DO YOU STILL WANT TO COME TO UK?BY DANESI YUSUF

I do understand why you want to migrate given your love for your family. I am happy that you have all obtained your visas as you look forward to transferring your media skills here (UK). Work was not going the way it should in spite of your towering industry stature. So you have thrown in your retirement letter to everyone's shock. You have sold all you ever owned to be able to relocate with your family. In a nutshell, bridges have been burnt as you look forward to making UK your "new home."

However, you need to prepare for a completely strange transition, which may either make or break you. You will practically go to 'school' on CV writing and before you eventually get it right it might take roughly three months- this is no exaggeration, as there are many critics out here. You will start pushing out your new CV, while it takes about 3,000 to get you one interview! You may have to push out about 30,000 copies to get 10 interviews and you’ll probably need to attend 30 interviews to finally land a job! The truth is you may have to send out 900,000 applications before you get a job here!

If you are wondering why this is so then consider the following statistics and facts: the Royal Mail risks 50,000 jobs; Woolworths, which has 813 stores, collapsed in November and as a result, 25,000 jobs are likely to go; the pound has hit a near low against the Euro; manufacturing has fallen to record lows; the service sector is in record contraction; Britain is slipping down the income rankings; the Bank of England is being blamed for the recession; unemployment has hit 1.8 million- the highest since 1998; UK debt has risen to 1.5 trillion pounds, etc.

Do not be shocked that your M.Sc degree means nothing to the employers here. Worse still, the almost 20 years of experience you have does not count! Most employers do not even know what the HSMP (Highly Skilled Migrant Programme) means!

It is great that you are coming with your family of five, but you need at least £13,000 (N2.8m) to survive the first six months of possible unemployment- and this is outside of London! You’d probably need close to double that amount if you decide to reside in London. You may not be able to earn the mandatory £35,000 per annum required by the Home Office (if your visa is to be renewed in two years time) if you do not work in London. And if your post code reads anywhere but London, your applications will all fire blank. Meanwhile, no employer will tell you the reason.

If you have a relation or friend who lives in London and is willing to accommodate you temporarily, why not come alone for now? However, the danger in that is multi-faceted. Who says you will find work in six months- even menial work? There is a recession here, which affects virtually every sector. You will be shocked to learn that the employment agency would rather call, and even in some cases, register somebody from the EU who cannot express him/herself clearly in English than give you, a master's degree holder a break. And the job in question? Factory operative! The wage is about £5.75 an hour before tax/NI deductions. Do not forget that you need to be in the £24/25 per hour bracket to hit the HSMP £35k target. Relationships with your hosts will be strained in most cases and you will be running bills back home too since your wife is not working.

If you have the money, come with your family, stay with your host for not more than 72 hours, maximum, a week, but be prepared to contribute your quota to the upkeep of the home. You will be lucky if your hosts are not greedy because they have not set eyes ever on the kind of money you are coming with at a go, in their 20-something years of living in the UK!

That you have the money is no guarantee that you will immediately get a house of your own because you do not have a credit history. If you do not have a guarantor (and many potential ones are unwilling) then just pay six months rent upfront. Though the checks that will still be undertaken may take between two to three weeks. Make sure your landlord in Nigeria can easily be reached by the referencing company, e.g. e-mail, fax, land phone, mobile, etc. If you do not get a permanent job before the six months and your landlord wants to sell the property then you start the process all over, though your Nigerian landlord may not be contacted again. If your employment is temporary/contract, which is less than 6-12 months, you will need a guarantor.

Do not be in a hurry to own a car because keeping it on the road is not a joke; more so your driving licence/experience, like your academic certificates/experience, will not be recognised! You will have to start from scratch as a learner, in spite of your 18 years accident-free driving experience on roads that are death traps in Nigeria! Do not even think of using your international driving licence because of the prohibitive insurance premium you will be paying on it. What baffles me, however, is the accident statistics here despite the very strict driving/traffic regulations - every morning my radio reports accidents on the A2, M25, and the lot, as fatal!
The bills never cease to come from utility companies whether you have a job or not! Your local council tax is even reviewed upwards and if you call to let them know you are not working, they ask if your wife is and if she is. Your subsequent bills will come in her name! If you are impatient, the thousands of rejection letters you are going to receive on your applications will almost make you stop believing in yourself - you will think you are absolutely useless!

An attempted foray into other unrelated survivalist professions like care work may even return further rejection letters- but you are highly skilled! You will crave anything eventually because the bills are ticking away - lunch time play leader, mail sorter, support worker, anything.
You pick up most newspapers here and it is obvious you could do a better editing job if given the chance, but you have sent more than 5,000 unsuccessful applications to be considered even for the post of assistant reporter! You will almost feel like quitting. Your foreign degree is competing with theirs in this period of recession. Thousands of their citizens are out of work and they would rather give them priority. But do not be frightened, do not despair. I understand that your Christian faith is intact: that is a vital credential you will be need here at this time. Be prepared because at a stage it will look like God does not even operate here!

You were given 24 months and by 10 months into your visa some prospective employers are already weary of even interviewing you, citing "company policy" as the reason (your visa is running out of steam). I can confirm to you that many Nigerians here are returning home in great numbers- are you surprised?

Do you still want to come to UK? Whatever decision you take will be most respected by me and my family. Unfortunately, I am still trying to find my feet too and may not be able to be of assistance other than the frank, naked and analytical advice I have provided here. Above all, be propelled always by the thought of seeing your sacrifice for your family to the end. Believe in God, who knows all things. Surround yourself with positive and encouraging people. Do not regret your decision- keep fighting. Weigh the options, take the ultimate decision and never look back afterwards.

• Danesi, posted this article on Nigerian Village Square and lives in the UK

FINALLY INI EDO CHANGES NAME--MRS INI EDO-EHIGWINA

Ini Edo is officially married to her bestfriend,Philips.Love conquers all,despite all the rumours and controvesy Philips prove to be a man of his words when he stormed Akwa Ibom,Ini's hometown.We wish the couple a lovely marriage.

Dare Art-Alade is a class act by all standards; he is a radio presenter a Master of Ceremony and a musician all rolled up in one. He is the son of the late music maestro Art Alade and in this interview with Ahmed Boulor, the father of one bares his mind on a range of issues which includes: his marriage, career and his current status as the co-host of MTN's Project Fame.

HOW does it feel being the host of MTN's Project Fame knowing fully well that you once participated in the maiden edition held in South Africa four years ago?

It feels really humbling and it also goes to show that what goes around comes around and we must at every point in time do our best in whatever activity that we are involved in because one never can tell who is watching. Four years after I feel privileged to be selected to host the show out of the very many talented ones who are potentially good for the job. So it is a feeling of pride and humility all in one.What is the experience of being the host of the show like?

So far so good, it is not something new.

I am used to hosting and presenting or things like that. But, it has its own challenges as well and the whole process has been exciting. You seem to be versatile being a musician, an Mc and a radio presenter.

Which of these are you more comfortable with?

All of them! I don't have a problem with any of them. It is just about being comfortable with creativity in any form that it comes. I wouldn't say I am the best painter or artiste, it is just my ability to apply my creativity to whatever I am involved in: music, dance, theatre and the media.

What is the reason behind shooting two different videos for your single entitled Carry dey go?

We actually did both versions on the same day. The first one that featured me and Tu face was very artistic. But the remix is more of a club mix; it is more of dancehall package and it features Naeto C. The major reason we had two videos for the song was simply because the original and the remix are different modes; the one that features Tu face is slow mellow while the that has Naeto C on it is more of a party blend.

Why did you leave Storm Records?

It is what you may term mutual understanding; two matured parties understanding that it is not working the way it ought to work and instead of making a fuss out of it, we decided to call it quits and part ways. But I am still a friend of the Storm family.

On what label will your forthcoming album be released?

I have my own Entertainment label called Soul Produktionz; so instead of calling ourselves a record label we are just doing independent shows and consultations for entertainment.

How far has worked gone on your forthcoming album?

It's looking good! I am recording more songs like the one I did with Tu face and the album will be out in January. I also have a song with 9ice and I have been recording with TY Mix, Cobhams and Don Jazzy. So it's coming on well and it will be an album specifically for matured audiences; people who are in relationships or who are in love. I also have one or two party songs that will prove to be club hits.

Has marriage in anyway softened you?

I have always been a mellow person for those who know me. When I try to be aggressive is when I put up the youthful exuberance cloak; but really I have come to realise that my strong point is in being mellow. That is why I sing slow and mid tempo songs and I discovered that anywhere I go in the world when I open my mouth and sing songs like that, I catch the audience.

How does it feel being a father?

I feel blessed having a son! It is a great feeling anybody out there that has one knows exactly how I feel. It shows how blessed and favoured you are in the sight of God. Now I have a responsibility that I have to take care of and unlike before money for shows is not for me alone as I now have mouths to feed.

Of all your fathers' children, you are the only one that followed in his footsteps and in the process you have gained considerable popularity. Does this not make your other siblings uncomfortable?

Not at all! I mean if there is any thing they are really supportive of me and they are happy that I am doing what I am doing and carrying on the legacies of our late father. I totally have their support and I don't have any problem regarding that.

Do you not feel any pressure of any sort being married to somebody older than you are?No pressures at all!

Every body at sometime finds what works for him or her. I am perfectly happy with my marriage to my wife and I absolutely have no problems or pressures of any sort.

Word has it that you have moved from Lagos to Abuja; do you not think that will affect you considering the fact that Lagos is the boiling point of entertainment in Nigeria?

Yeah! Lagos is the hub of entertainment; but Lagos is not where all the money is. Money doesn't stay in one place, there is money in America and there is money in South Africa. There is money in Lagos and Abuja if you want to broaden your horizon then you should not be restricted to a place. The money I can make in Lagos is very minimal but that is not the reason why I am in the capital city. Abuja is where my family is and it is a very cool place to raise a family. Lagos is chaos, it is a mad place and I have lived here for many years so I know how Lagos operates. I also have my businesses in Abuja and I basically shuttle between Lagos and Abuja. I am not somewhere just for fun; anywhere you see me there must be a reason for being there.

Is it true that you will be travelling to South Africa soon?

That's true! We are going to shoot more videos and see if we could fix other elements of the upcoming album. There will be photo shoots, interviews and what have you.

How soon will your album be released?

Hopefully and by the grace of God, it's going to be released in January. The album proper will be launched in February which means that you would have had the album before it is launched.Is that in anyway a strategy you are adopting to make the album make an impact in terms of popularity? You could call it a strategy but for me it is just common sense. When you sit down and carefully think of what people will like and how it will best work for them and you try it out. Sometimes you get it right and sometimes you get it wrong.

Having had first hand experience with Project Fame four years ago; how would you rate the talent of the contestants in this year's edition with your time?

There is a lot of talent in the house; again is about people coming out when an audition is called. Somebody out there might be a better singer but if you don't come out and show those who are conducting the audition what you can offer then your talent dies with you. What we have seen are one of the best of talents that we have at the academy. I am not saying that they are the there is but those that are better out there didn't come but of all the lot that were auditioned the best were selected.

Are you making money off music?

I haven't started making money the kind of money that I should; considering the amount of resources one invests in the making of albums. But a lot of people do music without the love of it, if I didn't love what I am doing I would have been distracted and disillusioned with piracy and what have you. The more consistent you are, someday, that big breakthrough that you wished for would come. The music business is a business of hope and you must keep hoping for the best. Look at people like Majek Fashek and Onyeka Onwenu; if any of them ever stopped at any time in their careers they would have been forgotten. The most important thing is for people to remember you. You may not be rich but they know you are there and you are doing what you know how to do best.

Would it be okay to sum up that the kind of music you sing is determined by your kind of person?

Yes! Generally speaking or around the world, the kind of music you hear from an artiste to a certain extent can tell you the kind of person he or she is. You could tell by the lyrics he chooses to use and things like that. So I am an artiste that likes it blue and slow. I also like to dance, I know how to rock the show but I am more mellow.

The Anambra born leggy queen of beauty Chinenye Ivy Ochuba after finishing from Reagan Memorial Secondary School, she contested for the Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria beauty pageant and she won in 2000. Her reign was a scandal-free one unlike her predessessors whose reigns are full of scandals and slanders. The seventh child in a family of 10 children shortly after her reign left her University of Lagos’ Computer Science course for the University of Greenwich, London where she studied Accounting and Finance and just graduated last May. Miss Universe pageant in Puerto Rico and Miss World were the major international beuaty contests she would have gloriously won but due to one hiccups to another she missed the enviable crowns and was well favoured with second best. Having completed herdegree in Accounting and Financing at the University of Greenwich, London. She has returned back to Nigeria to soleminise her long-standing relationship with an international businessman called Adekunle Tajudeen Akinlade.

MICHAEL ALONGE of http://www.nigeriafilms.com knocked the doors of his mouth 40 hours to their white wedding and he opened up on himself and the leggy queen of beauty, Chinenye Ochuba.

Excerpts…Can we have an insight into your background?

My name is Adekunle Akinlade, I’m in my late 30s, I am from Agosasa in Ipokia area of Idiroko, Ogun State . First born in a family of nine. My mum is late, she died in 1997, my dad is a retired army officer, I read Political Science in LASU, did lot of courses in England, I did Financial Management, I have a six year-old from previous relationship, Temilade. I used to have a business here in Nigeria in the 90s but I left Nigeria for England in 2000, immediately I got there I set up my company, Cleveland, we into property, oil and gas and financial management. I was doing my business in England until 2007 when I relocated back to Nigeria . That’s about my life generally.How did you meet Chinenye Ochuba?I met her in Lagos actually, when I came into town in 2004 on Holiday, I went out with my cousin, Rasaq Adigun, we went out, you know, I can not remember the name of the bar but it was on the Island, I am not really an outgoing person, I just came on Holiday then and my cousin just took me out. While we were relaxing, four ladies walked in and we looked at them and said hi! Hi! One of them was so friendly and we started chatting, though, I walked up to them to introduce myself, I said my name is Kunle and I will like to know you people, I was targeting her but I didn’t go to her directly, I wanted to come in through the one that was so jovial amongst them. I gave them my numbers, local and international. They didn’t call me before I left for England but later when I got to England, a couple of days later, one of them called me and I was like what about that your friend now, she said which one and said the slim one among you and she said ok Ivy, I said yes, though, I didn’t know who she was, weather a beauty queen or anything. She gave me her number and I called her and we became friends. We started talking for about three, four months about ourselves. Then one day I asked her if she ever thought of making a career in modeling, at least, you are tall, young and beautiful and she said she’s done pageant. Oh Pageant which one and she said MBGN, and I asked what is MGBN, she responded that Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria and I said ok, I know about Ben Bruce’s stuff. I asked what year and she said she won 2000 and I was surprised and I asked her if she could send me her pictures because that time really I just saw her once so I could picture what I saw at that bar that day. She said I should just google her name and when I did, I saw her pictures and profile and I was like wow you are really pretty you know, I now promised to come to Nigeria to meet her and the rest is history.How did you meet her parents?Oh! Her parents are wonderful people, as a young girl, they’re concerned about her and very protective of her I spent four day in Nigeria and went back to England . When I got back, she was in UNILAG then and I was like why don’t you come over to the UK for your studies, it’s better here you know with all this strike everyday and talked to her dad as regards that too that her intelligence would be more aided if she could come over to England for her academics. The dad made all the necessary arrangement, they got the form for her and she moved to Greenwich University , England , where she read Accounting and Finance. While she was in England I was able to see her quite often so the relationship developed from there. She just finished last May 2008 and she came out with flying colours 2.1. She’s serving with Exxomobil on the Island now; she’s an embodiment of knowledge. She’s very brilliant. She’s been a blessing; she’s a wonderful gift to me by God.

What was the attraction like?

For me really, I am not a party person, my life is all about business, as a financial manager, all I know how to do is to make and manage money so you can now imagine the first special outing with a cousin and four beautiful girls coming and you look at them and one at of those four people has a rare quality, something different from the normal Nigerian girl. You know, some Nigeria girls will have this hip, you know with some curves and all that but seeing something different, just like an average white woman in England, made my feel wow she might not be a Nigerian. But I got to know her well when we started talking that she’s a very careful and intelligent person. She’s got an aura that will just make you like her, she’s composed, very cultured person and in fact she’s everything. When I met her parents, they were not interested in the cars I drive or where I live, they were particular about me and what I do for a living. She’s from a very humble background and you know if someone is from a humble background, and someone gives you something, they know that the person might have given that something for something, you know, she’s not materialistic, she’s not extravagant, and I always ask her that for someone like you, what would you ask that a man would not give you and she’s like those things don’t matter.

Aside all this you mentioned above, what other quality would you say struck you when you met her?

You know when you first meet a girl, there are lots of things you won’t know about the person until you get close to the person. When I’ve got to know her parents, I have always believed that if you pluck a fruit from the tree, the fruit is fresh and good, look at the three; it must have had an effect on the fruit, that’s what I can say about that. The parents are people who are well disciplined and that act of discipline has been deposited into all their children. When I met her dad, he’s a retired Engineer, her mum is a teacher, and with the way they were talking to me, I know that definitely I am in the right place. So, there I discovered that the contentment nature of Ivy is inherited from her parent. She can live on a bottle of water for a whole day even if everybody around her is having coke and bugger. She’s got this inner value, you know, she’s not greedy and she’s very humble.

As a former beauty queen, are you not afraid of loosing her into some highly influential people who may want to sweep her away from you?

She goes around on her own and it has never bothered me if anyone that drives Ferrari or helicopter would take her from me, she has strong family values and that actually built that love and respect I have for her over the years.

Was there any reservation, objection or obstacle from her parents as a Yoruba man when you declared your intention about their daughter?

They are liberal people, they are from Anambra but they were born in Lagos , the dad speaks fluent Yoruba language, the mum too, you can imagine a teacher in a Yoruba State and all her friends are Yoruba people. The ethnic thing has never been an issue with the family, honestly. If I call dad now, you will be shocked that he would talk in Yoruba Ah Kunle Bawo ni? Se o wa okay…All their neigbours are Yoruba so to them I am just another Yoruba neigbour from the next door. If you ask Ivy all the people she went to school with from Primary to secondary they are all Yorubas. Her friends are Jumoke, Teni, Ireti… they are all Yorubas. If I had been a Hausa guy, it could have be language problem, you know, because none of them schooled in the North.

When did you propose to her?

I didn’t talk marriage the first day I met her, the marriage proposal started coming up late last year when she was about finishing her academics,. That was the condition then that before anything, you have to graduate from the university. And late last year I proposed to her and she called her parents and siblings and they all supported it and I gave her a ring. February this year, we came to Nigeria during the Val. And we had our introduction two days after Val and my people met with hers. Ever since, the relationship is blossom. Her dad and mine have become best of friends.

Would like to talk about your past relationship or was it marriage?

Just a relationship, we weren’t married. It’s like a relationship of every young man. I don’t want to talk about it because it’s personal. My wife, Chinenye Ivy knows about it. I think I am just lucky to have a chance like this that’s all.

How did Chinenye feel when you told her about Temilade, your child?

Well, she took it like every other woman will take it. Funny enough, I told her when we were still chatting on phone and they have since become friends. Honesty or sincerity matters most in a relationship.

Most celebrity’s marriages hardly work, what are the machinery in place to make this stand the test of time?

I confidently believe that it’s only God that makes a marriage work. There is nothing a man can do by himself without God’s support. You can be the poorest man on earth and still have a broken marriage but if a marriage is based on God’s foundation, I believe strongly that it’s going to work. What a couple should do to help their marriage is to fear God and be honest to one another. We always joke about it that we only have a 70 years contract and after 10 years we sit to review the marriage on how to spend the remaining 60. But I must confess that ours is a marriage made in heaven.

A BLACK MAN IN A WHITE HOUSE--OBAMA MADE HISTORY,FIRST AFRICAN-AMERICAN TO BE PRESIDENT ELECT IN USA

A man of change.A man of Dreams.A man who has realized Martin Luther King's dream forty-five years ago. "Forty-five years ago Martin Luther King had a dream of an America where men and women would be judged not on the color of their skin but on the content of their character. Today, what America has done is turn that dream into a reality,"

A man who has done the black race proud.A man who despite all odds stood and fought for his beliefs"YES WE CAN".He is man who never believed in IMPOSSIBILITIES but POSSIBILITIES.

A boy born on the 4th of August 1961 in Hawaii without a spoon(not to mention silver spoon)raised by his grandparents and his single mom not many knew him 10months ago but today he is known all over the world as a man who made history in our lifetime.

Obama displayed greatly the power of faith,self-motivation,self-confidence and positivity.He acted in faith calling the things that were not as if they were.Take a look at the planning of the election party at chicago even before the election results,the event was planned in preparation of the victory.He won the election by taking steps of faith even before the election results.What a change?

HISTORY IS MADE

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DUNNI OLANREWAJU---OPELOPE ANOINTING

There was a taxi driver who went to his church to give testimony after he narrowly escaped being killed by the passengers in his car. He was beaten to a state of coma. As he gave the testimony of his life, narrating how God Almighty saved his life, his wife jumped up from amongst the congregation and started singing Oluwa, Oluwa mi (My God, my God). Her husband burst into tears of joy while the wife and the congregation joined him in shedding tears of joy. Such is the acceptability of the Opelope Anointing that gospel lovers started asking questions about the composer of the record.

The album was released at the time when the old timers in the gospel music industry were re-recording and re-launching their old records, so as to remain relevant and to satisfy their teeming supporters.

The brain behind Opelope Anointing is Evangelist Dunni Olanrewaju, who has passed through the thick and thin of life in every area of her endeavour. Today, she is staging a comeback.
This encounter with her revealed what has kept her out of circulation for sometime and her new marital status.

“Do you know that every thing under heaven has its time? I thank God today for the gift of life. The challenges are so enormous but God is there for me. I am married to my music now. The issue of marriage is not in my agenda; the focus is my music and how to praise my God to high heavens.”

Could she have regretted being beaten and battered in the past? “I have no regret. From the beginning, God has always been on my side. He has done all His works that will enable me to succeed.

One might think that force can do things sometimes; no, but with fervent prayer and wisdom and by striving hard, a lot can be achieved. It is like when a pregnant woman wants to deliver her baby, she will have to forcefully push –if anybody wants to be great in life he needs prayers, wisdom, patience and even aggressiveness. I thank God that in the beginning, it was the grace of God which enabled me to overcome all the problems.”

Asking what should her fans be expecting, Opelope Anointing said, “They should always believe in God and see Him in me. I would always cherish them for their patronage.”
Rumoured in some quarters that she had secured property in London, Opelope Anointing gave thanks to Almighty God. She said, “I thank God. You have said a good prayer for me. No foreign currency anywhere, but the Bible says "Go ye into the world and preach the gospel. My regular travelling is just to keep in contact with my fans all over the world, which by the grace of God is yielding positive results."

"The greatest testimony I would like to share with the children of God is Opelope Anointing. Somebody asked me sometime ago where I had been all the while. But something happened and I want the children of God to learn a lesson from it. "I was in a church in early 1999 and we were told that the spirit of God asked people to do property offering and I was thinking of what was in my house that was worth giving out. I then thought of my fridge and when I got home, I packed the fridge and sowed it for the church. The story of my life changed from that point. Also in Ibadan some years ago, I was in a church where we were asked to do a thanksgiving we’ve not done before and I told God, ‘you know that it is only 200 naira I have in my bag.'
That day, the spirit of God told me that, ”Dunni, do you know that if you do not complete your contribution, heaven will not release anything wonderful to you.” This was repeated thrice and we were at Christ Revival Miracle Centre Church in Ibadan. I then asked my workers to bring money realised from the sales of cassettes, though I was invited to come and render songs of praises at a revival organised there. But the problem with me was that the money was to redeem the debt I owed a recording studio. I resolved that it is the soul that owes that will. So I gave out the total money realised to God as offering.

When we got to Lagos, the first surprise I had was that on the third day I dreamt I was in a big auditorium and I saw late Pa Babalola, my grand father who was a pastor before he died and between two of them I saw something that looked like the statue of Jesus but I just heard a voice that Baba wanted to bless us that we should kneel down –we were in the church. I just discovered that the statue of Jesus started moving towards me. He prayed for somebody and also prayed for me but I could not remember all that happened. It was when I woke up I discovered that whatever curses or ill-luck in my life had gone into the whirlwind."

Are you celebrating your annual anniversary this year or…?Yes we are celebrating by the grace of God on Sunday and it’ going to be awesome. We’ve committed much resources into the program, just come and see Opelope anointing in new dimension.

OKECHUKWU UKEJE---AMBO 2 WINNER

Last year’s winner of the Amstel Malta Box Office 2, Okechukwu Ukeje, has said that he faced many challenges during the competition, but he had no choice but to work hard to make it to the top.

And he is already enjoying the fruits of hardwork and endurance. Since he emerged the AMBO winner last year, he has become a regular face at locations, featuring in some movies that would soon be released.

He said he had started by acting in a concert where some movie businessmen spotted him and liked the way he played his role. They then decided to secure his services.

The graduate of Marine Science from the Lagos State University disclosed that he is from a family of four with just a single parent. But the challenge of having to live on the meagre resources provided by his mother did not distract him from pursuing his dreams.
He said his mother had told him she had no objection to his decision to pursue a career in acting as far as that would make him happy.

Even when he had to choose between travelling to England and writing his semester examination in his second year at the university, his mother, to his surprise, did not object to his travelling abroad.

Ukeje may have become a star, but he said he had not lost contact with his friends whom he reckoned had been his great supporters. “They are my great supporters. Nothing has changed between us since I won the AMBO 2 competition. We are still buddies. They were there before AMBO, so I can never ignore them,” he said.

He, however, would not speak about his love life, saying it is a private affair which should be distinguished from his business life. “There should be a demarcation between family and business. But my girlfriend is fine. She is in support of what I am doing and we are doing well,” he said.

According to him, the yet-to-be-released films he has already participated in include White Rogers and Comrade. “And, of course, let me just say that I have a lot of projects on ground. But you cannot say you have a job until you have put pen to paper,” he said.

Asked what plans he has for his country, Ukeje said it was a premature question for an up and coming artiste like him. “Until we have fed fat and our tummy is full, we cannot start thinking of what to do for the country. But I must also say that life will be a better place if only we don’t think of ourselves alone. “For now, I am working on some TV shows, which is a medium to sensitise the society and make people realise how much success you have recorded in your chosen field.” He said in spite of his foray into acting, he still planned to practice the course he studied in the university, but that would be in the area of investment. “I see it as an investment angle because I don’t see it as a study and study thing even though we have to study to know certain things, but of course, there is a time when that will be required.”

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BARACK OBAMA BIG'S NIGHT

It looked, felt and even smelled like a rock concert with the $6.50 nachos, the crowd filling Denver's 76,000-seat Mile High Stadium and the opening acts by superstars Sheryl Crow and Stevie Wonder. But instead of upheld lighters, American flags filled the stands as Barack Obama officially accepted the Democrats' nomination to be the party's candidate in the 2008 race for the White House.

Michelle Obama, in a red and black dress, watched from the front row of what the Democratic Party called an open-air convention and doted on their young daughters as if they were at home in Chicago. But the closing night of the Democratic Convention in Denver was in fact – with the fireworks, streamers and ecstatic crowds stomping their feet as if to collapse the stadium – a piece of political theater on a scale this country has never seen.

After taking the stage, thanking the crowd countless times and accepting his party's nomination, Sen. Obama, 47, turned the attention to those closest to him. "To the love of my life, our next first lady, Michelle Obama, and to Malia and Sasha," he said at the podium, "I love you so much and I'm so proud of you." Michelle, 44, beaming, blew her husband a kiss.

Remembers Mother Earlier, in a film tribute, the senator from Illinois spoke of his late mother, Stanley Ann Dunham, who raised him on her own, and the sacrifices she made. "She woke me up at 4:30 in the morning and we'd sit there and go through my lessons," he told the crowd. "And if I grumbled, she'd say, 'Well, this is no picnic for me either, buster.'" In the film, his wife Michelle described falling in love with her husband – but not immediately. "I thought 'Barack Obama? Who would name their kid Barack Obama?'" Michelle said with a grin. And Barack, looking back, had to agree: "Barack Obama – that's a killer," he said of his name. But after several attempts, Barack told the crowd, he finally convinced his future wife to go to a meeting with him in the basement of a church in Chicago. Watching Obama speak to the members of the South Side community assembled there, Michelle admitted in the video, "That was it. After that day ... I was in love with him."

Looking Ahead in his speech, the candidate laid out what he would do for the country if elected: cut taxes for working families, get out of Iraq, end dependency on foreign oil and make affordable health care accessible to all. With words that brought the crowd to its feet, Obama appealed to the compassion of the individual. "That's the promise of America," he said, "the fundamental belief that I am my brother's keeper, I am my sister's keeper." He also promised to restore the nation's reputation as the world's "last, best hope." When the speech was over, vice presidential nominee Joe Biden and his wife Jill joined Obama, Michelle, Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, on stage as fireworks went off and streamers poured down.

As Jill Biden wiped away tears, the little girls in pink dresses played with confetti and waved to the roaring crowd. The nitty-gritty of the campaign would begin again the next day, but walking off the stage, the first African-American nominee for president, surrounded by his family, turned around and took one last look at the historic scene. political editorcelebrating Africa

NOLLYWOOD ACTRESS,UCHE ELENDU

How is life and the acting career treating you?

Cool. The acting career is fine as well, although I’ve been on a little break since I got married in February. I traveled. I have not been around; I took some time off to be with my husband because he lives outside the country and I also have to take care of myself.

How is married life treating you?

Well so far so good. I am still very young in marriage but so far so good, no bitter experiences yet. And I hope it goes on like that.

How did you meet your husband?

Funny enough, my husband was a fan of mine. He just kept calling me and all that. At first I was like ‘uhn…’ you know the usual thing. Sometimes, he will call and I will tell my PA to pick the call and tell him that I am busy. I did not know he was so serious. He saw me on screen and just said this is my wife and so he was bent on seeing me and getting me no matter the situation and I really gave him a tough time, but he was really bent on meeting me at all cost. One day he actually came to my base in Owerri and that day I was less busy and bored and I said okay come over to my house, let me see who has been calling me and all that. Then he came and got talking, I found out that he is my kind of person; very interesting, calm and all that. From there we just got hooked up ‘cos we knew we were meant for each other and here we are today.

Precisely when did you get into the acting profession?

I did my first movie in 2001/2002 but after that movie, I left the industry to face my studies squarely. I wrote my final exams and after then, I came back in 2004.

What is the title of the movie?

Fear of the unknown.How did it feel acting for the first time along side professionals?I did not really have any stage fright or camera shyness. The experience was really nice because I was working with very accommodating people and with the way I got into acting: it was my friend’s father that produced the movie.My friend asked me to help her deliver a letter to her father, Larry Koldsweat and I went there and I met him with Olu Jacobs and we got talking and they were like, this girl is going to make a good actress. They gave me script to read, I read it just like a joke and they said they will give me a role in their movie and incidentally, I was on holidays and I said, well let me just give it a try and I went and I did it well because I was working with very accommodating people like Edith Jane Azu, Olu Jacobs and Francis Agu of blessed memory. It was really a very nice experience and that was why I made up my mind to go into acting fully.

What is one good thing that acting has done to you?

If it wasn’t for acting, do you think I would have found my husband (laughs). Sometimes I just sit down to think about it, you know. If I was not an actress, would he have found me? But maybe he would have because God says for every woman, there is a man. So that is one good thing that acting has done for me. Another thing it has done for me is that it has made me realize who I am because with exposure, you get to see a lot of things. If I wasn’t an actress, I probably would not have known that I could handle some certain things because I would not have been exposed to them. It (Acting) has opened a lot of doors for me. Acting is my career and it has done a great deal for me.

What about marriage, what good has it done to you?

Marriage has given me a sense of responsibility. It has made me fulfilled as a woman.

So is your husband romantic?

(Laughs) Well he is. To me, he is. He is just my kind of man.

Who is your kind of man?

My kind of man is gentle, understanding, and tolerant because I have a lot of mood swings. He also has to be God fearing and hard working and my husband is very hardworking. He doesn’t give up, he always get what he wants.

Does he watch your movies?

A whole lot, he does.How does he react to your sexy roles, when you are kissed or smooched on set?(Laughs) It is funny because all the while I have not noticed anything different in his reactions when he is watching my movies. But recently there was this movie I did and I was in some romantic world with a colleague of mine, we were just sitting down watching the movies and we were gisting and laughing and all of a sudden , he was so interested in that part. I was trying to draw his attention away from the scene but he was so engrossed that all of a sudden he just became quiet and went to his room. I did not want to talk about it so I did not know if he felt jealous about it that he reacted that way or maybe because there were other people who were probably watching to see his reaction. I really don’t know. My husband is cool with my job. He loves my job and he doesn’t really have a problem with it.

Have you been faced with any embarrassing situation for playing a particular role in a movie?

I really don’t get embarrassed by my fans because most of the time, I know what to expect from them so I don’t find it embarrassing although, some other person may find it embarrassing. I can remember one occasion after I did a movie titled ‘Last Occult’ where I played a very occultic witch goddess. Then I was talking with a friend, I was actually kidding with her. I was telling her that I will deal with her and behold a woman emerged from no where and called her to a private discussion warning her to be very careful with me that I am a very dangerous person. She told her that I am a goddess of an occult that I could actually harm her that she saw me in the movie that I did and she knows that if I do not have anything to do with occultism, I would not have been able to act that part that well. My friend and I started laughing when she told me, but I did not find it embarrassing because I expect things like that from fans.

How many movies do you have to your credit?

Sincerely I have lost count but I know that I have more than fifty movies to my credit.

When you started out on your acting career, were your parents supportive?

My mom was supportive from the start but my father at the beginning was not very happy about it. When I did my first movie, my mom and I kept it to ourselves. We did not tell my father because he was transferred to Port Harcourt then while we were in Lagos and I begged my mom not to tell him. So I went and shot the movie. When the movie came out, my dad was at home one day watching TV and he saw its preview and saw somebody like me and he was like, ‘is this my daughter? No, it can’t be’. And because there was no hint; he never suspected anything like that until he saw the big banner in Port Harcourt and he saw my face there. He called me and asked me if we did any film in our school because he felt I would not leave school for anything. Then I had to tell him the truth, then he spoke to my mom and he was not happy about it. That was why I had to go off the scene after my first film before returning in 2004. After I finished and he saw that I am becoming successful in what I do, he did not have a choice than to support me and now they are both in support of everything.

What is your view on sexual harassment?

There is sexual harassment in every sector of life. In the banks, corporate world, any where you can think of. It is there. It does not only happen in Nollywood. I’ve never experienced any although I have been hearing of it. I don’t also see it working because after sleeping with whoever to get the role and the person is not good enough for the role, nobody will want to throw his or her money away because of some minutes of sexual pleasure. So whoever is playing a role has to truly merit it. The person has to be able to deliver and sell the movie. Many different people work on a movie; like the director, producer and all that so it will not work because movie making is not a one man thing. I don’t believe in sex for roles; I don’t think it works.

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STEPHANIE OFORKA--CURRENT MOST BEAUTIFUL GIRL IN NIGERIA

Stephanie Oforka, the current Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria (Universe) is just 19. But even at this age, the Geology undergraduate of the Federal University of Technology, Owerri knows what she wants in life.


Studying a course many people would describe as ‘serious’, not many would expect Stephanie to leave her studies to partake in beauty pageant.

Indeed, she told Spectacles that her participation in the contest was more of an accident.
“I didn’t plan to go into a beauty pageant, it just happened by chance,” she said. “A friend of mine said I could do it and she encouraged me to go in for the MBGN. That was how it happened. I never imagined going into it in the fist place.”
But she got into it and was lucky to pass all the screening exercises before the event. But then, she did not win the contest. Rather, she emerged the first runner up. But she said she was not disappointed coming second.

“I believe that God has a plan for everyone. Everybody said they thought I would win on that night. But I didn’t believe in myself that much, so I considered coming that far a blessing. I was happy to be on the stage as one of the two people left after the other girls had been screened out and some were named as winners of the MBGN Tourism, MBGN Model and Miss La Casera. When we got there, I knew there were five crowns to be won so I prayed that I would win one. It doesn’t matter to me that I won the MBGN Universe, because we are all queens in different ways and areas.”

Although Stephanie was highly favoured by the crowd to win the contest, many believe she didn’t win the overall prize because she didn’t wear a smiling face.
To that, she said, “That pageant was my fist time ever on a stage. I am 19 years. I was nervous and shy. It wasn’t because I was not happy that I didn’t smile, it was because I was so nervous.

On a normal day, I laugh and smile. On stage, it is different because I was in front of many people and I had never done that before. I was scared, that was why I didn’t smile.”
Now that she has become a queen, Stephanie now smiles a lot. “After the competition, we went through a learning process and I learnt how to feel free. I was a very shy person; I didn’t know how to talk to people. And if I saw a camera before me, I ran away. But now I am bolder and can smile in front of people.”

Her selection as the MBGN (universe) gave her the ticket to represent Nigeria at the Miss Universe contest held in Vietnam. Unfortunately, Stephanie did not make the first ten, let alone winning the crown.Still, she said she was not disappointed, describing the experience as awesome. With it, she has learnt to accommodate people and make friends.
“ What I had learnt worked out, because I was able to involve myself in discussion with people I had never met before. It helped me because I made a lot of friends, which I wouldn’t on a normal day. People think I’m very arrogant and rude, but it’s because I am shy and I use that to cover my shyness. I could just sit at a place quietly and if asked a question I could decide not to answer, and people will conclude that I am rude.”

On what could have made the judges not to notice her at the international pageant, Stephanie said, “We were more than 100 gorgeous and beautiful women, so I’m sure it was difficult for the judges, because even most of the people they called were not those we expected. The first 15 people that were called were people you wouldn’t notice on a normal day. But the judges have their reasons for picking the girls they picked or maybe it has to go around the world. I don’t really know how they did it.”

Now that she is a beauty queen, Stephanie says her lifestyle has not changed in anyway. She even intends to go back to school after her industrial training, which she is currently engaged in. “I am not a different person. I will be able to relate to everybody like I used to do before. I am a queen, yes, but a queen is not supposed to be arrogant, she should be humble.”

Talking about growing up, Stephanie said she was an only child who never even knew that people had siblings until she got into a secondary school. “I grew up in Port Harcourt. It was fun. I am an only child, so I have always had everything to myself. I have had the best of life. I don’t know what it feels like to have a younger one. I thought everyone was an only child until I got to school and saw my friends with their sisters or brothers. But for me, I have been alone all my life.

But being an only child didn’t make her parents spoil her, “because my dad is a professor and he is very strict. I was closer to my dad at first, and I was sleeping in his room, until I was 15 years. I never slept in my room alone because I was always very scared. Now, I think I’m closer to my mum because she is like my best friend now.”

One would have expected her dad to get married to another woman in order to have more children but Stephanie said her father never had such a mentality.
“My dad is Igbo, but he is not into this culture thing. He was abroad for a long time and only came back to lecture at the University of Port Harcourt. I have been to my village in Nnewi South only once, and that was when he was given a chieftaincy title.”
It is very rare for a reigning beauty queen in Nigeria to admit that she has a boyfriend. Stephanie, of course, said she didn’t have one. “I don’t have a boyfriend, really, because I am an only child. My father used to lock me up in the house. I grew up on the University of Port Harcourt campus and he was scared of campus boys. I never went to parties, because I was always locked up. It was when I got to the university that I knew what party and clubbing was. So, I didn’t really have the chance to have a boyfriend. And now as the MBGN Universe, I am not allowed to have one. Maybe I would have wanted one, but then, that is not my priority now.”
Since boyfriend is not her priority, marriage is not on her to-do list for now.

“ I want to finish school next year. By then I will be 20. Then I will do my master’s before thinking about marriage. I will get married at 21. I want to have my kids early. I am matured now than some 19 year-olds. I’ve seen it all and I don’t think there is anything out there for which I should remain single. I want to grow up with my kids. At the right time, the man will come. My greatest wish is to get married and start my own family in the next two years.”
Stephanie has already mapped out what she intends to do as soon as she drops the crown.
“After my reign, I will get done with school and later start a talk show to help people that are not bold, just like I was.”

PASTOR ANSELM MADUBUKO

Last week, you clocked 50 years. How does it feel to hit the golden age?

It does not feel any different. I am still the same person. It is just that my eyes are less effective. That is the only thing I have noticed. I thank God for his grace and mercy. I am trying to do some things, give back to the society, especially the less privileged. I just want to say thank you to the Lord and encourage and help those in need.

Are there certain things you do to be this fit?

I would say it is the grace of God. I work and travel a lot. But God’s grace has been upon me. I would attribute everything to Him.

Looking back, are there things you did that you wish you had done differently?

I wish I had spent more time with my kids. They are all in college abroad now. I miss them. I was too busy building the church. While they were around, I didn’t have enough time for them. That is the only thing I would call a regret in my life. I feel so bad. I wish I could make up for it, but it is not easy.

Why did you choose to be called an apostle?

I started as a pastor. I got saved in 1983. I was an architect. I loved the Lord, but I didn’t want to be a pastor. I wanted to do business and support the ministry. But several years later, things changed. I found that the Lord wanted me to build a church for him. I pastored the church for about eight years and the Lord began to tell me that my calling was beyond the local church. He told me He was sending me to the nations. An apostle means the sent one. He told me that the picture was beyond sitting down in one local assembly every Sunday morning. He told me He had equipped me with something the nations needed. So, from Year 2000, I began to travel to all the nations of the world to preach the gospel, not as a pastor, but as an apostle.

So you dumped your architecture certificate in order to become a pastor or an apostle as the case may be…

I still do architecture. It is in my blood. I still design houses. I designed this church and I designed my house. I designed the Silverbird Galleria. I do designs every day.
I advise people on what to do. Many bring their designs to me for advice.

Some people believe pastors build churches in order to make money…

I started this church 17 years ago. Seventeen years is not like today. We didn’t have many churches then. There was no guarantee that people would come to your church. It is stupid for anybody to think you are starting a church to make money. An architect stood a better chance of making money than a pastor.I was working with Tom Ikimi. He was one of the best architects in the country then. After then, I had my own practice. I had more prospects of being rich as an architect than a pastor. I went into the ministry when my practice had begun to grow. I got some good jobs. I had to abandon some after the church started. I thought I could combine both, but in three months, the church expanded so much that it was so difficult to combine the two. I had to give up all the jobs I had.But if you are in the ministry because you love the Lord, God will bless you, because He is a good God.

How did your family take it when you decided to leave your profession for the ministry?

Oh my God! My father disowned me. How could I, after spending all his money to train me in the university for six years, come out and say I was going to be a pastor? My wife said she wasn’t ready to marry a pastor. She said she married an architect and not a pastor. I tell you, it was not easy. Everybody revolted. My friends thought I was crazy. You know we have dreams. You sit down in the beer parlour and you dream of how you will live your life. Then all of a sudden, you want to be a pastor. It was not easy. But I loved the Lord so much that I didn’t care about what anybody said. Even if the ministry didn’t work, I wouldn’t have regretted it.

We learnt you started with Chris Okotie’s Household of God church…

I didn’t start with the Household of God. I started with Christ Chapel, where I stayed for three years and six months. Okotie started his own church. Because we were friends from the university, he had stayed in my house, and when he came back from bible school, it was only natural for me to join his church when it started.

Were you a pastor then?

No, I was still an architect. Myself, Chris, his wife then, Tina and Taiwo and Bimbo Odukoya were the fist members of Household of God Church. We cleaned and arranged the church for the very first service. Chris made me the head of the deliverance department.
I served in Household of God for three years and six months, not as a staff, but as a volunteer.

Did you leave because you wanted to have your own church, just like your friend?

No. I left when it was time for me to leave. Remember I told you I didn’t want to be a pastor. I didn’t go to a bible school. Circumstances led to my leaving the Household of God.

But are you still friends with Pastor Chris?

Oh yes. He is my very good friend. He was my best man during my wedding and I was his best man as well.

We learnt you were once a DJ…

I was everything. I was a young man growing up. I wanted to taste life and I had an early run. I got into the university at 18, and at 20, I became the director of socials. It exposed me to a lot of things. After that, I became a DJ with Radio Nigeria. I was a part-time presenter of a disco programme. I was also a DJ at nightclubs. Then, I became a master mixer. My father was a member of the Lorji cult. When I was 21, he initiated me into the cult. I became a Pyrate on campus and I ended up as the head of the Pyrates confraternity at the Enugu Campus of University of Nigeria Nsukka. I was a Capone. I saw life too quick. When I was 25, it was as if I had seen everything. That was when I got saved.

Then life must have been very sweet…

Oh yes. It was very sweet. How did you know? But I thank God for everything. The events made me become who I am today. I have seen everything. There is nothing new again to me. I smoked everything and I drank excessively.

What about women?

I was a crazy Casanova. I was a stupid playboy. I was terrible. I broke a lot of hearts, I tell you.
But you didn’t break your wife’s heart…
No. She refused to get her heart broken.

How did you meet her?

My wife was my friend’s girlfriend.
You took your friend’s girl?
Yes. I liked challenges. I didn’t want easy- to-get girls. I wanted girls who had serious boyfriends so that I could take them away from their boyfriends. She came to my house with her boyfriend and I liked her. I took her number and I found myself calling her. I invited her for a weekend and she came and that was it. She never left again.

So how did your friend take it?

That had always been my trait, so they knew I could do something like that. He really couldn’t do anything. We have been married now for 24 years.

And how has it been for the past 24 years?

It has had its ups and downs but it has been good. I married at 26 and I was very matured. I married because I didn’t want to continue playing. I had a very bad reputation and I was determined to correct that impression. So, we got into marriage and it was rough, because we didn’t know anything. But God helped us. It is better now than it was when we got married.

Did you become born again because you were frustrated with life?

No. Things were very fine for me. I just finished my youth service and I had even started working with Tom Ikimi. I had it all. I had seen life. It was just that I was tired of the bad things. I was tired of the night boogying, I was tired of the Pyrates and I was tired of Lorji. I was even tired of women. So, what else was left for me to do?

Why did you join the cult in the first place?

I thought it would help me to become rich quickly. It is rich men that enter the cult. I thought of all the connection I could get, so I had to join.

Were you threatened when you left?

Oh yes. I spent five years in the cult and they felt I was going to expose all their secrets. Even with the threats, I was not scared because I knew nothing was going to happen to me.

What of your father, did he eventually leave the cult?

Oh yes. At first, my father was scared I was going to die. But when nothing happened to me after I pulled out, he pulled out as well. He was saved. He even lived up to 70 before he died.
As a man of God, do you think it is ideal to leave your calling and run for a political office?
It depends on God’s calling. God can call anybody to do anything. God is not a stereotyped God.

But don’t you think a pastor would lose focus doing the two?

If God called you, you would not. The problem we have is that most of the politicians we have are not called and there is no grace to back them up. They get into a system that is messed up and the system sucks them up as well.

So, if God calls you to run for a political position, you will go…

I will obey God. But I pray He doesn’t.

How do you cope with ladies that dress to seduce men in church?

A man that has a problem with what a lady wears is not well. That means that the person ought to jump into the river because naked people are everywhere. They are in TV, magazines and even on the streets. You have to get to a point where you train yourself not to be moved by things like that. The power of holiness is stronger than sin. When a man makes up his mind to live a life that is pleasing to God, such things do not move him. I don’t care about how ladies dress. It doesn’t get inside of me. I am delivered from that. I am delivered from alcohol. I stay with people who drink alcohol and it does not bug me. I stay with people who smoke and womanise and I don’t feel like joining them. I see women as either my mothers or my daughters.

But have you ever been tempted?

Why not? Who is not tempted? You get tempted but you try not to fall.
We hear your wife is actually the one in charge of the church. She determines who gets what.
A church is not a ministry of local government. People report out of ignorance. There is a structure in place in the church. We have pastors in the church and she is one of them.

But we hear she sacks people anyhow…
It is not like that. Nobody has been sacked in the last 10 years, apart from those that stole.

You obviously have it all, what more can you ask God for?
I just want to know Him more. I don’t want money and fame. I just want to know Him more.

OBAFEMI MARTINS LOSES MUM

Mother of Obafemi Martins, Nigerian international footballer, Alhaja Sherifat Martins, is dead. She was aged 60She died this morning at the Joedan Hospital, Orile Iganmu, where she was rushed to after she allegedly collapsed at her residence, kilometre 15, Badagry Expressway, Orile Iganmu.

NFC investigations revealed that Alhaja Martins was rushed to the hospital around 6.30 a.m. and was later confirmed dead by the doctor.Chief Imam of Nadwad-ul-Ahli mosque at 57, Igbosere Road, Lagos Island, her mosque, Abdul Rahman Lawal, who confirmed the death to us, said he was told that Alhaja Martins collapsed after inhaling fumes from a burning petrol tanker which fell and caught fire at Orile Iganmu this morning.

She was reportedly rushed to the hospital where she was confirmed dead. When NFC visited her residence at Orile Iganmu, sympathisers were seen moving in to console some of her children and relations.Nurses at Joedan Hospital, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told us that the hospital was not the first place the deceased was taken to, adding that by the time they brought her to Joedan, she was already dead.Two senior sisters of the deceased, Risikat and Mutiat Shonibare, denied that the deceased died as a result of the fumes she inhaled from the burning tanker.According to them, Alhaja Martins, after observing her morning prayers, was going to visit one of her daughters when she collapsed in the car. “She was immediately taken to the hospital,” Mutiat Shonibare said.NFC gathered that the corpse of the deceased was immediately taken to the Victoria Garden City (VGC), Lekki, residence of Obafemi Martins, accompanied by her daughters.

Further investigations revealed that the Newcastle United Star had been notified of the death.Obafemi Martins, it was learnt, told his relations that he would be arriving tonight from London and that the burial of his mother should be postponed till tomorrow.

9ICE WEDS OLUWASEUN PAYNE

The early morning drizzle was totally unexpected. The night was warm, and as dawn approached, there was no sign rainfall was approaching. Well, it didn’t rain, after all. It was just the drizzle, rushing and consistent, that created a community of droplets on windscreens, and left many commuters half-wet.

It was Thursday July 17. To many, this was just another day. But to close friends and family members of 9ice, the intermittent drizzles on a morning the weather man predicted as ‘warm and sunny’ were a sign that this was no ordinary day.

The 28 year old singer finally took the bold step, last Thursday, as he walked down the aisle with his fiancée Anthonia Oluwaseun Payne. While most of his female fans and admirers were still asleep, curled up in bed and listening to the radio, 9ice took close friends and family members to a registry in Surulere local government where he exchanged wedding vows with ‘Toni.
9ice announced his engagement to Toni early this year, promising they would tie the knot before year-end.

His bride, a US-based entrepreneur returned to the country last Monday to prepare for the wedding. The couple arrived the local government secretariat, at a few minutes before 9 am, in the company of family members and bodyguards. 9ice looked smart in a black suit while his bride wore a white V-neck gown.

Quiet and devoid of all fanfare, the wedding lasted for half an hour, as the registrar Mrs Tola Awoliyi counselled them, made them sign the wedding register and exchange rings. At about 9:30am, she pronounced them husband and wife: ‘may I introduce to you, Mr and Mrs Abolore Akande’, she told the excited audience, as the hall was overtaken with wild jubilation. 9ice and Toni shared a kiss, clinging to one another for more than a few minutes.

The formal wedding at the registry was later followed by a traditional wedding at Abiona close, off Falolu Street, Surulere, Lagos.

Sources close to the couple revealed to Glitz Beats that they may not be going on honeymoon immediately, as 9ice has a multitude of engagements to honour. ‘They’re planning to spend sometime in the UK and the US from August. I guess that’s the only time they’ll have to honeymoon’, the source said

THE MAN BEHIND DAAR COMMUNICATIONS--AIT

The story of DAAR Communications Plc has always been fraught with mixed feelings of excitement, hope, as well as trepidation.

Depending on where they belong, many people are of the opinion that Ray Power and African Independent Television have offered enough room for the public to aspire to greatness, not just within the African continent, but the world over, which the television station is set to venture into in a few weeks’ time.

The chairman of the outfit, Chief Raymond Dokpesi, who has been the driving force behind the success of private broadcast media in the country, says that there is always a need to continue to push whatever one believes, in even in the face of adversities.

According to him, ”We want Nigerians to aspire to greatness and this is possible. For some of you, you will recall that the development aspect of Daar Communications faced a lot of challenges around the year 2000, when we had receiver managers take over the premises of Alagbado in Lagos. And a lot of people thought that was the end of the organisation. After all, they said private broadcasting would never thrive in Nigeria and that it was absolute madness. It was the desire of the government at that time to really bring Daar Communications and private broadcasters to their knees.”

The Edo State born high chief, whose organisation has provided a platform for the downtrodden to see the good, the bad and the ugly sides of the government, believes that getting to the stage where the television and radio outfits are today, has been through miracles and the love God has for Nigerians, who believe in the cause of justice.

With nobody to look up to as a godfather, Dokpesi says, “My mother only sold akara in Ibadan to see us through school. I believe every Nigerian should be given the opportunity to aspire for greatness without looking for a godfather.”

Recalling some of the sad experiences, he says it is “unnecessary for one to be looking for gloves and a ring after God had fought for him,” adding that “we can only glorify, thank God and everybody that saw us through the challenges at that time.”

He says the intention of the Daar management its at inception was to meet the minimum five years requirement that the Security and Exchange Commission placed for a company to have operated as a private limited liability company before going to the stock exchange.
Speaking with satisfaction on the success of the company’s initial public offer, he says, “Well, I do not have to sing the praises of Daar Communications to mention all the firsts and all the ground-breaking efforts that we have gone through. Those are easy to find. But, significantly, we have tried to change the face of broadcasting in Nigeria.

“We have paid our dues and we will continue to pay our dues. We went to the stock exchange believing very strongly that the ordinary people of Nigeria have faith and confidence in Daar Communications. What we have done on their behalf is an indication that the airwaves do not belong to us. They belong to the Nigerian people. We are just holding it in trust for all Nigerians.

Let me reiterate also that the offer proceeds will be applied very strictly and prudently.”
On the immediate and future plans for the much expected multi-channel pay station that will beam the country and the continent to the world, he says the best in broadcast and digital transmission equiptment are already on the ground to make AIT the station to beat in the whole of Africa.

He adds that the multi-channel project will begin test-transmission in August, while the official take-off will be September. This much was revealed when journalsits were conducted round the various studios that had reached advanced stages of installation. “But the good point is that every item that is required is already on the ground. We are starting with 40 channels. It is going to be transmitting on high definition. It is quite challenging. We are launching broadcasting at a different pedestal,” he says. “The multi-channel, pay TV platform will be taking off from Abuja. We are also looking at totally transforming and upgrading the facilities in each of the stations across the country from analogue television broadcasting to full digital TV platform. Not only in terms of the studio facilities, but the whole entirety of broadcasting for all our stations across the country. “We will also look at the issue of building a film village in Lagos to enhance our capacity to undertake some productions, not only movies for sale to other people, but also for our own television consumption. We are looking at TV consuming content and enhancing, uplifting the standards for us to come at par with modern day television broadcasting in any part of the world.”

The success of Daar Communications, he says, will also be tied to the golden jubilee of television in Nigeria next year. Dokpesi says, “We are looking forward very strongly to bringing Nigeria‘s glory in broadcasting back to its proper place. Nigeria, in the continent of Africa, started TV broadcasting in October 1959, but, today, we have to depend on South Africa and other African countries for modern day television broadcasting. We want to play our small role in ensuring that Nigeria‘s honour and glory are fully returned and also re-establish the leadership role we ought to be playing in TV broadcasting in the continent.”

From all indications, it is obvious that Dokpesi’s projection for the multui-channel station is to have a number of stations wrapped into one in such a way that a viewer would hardly bother to switch to another television station. He says, “We are going to be looking at the entertainment sector. We are bringing in a number of channels that have to do with movies from Hollywood, Bollywood, and Nollywood. In the UK, AIT Moviestar is already making waves. Ecostar in the US, we are having discussions to have both AIT general entertainment channel and Moviestar bundled together for the American audience. For news, we have quite a number of channels that are coming in. There is also a lot of sport. In the nearest future, we want to build up documentaries on West African history.”

The eight channels from Daar Communications, which include the 24-hour AIT News, will use correspondents on the ground in South Africa, Kenya, Egypt, Ghana, Senegal, together with US Bureau and UK Bureau. ”In addition, there is going to be a children channel. We have about 12,000 hours of children programmes that we have acquired, total library that we have taken on. From the last quarter of October when all our network stations would have been on stream, the whole face of AIT would totally transform. Whether we will be able to have sufficient advertising support is what I have left to the financial people to look at. But, for me, the entire dream of transforming and strengthening and upgrading the face of television would have been substantially achieved,” he says. ”There is going to be Sahara 1 for the Indian loving people; from the US, Fox Sky is coming in, as well as detective stories. This is the rationale behind some of the structures we are putting up here in Abuja as the headquarters of Daar Communications.”

His vision to see the Nigerian project work and the need to create a platform that can successfully launder the image of the country and by extension the continent, is exemplified in his belief and preparedness to work with perceived competitors in the industry
According to him, “I do not have any objection to even have NTA on the platform. It is just a matter of Africanising and bringing in to our people those things that are indigenous to us, thereby supporting their growth. “When the offer proceeds come in, they can only go further in enhancing and consolidating our giant strides. It was an offer at give-away price, but we will see how it goes,” he says.