Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has said he changed his perception of entertainer Charles Oputa, popularly known as Charly Boy, after witnessing how he cared for his parents.

Obasanjo disclosed this while featuring on the Curiosity Made Me Ask podcast hosted by comedian and content creator Isbae U on Saturday.

In a video posted on YouTube, the former president said he initially had “no iota of regard or respect” for Charly Boy when he first knew him.

He explained that his view changed after visiting the entertainer’s home and seeing how he cared for his father, the late Justice Chukwudifu Oputa.

Obasanjo noted that Charly Boy provided dedicated care to his father until his death and extended the same devotion to his mother.

“When I first came to know Charly Boy, I had no iota of regard or respect for him,” Obasanjo said. “But when I went to visit Joseph Oputa, it was in Charly Boy’s house. I didn’t know it was in Charly Boy’s house.”

He added, “I saw how Joseph Oputa was being taken care of, and by whom? Charly Boy. So, I started changing my mind about Charly Boy. Until Joseph Oputa died, Charly Boy took perfect care of him.”

The former president said he frequently visited Charly Boy’s mother, whom he described as a humorous woman, noting that the entertainer also took great care of her.

Obasanjo disclosed that he later confronted Charly Boy over his eccentric public persona, to which the entertainer explained that his unconventional style was merely a business strategy.

“Then one day I asked him, ‘Look, Charly Boy, what’s all this?’ He said all those jaga-jaga things that I see are to make chop-chop,” Obasanjo recalled.

The former president described Justice Oputa as one of the Nigerians he respected most, adding that he wished Charly Boy had taken after his father.

“He has a good father, Justice Oputa. Oh, what a great man. I wish Charlie Boy had resembled him,” he said.

Obasanjo nevertheless praised Charly Boy as intelligent, noting that the entertainer could not sustain his public style to earn a living without intelligence.