MEET SEVEN-YEAR-OLD ARTIST WHO GOT ₦2.5M, SCHOLARSHIP OVER YAYI’S PORTRAIT

Seven-year-old artist Kendis has received a full scholarship up to university level and a cash gift of ₦2.5 million from the All Progressives Congress governorship candidate in Ogun State, Senator Solomon Adeola, popularly known as Yayi, after a portrait of the lawmaker he painted with the guidance of his father went viral.

The young artist was honoured on Sunday during Senator Adeola’s Scholarship and Bursary Award Ceremony after being invited to present the original portrait to the senator.

According to Emmanuel Ojo, who shared the development on his Facebook page on Sunday, Kendis was warmly received by Adeola and his wife, Temitope Adeola, before the scholarship and cash reward were announced.

The gesture drew applause from attendees, who described it as an encouragement for young talents.

Checks by PUNCH Online showed that the portrait first gained attention after it was posted on TikTok through his father’s account, @noahs_ark.ng, based in Abeokuta, Ogun State.

In the emotional video, Kendis explained the inspiration behind the artwork, saying he wanted to “paint tomorrow today” rather than continue waiting for a better future.

“My name is Kendis. I am an artist. Let me tell you how it started,” the seven-year-old said.

He recalled conversations with his father whenever food was served at home.

“Every time my dad gives me rice, he will say, ‘There is no egg o, Kendis, ko s’owo, manage. Things will get better soon.’

“Every time he gives me garri, he will say, ‘There is no sugar and groundnut o, Kendis, ko s’owo, manage. Things will get better soon.’”

The young artist said he eventually questioned his father about when “soon” would come.

“So one day I asked him, ‘Daddy, when is soon? When will things get better?’

“He said, ‘In the nearest future.’

“I asked, ‘When is the nearest future?’

“He said, ‘Tomorrow.’

“Hmm… tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow. Every time, tomorrow.

“Tomorrow never comes for my daddy.”

Kendis said he then decided to express his hope through art instead of waiting endlessly.

“So I told him, instead of waiting for tomorrow to come, let us paint tomorrow today. Let us paint the future now… so we don’t have to wait any longer for tomorrow that never comes.”

He added, “Through the eye of a little child, we painted our future now.

“We painted our tomorrow today.

“We painted joy, we painted hope, we painted happiness, we painted our aspiration.

“We painted today. No more waiting for tomorrow.

“Tomorrow is now. Our future is now.”