WHERE IS TOYIN SUBAIR?

In case many don't know and we doubt that, Toyin Subair is the erstwhile boss and initiator of the wholly Nigerian competitor to DSTV, known to most as HITV, which is now comatose. A big shame we dare say.

When Hitv came in, it was a welcome development, as many who had felt that the other cable TV company was just having all the fun to the detriment of the viewers, who felt they were paying 'premium' but not necessarily getting value for their money. So with the advent of HITV, many felt the competition would bring the price down and also allow for more quality bouquet. In the short existence of HITV, truth be told, they gave Dstv a run for their money. AfricaMagic on Dstv developed to such an unprecedented height, the viewers were the lucky for it, Dstv had to develop attractive, alternate programmes to keep their subscribers. Hitv became the new bride, most especially because they had gotten the right to show the most watched program on cable network: that is the EPL (English Professional League).

Loads and loads of people allover Nigeria, quickly crossed-over and got the HITV dish and subscribed, but instead of the operators of the network to develop other quality programmes side by side the EPL, while the going was good & also make sure to retain the rights to the EPL, something, somewhere happened. Firstly, the other competing brand got the right to the very lucrative EPL, first thing that happened was that, nearly everyone moved back to Dstv, by extension subscription money wasn't coming in again and most of the backers of Hitv weren't forthcoming, so they allowed, a good thing to die. The aftermath was that many of the staff members weren't paid for several months, productivity dropped to an all time low and now, the company is seemingly dead.

The aftermath of the whole thing saw Toyin seemingly moving out of Nigeria. We don't know the reason(s) behind that decision. We have seen him a couple of times in the UK. He seem to be hibernating for now, whether re-strategizing to come back with a bang! We don't know yet. But we are waiting with bated breaths. When the going was still great and good, Toyin was a designer's favourite. Always looking stylish in colourful outfits, cruising around in his convertible Porsche Carrera 911. Now more in the UK than in Nigeria, we hear his taste for the good life has not abated. Being a close friend of one of Nigeria's richest young dude, in the person of Kola Aluko (the lord of Monaco) seems to have brought back his spirit. We hear, he not too long ago got delivery of another outstanding Porsche, the particular model we do not know yet. But what we hear is that, Toyin cruises around in London in that machine now.

Hopefully, Kola Aluko might just bail Toyin out of his present predicament (we hear they are very close) and we all might just see the resurgence of a new improved and better run HITV.