Achievers International University and Seminary, Spain in conjunction with Action Word Educational Services, Lagos, have honoured veteran actor and movie producer, Omiagbo Alex Usifo with a doctorate degree in recognition of his excellence in artistic performance in the entertainment industry.
At the colourful event, which also served as the bi-annual All Believers International Summit for pastors, preachers and general overseers of churches, held recently at Rockview Hotel, Festac Town, Lagos, Alex Usifo was recognized and awarded a doctorate degree of “excellence in artistic creativity”, thus adding one more feather to his cap. Usifo, who hails from Edo State, holds Msc in Social Work from Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso and is currently a doctorate student of Information Resources Management, Babcock University, Ilishan-Remo, Ogun State.
In this brief chat with Journalist, the actor commended the institutions for honouring him and admitted that most people still do not distinguish his dual personality, by separating his life as an actor from his private activities, even after more than a decade in the movie industry.
INTERVIEWER:
You were supposed to be a priest, so what really happened?
ALEX USIFO's reply:
Actually, I was a major seminarian. I was in a Catholic major seminary, I was to be a Catholic priest but I didn’t wait to be ordained, but I was at SS Peter and Paul, Bodija Ibadan. I read Philosophy and Logic, but for personal reasons I did not stay in the Theology world.
INTERVIEWER:
How do you reconcile your entertainment profile with your priesthood training?
ALEX USIFO's reply:
Well, if I had become a priest I would have been serving humanity. In the entertainment arena I serve humanity. The difference is that one is spiritual the other is physical. In entertainment, I also entertain humanity.
INTERVIEWER:
The picture you cut on the screen is that of a wicked man, are you wicked in real life?
ALEX USIFO's reply:
I know what you are saying. I’m a paradox in the sense that my nature has some kind of dualism attached to it, my personal and public life. My public life is what people know about, that’s what they see on television. But they don’t know much about my private life and that’s what we are talking about. The Alex Usifo you see on television is actually different from the Alex Usifo in private life.
On screen, you see me playing another character, imitating someone else, but if anybody feels that is Alex Usifo, well, he is entitled to his impressions. But I don’t feel bad at all because I enjoy what I’m doing. I feel good because people have such funny impressions because I know that if they have the opportunity of meeting me, they will know that that opportunity will debunk the negative impressions from the ones they must have been having.
END OF INTERVIEW.
MY OWN QUESTIONS:
1. What is your perception about ALEX USIFO?
2. Is he wicked and hard-hearted in real life, knowing the fact that he portrays it in MOVIES?
3. If you are an actor, would you act as a WITCH or WICKED PERSON?
4. Does acting as a witchcraft in a movie affect you negatively later in life?
4. If you are given the opportunity to choose between a PRIEST or a MOVIE actor, which will you prefer?
LET'S HAVE YOUR VIEWS.
Thanks.