Genevieve Nnaji has paid her dues as a top-rated actress in Nollywood. She has also delved into music, modelling and fashion. Despite attaining the age 30, the single mother of one says she is not under any pressure to get married. She spoke with Senior Correspondent, Temitope David-Adegboye, on her absence from the screen and the things that have been taken her time.What does hitting 30 feel like?I feel as always. Age is just a number.You've been acting for close to 11 years. What have you gained from your exposure?It has open doors and given me a sense of fulfilment. I'm glad I've been able to do what I have done so far. It has kept me grounded and I must say it's been fun. I'm grateful for it.You started with acting; then, moved to music, and then modelling. Now, another creative part of you is about to be brought to the fore in fashion. How does all these come together? Where do you get your inspiration from, or is it a case of doing what others are doing?No, not at all. I'll say it's always been there. What happens is that I unveil them one at a time. I believe there is time for everything. There is still more I am capable of that you are unaware of, but with time, you'd probably know or you may never know.Acting came first. It's not really my major talent, but it was the first thing that I did. I love music too. Well, the album came, but that's not my stuff. That's not the best I can do. Fashion, I love. I've been designing since I was in primary school. For me, fashion is fun. It's a way of relaxing for me. I enjoy it. And it's more of a hobby than work. I'm taking my time doing it. I'm relaxed doing my own design for my clients and people who have similar taste and mindset with me.About a year ago you collaborated with a well-known designer to launch St. Genevieve clothing line. Now, you and another very famous designer are collaborating and coming up with another thing. What is it all about?It's the same thing. St Genevieve is a brand. The brand is just about my designs and me. Anybody can make my outfits as long as you have the talents for sewing and I believe I've worked with the best so far, and I'm sure I'm going to work with a lot more people. All I'm doing here is selling my creative designs.Yes, I'm coming out with Zizi Cardow now. Apart from the fact that I love her as a person, she is a very creative person. I love her finishing as well, and I must also add that Iconola, whom I worked with last year, also has finishing. I'm glad to be collaborating with Zizi this year and we are moving on.Is that the end of your relationship with Iconola then?For now yes. If anything is to come up in the future, you'll know. Now, I'm with Zizi. It's refreshing to be doing this with Zizi because she is extremely creative. The way she grasps everything is amazing.What inspires your designs?They come to me. I sit and come up with something and then I give it to her to sew. I can't sew a button to save my life.Lets go back to acting, what's responsible for your absence from the screen?I'm still in the industry. I'm just a bit stricter in the selection of scripts. I think everybody needs to grow to that point where they have to make up their mind what they want, especially from their job.What I want is creativity and professionalism. I think that should reflect in the kind of movies I appear in. I'm very selective; I'm now into so many things that a script must be really good for me to take part in it?Are you working on any movie now?I'm not working now. I've been reading some scripts, trying to settle for something. If I don't see any one that I like, then I won't work.When was the last time you did a job?That was April last year. It's called Bursting Lose.What will get you working like before?Creativity. It doesn't have to stress me. It could be a simple story, simple character. Creativity from the person that is writing is key. I like a complete work, something that has a beginning, middle and end. Even if it's been done before, the thing is how differently can you make it your own.One of the major complaints of Nollywood viewers is lack of content and sometimes, unprofessionalism on the part of the artistes. Now that Ghanaians are gradually taking over the industry, what are you and your colleagues doing to improve your movies?I don't think Ghana is moving in. We are the ones inviting them to be a part of what we are doing here. I see actors as contractors. If I'm here and Ghana calls me to come and do a movie, I don't see that as anybody's business. It is the business of the producer and me. And I think actors should have the right to work wherever they choose to, whether Nollywood, Bollywood, Hollywood or whatever wood. It's an open market. We all have one thing in common, and that is acting.Actors from other African countries cornered this year's AMAA. How do you feel about this?It's not about me as a practitioner; we have to be practical here. I haven't seen some of those movies that were awarded, and so I am not in the best position to judge. I don't see anything wrong in bringing in other markets as long as they are within Africa. This is my own take. Being a nominee is already an award. You are already recognised for your good works. When it comes to who takes the cake, I think we have to be professional, honest and truthful and give honour to whom it is due. Bias shouldn't come to play here. I'm not saying it did at AMAA, but that is how it should be treated. I have no qualms with AMAA inviting other peopleWhat about the issue of interference of marketers?I don't know what they are doing. I'm not a marketer or producer. I'm an actor. My own is to be called when the whole production has been put together, but still, I still try to give my honest advice wherever necessary. I also pray that all works well. There is nothing more I can do until I am ready to go behind the scene, which I am not ready to do for now.People believe being a producer is where the money is.I didn't come into this profession for the money in the first place. The money came to me. I'm here for the passion and that is still what drives me. For me, when I'm bored with the passion, maybe I'll move in for the money.Can you name one actor or actress that have the same passion with you?I can't name any now. I don't really know these people.How would you describe a professional?A professional is someone who puts his/her job first. Every other thing is then negotiated. I think if you love your job, it will love you back in some way without you losing a finger.Last year, there were rumours about you collecting money from a Ghanaian movie producer and not going for the job.I don't even want to talk about it because I think just having my name attached to that production has given it enough publicity. So, I will not want to honour it more, by speaking about it again. It's in the past. It's like every other business. There is nothing to resolve. There was no deal or contract. It's like every other script. It's either I like it or not. And if I don't like it, I drop it. Whatever you go to tell the world is your business. The point is if you couldn't get me on your job you are the loser.You are 30, but looks younger. What's the secret?I guess its good genes?Good genes from dad or mum?From both of them.Did your parents support your acting from the outset?Well, I won't say it was immediately. With time, they realised that it was something I really loved and was passionate about. Right now, they are my best fans.Being someone from the Eastern part of the country, it is common knowledge that once you are 30, there will be pressure that you should get married. Has the pressure been mounting up yet?No. My parents have other children to focus on. I'm only one out of eight. For me if marriage comes, fine. It's not a priority. It's never been, but it a good thing every woman wants. So, I'm not shying away from it. But then, I'm going to go in with my head straight. I will go into marriage for the right reasons. Not for money, not for fame, not for name and not to satisfy the world. I don't want any sort of peer pressure getting involved in my settling down, or trying to prove a point that I can settle down. I don't need that. I'm here to please my God and myself, and as long as my parents have no issues with it, I'm fine. When I find the right person, I'm sure I'll settle down.What's that fashion accessory that you can do anything to get?Diamond and handbags.How many handbags do you have?I can't count them.How much is the most expensive one you own?I won't tell you that. But I can tell you the cheapest, which is the one I got from Zara. There are other cheap ones that are unique that I also have. I just love handbags.
Read more…
We didn't expect Yori Yori to be a bang -BracketEzioko Nwachukwu and Obumneme Ali, who go by the stage name 'Bracket' are easily known for their 'Yori Yori' hit track that is currently making waves within the entertainment circles. The duo, from Enugu State and students of the same school, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, spoke to REPORTER, Ifeoma Meze, on how they started, the philosophy behind the track 'Yori yori,' among other issues. Excerpts: You guys suddenly took the music world by the storm. Even then not much is known by many about your personal details.My name is Ezioko Nwachukwu. I am from Nsukka Local Government Area of Enugu State. My stage name is Vast. I am still in school. I am studying Mass Communication in University of Nigeria, Nsukka. I am hoping to graduate anytime from next two years.I am Obumneme Ali. I am from Udi Local Government Area of Enugu State. I am known on the stage as Smash. I am also in the same school with him but studying Psychology.How did you guys meet?Vast: We met in university school show. Though we had not gotten into the university then but because we are gifted in the sense that we used to miming other people's songs like R. Kelly, Tupac and other American artistes just for entertainment. Then they used to call us; paid us small amount of money for us to come to mime. That was how we got to meet. We were three before. I met the third guy, Amobi Clement popularly known as Bisstog, who is no longer with the group due to some reasons, before I met Obumneme. When we, Amobi and I, met Obumneme, we asked him to rap for us and we liked his pattern of raping because then the kind of music we did mostly was rap songs but because of Nigerian market we had to switch to singing. So that was how we met.What happened to the third guy?The third guy left. He said that he didn't want to combine education and music. He is in Electrical Electronics Engineering in the same school, University of Nigeria, Nsukka.Is he likely to come back to the group?That is what I don't know for now.How has the group been since he left?As you can see, God has been on our side.Did it ever occur to you guys that 'Yori Yori' track would take you this far?Smash: We have always hoped that we would get to the top one day, starting from the day that we did our first song Happy day. Though it did not go that far, when we went to the studio to do another job we were hopeful that at least we would get to a certain level. But we never expected that Yori Yori will go this far but we had that feeling that it was a bright and good job and that it would sell but not really up to what we are getting now.Is there another track in the album that you think that would be better than Yori Yori?The one that is picking up seriously now is No time. That is the number two track in the album that we did with P-Square. Number four, Ada Owerri, is receiving enough airplay in Lagos. We have other slow songs like wrong thing and leaders of tomorrow. People fall in love with them when they play.What inspired you guys to do the track? Yori Yori?Yori Yori was born out of the love we have for everybody who has been there for us starting from the days of Happy Day. It does not really mean that we sang it for a particular girl or a particular person. The media, which have always been there for us, are involved. It was inspired by anybody who at least contributed in one way or the other during the days of Happy Day. That is why we did that song to appreciate them for all the good things they did for us and also for the support. We had to do it as a love song pattern so that Nigerians would appreciate it easily. A guy can play the song for his girlfriend and likewise a girl too. That was the market that we were looking at but the story behind the song is that it is for everybody that has made us come this far.You guys were once rappers, are you likely to do some rap music?Maybe in our old age after making our money. What we are based on now is singing and making hit tracks that can move the world, fetch us money, shows and endorsements.So, for now, rap is sleeping?Yes, for now rap is sleeping. It is not that rap is bad or that it does not sell in our country but I don't think the kind of rap we do would sell. I believe singing is what we can do better.How did you guys find out that singing is what you can do better?Because of Happy Day, our first single. It was strictly singing with a little rap of eight lines.Why do you think Happy Day did not really sell?It is not that it did not sell but it did not fetch us shows, money. It did not fetch us enough fame but look at Yori Yori just within two months it blew up everywhere.What challenge have you been facing in this career?It has not been very easy especially in the aspect of our education. It is very difficult to combine music and education. For example, you might have an exam to write in Nsukka and a show to attend at Abuja. It is quite tasking and challenging because you cannot be in those two places at the same time. But we still cope well.So aside education, you don't have any challenges again?Smash: I don't think so. Other challenges like getting a sponsor, we sure passed through that when we were starting. But by God's grace, we have passed that stage now. We are very thankful to our sponsor, A-Planet, today he is happy for what he helped us for.So there are no challenges coming from the female fans?For female fans, that one is certain but being the king of people we are, we are in control. We control ourselves when it comes to that side. They are not really a problem because we have back up and that back up is God.What would you say about the kind of music we have these days?Vast: I can give it 70 percent. We are trying though we have a lot of artistes in Nigeria that are not really there. Generally to entertainment in Nigeria, I will give them 70 percent because we have really grown from what we used to be.What about the morals of our younger generation, do you think the kinds of music we have these days are music that can corrupt kid?I don't think so, because any song or video goes through a censor's board and if they are not really good for public consumption, it will be banned from viewing on TV stations. Nigeria is really trying but the only thing I think they cannot control is piracy.Piracy is uncontrollable. Everyday it grows worse. As days pass by, we see new kind of piracy. Once a marketer gets hold of your work, he bargains with the piracy people a huge amount of money. And that is why it is uncontrollable. If only marketers will stand on their feet and say no to piracy then we have taken one step to fighting it.Is there any form of advice or what you think that should be done to help cub piracy?There is one truth that people hide that as a musician, you have to do a tight song, a song that can touch every nooks and crannies of this country. After that, wait for your endorsements and shows. Don't depend on what marketer will give you. But you must give the album to a marketer at any amount of money. In a way, piracy helps to spread your music to places you never imagine your songs can go but the problem is that someone else reaps the fruit of your sweat.This is a kind of advice to up and coming artiste. If you do a very good music, relax, go to any station that you feel can accept you, drop it there for it to be played, before you know it, people will start asking of you. People will give you endorsements, shows and even sponsors. By the time you do your second album, you can sell it any amount you want. They should not look at the faces of D'Banj, P-Square or 9ice. Just focus on doing a masterpiece as a song that would bring you out and you are already there.If your song is not good, they cannot pirate it because they will loose their money. But if it's good they will push your work to any level and in a way it boosts your profile and recognition.Do you guys miss the third guy in your group?Yes. But we have moved on now.What if he comes back to join the group?He will definitely come back to face his music, but I don't think he will come back to join the group. He will be doing his own thing.
Read more…
Sixty Six Participants were enrolled into the Senior Executive Course 31 in February, 2009. The following table shows the names, designations and sponsors of the Participants.
http://nipsskuru.org
most are Army or Military personell .What really is the NIPSS ?
About NIPSS
Vision
To serve as the apex centre of policy, research and reflection for a better Nigerian and human society.
Mission
To serve as the centre for policy, advocacy, advice and training for the Nigerian, West African and the African region in the context of a dynamic and changing world.
About Us
About Us
History
Environment
Reform Agenda
Our Structure
Current Board Members
Jobs
FAQs
Join/Update Mailing List
Contact Us
NIPSS New Admin Block & other Projects
NIPSS current project works include: study group directors qtrs, auditorium office ext,
supply and installation of printing equipment. More details....
Rehabilitation Projects
The current activities include the upgrading and expansion of the existing facilities. In recent past, the management has pursued with vigour the rehabilitation, completion and /or construction of additional structures as follows: staff qrts, chalet for course participants, shopping & banking complex. More details...
NIPSS Publications
Receive notices of NIPSS events publications, and more via e-mail.
E-mail:
Objectives
The National institute serves as a high level centre for reflection, research and dialogue. Here academics of excellence, seasoned policy initiators and other citizens of mature experience and wisdom, drawn from all walks of life, meet to reflect and exchange ideas on the great issues of society, particularly as they relate to Nigeria and Africa in the context of a constantly changing world. The Institute aims to be a model institution for inculcating the highest national ideals and achieving the best results from a rational deployment and utilization of resources. Towards this overriding objective, the Institute, among other things:
* Conducts courses for top level policy makers and executors
* Conducts social and public policy research
* Conducts seminars and workshops
* Organizes brainstorming sessions
* Publishes books, records, reports and articles to disseminate its activities.
Location
The National Institute is located in a beautiful environment by a lake in Kuru, near Jos, the Plateau State capital, which is accessible by air and a good network of roads from all parts of the Federation. Its postal address is Private Mail Bag 2024, Bukuru, Plateau State, Nigeria.
Other notable intitutions within the vicinity of the National Intitute include the National Veterinary Research Institute (NVRI), Vom; the Industrial Training Fund (ITF) Jos; and the University of Jos, Jos, Nigeria.
The rural environs of the National Institute provide a remarkable serene atmosphere for reflection and relaxation for participants and staff. Nevertheless, the Institute is hooked up with the rest of the world via Internet and satellite. Staff and participants enjoy a wide range of national and International TV broadcasts. Sports and leisure facilities are being developed. It is envisaged that the Institute will have a bar and facilities for table and lawn tennis, golf, basketball, volley ball and indoor games.
1.
Dr. (Mrs.) Anthonia Ngozi Njepuome Consultant Special HOSF
2.
Mr. Itua Aikhoje Deputy Director HOSF
3.
Gp. Capt BM Saleh Group Captain Nigerian Air Force
4.
Col GAR Dogo Colonel Nigerian Army
5.
Col BT Ndiomu Colonel Nigerian Army
6.
Dr. Greenwell Ernest Deputy Director State Security Service
7.
Gp. Capt DO Bolaji Group Captain Nigerian Air Force
8.
Col MN Idris Colonel Nigerian Army
9.
Mr. Omari Onos Onoja Director State Security Service
10.
Col. Mohammed Tasiu Ibrahim Colonel Nigerian Army
11.
Navy Capt ML Barau Navy Captain Nigerian Navy
12.
Dr. Musa Balat Chief Medical Officer Defence Intelligence Agency
13.
Mrs. Susan Leks Director NASS
14.
Capt. Idris Edino Usman Navy Captain Nigerian Navy
15.
CP Gana Peter Yisa Commissioner Nigeria Police
16.
CP Abba Suleiman Commissioner Nigeria Police
17.
CP Musa A. Daura Commissioner Nigeria Police
18.
Gp. Capt MB Maiyafe Group Captain Nigerian Air Force
19.
Mrs. Comfort Eyitayo Director ICAN
20.
CP Azuogu O.F Commissioner Nigeria Police
21.
Barrister John L. Yahaya Perm. Sec. Adamawa State Govt.
22.
Mal. Hamza Umar Director NDLEA
23.
Mrs. Josephine N. Anenih President NCWS
24.
Col Joseph N. Nimyel Colonel Nigerian Army
25.
Mr. Esien Ita Kooffreh Director Federal Judiciary
26.
Sen. Abubakar H Gireh Senator NACCIMA
27.
Mr. Katyen C. Jackden Deputy Director Ministry of Foreign Affairs
28.
Mr. Adeshina L. Sanni Deputy President TUCN
29.
Mal. Muhammad I. Tahir Perm Sec Jigawa State Govt.
30.
Mrs. Adaeze Idigo-Izundu Perm Sec Anambra State Govt
31.
Mal. Aminu Baba Nabegu Managing Director Manufacturers Association of Nigeria
32.
Comrade P.A.K. Adewusi Deputy President NLC
33.
Col Austin Kalu Egwuagu Colonel Nigerian Army
34.
Gp. Capt Kingsley O. George Group Captain Nigerian Air Force
35.
Mal. Abubakar Mustapha Head of Service Kaduna State Govt.
36.
CP Katso C. Kakwe Commissioner Nigeria Police
37.
Elder Onnadepo Michael A. Controller Nigeria Prisons Service
38.
Mrs. Rebecca N. Ayuba Comptroller Nigeria Immigration Service
39.
Mr. Abdul-Ganiyu Obatoyinbo Director HOSF
40.
Mal. Danjuma Aliyu Garba Commander FRSC
41.
Mal. Abduljalil Sulaiman A. Deputy Director Ministry of Foreign Affairs
42.
Mrs. Yabawa L. Wabi Perm Sec Borno State Govt.
43.
Mal. Suleiman Bello 1st Chairman CONSCCIMA
44.
Mal. Sani Abubakar M. Perm Sec Sokoto State Govt.
45.
Mal. Haroon Umar Director National Intelligence Agency
46.
Mal. Mohammed H. Akan Director National Intelligence Agency
47.
Col Geofrey Ovuakporie Colonel Nigerian Army
48.
Mr. Charles Omeire Registrar NUC
49.
Mrs. Olatunji Olayinka Director HOSF
50.
Capt. JO Oluwole Navy Captain Nigerian Navy
51.
Barr. Sola Ephraim Oluwanuga Principal Partner Institute of Directors
52.
Engr. MK Abubakar Director General HOSF
53.
Barr. JA Ibanga Director DIA
54.
Col Augustine Odidi Colonel Nigerian Army
55.
Capt. Emmanuel G. Ofik Navy Captain Nigerian Navy
56.
Mr. Izam Atang Azi Perm Sec Plateau State Govt.
57.
Mr. Christopher Obinna Perm Sec Rivers State Govt.
58.
Col GN Ahmed Colonel Nigerian Army
59.
Arc. Mohammed A Idris Director Presidency
60.
Dr. Aderemi Desalu Perm Sec Lagos State Govt.
61.
Amb. BL Toro Executive Director Presidency
62.
Alhaji Tajudeen O. Aremu Perm Sec Oyo State Govt.
63.
Dr. Kabir I. Matazu Rector NBTE
64.
Dr. Chris Odu Agbor Perm Sec Cross River State
65.
Muhammad Abu Rimi Perm Sec Presidency
66.
Mr. David Afolabi Adesina Director Kwara State Govt.
Read more…
What is the difference between a liar, a hypocrite and a thief? You wouldn’t know how difficult a question this is until you try to answer it.
Where for instance would you place House of Representatives member Ndudi Elumelu, Chairman House Committee on Power; or his Senate counterpart Nicholas Ugbane?
Most Nigerians were actually beginning to come to terms with the fact that the only thing we have to worry about nowadays is bad governance; that the era of impunity and bare-faced lies is over. But representative Elumelu is presenting a very special challenge to all our suppositions. Is our country really, truly this hopeless?
Is Elumelu the same young man who was spitting fire and swearing to expose corruption in the power sector only a few months ago even if that would cost him his life? It is nearly impossible to marry that other Elumelu with the present pathetic, tragic figure; at the EFCC headquarters last week he looked every inch like a lizard that narrowly escaped drowning.
If the ugly facts of this disgusting development were not so glaring, many Nigerians would have been satisfied with the theory that the young man is a victim of political pacification between President Umaru Musa Yar’adua and his mentor, tormentor and benefactor, former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
That rather attractive theory goes like this. That following Yar’Adua’s damaging observation that the Obasanjo regime had spent $10 billion on power sector “without commensurate result”, Obasanjo read that as a frontal attack on his person and his regime. It was a correct diagnosis because no sooner had Yar’adua pronounced those words than they became the defining phrase of the Obasanjo legacy. As a result relations between the two degenerated to a dangerous nadir. Inevitably Obasanjo’s moment came when a combination of self-propelled factors came together to make Yar’Adua a very unpopular president among virtually every sector of the Nigerian society, including his party the PDP. He was loosing grip and he desperately needed a lifeline.
According to this theory, a contrite Yar’adua then turned to OBJ; OBJ was willing to help, but his price was a reversal of the damage that Yar’Adua’s comments and the power sector probe which the Elumelu committee sensationalized had done to his pride and legacy, such as it was. Thus began the process of rubbishing the Elumelu report and the setting up of an Ad Hoc committee which eventually cleared the former president and naturally indicted Elumelu himself. Insiders say that without the need to placate Obasanjo, Elumelu would have gotten away lightly with the N6 billion Rural Electrification Agency (REA) contract scam because it was a common practice between the members of the NASS to scratch each others’ back at the expense of Nigerians.
Whether this outlandish theory is true or not, two facts are as clear as daylight: one, all those that have been so far indicted in the REA scam deserved to be where they are, including, unfortunately, the very popular and amiable permanent secretary of the ministry for power Alhaji Abdullahi Aliyu. The second fact is that Yar’Adua is out for blood like he’s never been before; (according to one account he rejected an intervention from Sultan Sa’ad Abubakar and refused to pick former president Shagari’s call on the same issue).
The case against Elumelu and his conspirators is compelling enough. First there was this huge amount of money at the disposal of the REA waiting to be spent; the only problem was time because they had only two weeks within which to spend about N7bn otherwise it would have to be returned to the government coffers.
So between the leadership of the House and Senate committees on power; the management of REA and the officials of the ministry for power, they quickly cooked up a plan.
Elumelu and fellow legislators kicked aside all due process, submitted or caused to be submitted nine companies and asked the MD of REA to award those rural electrification contracts to them. The MD naturally added his own companies and wrote a letter to the permanent secretary of the power ministry for approval. The permanent secretary who was the Acting Minister at the time because the substantive minister Hajiya Balaraba Ibrahim had been removed by the president on the instigation of some of those same conspirators, inexplicably overlooked the flagrant disregard for due process and granted approval for the contracts and the payment of 15 per cent of the fee. The balance of 85 per cent was equally withdrawn from the REA account and lodged in the banks where those contractors have their accounts.
Thus for all practical purposes, the contracts have been fully paid for. Never mind that in all probability none of those constituent communities that were supposed to enjoy those projects have seen one day of electricity since the contracts were awarded.
All this those people were able to do within an incredible 14 days! You see, who said that government or bureaucracy is slow? (To be continued).
Read more…
She's rich. She's talented. She's beautiful. And now Angelina Jolie is the most powerful celebrity in the world.Thanks to the release of several blockbuster movies and an endless sea of media buzz, Jolie has dethroned Oprah Winfrey to top this year's Celebrity 100 list, Forbes' annual ranking of the world's ultra famous.Jolie raked in $27 million in the past 12 months thanks to a movie schedule that included "Kung Fu Panda," "Wanted" and the not-yet-released spy thriller "Salt." Even more impressive: The publicity she garnered following the birth of her twins, as well as the consistent headlines she grabs for her philanthropic efforts and her relationship with actor Brad Pitt, who ranks No. 9 on the list.Winfrey drops to No. 2 on the list. The media maven has pocketed $275 million in the last year, making her the list's top earner. Though viewership for her daily chat fest, "The Oprah Winfrey Show," continues to erode, her earnings remain unchanged from a year ago. In addition to Winfrey's monthly magazine, she has a three-year, $55 million deal with XM Satellite Radio. Early next year, the self-made billionaire will roll out the lifestyle-themed Oprah Winfrey Network in partnership with Discovery Communications.In a year filled with humbling bank failures and violent stock market swings, the earning power of the 2009 Celebrity 100 remained remarkably resilient. The cumulative earnings of the 2009 list totaled $4.1 billion, up slightly from last year's $4 billion haul.The primary reason celebrities are still making big money: Many stars are locked into long-term performance and endorsement contracts. If the economy does not improve, expect the downturn to catch up to the A-list next year.The Celebrity 100, which includes film and television actors, models, chefs, athletes, authors, and musicians, is a measure of entertainment-related earnings and media visibility (exposure in print, television, radio and online). The earnings estimates consist of pre-tax income between June 2008 and June 2009. Management, agent, and attorney fees are not deducted.Rounding out the top five on the list are pop icon Madonna ($110 million), singer Beyonce Knowles ($87 million), and golfer Tiger Woods ($110 million).The Material Girl banked the majority of her millions on the road. Her "Hard Candy" tour rounded out 2008 as the year's top-grossing international tour, raking in $280 million across 17 countries.Knowles' haul came from album sales, tour performances, films, a fashion collection, and a lengthy list of endorsement deals.Woods' pile of cash came mostly from endorsements, appearance fees, and a lucrative gig designing golf courses. He spent most of the year sidelined with a knee injury.Among the newcomers on this year's list: "Twilight" scribe Stephanie Meyer (No. 26) and country crooner Taylor Swift (No. 69). Meyer, who sold 29 million books and created a vampire frenzy, earned $50 million during the year-long period. Swift was the top-selling U.S. artist of 2008, banking $18 million off of a tour, album sales and endorsement deals.Barack Obama joins the list as the first sitting head of state to land on the Celebrity 100. The President's historic election last year helped him sell millions of books. He debuts on this year's list at No. 49, with book earnings of $2.5 million for the 12-month period.To make room for the new entries to the list, 37 bold-faced stars fell off. Among them: J.K. Rowling and Johnny Depp. Rowling lacked a new "Harry Potter" book, while Depp failed to release or collect on an installment of "Pirates of the Caribbean."
Read more…
Ghana, which will pump its first oil for export next year, has issued 11 exploration licenses and the prospects of more finds are “extremely high,” the state-owned Ghana National Petroleum Corp. said.“It’s looking very exciting and there’s a lot of potential,” said Michael Aryeetey, senior geologist at the GNPC, which oversees the industry.In 2007, Tullow Oil Plc made its Jubilee oil find offshore Ghana. The discovery, which will start production in 2010, could contain reserves of as much as 1.8 billion barrels, Aryeetey said today at a conference in Takoradi, about 250 kilometers (155 miles) west of the capital, Accra.Vanco Energy Co., based in Houston, Texas, has recently started drilling at a block off the country’s western coast, while Vitol Group, a closely held Geneva-based energy company, plans to begin exploration at a block south-east of Jubilee later this year, Aryeetey said in a separate interview on the sidelines of the conference. “If Vanco finds oil it could be bigger than Jubilee.”While most exploration has taken place off Ghana’s western coast, near its border with the Ivory Coast, GNPC expects the eastern region to yield finds too.Afren Plc, a London-based explorer, has been awarded an exploration license on the eastern coast near Togo. “We are very sure that we will make a find there, the geography is similar to Nigeria,” Aryeetey said. Nigeria is Africa’s largest oil producer.Central RegionOff Ghana’s central coast, Nigeria’s Oranto Petroleum Ltd. has been given permission to explore around Saltpond, where Ghana’s sole oil rig currently produces about 700 barrels a day for domestic use, Aryeetey said. “We believe that there is potential all around that area.”The corporation, which keeps a minimum of 10 percent of each exploration block, eventually plans to begin searching for oil by itself, Aryeetey said. “Once we begin to receive funds from our stake in Jubilee and other discoveries, we’ll have money to take a block and explore,” he said.Ghana, the world’s second-largest cocoa producer, hopes increased oil revenue will help shore up a faltering economy, which has seen a depreciating domestic currency boost annual inflation to 20.5 percent in March.
Read more…
Mali head coach Stephen Keshi has stressed that he does not fear the Black Stars ahead of their 2010 joint Nations Cup/World Cup qualifier in Bamako on 7 June.The 47-year-old is counting on home support to put the Black Stars to flight and admits the tie will be a difficult.Keshi who masterminded Togo's qualification to the last world cup in Germany is upbeat of toppling Ghana on top of Group."As you all know Ghana is always a good team and we have a lot of respect for them but we are not scared of them," Keshi told Ghanasoccernet.com"As a footballer and as a coach Ghana is a great team but we will face them squarely on Sunday."I am just working with my team and will see what happens on the day and the level of confidence of my team is high," he added."I am just working on the confidence of my team and face Ghana on the day."I am not God and I am but a magician am just a football coach and so I will not be in a position to know what will happen because in football you never know."
Read more…
Nollywood, Nolly What?” is the title of Eddie Iroh’s surprise rhetoric of Monday, May 25, 2009 on the back page of THISDAY. As a former Director-General of the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), and a writer, one expected Iroh’s critique of Nollywood to be pungent but professional. Sadly and with due respect, Iroh chose, albeit unwittingly, to elevate himself to the chair of the club of quasi-literary figures, armchair critics whose criticisms of Nollywood can, at best, be described as poetics of pseudo tradition. In concise terms, Iroh’s piece offers decidedly a mixed bag of campy humour and the hilarious tone of a farcical comedy as it lacks knowledge of the tempo of motion picture development around the world and specifically the colour and culture of Nollywood.But let us even begin with the curious premise upon which Iroh’s stinging hypothesis is based. This is the failure of Nollywood films to win major awards at the African Movie Academy Awards (AMMA) which held early this year in Yenagoa, Bayelse State, Nigeria. For this author of 27 years, this failure shows that Nollywood is an amateur video enterprise and not a film industry, a triumph of quality over quantity (for those African countries whose films won), and a victory of creativity over commerce.The question that even an undiscerning mind would easily ask is this; must Nollywood films win major awards every year? Wouldn’t that turn AMAA into a Nigerian thing? Nollywood films have dominated the awards in the last four years, winning all the awards in the main categories. Wouldn’t it then look suspicious, even manipulative, if AMAA inspired and produced by Nigerians, is dominated year in, year-out by Nigerian films?May be we need to ask Iroh whether Hollywood has also failed woefully simply because Slum Dog Millionaire, a film produced in India and acted by an all Indian cast, won all the major awards at the Oscars this year.Let us even bring the subject closer to Iroh. Professor Wole Soyinka, our renowned writer, has been writing since the late 1950s. Today he has the Nobel Prize for Literature as a worthy reward for excellence. Ben Okri with The Famished Road won the Booker prize. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, who started writing only “yesterday”, also won a major international award, the Orange prize for fiction with her novel Half of a Yellow Sun.However, Iroh, whose first work was published in 1981, is yet to win any major prize, not even the local Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) award. Among his many obscure books, only Toads of War, has succeeded in being a literature text in a second generation university. Does this then make Iroh’s books amateurish? Better still, does that make them an abysmal creative disaster?Again, I dare to say with respect that Iroh exhibited a profound lack of knowledge of trends in motion picture development internationally. To begin with, even Hollywood is at present shifting towards digital video production, eager to dump the cumbersome celluloid tradition. Eminent directors/producers that include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee and George Lucas among many others have produced movies on digital videos.Besides, Nollywood does not have to graduate into celluloid culture as Iroh envisioned. The truth is that Nollywood movies are what we call FUBU; produced FOR US BY US. It is the first time that we are telling our story in our own way, by our own practitioners through our own medium and ecstatically embraced and accepted by our people. Nollywood may not have told the stories the best way possible, but it is better for us to tell our story, even if poorly, than for outsiders to tell us our story the wrong way.Iroh would want Nigerians and the world to believe that Nollywood is for idle minds, yet on November 7, 2007, far away in the United States, Hollywood’s own home, eminent professors in Humanity, Film and Theatre first class scholars, professors of Anthropology and Psychology under the auspices of the Global Media Research Centre gathered at the Southern Illinois University to dissect the mystery called Nollywood. Some of the pioneer practitioners of the industry that included Joke Silva, Francis Onwochei and Madu Chukwendu sat for hours at this elite rendezvous to answer questions on the emergence and phenomenal growth of Nollywood. Yet for Iroh, Nollywood deserves no credit of any kind.Iroh rightly observed that Nollywood movies “came at a time of cultural famine, when there were no cinemas, no theatres and very little avenues for creative outlet and enjoyment”. This statement, to say the least, is a creative castration of Iroh’s own generation to which belongs Ola Balogun and Eddy Ugbomah that he mentioned. If that generation lived up to its creative calling, would there have been that entertainment lacuna, the “creative famine” that Nollywood sprang to fill? If Eddie Iroh’s generation are the immortals of our film industry, how is it that some of them ended up as quasi-musicians entertaining less than quality audience in scanty restaurants scattered all over Lagos.He consigned Nollywood actors and directors without exception into the trash bowl of amateurs. Yet Nollywood parades men such as Olu Jacobs, who has starred and played major roles in Hollywood films that include Slave and Dogs of War; Lari Williams, one of the first blacks to perform at West End; Tosan Ugbeye, who has performed at Broadway, US and in several of Soyinka’s plays at home and abroad; Joke Silva, a veteran of both stage, television and film. Still Nollywood parades other thoroughbred professionals that include Tade Ogidan, Francis Onwochei, Kingsley Ogoro, Chico Ejiro, Richard Mofe-Damijo, Stella Damasus, Kate Henshaw, Genevieve Nnaji, Stephanie Okereke, Zeb Ejiro, Amaka Igwe, Charles Igwe, Mahmond Ali-Balogun and Lancelot Imasuen among others. Unknown to Iroh, most of these people trained in Theatre Arts, Film, Cinematography and Dramatic Arts in some of the best institutions both in Nigeria and abroad, some having both local and international awards for their roles in Nollywood. Some of these people have travelled across the entire five continents of this planet, on invitation to give lectures, attend seminars and workshops on the astounding subject called Nollywood.This much castigated Nollywood has produced stars, who have become matinee-idols in other African countries. In 2007, over 2000 fans stood for hours at the airport in Free Town, Sierra-Leone to catch a glimpse of Genevieve Nnaji and ran after her convoy over a stretch of 10 kilometres. In the same manner, over 20,000 fans gathered at the stadium in Free Town just to see the little men - Osita Iheme and Chinedu Ikedieze - popularly known as Aki and Paw-Paw.At the Transcorp Hilton in Abuja, Nigeria, in early 2008, Justices of the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court that came for a conference from East Africa practically abandoned their breakfast tables when they saw two Nollywood stars. They confessed that their people are almost addicted to Nollywood films. Yet some discerning writer would not see anything good in Nollywood except “shallow storylines, poor scripting, one-dimensional acting …… inept directing….”This writer is not in any way saying that all is well with Nollywood. Indeed some story lines and plots in our movies are sometimes pathetic. But same also applies to Hollywood and Bollywood stories. There are both good and bad actors in Nollywood, but this also is universal. No doubt, the quality of sound, pictures, and cinematography are still far from best practices, but Nollywood is on the march and needs only time.Iroh touched a vital area in our films and that is props. He derided Nollywood for using toy guns and poor props. While it is true that toy guns may have been used in some films, Nollywood producers have long past that stage. However Iroh needs to be enlightened on the challenges of the producer in Nigeria. In the US, Hollywood producers have access to their airports, presidential jets and arsenal. American government recognizes the importance of film as an instrument of propaganda. In Ghana, Ghanaian producers need to pay only $100 (N16,600) to use their airport and they can legally acquire arms from the police and the military, free of charge.But in our dear country, Nigeria, a producer has to pay N1 million to use the airport. Still you will need to pay a choking amount, up to N150,000 and then grease many palms just to hire little arms for a few hours. Does our eminent Iroh think a producer would opt for a “plastic gun” if he had access to the real thing?Despite its obvious short comings, despite its constraints, Nollywood, like wind of silent mystery has forced its way into international reckoning. Contrary to Iroh’s un-researched opinion that Nollywood movies are only popular among Nigerians in the Diaspora, Nollywood movies have dominated African countries and are popular in the Carribeans and North America.A tragic flaw in Iroh’s purgative commentary is its total lack of appreciation for anything in Nollywood. Here was an industry inspired by one man, Kenneth Nnebue, whose movie, Living in Bondage, produced by an ambitious young man, Okey Ogunjiofor, stirred the soul of Nigeria. Seventeen years after, Nollywood, which emerged from the bowel of Nnebue’s film, employs about five million Nigerians from CD-producing factories and importers, through video clubs, CD distributors, whole sellers, retailers, movie equipment dealers, marketers and movie practitioners. It is the second highest employer of labour, next only to the Federal Government. Indeed, Nollywood is today valued at over $2.3 billion, (about N330 billion) including revenues from broadcast and Internet rights. All these achievements are without any input by corporate Nigeria and importantly, without any significant government policy to enhance practice and encourage growth.The undiluted truth remains that in spite of its clear shortcomings, Nollywood has revved the engine of change and spirit of a new generation of Nigerians, a generation with a robust confidence in simple dreams and unshakeable faith in small miracles.This confidence and faith will strengthen Nollywood in its long walk through the Golgotha of professional odyssey and literary immolation by critics such as Iroh. But ultimately, at the end of the Golgotha is a glowing light of a new dawn ..
Read more…
THE Hackney Citizen asked the little guy with the big DVD stall in Ridley Road Market for the four best-selling Nollywood films that are keeping Hackney’s Nigerian community glued to their sofas. Patrick Pringle and Josh Loeb review these Lagos epicsONCE you get over the fact that the pregnant woman in the opening scenes of Royal Messengers quite obviously has a lumpy pillow shoved down the front of her dress, the film settles into a plot that would have most right-thinking people shooting steam out of their ears. Royal Messengers is a tale of an ageing prince called Igwe (Leo Mezie) who has 21 daughters but not a single son to take over his kingdom.When the woman with the pillow down her dress shamefully gives birth to another girl, Igwe gives up any hope of having a young prince. But fear not: the local witchdoctor foresees that Igwe has a son that he does not know about, who lives in a slum in Lagos. The mystery son, played by child sensation Chinedu Ikedieze (think Macaulay Culkin, Lagos style) is accompanied by his sidekick played by Osita Iheme. These kids are easily the best actors in this film, possessing comic timing and precocious delivery.De Prof, starring Nkem Owoh and Clem Ohamezie, is an interminable film. Equipped with the somewhat incoherent tagline, “Will one scheme against the other? Maybe the younger one will or vice versa”, De Prof is a tragic Cain and Abel-style drama about two brothers who jealously vie for leadership of their community.De Prof is hampered by atrocious production. At a cost to any reasonable narrative structure early in the film, the cameraman develops an unhealthy obsession with a dwarf who inexplicably appears at various points throughout the film. In addition the same epileptic keyboard loop provides the soundtrack for the entire two hours. Owoh and Ohamzie - both able actors - are lassoed by the most hackneyed of scripts that simply goes nowhere. In spite of the actors’ best efforts, De Prof is a very difficult film to watch.Village Destroyer, starring Kenneth Okonkwo, is easily the pick of the bunch, with the best acting and tightest script. This is another film preoccupied with male fertility problems, only this time, poor Nwabueze seems to be infertile and has become the laughing stock of his village. Then one day his wife gives birth to a baby girl. After initial elation, Nwabueze inexplicably goes mad. At this stage the film slightly falls apart, becoming a confusing mush of screaming women and voodoo ceremonies. It is nevertheless highly entertaining: you don’t really need to understand it to enjoy the emotional uproar. This film is worth watching for the star turns by Okonkwo and Emeka Ani alone.When You Are Mine is a hilarious (though perhaps not intentionally so) take on adultery and disability. Joyce (Queen Nwaokoye) marries Ken, a slimeball who mysteriously bleeds from his forehead and has a bloated mother called ‘Madam’.When buxom maneater Chessy (Patience Ozokwor) arrives in town, ‘Madam’, who lives vicariously through her son, encourages her to seduce him with the immortal words: “A man can be made to commit adultery, even against his will.”There is clearly some sort of reverse Oedipus complex in operation in this film: ‘Madam’ exults in Chessy’s unwanted affection towards Ken and the pregnancy that results. Meanwhile, Joyce is wheelchair-bound after a car accident. Eventually, Ken and Chessy get their comeuppance when they both die on their way to the registry office.
Read more…
Looking resplendent and gorgeous in his milk-coloured suit, all smiles, he moved around majestically in a nobly fashion, depicting his gargantuan status as a seasoned actor and erudite scholar as he welcomed in warm embraces very eminent personalities to the Ptotea Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos, venue of the Bread Fruit Foundation’s (BFF) 1st Annual Patrons Dinner held recently.BFF is a non-profit organization that famous actor and Lagos State University lecturer, Sola Fosudo founded to plaster smiles on the faces of widows, widow’s children, orphans and other vulnerable children in the society. A man of charisma, who has been described as an astute personality with a golden heart, and inspired by God to care for the underprivileged, Fosudo has established the foundation because of his experiences in life.But what was his growing up like? How has it been in the Nollywood industry where he has held sway over the years?How has he been able to combine teaching and acting? What about his pet project, BFF, as a president and founder? All these and more were extracted from philanthropist Fosudo. Excerpts:For Sola Fosudo, growing up was like that of a normal child from a middle class family. He was well trained and had the privilege of a good education.But then he confessed to have been very lucky to receive the grace of God. “Personally, I have been very lucky to receive the grace of God in my life. I had a very fruitful and well trained growing up. It is really with the guidance of God and of my parents. I have been privileged to have a very good education, privileged to have had several opportunities in my profession, my career both as an actor, director and a teacher, so I am grateful to God.”According to Fosudo, the journey to acting stardom all started while he was in primary school. Then they used to have end of the year activities in the school and he turned out to be one of the prominent artistes, a hero in those events. The same thing happened when Fosudo got to secondary school where he was a very strong member of the dramatic and cultural society. But it was while at the Teacher’s College that the turning point happened.He was involved in a play and one man in the audience who happened to be a seasoned and accomplished professional saw him on stage, summoned him and said, ‘you are the man of the theatre. I think you should consider theatre as a profession when you grow up’.Fosudo recalls: “I didn’t know what he was talking about because I was just having fun doing school plays. But he saw something that later metamorphosed into what we are appreciating God for now, because eventually I found myself taking to that advice. I took the necessary actions and steps to go to school and to be immensely involved in the profession. It is by providence, and planned by God. By the time he said that to me I had other plans. I wanted to read History which was my best subject in school. At a time, I wanted to go abroad to study Computer Science, when it did not work out, I went back to the man and said ‘sir, tell me more about that Theatre Arts, I want to do it now’, that was in the 1970s. It was that encounter that eventually saw me in the theatre.”The actor cum University lecturer is enjoying the best of two worlds. Fosudo believes he is doing just the same thing as an actor and teacher of Theatre Arts. “I was not combining anything. If am a medical doctor and at the same time acting then I am combining. But I teach and practice Theatre Arts so, they are one.”But as a popular actor and lecturer, how does Fosudo cope with his numerous female admirers? His response: “I don’t have anything to cope with. I have not experienced advances from women because I don’t recognize it. There was no room for it .My lifestyle does not allow for such things. From the way I was brought up and trained, those things did not count.”Movie industry, says Fosudo, is moving in an unsure direction. It is an uncertain industry that can collapse anytime unless practitioners move away from passion for home video production and move into cinema, while government should also encourage production of films to be shown in cinema theatre where the private sector people can begin to invest in cinema structures.“This is how Nigeria can grow in terms of movies. It is then you can talk of movie industry. For now, they are doing television video drama, home video and they call it movies. Go to Hollywood and ask them if it is this kind of camera we use here that they use to record their films. Our people carry TV cameras to locations. When you say movies or films, you are talking about motion pictures, so the television is also motion pictures, that is why they are saying movies or films. Film is cinema and big business. If we are actually doing films or have film industries in Nigeria you can’t be seeing actors anyhow. But here, you see actors at Idumota bus stop. God will help us.”Does Fasudo have any regret for being an actor? He responds thus: “No, God has been very gracious to me. I had good parental care from the beginning, good education and good opportunities for career development. I have a job and a family. God is supporting my endeavours, and He puts in my heart this time around to set up a foundation to take care of other people. So, it is marvelous in my heart.”On the future Of Nollywood, Fosudo says it’s difficult for anyone to forecast into the future. The actor is even afraid that if care is not taken, the movie industry may crash.He says the imminent crash can only be aborted only if the practitioners take advice and move away from the present deception in which they are and move into the right direction. But then there is still hope as Fosudo predicts a booming and vibrant industry very soon.The actor, however, asked a nagging question thus: “Is Nollywood a concept, a notion or an entity, or is it a place? Go to San Francisco in USA, they will take you to where Hollywood is; it is a big city where stars live and where they have their studios. It is the same thing in India. If the Hollywood people come to Nigeria and say ‘Hello, we have been hearing of Nigerian movies, can you take us to Nollywood?’ Will they take them to Idumota? Or is there any other place? It is Idumota where they are selling films in the streets, inside noise and rowdiness. Since this Nollywood thing has been on, no government whether state or federal has deemed it necessary to begin to build infrastructure for the development of Nigerian movie industry. No government, no professional studios, no serious policy directed at driving the industry to really make it a world class, the way it is in America.”One of the things Fosudo has been advocating as a lecturer in LASU is the development of the curricular for a film education in Nigeria. A curricular that will cover cinematography, film techniques and film production among others.He says: “We don’t have the theatre people who we can rely upon to fill the gap for film industry. They are not really trained for films even though they can find relevance there. I am a theatre person and not film, I will say that anytime. Even though, when I was in school, I received some training about acting which is a general course. You can act on stage or on different media, television, film, etc. You are also taught as a director, you should be able to direct plays because it is only about production in different media which have their own techniques.“The stage where artistes are principally trained has different techniques to the medium of television or film. There is a serious gap in Nigeria. These other people, many of them are not interested in joining Nollywood, you will be surprised to find out. The only other thing that comes near film education is mass communication and those ones are not really trained to be producing films. Also, they are communicators even though they might have done some courses in television production, but not in details as they would do in film schools. Theatre education and mass communication are different from film education, and there is no university in Nigeria where they are offering film studies, yet we have many people who are practicing it. Where did they come from? They are roadside people and we cannot be driven intellectually so they are all merchants doing business.”BFF, which means Bread Fruit Foundation for widows and orphans, was launched in 2008. Luckily for Fosudo, that event was also used to mark his 50th birthday. According to him, the foundation is a non-profit organization, whose sole objective is to cater for widows, widows’ children, orphans and other vulnerable children in the society. It is duly registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.“This is the first dinner organized by the foundation and it’s going to be an annual event where we bring together our patrons, board of trustees and raise money even if it is just for next year, we will keep it on,” he concludes.
Read more…
Democracy is "not" for the Masses because Time and Time it has been proved the "masses" dont care because they think they dont know ANYTHING !They "cant" think for themselves and like sheep will listen to the black sheep who know no better and accept any Shepherd even those clearly in Wolves clothing ! and BAAA BAAA straight to Destruction !that is the way things ARE ! and will stay if the "MASSES" dont do anything !!
Prof. Taiyewo Ogunade, a musicologist at the City University, New York was a close friend of Late Abacha, he spoke of his experiences .
General Sanni Abacha died exactly a decade ago, what does that mean to you?
To me, I feel I lost a friend, but then, as a democrat, I don’t lose too much because I believe in democracy and then Abacha didn’t believe in that. That is the dividing point between the two of us. I met him immediately Babangida took over in 1985. And they invited all of us to Kuru, near Jos, most of us intellectuals, for a debate on Nigeria’s foreign policy. And we were put in a famous hotel called Hotel Thirty. While the conference was on, the Department of Political Science of the Ahmadu Bello University, led by Professor Bala Usman came with a document in which they catalogued all the rich Nigerians. They called it from Balewa to Babangida and they were distributing it to selected people.
But, the security got angry and wanted to recover it while we were in the conference hall. That was how I met Abacha. They were trying to struggle and take it from me and Abacha said, ‘leave him alone’. I never met him (Abacha) before, I didn’t know who he was. So, he gave me protection and by the time I got it, he said well, are you going to drive with me to town? I never even asked who he was. It was when we got to his car that I saw it was a military car. Babangida was there and we were talking about Nigerian political affairs. So, he took me to town. That was how I was able to escape with my two copies without them being confiscated like others. And from then, we became friendly.
I use to go to his office when I had the time and from there to his guest house. By the time we would get to the gate of his guest house on Raymond Njoku, girls would be at the gate, as many as twenty of them. When they see his car, all of them would stand up. As he is driving in, he would bring down his glasses, point to about six or eight of them for security to allow them come into the house. He is a person who likes women all the time. It was a daily routine that he does. And so, when I wrote a musical on Cyprian Ekwensi’s ‘Passport of Mallam Ilia’ which I turned into an opera, I needed a band to perform it. Abacha was able to give me a note to the army band. So, I went to the army band and then, I started rehearsing with the Nigerian Army band that played the music for me. But, then, Tunde Akogun was giving us so much trouble. He didn’t want us to rehearse at the National Theatre. Each time we wanted to have rehearsal there, he would turn us down. He was driving away my artistes. So, I went to Sani Abacha again that Akogun keeps disturbing us. Abacha would say, ‘don’t worry, I would talk to them which he would do’. When Fela Anikulapo Kuti finally came out of prison, I was doing the Fela musicals and he heard that Fela was coming once in a while when we were rehearsing. So, he came to meet Fela and they had a very wonderful rapport. For about two or three days, he was coming because Fela was coming there to rehearse. And finally, he gave me money to pay for the theatre and do the musical. That was the last thing I did before I left Nigeria.
Can you give psychoanalysis of Abacha?
You see, Abacha has a very reserved mentality. Abacha would listen to you; he would make very little comments or none. But, therein, he has known what he wants to do. But, he is a very jovial person who plays around with teasing you and doing everything. But, he is not an outspoken person. Abacha never discussed Nigeria with anybody as far as I know. He never discussed Nigerian politics, but he likes to discuss entertainment, films and what not. I’m amazed that he ended up acquiring that kind of money that he did. But, I know from my own judgment that being product of the ’College of Assassin’, that is what they are trained to do.
What is the history of that college?
What is the SOA?
The School of the Americas (SOA), in 2001 renamed the “Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation,” is a combat training school for Latin American soldiers, located at Fort Benning, Georgia.
Initially established in Panama in 1946, it was kicked out of that country in 1984 under the terms of the Panama Canal Treaty. Former Panamanian President, Jorge Illueca, stated that the School of the Americas was the “biggest base for destabilization in Latin America.” The SOA, frequently dubbed the “School of Assassins,” has left a trail of blood and suffering in every country where its graduates have returned.
Over its 59 years, the SOA has trained over 60,000 Latin American soldiers in counterinsurgency techniques, sniper training, commando and psychological warfare, military intelligence and interrogation tactics. These graduates have consistently used their skills to wage a war against their own people. Among those targeted by SOA graduates are educators, union organizers, religious workers, student leaders, and others who work for the rights of the poor. Hundreds of thousands of Latin Americans have been tortured, raped, assassinated, “disappeared,” massacred, and forced into refugee by those trained at the School of Assassins.
The college was established in the 1940s in Fort Benning, Georgia. It’s a big college. I think it’s about 22 miles radius. And they have all kinds of things there. All the Latin American dictators went through there. Like Argentina’s Pinochet, Panamas’ Noriega, most Vietnamese military leaders went there, Kagame of Rwanda went there. I was there when Kagame graduated and we became good friends. And the young Kabila went there. But he didn’t finish. I think he was a year there before Collin Powell took him out and made him head of state in the Republic of Congo. But Abacha went there.
Is he the only person that went there from Nigeria?
I believe he is the only one. Bolaji Johnson went to the Rangers College in Indiana. He was the first military person to go to America for military training. Abacha is the only one that went to the Fort Benning School that I know.
What is the kind of training?
They train them how to disorganise a whole country and become dictators. They train them how to kill people. There was a series of twelve tapes made by Edward Kennedy that showed what type of activities went on there. He was the one that got the American Congress to call it the ‘College of Assassin.’ They teach you to fight lions barehanded, to fight crocodiles, so, you become quite fearless. They show you lots of blood activities, so that shedding people’s blood don’t move your emotions anymore.
At what period in time did he attend the school?
It must have been the early eighties because he was given the Grand Order of that school by Collin Powell in 1986. They gave him a best student award. And we tackled Collin Powell because he was a product of my school at the City University. And he said that he was a good student. And I am amazed today I am reading in the papers that he said he warned him about what he was doing. So, they were very good buddies. They related well.You and Abacha were very friendly, when did it all turn around?
I was out of the country when he became head of state. When Ken Saro-Wiwa was killed, I lost confidence in him. He killed Ken Saro-Wiwa. For that, I don’t think I wanted to relate with him. I knew Ken as a good friend and I didn’t feel comfortable that he should have been killed. Abacha knew Ken well too. They were very good friends. So, it is not that he doesn’t know who Ken Saro-Wiwa was. But, if it happened to Ken, it could happen to me.
Did you get close to any of his children, or family?
No. Like I said, he has a routine when he leaves the military headquarters at 1:00pm. It is either you see him at the office or at the guest house. By 11:00pm, he goes home to sleep. So, his family is never in the guest house. They don’t come there at all. Himself, Jerry Useni, Gwadabe and some other people are the ones always there.So, you were not surprised about the story that he was killed by women.
No. Even at my playhouse, we used to joke about it because when he comes for rehearsal, he would be asking me, which of these girls I should take away. I would say, sir, these girls are artistes. I cannot order anyone of them to go with you. One of my girls slapped him one day and I was shocked. I don’t know what he did to the girl, but the girl smacked him. He must have done something stupid to the girl.You said that Abacha and Babangida were all together….
Yes, actually I knew two people before I knew Abacha. I knew Mamman Vasta and Babangida. I knew them during the war. They were both colonels and I knew their wives. They were three girls - Ada who became Ada Vasta, Maryam who became Maryam Babangida, and another girl we knew as Chinyere. She became the famous Gloria Okon. She was married to Jeff Chadler a Tiv who was a Lieutenant Colonel of Tiv extraction. He was the one who killed Nzeogwu when Nzeogwu was captured at the Nsukka sector. They were bringing him to Kaduna but when he heard, he went on the road and killed him. And he too was killed that night that he killed Nzeogwu. Now, the wife, I knew her as Chinyere. The three of them (Babangida’s wife, Vasta’s wife, and Chinyere) were staying at No. 27 Adeniji street in Surulere. So, when her husband was killed, she started trading and going to London. Something happened and she was arrested by the Customs for trying to take money out of the country. Mrs. Babangida had to intervene and got Vasta to go there and deceive journalists that she died. And they took them to the Kano mortuary and showed them the body of a dead woman.
How do I know this?
When Vasta was arrested for coup, Vasta refused to talk to interrogators because he was a Major General. But, he said he would give his testimony at the trial. So, at his trial, he gave a four hour testimony and made sure that the tape of that testimony was sent to me to take to his wife. From that tape, we were able to get information that Gloria Okon did not die and that Gloria Okon had just had a baby with somebody in England.
Now, for you journalists, the aspect that will interest you is that Dele Giwa got to know that I had the tape of Vasta’s testimony. So, he came to me and I loaned him the tape. He listened to the tape and commissioned somebody in England to trace Gloria Okon. And fortunately for them, Gloria Okon and Maryam Babangida were celebrating the child naming of Gloria Okon’s baby. They got the pictures and Kayode Soyinka brought the pictures to Giwa in Lagos. Dele Giwa then took the pictures and went to Babangida and said, ‘I want to be minister of information or I will destroy you. These are pictures of your wife doing this with Gloria Okon.’ And so, they tricked him and got rid of him in 48 hours.
Vasta testified for four hours and sent the tape to me. I was there the day he was killed. His wife called me early in the morning and said they were going to move them and that I should go to Kirikiri. Then, I was living in my house at Festac. And I took the waterside by the Vanguard Newspapers. As I was arriving at Kirikiri, at about seven o’clock in the morning, I saw Black Marias moving off. They told me, ‘that’s Vasta and his people. They just killed them.’ They shot them at 6:00am. So, I followed the Black Marias in a taxi. By the time we got to Iyana Isolo, we lost them. At that time, there was no okada. I knew they were going to Atan Cemetery. So, when I got to Atan Cemetery, they had already buried them in a mass grave and threw acid on them. Then, Tunji Abayomi, a Lieutenant Colonel who led the corpse there, drove back and said, ‘where is Vasta’s watch?’. Vasta had given instructions that if they killed him, they should send his watch to his wife so that his wife would know that he is dead. He had a Rolex watch.’ The attendants were relunctant to open up. So, he just said, line them up, and let me shoot all of them. So, one of them threw the watch down. Then, another guy was trying to hide Martin Luther’s chain, a gold chain that had the number of his bank account in a Swiss bank. So, he threw the chain to my direction and I just put my foot on it and I was looking at them. So, the guy took the watch and drove away and I took the chain. I went to Daily Times. Titus Soyombo was the Evening Times editor. So, I told him that they have killed Vasta. He asked me, ‘are you sure’? I said yes. He withdrew his paper and made the first headline, ‘Vasta would die today if Babaginda does not intervene.’ Less than forty minutes after, the military came and started ransacking the whole of The Times. So, we went opposite The Times where they sell food those days and sat down there. That day, he sold about 400,000 copies of the paper because they made five editions of the paper. So, when the government got to know that the newspaper was in circulation, they sent Admiral Aikhomu to go on the air by 2:00pm to say that by 4:0pm today, Vasta would be executed. Whereas, they had been executed in the morning.
Is it true that he (Vasta) was IBB’s best friend when he (IBB) got married?
Not only was he his best friend, IBB grew up in his father’s house. Now, he was the one who christened one of IBB’s daughter. They are very, very close, because hardly would you see Vasta without seeing Babangida. It is Abacha that I got close to later. But, with IBB and Vasta, I knew them from the time Sir Harold Wilson (former British Prime Minister) came. The day Adekunle killed the guy in the Delta, Isaac Boro. We went with the observer team to Port-Harcourt. Isaac Boro was the leader of the group that liberated Port-Harcourt and then declared Republic of the Niger Delta there. And then, Adekunle was taking. You know, Adekunle was always stealing money then. He would come and blackmail Gowon. Gowon would tell him to go to Central Bank and carry four or five lorries to Central Bank, load them with money. Halfway, he would divert it back to Lagos, he would then take half to the front. So, the British Prime Minister came on that day. We were on the observer team with Harold Wilson when we got to Port-Harcourt. Boro did not allow the British team, so when Adekunle came, he was so furious and then they fought for about thirty minutes before they captured him.
Read more…
A Mushin Customary Court in Lagos yesterday endorsed the break-up of a 12-year-old marriage between an estranged couple on grounds of infidelity.Agency reports say that Banfor Williams, a retired civil servant, and his wife Basirat, a trader, had told the court to dissolve the marriage.Banfor, 62, had approached the court on March 16, seeking an end to the relationship, accusing the wife of prostitution.“Basirat had packed out of the matrimonial home since 2007 to another man’s house and now she wants to come back to me.“She has no respect for me because her boyfriends have been patronising her in the shop I got for her,” he told the court.The petitioner who resides at 1, Sanusi Street, Mushin, also submitted that his wife’s boyfriends had been coming to his house to threaten him.“She has turned the soft drinks business I established for her into a joint where people drink gin mixed with herbs,’’ Banfor added.In her plea, Basirat urged the court to dissolve the marriage since it produced no children.“I regret marrying Banfor, he is dirty,’’ she said.After listening to their arguments, the court’s President, Dr Abayomi Ipaye dissolved the marriage since both parties had consented.“You are free to go on separate ways,’’ he ruled.
Read more…
Please read and enjoy………………………With the recent MD's directive this is a true story that happened at one of our branches on the mainland.The following conversation took place between an Americana bobo and some staff of this branch.The Americana just came from America and is interested in depositing some amount of money in the bank. He approached the branch and immediately was welcomed by the security officerSecurity: Good day sirAmericana: Good day nigga, I wanna see your fucking managerSecurity: I beg your pardon, the word ‘f...k’ is not allowed in this bank, this is a corporate environmentAt this junction, the BSM came into the sceneBSM: What is going on here?Americana: Good day nigga, I wanna see your fucking managerThe BSM repeated what the security personnel said; we are in a corporate environment and the 4 letter word is not encouraged:At this junction, the BDM just coming from an unsuccessful marketing call entered the officeBDM: What on earth is going on here?Americana: I said I wanted to see the fucking manager and these niggas are preventing me;BM: Sir, this is a corporate environment and we would appreciate it if you are less vulgarAmericana: OK, I only wanted to deposit a fucking N200 millionOn hearing this, the BDM shouted Ha! Olodumare “I am the fucking BDM, this is the fucking BSM and the other nigga over there is the fucking Security personnel, all of us are here to provide fucking service!
Read more…
Please take some time out and go through the mail below. A friend shared it with me over the week end. Two different banks in Ikot-Ekpene were robbed, 2 weeks ago; same day, same time. My contact was not too sure of the banks. However, the banks are closely located to each other and here are the details:A truck broke down in front of the banks, and for 2 days, some mechanics appeared to be working to get it fixed. At about 10.00 a.m. on the third day, a man in crutches walked into one of the banks.He had to pass through the security door, which was specially opened for him, unknown to the security guard that the seemingly disabled man was armed. In the banking hall, he identified his colleague that had earlier walked in, signaled him, dropped his crutches and handed him a gun. They fired some short into the air and in a short while, bedlam was let loose, as about 20 heavily armed young men emerged from the truck outside and headed into the banks. The rest of the story can better be imagined.Kindly share this with our colleagues as I feel there are a couple of things to be learnt from it. ThanksMay god continue to protect us all.amen.
Read more…
They are sleek, damn too good-looking and have everything going for them with nice cars, damn-the-devil ‘effects’ complete with posh houses and the fame to get any woman to toe the line they want. They are the Nollywood stars who have glamourised our screens for years and thus have found some wanton way into our hearts.The ordinary drop-dead gorgeous beauties prone to Idol-worship are not only their easy preys, some very talented, self-made actresses or starlets have also melted before their charm. No husband likes them hanging around and the woman in their lives just couldn’t help hating every other woman.Of course, when they date the average girl next door it isn’t always news but when they dip their way into the industry it becomes hot. Though most actresses have walked their ways clean, avoiding relationships with these dashing dudes who have ‘the bang-bang thank you’ as their modus operandi but many have fallen victims when they were the green starlets looking to get a break in the movie Industry.Pat Attah is perhaps the most dangerous of the lot. Tall, dark and handsome, Pat Attah is a ladies’ delight any day. Whatever rave Pat is letting slip through his finger in the movie business he is sure making up as a playboy. The actor who now hangs out, most nights, at Options Nite Club, Ikeja, probably doing more lady-poaching, reportedly had an affair with Empress Njama, Regina Askia, Maureen Solomon, Nkiru Sylvanus, Genevieve Nnaji and lately Lilian Bach.His romance with Regina Askia made the papers in the early 90s. The two stars must have developed the juice during their exploits in the soap opera ‘Mega Fortune’. Around year 2000, he was accused of going out with Genevieve Nnaji.Next to be hooked was Empress Njamma at about year 2004. Others ladies linked with the Nolllywood hunk were Maureen Solomon, Nkiru Sylvanus and Lilian Bach. Rumour-mongers had it that his affair with Lilian Bach would have headed to the altar but all it ever ended was a rumour.Ramsey Noah is another hot dude. So hot the wife has been visiting the divorce lawyer to get cracking on him. Ramsey’s has never pretended about his craving for ‘varieties’ and this much he said during the Nigerian Entertainment Award for Best Actor in New York “ I want to marry up to three hundred wives and have three hundred concubines “and be like King Solomon, that’s my dream”.A close friend of Noah said something that supports Noah’s long time desire to have three hundred concubines.It has been said that Ramsey’s two main passion after acting are women and drinks with women coming tops. Everybody knows of his passion. He has made it public time and time again.Van Vicker is a happily married man but his moves has a ring of a playboy to it. Recently the media was awash of his rather unprofessional involvement with Nadia Buari.May be the duo have been doing it by the moonlight but the world caught up with them at the Five Continent Academic Award in Brooklyn, New York. The Ghanaian Stars came in walking hand in hand in the banquet hall as thousand of fans from various parts of the United States clap in thunderous applause. A close source to the two stars who disclosed the secret love affairs developing between the two stars hinted that Van and Nadia have been “seeing each other for a while”, but he was not too sure whether the beloved movie stars were actually having an affair.A well placed source also hinted that Vicker carries an unusual smiles that is unprecedented of him.Jim Iyke might be all enamoured with heart-throb, Katura Hamilton but his exploits as a playboy is still very fresh in the memory. As he confirmed himself in an interview recently “ ...women have come and gone in my life. There are days I wake up and say to myself that, if I name people I have been with in this country it will be a revelation of sort”.Nobody questions that, at least Olisa Adibua still has some marks to show for fooling around with your woman.Even Chidi Mokeme agreed in an Interview that he is a playboy. “I’m a positive kind of playboy. My idea of what people call a playboy is some guy who is sleek, good looking and got everything going for him with nice cars and good house. Somebody who wears the right clothes, says the right thing without any impure intent in his heart.I want to look good, drive the kind of car that makes me happy. And also make those around me happy”. As saintly as Chidi may wants to look everyone knows he likes well-endowed women.Although Norbert Young has finally closed his chapter with Gloria Anozie and looking like done with back-bashing but his escapade with Uche Jombo seems to be dying very hard in the actress’s mind. Recently, when she was asked about the good-time with the Ibom star she replied “I don’t like talking about my affair with Norbert. He is now married and we greet whenever we see,” she said in a voice filled with emotion.Also unforgettable is the frolicking fling between Kalu Ikeagwu and Alex Okoroji. Whatever happened in that relationship, Alex seems to have fond memories of it. Fred Amata and Ibinabo Fiberesima are also another hot item in the news.
Read more…
Like the Top Drama Series on american TV Prison Break ! complete with TBagwellWe will fill you as more reports flow in !Enugu — OVER 150 of the 734 inmates in the awaiting trial section of the Enugu Prisons broke out of jail in the early hours of yesterday, Comptroller-General of Nigeria Prisons, Olushola Ogundipe, confirmed yesterday.Ogundipe, who flew into Enugu to assess the situation, also said that one of the escapees was unlucky as he, Comptroller-General of Nigeria Prisons, Olushola Ogundipe plunged headlong to his death, after scaling the high fence.Similarly, he told reporters that three wardens of the prisons were seriously injured and are presently undergoing treatment in an unnamed hospital.Two inmates were said to have been killed in the incident while 36 female prisoners were gang-raped by the fleeing inmates.Inside sources said the Awaiting Trial Members (ATM) were said to have facilitated the jailbreak which spread to other cells in the prisons, leaving about 20 prison wardens seriously injured.Enugu-based oil magnate and Chairman, Nowas Group, Dr. Ignatius Nnubia and his manager, Emma Okoli, who were remanded in the prison for their alleged involvement in the kidnap of Dr. Francis Edemobi, younger brother of the Minister of Information, Dr. Dora Akunyili, narrowly escaped being lynched as some of the jailbreakers reportedly forced their way into their cells to attack them but were protected by about 10 other inmates who volunteered to protect them.However, the Nnubia family raised an alarm yesterday alleging that the criminals may have been sponsored to kill the businessman and his manager.“We believe those people who are desperate to see that Nnubia and his manager, Okoli, do not regain their freedom and sent this group of boys to kill Nnubia and his manager in prison. Otherwise why should their fellow inmates attempt to attack them? If not for the 10 volunteers among the ATM that fought hard to prevent them, it would have been a sad story today,” one of Nnubia’s lawyers said yesterday.//9jabook sources learnt that the ATM inmates in G Ward initiated the jailbreak around 1.30am yesterday when they broke the ceiling of their ward, which later collapsed and from the roof top hundreds of them trooped out attacking the prison wardens. The source said some of the wardens who could not escape were held hostage by the violent inmates who asked them to say their last prayers, as they were going to be killed.From the G Ward, they marched to the main entrance gate which they forced open and provided unhindered access to the fleeing inmates some of whom have spent about three years in the prison, awaiting trial.Hundreds of them were said to have fled even when armed prison guards outside the premises reportedly released several shots into the air to dissuade them.In the process, some of who were not interested in escaping, the source further disclosed, started rioting inside the prison. They moved to the E and M Wards also occupied by ATM and forced the gates open, thus increasing their number as they marched to other wards including Ward D and the Condemned Criminals (CC) Ward.Death row inmates shun jailbreakThey were however disappointed when the ‘officials’ and inmates of Ward D and their 76 colleagues in the CC Ward resisted them, saying they were not ready to engage the government in a battle since they were sure that the fleeing inmates would be apprehended in the long run.//It was further learnt that the riot became violent when some of the inmates resorted to stealing their colleagues’ money and raping the female prisoners. All the 36 female inmates were reportedly gang-raped by till dawn and most of them were seen lying naked in different locations within the prison yard yesterday morning before the authorities rushed them to an undisclosed hospital for treatment.“Only one mentally-deranged female inmate in a separate cell was left untouched”, said the source who described the treatment meted to the female prisoners as “very dehumanising”.An unconfirmed prison source said about 50 ATM inmates were arrested outside the prison yard through the combined effort of the prison guards and policemen from the nearby Central Police Station.During the riot, the office of the Chief Warder was vandalised by the prisoners who removed the green regalia which prisoners wear each time they are to attend court session and set them ablaze, while one of the rooms in the welfare block built with bricks was razed. The roof of the building was seriously damaged.Why inmates broke jail, by Prisons bossComptroller-General of Nigeria Prisons, Olushola Ogundipe, yesterday gave a graphic account of the tragic of the jailbreak to reporters and attributed the ugly development to agitation of prisoners arising from slow judicial processes, saying the 734 awaiting trial inmates, male and female “have been agitated because of slow judicial process”.He expressed delight that the state Chief Judge, Innocent Umezulike, on May 28, visited Nsukka Prisons where he took up some jail cases of inmates rather than waiting for the cases to be treated in court, recalling that on May 26 the CJ accompanied by 12 judges, also performed similar function (jail delivery) at the Enugu Prisons.//He said: “But you know, having over 700 Awating Trial Inmates, it takes a long time and so the Chief Judge promised coming back on the 5th of June this year for another set of jail delivery. You know inmates, everybody wants his case to be heard as soon as possible. And so this agitation was the primary cause of this jailbreak; around midnight, they broke the ceiling, got to the yard; broke down some of the security measures and there was a massive escape of prisoners.”130 escapee recapturedOgundipe said the run-away inmates were not so lucky as the security men on duty were quite alert and were able to get help from the army, police and the Civil Defence, who all teamed up to ensure that “Enugu city is not bombarded with escaped prison inmates.”So far, he said, the squad of security operatives had recaptured 130 escapees while trailing 23 others.“As I am talking to you, about 150 inmates awaiting trial broke their cells and we were able to recapture with the help of the police and other security operatives 130 immediately. And presently, the remaining 20 we are on their trail, we are still bringing them back,” he said.He added: “As I am talking to you, the situation is fully under control. The yard is calm. I have gone round and I have seen those in the hospital; they are being treated. I assure you that everything is under control.”According to him, not even one convicted inmate or any of the condemned ones escaped. “We have 77 inmates on the death row. I must commend them that not a single one of them participated in the jail break,” he explained.On prison reform, he said the authorities of the prisons were concentrating on the inmates.“Presently, part of the report is that you have the Attorney-General of the Federation engaging some lawyers to take up cases of indigent inmates. This has been going on all over the federation,” he said.The prison, Ogundipe said, was inherited from the British Colonial Masters, who commissioned the prison block on February 5, 1926, noting that the prison administration has been putting some new structures to improve on what the colonialists left.“The problem we have is that we are battling with archaic structures. The federal government is trying its best. If you look inside the yard you will see that we are putting up a storey building to replace the old ones,” he said.
Read more…
There is no better time to liberate our country than the year 2011. By then, Nigeria would have been 51 years old as an independent nation. We would have wasted a total of 50 long years trying to build a solid foundation for democracy, good governance and accountability. We would have endured incompetent, kleptomaniac, insensitive, wasteful rulers, for those number of years. 50 years in the life of a people
cannot be a joke. As Chief Moshood Abiola once noted at the launch of Dream-maker by May Ellen Ezekiel Mofe-Damijo, “If we spend 50 years dreaming dreams, when are we going to see vision?”
That profound statement encapsulates the story of Nigeria. We have spent 50 years daydreaming. Our so-called leaders have continued to do the same things in different ways. They have not learnt any lesson from history. They have treated the ruled with incredible disdain. Just look at what they’ve just done again in Ekiti. The ruling party told us all to go to hell, when it announced that it had won the most improbable gubernatorial election, practically with the much disputed, and most likely-doctored votes from one local government. What chicanery is this?
But they are wrong in thinking we can be treated like rams being led to slaughter. The shame is theirs to live with, when tomorrow comes. The world would laugh at us as usual. The infidels would ask, where is our God? The faint-hearted would easily give up. But we must not allow the shameless old fuddy-duddies to savour their pyrrhic victory. We must continue this match towards the redemption of our souls. We must prepare for the battle ahead, now that we know the PDP would continue to force its ill-assorted candidates on us. We must reject this slavery, by all legal means available.
There is always a purpose for every situation we find ourselves in. Without the madness of the Bush years in America, there would have been no Obama today. Yar’Adua will be the catalyst for our own Obama. Mark my word. We are back at the barricade, and it is time to scream, Let my people go! We must pray every day for Yar’Adua. We must ask God to grant him long life, so that he can feel what Obasanjo is feeling today. We must pray for him to run for his own second term. This is what we should all push for, for our own Obama to emerge. We must demonstrate our anger against these reckless riggers by making up our minds to register to vote, and stand by our votes henceforth.
We must encourage as many good candidates as possible to come out nationwide. The search for our own Obama has now become a task that must be accomplished. We must stay many steps ahead of our oppressors. Never again must we allow these insults to stick. Nigerians must speak up from every corner. In the mosques, and in the churches, we must continue to pray, for our walls of Jericho to collapse. We must encourage our congregations to stay strong and support good candidates. We must emphasize the ugliness of our rulers. We must put their incompetence on display for all to see. We must convince ourselves that we deserve better. We must accept the fact today that our redemption lies not in the hands of incurable desperados, who must cling to power at all cost. We must salute the leadership of the Nigerian Bar Association, for showing us good example, and for being a voice of reason.
Our Obama must be bold. He/she must be selfless. Donald Duke is a good material any day. But he is in a wrong party. PDP will never field such an urbane candidate. The party is led by control freaks and warlords. They will always pick one weakling after the other from their database of political zombies. They care less that the world today is led by smart, young, energetic, trendy, and brilliant leaders. If Donald wants our votes, he must quit the party that has attracted so much shame and repulsion to Nigeria. He has to make his move very quickly.
But will he? Analysts have said he is not likely to do that. Their reason is simple. The average Nigerian politician is never prepared to take the risk of quitting the party that controls all the plum appointments. He’ll rather continue to hope that something would drop in his laps. His is never a call to service. Any job would do. The world is waiting to see if Donald can call the bluff of PDP and join forces with more forward-looking Nigerians.
Nasir El-Rufai is an erudite and tested leader. He demonstrated enough guts in dealing with environmental issues in the Federal Capital Territory of Abuja. Of course, like all mortals, he made a few mistakes, and stepped on powerful toes. But he remains one of the brightest hopes of Nigeria. There are allegations of improprieties against him, and he’s being pursued with the agility of a horse. That is to be expected in a country where we love to chase shadows and the leadership has gone neurotic.
He must make plans to return to Nigeria to defend himself. Every soul knows there are desperate attempts to smear him. Not that he’s a saint. But if we can keep some of the characters we see in the corridors-of-power permanently in government jobs, then Nasir smells like a beautiful rose. He should remain unruffled. Persecution sometimes helps its victim. A good example is that of Jacob Zuma of South Africa who got the overwhelming support from his people despite his “bad boy” image. Such is life.
Barrister Babatunde Raji Fashola is one of the greatest things to happen to Nigerian politics. A Senior Advocate of Nigeria and current governor of Nigeria’s most important state, Lagos. Babatunde reinforces the theory that the future of Nigeria should be placed in the hands of members of the private sector. Our incorrigible politicians would never change their bad habits. Babatunde is strict, smart and business-like. He has given Lagos a good direction by promoting good governance above partisan politics. He was a virtual underdog at the time his former boss, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu practically forced him on the Action Congress.
He was young and shy. But he has matured into a confident leader who clearly has his master-plan in view, and the willingness to execute it with clinical precision. He has shown exceptional courage in dealing with grave issues. And he’s being applauded by everyone for his stupendous efforts. The question on people’s lips is if Babatunde would risk his plush job to attempt a shot at the presidency. The answer is that he needs more time to tackle the many challenges of Lagos, and that he must wait till 2015. But Nigeria is in dire need of a new leader and cannot wait or waste much time getting such a man.
So our search continues. Professor Pat Utomi should step forward. His rich knowledge of the Nigerian economy should naturally qualify him for this most important job. He also comes with the experience of running for the presidency in the last election. His major problem is how to persuade a largely illiterate community that a very academic man can take Nigeria to the next level of prosperity and accountability. As good as he is, he seems to have an uphill task unless he can get a broad coalition of Nigerian parties to adopt him.
Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is primus inter pare amongst the women who are qualified to lead Nigeria. Her intimidating job as the managing director of the World Bank makes her a veritable candidate for the presidency of Nigeria. She also comes with the wonderful experience of being our former minister of finance, and subsequently foreign affairs. She ably distinguished herself on both jobs. She was a powerful voice on the continent of Africa and beyond. It is yet to be seen if a largely male-dominated country like Nigeria is ready to jettison its traditional chauvinism to enthrone a proud daughter of Africa in power.
Next on our list of potential Obamas is Dr Oby Ezekwesili, current vice president (Africa) at the World Bank. Reasonable Nigerians would forever remember her heroic deeds for institutionalizing due process in government activities. They will remember with fond memories her epic battles against the enemies of qualitative education for Nigerians. In a very normal society, technocrats like Oby should make a spectacular showing in governance. She’s one of the leading lights of Nigeria, and definitely a lady to watch in the near future. She would be needed to perform some of the badly needed surgeries on our cancerous nation.
One of our best women, Professor Dora Akunyili, has been sucked into government full time. She gave a good account of herself as the Director-General of NAFDAC, where she executed a running battle against the producers and marketers of fake drugs. Her fame grew in leaps and bounds, and she almost won a Nobel Prize for her gallant efforts. There is no woman more popular in Nigeria today than Dora Akunyili but her recent appointment as Minister of Information and Communications has placed her in a very precarious situation. Many of her great fans are very worried about how this job of defending a poor government might affect her political future. She would have to learn how the other women on our list left government with their reputations intact, by not being overzealous about a thankless job.
We welcome Fola Tajudeen Adeola, the whiz-kid of Nigerian banking and co-founder of Guaranty Trust Bank, to this great company. The gentleman with very extensive contacts is respected in many circles. He endeared himself to most Nigerian youths when he voluntarily quit his powerful job as managing director of GTB, and headed straight to the Nigerian Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies in Kuru, near Jos.
It was a move that was seen at the time as preparatory to joining the presidential race. He was briefly involved in political assignments under the Obasanjo government, an experience that must have taught him a few things about the intricacies of working under an insincere leadership. If he works very hard, he’s well positioned to attract massive support from both the Muslim north and the southern Muslims.
No one can ignore Brigadier-General Mohammed Buba Marwa in the scheme of things in Nigeria. There were attempts to rubbish him when he showed interest in the presidential race under the government of Olusegun Obasanjo. He had to make a quick retreat after he was whipped into line by the powers that be. His sparkling military career and outstanding performance as the military governor of Lagos State are enough reasons for his fans to see him as a potential Obama. He’s one cosmopolitan figure within the military mafia in Nigeria, and his relevance endures by his appointment as Nigeria’s High Commissioner to South Africa and Lesotho. His albatross would be his membership of an irredeemable political party, and like Donald Duke he may find it difficult to pull out.
Another school of thought believes that one of the biggest problems Nigeria faces is that of a negative perception by the global community. There have been suggestions that Nigeria should adopt the Italian style of putting a media mogul in power. Such a man would be able to put his journalistic experience into good use by re-orienting our people and building a credible image for a much-maligned nation. The name of THISDAY publisher, Nduka Obaigbena, looms large across the world as Nigeria’s most influential publisher. His foray into showbiz promotion and political and economic summits are said to be part of a calculated strategy to launch a mega political career, an assumption he readily dismisses.
In all, there are many more potential Obamas. The idea was to tickle us into thinking that Nigeria desperately needs a change, and that we are not lacking of our own Obama. The logical follow-up to our search is how to successfully launch and install such a great character in a country where a Moshood Abiola was left to rot in prison until he died. What was worse, the beneficiaries of his death never acknowledged his amazing contributions for the eight years they spent in power. It was as if they even hated him more in his grave. But no man can kill a dream when its time has come.
Our next challenge is no longer the search for the representative of the true aspirations of the people. It is how to ensure that our candidate is not mercilessly bruised or battered by the wolves on the rock.
Read more…
Goodluck Jonathan Vice president made a quote in this article : “ If we cannot correct the rot at the lowest level, then it would be cumbersome to do same at the top” wonders will never cease ! now blaming the people !
We do not want Sanni Abachas picture to scare our readers that is why it is not here.
1.who killed Dele Giwa ?
2.How did MKO Abiola Die ?
3.Shell,CIA Ken Saro Wiwa the real truth .
and many more ! What
editorial edited and recut from Thisday
Former US Secretary State and Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff of the American Armed Forces, General Colin Powell (rtd), has revealed that on the night the late General Sani Abacha was to overthrow the Interim National Government (ING), headed by Chief Ernest Shonekan, he was informed at 2 a.m.
Powel said he had protested against the decision, but was ignored by the late head of state.
but he did nothing as they allowed 9geria to slide back into Military Rule again.What kind of Strategic Partners are these americans.They folded their hands in Rwanda during the tutsi slaughter .powell a known admirer of the yahooze song by olu Maintain seems to be getting more and more ingrained within 9gerian politics since his retirement.close Sources say he is involved in a CIA plot to embed Top ranking former serving americans to a final solution of the 9gerian problem.
The USA has had great interest in 9geria since Communist China planted tenterhooks within the countrys resources.China is secretly buying up half of Africa and America is not having that.
Powell, who had supervised American involvement in 28 conflicts around the world including the Panama intervention, and Persian Gulf Operation Desert Storm, also noted that 9gerians do not trust their leaders.
He said many do not consider the current 9geria democracy as that of the people.
Powell made these remarks in his speech during the breakfast meeting organised by Tell Communications Limited (publishers of Tell Magazine) to mark 9geria’s 10 years of unbroken democracy (May 1999 – May 2009).
“I have watched as someone who sees and believes in the great potential of 9geria as an economic power and a political leader in the region and the world- as someone who wants to see that potential realised,” said Powell.
“Yes, I have seen the turmoil”, he added. “Shortly after I retired from the Army in 1993, I began getting letters from Sani Abacha, telling me of the problems in 9geria,” he told the audience.
“His letters were disturbing, and foreboding,” he added.
He continued: “Then, late one night, around 2 a.m, I got a phone call from him at my home that the situation, in his view had become so bad that he had to act.
Said he: “I pleaded with him not to, that America and the world would not understand and would react badly. He did not listen, and you know the rest of that story.”
Powell said in 1999 he was part of the election monitoring team in 9geria and had a profound experience.
He regretted that by all independent accounts he had seen the irregularities and corruption seen in subsequent elections is deeply troubling, adding that there is a real danger, that the will of the people is not being determined, but instead is being manipulated and pushed aside in the quest for power.
Vice-President Dr Goodluck Jonathan who also spoke at the event where he represented President Umar Yar’Adua said the government was committed towards ensuring that the votes of 9gerians count in all future elections.
Jonathan stated that part of what the nation was celebrating was the successful transition of one civilian government to another.
According to him: “ This is the first time the nation’s parliament has been in place for 10 years although the judiciary and executive existed throughout the period of military rule.”
He further observed that 9gerian politicians had a tendency of challenging results of elections whenever they lost, noting that there was need for stability if the nation’s democracy would grow. The Vice-President enjoined the mass media to be more balanced in its reporting of political events in the country.
Said he : “ It is not in all cases that the ruling party is on the wrong side during political developments in the country” .
He cited the fraudulent manner in which state independent electoral commissions conduct local government polls in different states of the country where parties in power always swept the polls. He however regretted that the trend never attracted the attention of the media which only preferred bashing the Independent Electoral Commission ( INEC).
Said he: “ If we cannot correct the rot at the lowest level, then it would be cumbersome to do same at the top” . i magine ! the cheek of the VP Are they trying to absolve themselves of their wrongs ?
This is shifting of blame at the highest level .So so rotten !
Also, speaking at the event was Justice George Oguntade, a Judge of the Supreme Court of 9geria, who described the existence of the current 36 states structure as a drain pipe to the economy, and advocated that some states be merged.
Read more…
not necessarily in this order
1.Nuhu Ribadu
2.Pat Utomi
3.Governor fashola
4.Fola Adeola former MD GTB
5.Buhari
6.Buba Marwa
7.Donald Duke
8.Dangote if he can stop loving money
9.Nasir El rufai
10. Dr Akin Osunlaja
read more here
http://www.9jabook.com/profiles/blogs/the-search-for-our-own-obama-1
It is difficult to meet Mallam Nuhu Ribadu without having some sort of liking for him. I saw the embattled pioneer chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for the first time at a 'state of the nation' symposium organised by the Nigerian Liberty Forum at the Metropolitan University, London, on May 29, 2009. A man whose slender frame and boyish looks often mask his lion heart and iron resolve, Mallam Ribadu easily stole the show at the gathering. He was literally mobbed as he entered the hall, and as he stood to speak, almost everyone, as if by some sort of invisible instigation, stood up in respect, and remained standing for a long time.
I was never a fan of Nuhu Ribadu's methods as the EFCC chairman. I still hold the EFCC under his watch partly responsible for the joke that was the 2007 elections. I had written about his recent travails as a comeuppance for his misdeeds as chairman of the financial crimes buster. I had strongly disagreed with arguments that he meant well despite his obvious excesses, noting that even the road to hell is paved with good intentions.
Ribadu spoke on Nigerian unity, making what some people would regard as a populist appeal for Nigerians to overcome their differences and come together to reclaim the Nigerian state from the grips of a corrupt and visionless elite. He argued that there was really no substantial difference in the needs and aspirations of ordinary Nigerians, irrespective of their ethnic and other primordial differences, because "all they ask for are the basic necessities of life." For Ribadu, the Nigerian elites like to harp on the differences among Nigerians because it is in their interest to do so, to "keep us divided". He called himself a simple Fulani man, whose role model had always been Gani Fawehinmi, a man he said he would name Abuja after, if he had his way. He rhetorically asked, to thunderous applause, whether we are being fair to the likes of Wole Soyinka and Anthony Enahoro, who had given over 50 years of their lives to the struggle to make Nigeria better, but are still forced to remain in active service. in their old age, because the problems of the country appear to remain intractable.
I respected Mallam Ribadu for not using the forum to get back at the Nigerian government, his current traducers. He wisely focused on positive messages, admitting that mistakes were made when he was boss of the EFCC. There was something about the way he spoke that touched most people in the audience, including those of us who are his ardent critics. It was easy to believe that he spoke from his heart rather than from his head.
As Ribadu spoke, I noticed that a Nigerian lady sitting next to me was struggling to hold back her tears. "This is a very honest man, a very rare Nigerian," she muttered, more to herself. I tried to engage her in a discussion. I agreed that Nuhu was obviously an honest man, who meant well and had a lot of passion for the job he did as EFCC chairman. I however disagreed that his good intentions were enough excuses for some of his unacceptable methods. Her facial expression changed as if I had uttered a heresy.
"Whether any one likes it or not, he will be our next president," she muttered and moved farther away from me as if to clearly indicate that she did not want to pursue that discussion any further.
Nuhu Ribadu for president? Though not his supporter, I have always believed firmly that in Nigeria's game of musical chairs, his rehabilitation would be only a matter of time, and his traducers would inevitably one day take their own turn of being painted as villains. This is one of the iron laws of our politics: there are no permanent messiahs or permanent villains. Just think of Abacha, the poster boy of Nigerian dictatorship and corruption, and the efforts made not long ago by a section of the country to rehabilitate him.
In the Tube (underground train) on my way home from the symposium, I found myself standing next to three gentlemen who had apparently also attended the event. The discussion was again on Nuhu Ribadu.
"He is very inspirational. He is our Obama," one of the three men, who looked Caucasian to me, declared. I decided to barge into the discussion but resisted the temptation to ask the gentleman if he was indeed Nigerian. I asked whether the genius of Obama was because he was inspirational or because he was post-racial, and a reconciler, with wisdom and a good organisational sense.
"Nigeria needs an enlightened leader who can inspire confidence in Nigerians, whom Nigerians will be proud of, and who genuinely wants to transform the country," he declared.
I agreed that Ribadu inspires confidence and will make a genuine effort to transform Nigeria if he becomes president of the country, but again expressed concerns about his democratic credentials. I reminded them that when he was boss of the EFCC he virtually kidnapped or forced some House of Assembly members in Plateau State to impeach their governor. I also reminded the three gentle men that during the 2007 elections Ribadu appeared to sit in his office and decide which people to disqualify from running for office before finding evidence against them.
"I don't think you will vote for him, will you? Your question to the founder of Sahara Reporters [the online blog] gave you away," the bulkiest of the three, with obvious Nigerian features, said, with a smile of superior wisdom. I had asked Omoyele Sowore if he ever saw anything good in the Nigerian government. I also accused him of appearing to romanticise the Niger Delta militants, and of failing to distinguish between the cause they espouse (which most Nigerians support) and their methods (which many find abhorrent).
"Look brother," began the third man, "we Nigerians made Obama President of the United States. More than 25 percent of the people who organised and knocked on doors for Obama are Nigerians. Nuhu is not perfect. But do you think any of the people currently being touted as presidential candidates in Nigeria will be better than Nuhu?" He had a slight Igbo accent.
I agreed with him that if Nuhu ever became Nigeria's president, it would never be business as usual and that he would be prepared to give his life to make a difference. I however once again reiterated my concern about his antecedents, including a tendency to be carried away by emotions.
As we disembarked and went our different ways, what became obvious to me was that Nigerians had not heard the last of Nuhu Ribadu.
Read more…
