evaluate and
help in our own little way. All
fingers are not equal; those in
position to help
should do so without hesitation.
You will be hearing a lot about
Mercy Johnson Foundation
from now on. We have put our
house in order and now ready
to help those we can. I strongly
believe that as stars we should
live beyond the euphoria of
stardom and the moment. We
will not always be here, what
happens if you look back and
realise you could do a lot to
make the world better when
you had the spotlight and you
didn’t? I want to live beyond
the moment.
Why the reform
homes in Lagos?
I know I’m not glamorous to a
lot of people, but we must
know that if we do charitable
things for publicity alone, we
defeat the purpose. We need to
find ways to reform young boys
and girls otherwise they will
make life uncomfortable for the
children of the privileged. At
this point, I must commend the
government of Lagos State for
making efforts at reforming the
kids. We are looking at what we
can do with the state to help
make the future of these
children better.
Motherhood
seems to have
changed you…
Yes, motherhood changes
women. You begin to see
yourself as a co-creator. You
begin to see yourself as a
protector. Few days ago, I was
feeding Purity and she started
dragging the bottle with me
with the hot water in it. She
pushed the bottle, I had to
quickly push her away from the
water and let it pour on my
arm instead. That’s the kind of
protection I am talking about. I
think it will also make you feel
more responsible for other
children as well. You begin to
see them as children of some
other mothers. You have a
sense of responsibility to want
to protect them as well.
How are you
coping with your
husband and the
baby?
There’s nothing like coping, he’s
making my job easier. He dots
on her. He carries her, feeds
and does everything for her
such that she misses him when
he’s not around. You won’t
believe she sleeps on his chest
every night. He understands
whatever adjustment I need to
make when it comes to the
baby. He’s a loving father.
What about being
a loving
husband?
Come on now, you know that
Sam. He’s the best thing that
happened to me. People
usually say men are not
reliable, in the case of my
husband he’s a blessing. It’s
obvious we are his priority.
So, your step of
faith is paying
off?
Yes. I am not saying its perfect,
but this is close to perfection. If
this is what it feels to be
married, I want to marry my
husband again and again.
How come you
are not an
ambassador of
any brand yet?
We are having discussion with a
couple of brands, when we
agree with the terms, you will
hear from us. However, I need
to quickly point out that Mercy
Johnson is a blend of youth and
family brand. We just can’t
stand and represent any brand.
If it’s not representing the
youths, which is our major
consistency or the family, we
will not be favourably disposed
to it. I can’t at this point be
‘hawking’ cleavages in the name
of promoting brand. Things
have changed; this is the
beginning of a new era for me.