DR. STEPHEN AKINTAYO, HIS EMPLOYEES AND THE BIG LESSON EVERY AFRICAN ENTREPRENEUR MUST LEARN.

 I have followed the ongoing controversy surrounding Dr. Stephen Akintayo and some former employees of GText Homes, and I think there’s a bigger conversation we should be having beyond the social media dragging.

First, let me establish something. Dr. Stephen Akintayo is someone I personally call Father. I have learned so much from him, and he has practically held me by the hand and shown me what is possible in the real estate industry.

So, I am not speaking as someone who doesn’t know him or hasn’t benefited from his mentorship.

But I am also speaking as a young entrepreneur who employs people, pays salaries and understands some of the challenges of building a business in Nigeria.

LET’S TALK ABOUT BOTH SIDES.

Building a business for 18 years is no joke. You will make mistakes, lose money, hire the wrong people, experience betrayal, make difficult decisions and sometimes fail.

People see successful entrepreneurs today and forget the years of sacrifices, sleepless nights and failures that brought them this far.

But here’s something equally important.

Being a successful entrepreneur does not excuse you from your responsibilities as an employer.

If employees have genuinely worked and are owed salaries, they deserve to be paid. If there are unfair deductions or unresolved grievances, those issues deserve proper investigation and resolution.

Nobody should have to fight publicly to receive what they have legitimately earned.

However, employees must also understand something.

Employment is a relationship of mutual responsibility, not a one-sided arrangement.

When you join an organisation, you are expected to contribute to its growth, respect its policies, deliver results and uphold professional standards.

You cannot demand that a company keeps its promises while treating your own responsibilities as optional.

And to employers, loyalty cannot be forced. It must be earned through leadership, fairness, communication and a workplace culture people genuinely believe in.

Now, concerning the ongoing controversy, there are allegations from former employees, and there are responses from the company. I don’t have access to all the internal records, so I won’t pretend to know everything that happened.

But I know one thing.

We must learn to separate accountability from character assassination.

Social media has made it very easy to condemn people without understanding the full picture.

Someone can spend nearly two decades building businesses, creating opportunities, mentoring entrepreneurs and contributing to an industry, only for one controversy to become the entire definition of their life.

That is not fair.

At the same time, someone’s achievements should never silence genuine complaints.

Both truths can exist.

This situation has personally taught me some valuable lessons, and as a company, we are already reviewing our internal systems, employee expectations, salary policies and communication structures.

Because the goal is not to build a company where employees are afraid to speak.

The goal is to build a company where employees don’t have to go to social media before they are heard.

I believe this conversation could become a turning point for the Nigerian real estate industry.

A turning point where employers become better leaders, employees become more responsible, and organisations build stronger systems that protect everyone.

To Dr. Stephen Akintayo, Father, I celebrate the impact you’ve made in my life and in the lives of many entrepreneurs. I believe there are still greater chapters ahead.

And to every entrepreneur watching this unfold, don’t just take sides.

TAKE LESSONS.

Because the real question is not who wins this social media argument.

The real question is: WHAT ARE WE LEARNING, AND WHAT WILL WE DO DIFFERENTLY?

— Mr Kay, The Landlord Maker.

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