20th November, 2021
Frail-looking veteran actor Olu Jacobs is suffering from dementia, Joke Silva, his actress wife of 32 years has revealed.
Joke Silva who marked four decades of acting recently revealed Jacob’s ailment in an interview with Chude Jideonwo.
The interview aired on Channels Television on Saturday.
She revealed that her husband has been battling with Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) for a couple of years.
“He is dealing with issues and it has been going on for a couple of years. It is known as dementia with Lewy Body.
“It is a degenerative disease that affects the brain and it is almost like a Parkinson’s type of disease, it affects the brain so you don’t see the shaking. It affects the person,” she said.
“It is the first time I said that publicly. I knew the time will come that it has to be known.”
The veteran actress also spoke on the effect of her husband’s health on family members.
“It’s been hard on him because he doesn’t understand what is going on and also on family members as well. We have gone through it over the past couple of years and we thank God.
“We have gone through some times and situations recently that I wish I had the old you here so I don’t battle these times on my own but we are grateful for the moment of clarity. I miss the times we worked together,” she said.
The veteran actor won a lifetime achievement award at the Africa International Film Festival Awards(AFRIFFA) held recently in Lagos.
But his frailty was more of concern to his many fans.