Thursday, October 10, 2013

Producers Hate Me Because I Don’t Allow Them Sleep With Upcoming Actresses-Emeka Ike

emeka
Accomplished Nollywood actor,Emeka Ike says producers hate him because he frowns at sexual harrasment. He sighted that a the reason fro his bvious hiatus from the movie scene in an exclusive chat with Nigerianfilms:
“If you knock at their office and you can’t sleep with them, you won’t be allowed to act. Is it fair to tell a girl that ‘if I don’t sleep with you, you won’t get my favour?’ if God does that to us, where would we be today? This situation is a general norm. Ask the smallest artiste about my position on the situation. I have stopped productions severally because of this (s3xual harassment). That’s why sometimes they get issues with me.
 Emeka narrated an ugly incident he witnessed on a movie set, he said,
“There was a day I saw a girl crying at a corner of a movie set, her name is Esther. She is a make-up artiste now because she has stopped acting for them (emphasis).
“I approached her and asked why she was crying. She was lamenting like a girl who has just lost her mother. She told me that ‘look at the girl going with my script, that ugly animal. The producer said if I can’t sleep with him, I can’t get the script.
“She mentioned the name of the person. So because she can’t sleep with that man, she has to be marginalized, Kai! I have something against that. If a girl wants to sleep with you because you are a star or because she likes you, so be it. Don’t arm-twist someone, that is rape. Abroad, they will go to jail for even suggesting it to her.
“You need to be responsible and responsive to the young people you have exposed acting to. You need to stand up and fight for them. Right now, they are interested in acting and there is no place to go to. They go to Ajao and they tell them open your legs, is that what we made the industry for?
“I gave the lady her artiste fee that day. Go to Enugu and ask of Esther, the make-up artiste. She will tell you about this story. That is why they don’t like me.”
culled from 

SFI - Dobbin Scholarships to Canada 2013-14

SFI - Dobbin Scholarships to Canada 2013-14

 Rise to stardom : The unexpected life of Cristiano Ronaldo

He is the ultimate embodiment of the superstar lifestyle: fast cars, beautiful women, millions of fans, lots of critics and the hopes of a nation on his shoulders. The man who controls the fate of Portugal in the Euro 2012 was once a little boy with a big dream.


Portuguese national football team player Cristiano Ronaldo (Photograph: Yuri Kochetkov/EPA/Lusa)
Cristiano Ronaldo‘s glamourous and wealthy lifestyle bears little resemblance to his humble beginnings in the small Portuguese archipelago of Madeira.
Raised in a poor family, Ronaldo was brought up in a modest but honest way and has described his childhood as being one deprived from luxuries.
The youngest of four children, Ronaldo soon revealed talent for football and little interest in school.
“I wasn’t interested in school. I was expelled after I threw a chair at the teacher”, he explained in an interview with UK newspaper The Mirror in which he also stated his talents were noticeable from the age of 14.
His mother, Dolores Aveiro, encouraged him to pursue his dream as a football player and to keep developing his skills.
Now, over a decade later, Portugal looks to him to fulfil its Euro 2012 dreams of victory.

Regardless of how much he is loved and how well he performs, Ronaldo is not immune to criticism. With great ability come great expectations and he is under constant pressure to achieve the same results during Portugal’s six or seven games campaign in international tournaments at European and world level as he does during Real Madrid’s 80-game season.
This is a hard task for the man who carries the hopes of an entire nation on his shoulders.
Often regarded as vain, Ronaldo makes it all look effortless despite being a hard worker. José Mourinho, the Real Madrid Portuguese manager who works side by side with Cristiano Ronaldo, described him as tireless, a true workhorse.
The evolution seen in Ronaldo’s approach and dedication from his first team beginnings with Sporting Clube de Portugal in 2002 through to his learning curve with Manchester United then rise to stardom with Madrid is held in high regard by all managers.
“I have nothing but praise for the boy. He is easily the best in the world”, said Alex Ferguson in 2009 before Ronaldo left for Real.
Practice makes perfect
Hailing from the small island of Madeira, he made his debut at local club Nacional da Madeira before joining Sporting’s youth academy who deemed him too small-framed despite his noticeable technique that made him inseparable from the ball. In order to improve, Ronaldo would work constantly on ball control and with weights, developing into the ultimate athlete with incredible footwork quickness and lightning speed dribble acceleration.
Thanks to his talent and determination, he became the first player in Sporting’s history to go from the under-16 class all the way to the first team in the same season. In 2002, Ronaldo made his Portuguese league debut and scored twice in his first appearance, under the coaching of Romanian László Bölöni.
The young winger left Sporting before the beginning of the 2003 season after a superb performance during the inaugural match of the new Estádio de Alvalade against Manchester United. Ronaldo made such an impression on Man Utd’s players that they begged manager Alex Ferguson to sign him right after the match.

A superstar is born
In Manchester, Ronaldo faced a whole new reality, a new country, a new way of living football.
Sir Alex Ferguson eased the young player off the bench and eventually into the starting lineup, helping him adjust and learn the ropes during his first full season as a first team player.
Despite his youth and inexperience, Ferguson had no doubt about Ronaldo’s greatness. When he arrived in England, Ronaldo was asked what jersey he wanted and he chose 28 just like his Sporting shirt. Alex Ferguson refused. “You’ll wear number 7, just like all our best players did”, he said (i.e. George Best, Éric Cantona and David Beckham).
Ronaldo’s performance improved each year. As the number of games per season increased, so did his goals and performance. Competitive, hard-nosed English football gave a growing Ronaldo endurance and toughness that made him nearly unstoppable once combined with his tremendous speed and agility. Gifted with an extraordinary goal scoring ability, Ronaldo dominated the English Premier League from 2006 to 2009, and then took on Europe when international glory arrived in 2008 with a UEFA Champions League title.
He became the latest football star and a household name. Ronaldo-mania took over from Beckham-mania as Ronaldo’s fan base grew. Quite an accomplishment for the little boy who began playing for the amateur club Andorinha, in Madeira.

And just like Beckham, Ronaldo left Manchester for Madrid and the mystique of Real.
In Spain, Ronaldo’s numbers are flawless, 112 goals in 101 games, but he is sometimes overshadowed by Barcelona’s success and Lionel Messi’s genius. The two have been disputing the title of World Player of the year for the past five years. Ronaldo ended up being considered the FIFA player of the year in 2008 and was a runner-up in 2009 and 2011. He was awarded the golden ball from French magazine France Football in 2008 and was a runner-up in 2009. But there’s more: he was awarded the Golden Boot on several occasions: 2007, 2008, 2010 and 2011.
Still, Ronaldo prides himself on being a consumate team player: “What I do as an individual only matters if it helps the team win. That’s the most important thing”, he says.
José Mourinho has no doubts: “Ronaldo is fantastic”, the manager says about his star player, often praising Ronaldo’s work ethic.
Despite all his success in England, and more recently helping Real Madrid clench the La Liga title, the 27 year-old faces criticism over his individual performance not translating into greatness for Portugal’s national team. Euro 2004 and 2008, World Cup 2006 and 2010 yielded little for Portugal with unremarkable performances from Ronaldo. However, Euro 2012 seems to have brought out a whole new level of talent in Ronaldo’s play.
After a shaky start, Ronaldo is assuming the role of leader on and off the pitch for the first time. The young winger seems to be realising that it takes more to achieve complete success as a football player and be loved than saying he can only play well for those who pay him.
If Ronaldo is able to finish the Euro 2012 tournament by showing true dedication to Portugal, the nation will finally love him as their hero even if they don’t win.

Family comes first
On or off the pitch, Ronaldo is the ultimate superstar with fast cars, beautiful women, diamonds, mansions and endorsements all adding to his millionaire salary. Bugatti, men’s shampoo Linic and Portuguese bank Banco Espírito Santo are some of the brands linked to Ronaldo, as well as Nike which sponsor his sports gear.
He is an easy prey for the media and the paparazzi who try to expose every detail of his private life, be it his luxury habits or the beautiful women he dates. Every month, there are articles about what the world’s ninth highest paid athlete in 2012 – according to Forbes magazine – spends his $42m annual revenue on. In addition to his salary at Real Madrid – about $20m a year including bonuses – there are his lucrative advertising contracts.
It is news when he buys a Lamborghini LP-700 4 Aventador in February for €350,000 to add to his other high-end cars – Aston Martin, Mercedes Benz, Ferrari, Maserati or Bentley, when he purchases watches valued at €450,000 during an afternoon shopping spree in Los Angeles or when he spends millions going to visit his girlfriend, Russian model Irina Shayk in New York.
Ronaldo has always tried to keep his private life out of the spotlight and rarely talks about his family. However, it is well known that he is a family man. After his father passed away, the Aveiro family got closer. As a result, mother Dolores Aveiro and sisters Elma and Katia are often targeted by the media.

Whether in Portugal, the United Kingdom or Spain, Ronaldo has always been very reserved, invariably refusing to answer any questions about his personal life. “I don’t speak about my private life, I simply don’t speak about it. I don’t show off and I don’t hide. Whoever wants to talk can talk. Whoever wants readers, can write. I don’t care”, Ronaldo told Portuguese publication Notícias Magazine in 2006.
One of the reasons Ronaldo has always given for his success is his family, with whom he remains very close. Although initially fragmented by addiction – his father had issues with alcohol and his brother with drugs – and the poverty they lived in before Ronaldo entered the exclusive world of top football players, his family has always rallied around the boy who dreamt of being a footballer. “My mental strength has come from what I went through,” said Ronaldo in an interview with Portuguese television channel SIC in 2012. “It was very difficult to face what I did at eleven. Leaving my family to go to the mainland was the worst moment of my life. And that’s what gave me the kind of emotional baggage that, perhaps, many kids my age didn’t have.”
After his father died and he was accused of raping a woman in London – and subsequently cleared a month after being questioned – Ronaldo got closer to his family in 2005 and is now inseparable from his mother and sisters. In addition to helping the sisters Katia – better known as Ronalda – and Elma Aveiro in various projects like Katia’s musical career and the sisters’ clothing brand CR7, Ronaldo spends much of his spare time holidaying with his family. They’re so important to him that they even have an impact on his love life – his relationship with TV presenter Merche Romero ended after she fell out with the Aveiro women.

A succession of romantic entanglements – some more media-friendly than others like Spanish model Nereida Gallardo or socialite Paris Hilton with whom he was photographed in an intimate party mood – saw Ronaldo begin a relationship with Russian model Irina Shayk in 2010. A girlfriend who defends Ronaldo to the end, Shayk recently got into a spat with model Bar Rafaeli on Twitter after the latter criticised the footballer’s hair gel.
This is a long-term relationship with a surprise: in 2010, Ronaldo announced on his Facebook page that he had just become a father as his first son Cristiano Jr. was born, without revealing the identity of the mother. “By agreement with the mother who prefers to remain anonymous, my son will be entrusted to my custody”, he wrote. Theories immediately sprang up in the newspapers – could the mother be an American who had a fleeting relationship with the player? A surrogate? True to his usual discretion, the player has consistently refused to comment on the identity of his son’s mother, as has his family. Today, the two-year-old – to whom Ronaldo dedicated one his goals during the Portugal v. Holland game – is still being raised by Ronaldo’s mother and sisters, and has no idea who his biological mother is.
...extracted from  Eduardo Correia and Pedro C. Garcia's bunk.

this is awesome jasper's Rise to stardom star of the week, a life changing move to encourage and motivate  every young people to quickly identify with the gifts or talents in them by learning from those who are already stars for future purpose/benefits in the society  that would change the world  and make it a better place for us all!...ENG.JASPER.

Martin Lawrence You So Crazy Stand Up Comedy YouTube

Nigeria’s Most Powerful Entertainers List Out

Mo-Abudu, Genevive Nnaji, Alex Okosi and Funke Akindele
One of Nigeria’s thriving entertainment magazines has put out a list containing the names of the most powerful people in the entertainment industry.
They are artistes, actors, thinkers, entrepreneurs, and captains of industry. Their ideas spark dialogue and dissent and sometimes even controversies; their works shape lives, habits and societies; their actions have led to some of the decisions that have stirred the industry in its current direction. These remarkable men and women, with lasting and laudable influence, do not necessarily make the most popular people in the industry, but their actions carry a lot of weight; with the hope of the future resting on their shoulders.
See full list below:
2face Idibia:From his artistry to passion for change, the Pop king of Africa has continued to use his music as a muse to influence all. Through his foundation, ‘2face Idibia Reach-Out Foundation’, Idibia, an icon by every definition, has dedicated a great amount of time, effort and resources towards reaching out to fellow humans in need.
Alex Okosi:As Senior Vice President and Managing Director of Viacom International, Africa, Okosi continues to showcase Africa to the world and vice versa with the MTV, BET, Nickelodeon and Comedy Central platforms. Okosi is one of the top dogs determining the present and future of entertainment on TV.
Ali Baba:Still at the top of the food chain when it concerns comedy in Nigeria, Ali Baba, a pioneer stand-up comedian is not only responsible for making the trade profitable, he continues to use his influence to hold up the platform for others to shine.
Amaka Igwe:A strong pillar in Nollywood, Igwe’s undying love for motion picture has helped her carve a niche for herself whether with her famous soap operas or her annual BOBTV TV expo. Her Lagos-based radio station, Top Radio has also become a force to reckon with.
Amin Moussalli:The Lebanese boss actually started doing business in Nigeria as far back as 1975 with his AIM architectural company but his love for broadcasting drove him to create radio stations ‘Cool FM’, ‘Wazobia FM’ and later on, ‘Nigeria Info’ with his daughter Evita in the helm of affairs. These stations have become one of the biggest outfits in Nigeria reaching millions.
Audu Maikori:It’s been rocky times at Chocolate City in the last seven months but Maikori, a lawyer and entrepreneur has shown nothing but exemplary skills in stirring the entertainment label through murky waters. With A-list acts like M.I. and Ice Prince, Chocolate City still remains one of the biggest music labels in Africa. Don’t be surprised if they announce an IPO soon.
Ayo Animashaun:Through his Smooth Promotions company, Animashaun, 43, has launched some of the most relevant entertainment platforms including ‘The Headies’ and the 24-hour channel ‘Hip TV’ which launches on DSTV this month.
Bolanle Austen Peters:  Peters is the soul of Terra Kulture – a highly recognised cultural hub set up to promote the richness and diversity of Nigerian languages, arts and culture. Respected for enabling the sustenance of live theatre in Lagos, she’s now executing the big-budget SARO musical that’s already receiving critical acclaim. In eight years of existence, Terra Kulture has organised no less than 60 plays, over 100 exhibitions, and approximately 10,000 children have been through their language, culture clubs and excursions.
Biola Alabi:Managing Director at M-NET Africa over the last four years, Alabi has engineered the process of bringing top African content to our doorsteps. This year, she birthed the successful and well rated African Magic Viewer’s Choice Awards (AMVCAs).
Chika Nwobi:Nwobi is a serial entrepreneur.  From MTech- a leading mobile content company in Africa to Jobberman.com-West Africa’s most popular jobs portal to Cheki.com.ng-Nigeria’s leading cars/autos website to Kamdora.com a fast growing e-commerce fashion retail business in Nigeria, Nwobi has successfully built mobile and internet-related companies; using unusual techniques to link IT with entertainment while delivering value for consumers and helping Telcos excite a generation in love with music.
Chris Ubosi: He is the CEO of Megalectrics Limited, owners of Premium choice ‘BEAT 99.9FM’, retro-styled ‘Classic FM 93.7’ and pidgin-speaking ‘Naija FM 102.7’, which have all continued to dominate their respective fields. Ubosi, who seems to be warming up to the cameras nowadays has also launched a sister station in Ibadan and will be setting up a TV channel real soon.
Clarence Peters:Three of out every five videos seen on Nigerian TV is directed by Clarence Peters. As the CEO of a record label called Capital Hill Records and a multimedia content creation company called CAPital Dream Pictures, he has shot a good number of videos, documentaries, TV commercials, short films and TV features. Clarence is no doubt the most sought after video director in the music industry so much that his name has become synonymous with top quality musical videos.
D’banj:In the last 12 months, the self-styled entertainer has brushed off any kind of doubt about whether he can progress career-wise after his split with former Mo’Hits partner Don Jazzy. Whether it’s performing at the finale of African Cup of Nations, collaborating with US artistes, headlining Hennessy Artistry or becoming the face of the Bank of Industry, D’banj has shown constant sheer determination and dominance. And there’s an indefinitely long list of young cats praying day and night to have a quarter of his blessings.
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DJ Jimmy JATT:He is rated as one of the biggest and most iconic deejays in Africa. An innovator, teacher, speaker and performer, Jimmy Jatt has helped nurture the careers and influenced many deejays in Nigeria. There’s hardly any hiphop artiste in Nigeria that doesn’t pledge allegiance to the legendary but unbelievably humble deejay.
Don Jazzy:From music production, Don Jazzy remains one of the most relevant entertainment personalities in Africa (a formula his colleagues have not been able to crack yet) with every artiste out there asking for a beat or two from him. Little wonder he keeps bagging multimillion Naira endorsement deals.
An ambassador for Loya Milk and MTN, IDJA is the producer every producer wants to be like, the pop star who has no single to his name; the enigmatic music maker that’s giving an entirely new definition to impresario.
Edi Lawani:Sometimes referred to as the Godfather, Lawani has built a name in the corporate and entertainment scene working as technical consultant, events manager and adviser to organisations and talent. His agency, Showbiz Network is one of the longest running home grown entertainment organisations, and many of today’s big names in technical support and events management have the bearded gentleman to thank.
Efe Omorogbe:The co-founder and HNIC of Nigeria’s leading talent management company, Now Muzik, Omorogbe continues to be a major force in the development of entertainment in Nigeria. He recently setup Now Muzik en.Core, a sister company which handles events and campaigns.
Emeka Mba:A former Regulatory Affairs Manager at Multichoice Nigeria and later Director General of the Nigerian Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB), Mba’s recent appointment as Director-General of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) was met with applause from stakeholders who understand what he brings to the table. The NBC is the regulatory body for broadcast organisations in Nigeria.
Femi Ayeni:Ayeni, founder of Ultima, the company which owns two very big franchises in Nigeria might not have a popular name but his shows Project Fame West Africa and Who Wants to be a Millionaire. Though quiet and publicity shy, Ayeni has handed many successful entertainers their careers – that list will include Iyanya, Chidinma and Frank Edoho who rose to national fame on WWTBAM.
Femi Kuti:The son of the late great Afrobeat legend has clearly carved a niche for himself, warming up nicely into contemporary music (working with Wizkid, LNC, Jesse Jagz, Durella) and modern TV (Kuti is a judge on Nigerian Idol). These have however not shut him up from voicing out his opinion against bad governance.
Funke Akindele:The Nollywood actress has bagged the highest number of endorsement deals and produced more bestselling movies than anyone in her category. Her hilarious character, Jenifa has now become one of the most popular characters in Nollywood. And despite going through a well-publicized separation, Akindele’s image remains intact, her following unaffected; her endorsements intact.
Genevieve Nnaji:Hardly can you mention top actresses in Africa without placing her in the top 2. US talk show host, Oprah Winfrey described her as the Julia Roberts of Africa, while Elle magazine recently profiled her as one of the 7 international acts soon to cross over to international success. Nnaji’s profiling on the international scene has been a big boost to her career, although she has slowed down on local appearances in recent times.
Ibinabo Fiberesima:She became the first woman to lead the Actors’ Guild of Nigeria when she was sworn in as President in November 2012.  Ibinabo Fiberesima, an actress and a former beauty queen now presides over one of the most influential organisations in Nigeria’s entertainment industry.
Jason Njoku:By creating the iROKO triad – iROKOtv, iROKING and IROKtv, he is credited for creating what the international media has described as the ‘Netflix of Africa,‘ Njoku has combined technology and creativity to satisfy the ever-growing needs of Nollywood fans across the world, ranking in the Forbes ‘African millionaires to watch’ list. His idea now caters for millions of Nigerians who chose to go online to source music and Nollywood movies.
King Sunny Ade:A perfect example of consistency, King Sunny Ade boasts of a career that has spanned over five decades. KSA is an important voice in the Nigerian entertainment industry particularly in regards to music as he uses his influence, contacts and resources to affect major decisions in many of the music organisations; while serving as mentor and inspiration to many.
Kunle Afolayan:He is one of the most prolific film directors in Nigeria. From his debut production ‘Irapada‘ to the critically reviewed action-drama ‘Figurine‘, the accounting graduate has shown finesse in all his work. His recent project, October 1, still in the making has generated the most publicity-ever for a yet to be released flick. Afolayan is seen by many pundits as the face of ‘new Nollywood’.
KWAM 1:A prolific recording artist, KWAM1 updated the Fuji style incorporating Western instruments to give it that youth-oriented theme. That singular innovation opened up the genre to a hitherto uninterested segment. With a career now spanning over three decades, the self-acclaimed King of Fuji music continues to influence and appeal both the old and young in fuji other genres.
Linda Ikeji:From gossip to breaking news stories, Linda Ikeji’s blog has become a hotspot for many online readers. From a business and career that has taken her seven years to build, Miss Ikeji’s blog has become a phenomenal success earning her millions in annual turnover; building a profile as Nigeria’s most successful blogger. What that means? The bachelorette now belongs to the elite group of opinion moulders and news shapers.
M.I:They call him the Chairman. Jude Abaga aka M.I. has set a standard for aspiring rappers, for being able to appeal both to the so called hiphop heads and those with no idea in the world what the art form is about. He is sometimes regarded as the best rapper in Nigeria and has a lot in fan base to show for it.
Mo’ Abudu: Following the huge success of her talk show ‘Moments with Mo‘, Mosunmola Abudu has built for herself a strong repertoire. Often referred to as the Oprah Winfrey of Africa, her show for years enjoyed high ratings on DSTV. Recently she launched her own channel, EbonyLife TV, Africa’s first global black entertainment network.
Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde:As one of the most decorated actresses in Africa, Omotola’s scored a bygone when she made it to TIME magazine’s 2013 edition of the ‘100 Most Influential People in the World’. Her TV reality series, ‘Omotola: The Real Me’ generated a landmark viewership on M-NET’s Africa Magic when it debuted, and the mother-of-four is now warming up for international break.
Psquare:Sold out shows and tours in Africa, Europe and America, earth shaking hit songs and videos. A multitude of fans stadiums cannot contain. Psquare have been on the top 3 mark for so long it’s beginning to look like their birth right.
Peace Fiberesima:For 12 years she has been behind the African Movie Awards (AMAA), gathering movie stars from all over Africa. Fiberesima has positioned the awards show as one of the most credible and consistent honorary shows. Often described as the ‘African Oscars‘, AMAA awards has now become a standard for actors to measure their performance every year.
Rotimi Pedro:With Nigerian Idol, X-Factor and Nigeria’s Got Talent grabbing big market shares, Rotimi Pedro, the Optima Media Group‘s founder, is rapidly becoming a major force to reckon with. The sports veteran and his team are delivering entertainment to millions of Nigerians while giving many an opportunity to kick off their careers. And he’s just secured the right to launch Bloomberg here, according to NET findings.
Sam Onyemelukwe:He earned the rights to bring the foremost music channel, TRACE TV to Nigeria building it from the scratch. Onyemelukwe, a former country manager for MTV has utilized his experience and knowledge in the terrain to establish TRACE TV as a channel of choice for many young Nigerians.
Tajuddeen Adepetu:From what began with creating content programming for several terrestrial TV stations, Adepetu has gone on to establish his own cable TV channel and TV station. Both Soundcity and ONTV, popular among young Nigerians, have now become household names when it comes to pure entertainment. Other assets include Spice TV which wil launch as a full channel on DSTV in a matter of months, and social media platform Buddie.
The Murray-Bruces:The Murray-Bruces have played many major roles in taking Nigerian entertainment to the next level. Spearheaded by Ben Murray-Bruce, the family has not only succeeded in radio and TV broadcasting, but also made cinema culture fashionable again, with the Silverbird Cinemas. Their ‘Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria‘ pageant may have lost some popularity, but remains one of the nation’s leading pageants.
Tony Okoroji:Okoroji is one of the most important factors in collective rights management and administration in Nigeria. Working with the Copyright Society of Nigeria  (COSON), Okoroji has spearheaded the recognition of mechanical and associated rights, while making sure radio stations, TV channels and others who exploit music pay what’s due rights owners. The jury is still out on whether that segment should be liberalized.
Tunde Kelani:A pioneer and veteran by every definition, Kelani’s brilliance in cinematography and storytelling is second to none. With over 20 films made under his Mainframe Productions, Kelani has been setting standards for as long as we can remember. The movie producer/director/writer is one of the major influences in the Nigerian movie industry till date.
Uche Eze:She is the popular blogger and owner of fashion and lifestyle blog BellaNaija. BellaNaija remains a one stop shop for single and married women who are interested in wedding news, gossip and fashion. And even though the likes of Linda Ikeji have surpassed her in ranking, Bella remains queen, with enough international acclaim to last a lifetime.
Wizkid:At just 23, Ayo ‘Wizkid’ Balogun is a kid whose achievements will make some legends jealous. From an unsure wannabe, the hit-maker has grown to become a superstar, with a strong influence on today’s sound while many teens are feeding daily on his style and- permit us – swagger. Now warming up to be an entrepreneur. Wizzy has it all working.

Landlord’s daughter abducted, impregnated by tenant...?


Brown and Ajibola
The Lagos State Police Command has apprehended a 37-year-old man, Ajibola Idowu, for allegedly kidnapping the daughter of his landlord for three years. The suspect was also said to have forcefully impregnated the victim, Modupe Brown, during captivity.
The police told PUNCH Metro that after Brown had given birth to the child, Ajibola refused to allow the child access to immunisation.
As a result, the child was said to have contracted polio disease and subsequently became crippled.
Lagos Deputy Police Public Relations Officer, Damasus Ozoani, told PUNCH Metro that Ajibola, was arrested along with his mother, Ebun, who allegedly conspired with him to commit the act.
He said, “Brown, a 400 level student of Business Administration at the Lagos State University, was kidnapped by Ajibola who kept her in captivity with his family for “three years between 2010 and 2013.
“On September 19, 2013, policemen from Area E Command, went to the Sagamu area of Ogun State to rescue the victim and also arrested the mother of the abductor, who watched over the victim. Ajibola was later arrested in the Idumota area of Lagos Island.
“During the three years, Ajibola  kept Brown in three locations -Oshogbo, Osun State, where she spent six months; Bariga, Lagos, where she spent six months; and Sagamu, Ogun State, where she spent about two years.
“Ajibola forcefully impregnated Brown while in captivity. She delivered a baby girl, who later became deformed as a result of Ajibola’s refusal to have the baby immunised against the Polio virus.”
While speaking with our correspondent, Brown described her ordeal in the hands of her abductor as a journey through the valley of the shadow of death. She said she was abducted at her father’s house in the Ebute Meta area of Lagos State.
She said, “I can’t even remember how he kidnapped me. All I know is that he held me captive for three years. It’s as if I was under a spell. Even when I was going to give birth, he did not allow me to go to a hospital. The baby was delivered at home and he was the one giving me medication.
“Even one day, when state officials came to the area to immunise children, he said he would not allow the child to be immunised, saying the drugs had been poisoned. Once, when I tried to leave, he threatened to kill me.”
PUNCH Metro learnt that during her time in captivity, the victim’s parents, who are retired civil servants, searched hospitals, mortuaries, police stations and churches for her all to no avail.
The victim’s father, Idowu Brown, said he had no clue that Ajibola was the abductor. He said, “I never knew it was Ajibola that kidnapped my daughter. He was my tenant for six years and greeted me every day. We even used to share jokes. He was aware that I had been looking “for my daughter for three years but he never said anything.
“When we could not find her, I reported the matter at FESTAC Police Division. It was in September this year that we heard from our daughter for the first time. She told us that she was in Sagamu and my wife went there.
“There we met Ajibola’s mother. That was how we found out that he (tenant) was the one behind the whole thing.”
The suspects however denied abducting the landlord’s daughter. Ajibola’s mother claimed her son and Brown were lovers, who decided to elope, maintaining that the case was not an abduction.
She said, “They were lovers. I never got involved in their matter until the child was born. I went to stay with them for about seven months to take care of the child, who was very ill. A few months after I left, they moved in with me at my three-bedroom house at Sagamu because they had been evicted.
“Ajibola was not staying with us because his business was in Lagos but I was with Brown “most of the time. Many times, I would ask her about her parents and when I could meet them but she kept on giving silly excuses until the day her mother came to my house with policemen.”
Ajibola, who is into satellite dish installation, said the plan to elope was hatched by Brown who paid N200, 000 into his bank account. The money was said to have been meant for her school project.
He said he could not understand why she would make such allegations against him.
“I did not kidnap her; we were lovers and decided to elope. Even when she was at my house, she used to make calls to her relatives telling them that she was alright,” he said.

Lawyer wins $100,000 NLNG Literature prize



An Ibadan, Oyo State-based lawyer and poet, Tade Ipadeola, has won the 2013 Nigeria Prize for Literature.
Ipadeola, who is also the President of the PEN Nigeria, won the prize worth  $100,000 with his collection of poetry, ‘The Sahara Testaments.’
The prize is sponsored by Nigeria LNG Limited.
‘The Sahara Testaments’, clinched the prize ahead of Promise Ogochukwu’s ‘Wild Letters’ and Chidi Amu’s ‘Through the Window of a Sandcastle.’
The three works had been short-listed from  201 entries received  for the prize.
Ipadeola was announced winner of the prize, which rotates annually  among poetry, fiction, drama and children’s literature at a world press conference held at Oceanview Restaurant, Victoria Island, Lagos, on Wednesday.
Officials of the NLNG, led by Dr. Kudo Eresia-Eke, General Manager, External Relations; the judges headed  by their chair, Prof. Romanus Egudu, and members of the Advisory Board for Literature jointly addressed newsmen.
Also present was Ghanaian academic and writer, Prof. Kofi Anyidoho, the international assessor of the entries.
Explaining the choice of Ipadeola’s The Sahara Testaments  in their report, the judges described it as “a remarkable epic covering the terrain and people of Africa from the very dawn of creation, through the present, to the future. The text uses the “Sahara” as a metonym for the problems of Africa and, indeed, the whole of humanity. True to epic tradition, this work encompasses vast stores of knowledge in an encyclopeadic dimension. It also contains potent rhetoric and satire on topical issues and personalities, ranging from Africa’s blood diamonds and inflation in Nigeria to ‘contrite…Blair’.”
The judges added that Ipadeola’s use of poetic language demonstrated a striking marriage of thought and verbal artistry expressed in the blending of sound and sense.
“The work is replete with historical, geographical, and literary allusions and tropes. On the whole, the poet demonstrates an outstanding level of intellectual exposure and knowledge, language use, and awareness of literature, which should be beneficial to readers and writers alike,” the judges said.
Prof. Molara Ogundipe and Dr. Andrew Abba were the other jurors.
In a related development, no winner emerged for the literary criticism prize also sponsored by the NLNG.
With respect to the literary criticism aspect of the competition, the panel observed that no literary criticism entry was qualified for assessment because none met the criteria advertised for the prize.

P-Square Fasts & Prays For 30 Days

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iKettle - The World's First WiFi Kettle

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