Showing posts with label Edition 217. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Edition 217. Show all posts
Tuesday, 5 January 2010
Christmas Party
(Just Life)
BY OMOLIGHO UDENTA
I had to chew slowly because I had already encountered two rather large stones. For the life of me, I couldn’t understand why there’d be any stones at all because the stew was very tasty and I’d assume therefore that the cook, whoever she/he was, was really good. Could it be that because she/he was cooking for so many people she/he hadn’t been able to control the stones, get them out of the rice? Perhaps I should have taken the palm oil jollof rice or the pounded yam with vegetable soup instead of the Ofada rice I’d chosen.
But let me explain that I hadn’t chosen the palm oil jollof rice this time because there was one time when I’d chosen it at a party thinking that it would make a nice change but was sorely disappointed and baffled with each spoonful I tried to swallow. I mean, there was so much that could have been done to bring life to the rice. Maybe the cook didn’t know about the things that a little crayfish or dried fish could have done to enhance the flavour besides it seemed she hadn’t even bothered to taste what she was cooking. I gave up eating the tasteless rice when I chewed a piece of ‘undissolved’ Maggi cube!
Oh well, at times like this when one usually attends so many events, you might find yourself losing a couple of times in the game of ‘food roulette’. You get to a party you see a wide array of food, you pick something (and there is no formula for doing this), you sit down to enjoy your meal and find you can’t because of one thing or another. But occasionally though your luck changes and you pick a dish that just tastes wonderful, so much so that you might even think you are in some sort of olfactory heaven. Sadly this doesn’t happen nearly often enough.
Most times before making my choice I take a look around at the plates of food around before deciding what to ask for. Since I won’t be allowed to taste anything before deciding I usually tend to choose a dish that looks and smells good. Over time I have learned not to choose a dish that others are choosing to leave uneaten in their plates.
One also learns to try to avoid ‘high risk’ foods. ‘High Risk’ foods are foods which have a high risk of giving a case of food poisoning. Around here, foods like salads, moimoi and any other food that hasn’t been well preserved might make you regret every mouthful you took!
(Just Life)
BY OMOLIGHO UDENTA
As I push my plate away, I look around at all the other half eaten plates of food. What a waste I think to myself. I sit wondering what will happen to all this food, just then a little scruffy boy comes up from behind me and asks ever so quietly if I am through with my food. I start to nod but before my head finishes its first downward movement the leftover on my plate is swept into a black polythene bag. The same thing happens to all the other plates of uneaten food.
Well, who is going to tell him that the food isn’t really very good? But looking at him I know that is the least of his worries. He’ll probably wolf down the lot without really tasting it, just glad to have some food in his mouth and belly. He might even think the food we think is tasteless is just great because he knows no better. Once again the extremes of life show its face again. At least, in a way he’ll have his own share of the Christmas Party, good or bad, regardless of delicious or tasteless rice. Merry Christmas everyone.
Sorry, the Xmas was postponed
(Strictly for the young)
BY TOSYN BUCKNOR
I WOULD like to apologise. I apologise on behalf of the people who forgot to bring to our notice that Christmas had been officially postponed.
I mean, there we were, looking forward to Christmas and still thinking it was on 25. We must have then been shocked that no one went to the village for Christmas, that there was no petrol, that no one sent hampers nor made calendars, that no one cooked, that no one remembered.
I mean, I had earlier recommended that we all had Christmas picnics at the fuel stations since we were queuing through out that week anyway!
So, we woke up on 25 and realised that there was one simple explanation — they must have postponed Christmas! Unfortunately, somebody forgot to tell us!
You take certain things for granted, especially when you are really young and have no responsibilities as it were!
Your parents buy you the Christmas outfits, the most you probably do is help with the setting up and clearing up, but your parents do the inviting, and your parents buy the gifts and the decorations.
In school, the teachers and principal organise the Christmas carols and parties.
In all these, your job is to show up!
SO when they years continue to roll by and you now have bigger roles to play, things become clearer. None of these things show up by themselves! The Christmas tree and decorations, and gifts, and clothes and cards, and candles, all cost money! Father
Christmas is not a free service; they actually paid so you could get that exercise book and tell ‘Santa’ what you want for Christmas!
Realisation began to dawn, and as the economy obeyed the law of gravity and continued to fall, Christmas continued to become a shell of its former self.
The cards were the first to go! Everyone realised spending money on cards was literally, spending money on paper. The chickens apparently went on a diet for they were all lean, and the Christmas tree was a real tree....
Merry Christmas indeed!
Still, we somehow found a way to still be merry! We went clubbing, we went to one another’s homes and had lunch (even if the serving was smaller), we went out. Nigerians are resilient and no matter how hard we were punched, we still got right back up!
Till this year.
Something happened, and we didn’t even know it. But somewhere between the worldwide recession, between what happened with the banks, between the stories of kidnapping, between the President’s health, and between the constant hammering of our spirits, we lost the zeal, and possibly the will to fight for this Christmas.
And I was going to end this article on that note, until I realised and remembered something else about Christmas!
The laughter.
We smiled and laughed and played and partied at Christmas. And it had to have been because of the company, not the products. Please tell me that we looked forward to Christmas because of the love, and not because of the material things it brought. Please tell me we cannot enjoy Christmas simply because we cannot afford an extra pair of new shoes or more drinks.
Please tell me we can still give out our old clothes, spare change, and time to those who don’t have even half of the half we have.
Maybe Christmas was never postponed. Maybe our priorities were
tosinornottosin@yahoo.com
BY OMOLIGHO UDENTA
I had to chew slowly because I had already encountered two rather large stones. For the life of me, I couldn’t understand why there’d be any stones at all because the stew was very tasty and I’d assume therefore that the cook, whoever she/he was, was really good. Could it be that because she/he was cooking for so many people she/he hadn’t been able to control the stones, get them out of the rice? Perhaps I should have taken the palm oil jollof rice or the pounded yam with vegetable soup instead of the Ofada rice I’d chosen.
But let me explain that I hadn’t chosen the palm oil jollof rice this time because there was one time when I’d chosen it at a party thinking that it would make a nice change but was sorely disappointed and baffled with each spoonful I tried to swallow. I mean, there was so much that could have been done to bring life to the rice. Maybe the cook didn’t know about the things that a little crayfish or dried fish could have done to enhance the flavour besides it seemed she hadn’t even bothered to taste what she was cooking. I gave up eating the tasteless rice when I chewed a piece of ‘undissolved’ Maggi cube!
Oh well, at times like this when one usually attends so many events, you might find yourself losing a couple of times in the game of ‘food roulette’. You get to a party you see a wide array of food, you pick something (and there is no formula for doing this), you sit down to enjoy your meal and find you can’t because of one thing or another. But occasionally though your luck changes and you pick a dish that just tastes wonderful, so much so that you might even think you are in some sort of olfactory heaven. Sadly this doesn’t happen nearly often enough.
Most times before making my choice I take a look around at the plates of food around before deciding what to ask for. Since I won’t be allowed to taste anything before deciding I usually tend to choose a dish that looks and smells good. Over time I have learned not to choose a dish that others are choosing to leave uneaten in their plates.
One also learns to try to avoid ‘high risk’ foods. ‘High Risk’ foods are foods which have a high risk of giving a case of food poisoning. Around here, foods like salads, moimoi and any other food that hasn’t been well preserved might make you regret every mouthful you took!
(Just Life)
BY OMOLIGHO UDENTA
As I push my plate away, I look around at all the other half eaten plates of food. What a waste I think to myself. I sit wondering what will happen to all this food, just then a little scruffy boy comes up from behind me and asks ever so quietly if I am through with my food. I start to nod but before my head finishes its first downward movement the leftover on my plate is swept into a black polythene bag. The same thing happens to all the other plates of uneaten food.
Well, who is going to tell him that the food isn’t really very good? But looking at him I know that is the least of his worries. He’ll probably wolf down the lot without really tasting it, just glad to have some food in his mouth and belly. He might even think the food we think is tasteless is just great because he knows no better. Once again the extremes of life show its face again. At least, in a way he’ll have his own share of the Christmas Party, good or bad, regardless of delicious or tasteless rice. Merry Christmas everyone.
Sorry, the Xmas was postponed
(Strictly for the young)
BY TOSYN BUCKNOR
I WOULD like to apologise. I apologise on behalf of the people who forgot to bring to our notice that Christmas had been officially postponed.
I mean, there we were, looking forward to Christmas and still thinking it was on 25. We must have then been shocked that no one went to the village for Christmas, that there was no petrol, that no one sent hampers nor made calendars, that no one cooked, that no one remembered.
I mean, I had earlier recommended that we all had Christmas picnics at the fuel stations since we were queuing through out that week anyway!
So, we woke up on 25 and realised that there was one simple explanation — they must have postponed Christmas! Unfortunately, somebody forgot to tell us!
You take certain things for granted, especially when you are really young and have no responsibilities as it were!
Your parents buy you the Christmas outfits, the most you probably do is help with the setting up and clearing up, but your parents do the inviting, and your parents buy the gifts and the decorations.
In school, the teachers and principal organise the Christmas carols and parties.
In all these, your job is to show up!
SO when they years continue to roll by and you now have bigger roles to play, things become clearer. None of these things show up by themselves! The Christmas tree and decorations, and gifts, and clothes and cards, and candles, all cost money! Father
Christmas is not a free service; they actually paid so you could get that exercise book and tell ‘Santa’ what you want for Christmas!
Realisation began to dawn, and as the economy obeyed the law of gravity and continued to fall, Christmas continued to become a shell of its former self.
The cards were the first to go! Everyone realised spending money on cards was literally, spending money on paper. The chickens apparently went on a diet for they were all lean, and the Christmas tree was a real tree....
Merry Christmas indeed!
Still, we somehow found a way to still be merry! We went clubbing, we went to one another’s homes and had lunch (even if the serving was smaller), we went out. Nigerians are resilient and no matter how hard we were punched, we still got right back up!
Till this year.
Something happened, and we didn’t even know it. But somewhere between the worldwide recession, between what happened with the banks, between the stories of kidnapping, between the President’s health, and between the constant hammering of our spirits, we lost the zeal, and possibly the will to fight for this Christmas.
And I was going to end this article on that note, until I realised and remembered something else about Christmas!
The laughter.
We smiled and laughed and played and partied at Christmas. And it had to have been because of the company, not the products. Please tell me that we looked forward to Christmas because of the love, and not because of the material things it brought. Please tell me we cannot enjoy Christmas simply because we cannot afford an extra pair of new shoes or more drinks.
Please tell me we can still give out our old clothes, spare change, and time to those who don’t have even half of the half we have.
Maybe Christmas was never postponed. Maybe our priorities were
tosinornottosin@yahoo.com
Changing your financial life through a changed environment
(Biz tool Kits)
BY BRIDGET OLOTU
TO change your life, you need to change your environment. Most of us know that if we want to lose weight, we have a better chance of success by going to a gym rather than to a restaurant. If we want to study, we choose a library rather than a noisy environment. If we want to relax, we leave work and go to the beach or visit a tourist centre. So if you want to be rich, you need to find an environment that is conducive to becoming richer; one that strengthens all three brains.
The power of environments: In changing your financial life, there is no way that is the only path to achieving your objectives. Some have reached their financial goals working as employees; some others have done same through self-employment, while a few others reached their targets through business ownership and investment. Even some others have had to juggle two or more of these routes to reach their targets. So, this is up to you. Be true to yourself. Whatever route you choose, you need to mind your environment. Find your own environment and your way to financial success because environment is the greatest teacher of all.
FOR you to develop your financial genius and change your financial life, you need to find the environment that supports the development of your genius.
For example, Tiger Woods’ environment is the golf course. He may not do well on a football field. Kanu Nwankwo and Austin Jay Jay Okocha only thrive on a football field. Unlike Michael Phelps, they might fail woefully in water sports such as swimming. Bill Gates probably wouldn’t have done better in any other field other than software development.
Chief Gani Fawehinmi of blessed memory would certainly beat most legal heavyweights in the courtroom but may never have known how to balance his accounts.
Alhaji Aliko Dangote is a clear example of a consummate entrepreneur. It was his trading and business acumen that brought him to limelight and has given him the tremendous wealth and fame he commands today.
Otunba Gadaffi, the CEO of Mobile Toilet business picked a common but important social need and turned it into a megabucks business. Some years ago, the business was worth over half a billion naira.
Dele Momodu of Ovation magazine may never have struck gold doing any other thing than journalism. His magazine has become a must read for the socialites and fashionistas; while many foreigners see the magazine as a window into Africa and Nigeria lifestyle. Professor Wole Soyinka, that literary colossus and very successful dramatist, mightn’t have gone too far if he sits and chairs meetings in management boardrooms.
BY showing you these examples, I am saying that there is no one environment that guarantees financial success. It is up to you to decide or discover which environment you are most suited for and that can support your development and transformation.
One of the reasons many people do not develop their genius is simply because they are lazy. Many just go to work to collect a pay check. It is easier for them to be average than to work hard at developing their genius.
My questions to you are, “What do you think your genius is and what environment is best for you to develop it? Do you have the courage to change environments?” Imagine your future … if you did.
If you are dedicated and have drive, you can find your genius and locate the right environment to grow your genius.
The right environment can be as simple as going to a library and reading a book by a person you want to be like, or by looking at magazines with pictures that capture the vision in your heart. It could be listening to a speaker that can help you discover yourself.
Success requires some degree of mental and physical toughness. If you can train your left brain to understand the subject, engage your right brain to come up with creative solutions, keep your subconscious brain excited rather than fearful, and then take action, while being willing to make mistakes and learn, you can create magic! You can develop your genius.
Olotu is the CEO/Lead Consultant, DEAIM Innovative Resources Ltd., bridgetolotu@gmail.com
How to really become happy
(LIFE COACH)
BY AGBOLADE OMOWOLE
THE ultimate goal of life is happiness and fulfillment. Take for instance, the average young person goes to the college or university and studies hard to graduate with flying colours.
Being a graduate with good grades makes him relevant in the job market. He probably wants to get a good job so he could make ends meet, and the reason he needs to do all that is to be comfortable and happy.
What is happiness? “It is a feeling of inner peace and satisfaction. It is usually experienced when there are no worries, fears, or obsessing thoughts, and this happens when we do something we love to do or when we get, win, gain or achieve something that we value,” says a human capital development expert.
Discover your true life purpose. The basics of living a happy life are determining what you love doing, and what you are good at. What are those things that you do almost effortlessly? What are those things that bring you fulfillment and a sense of inner peace? When you do what you love, you become happy.
Happiness is a mindset. Being happy is a thing of the mind. If you want to live a happy life, think positively. Think about the progress of others. If however, you want to live a miserable life, think negatively.
Happiness is determined by your interpretation of events. There are two sides to everything that happens to you in life. There is a bright side and a dark side to every event. You can become better from bitter life experiences. You can learn good lessons from bad experiences.
You are in charge of your emotions. Often, one can think that happiness is the outcome of positive events. In reality, happiness actually comes from the inside, triggered by outer events. That said, regardless of what happens to you, you can decide to be happy.
Choose to be happy. What are the things that make you happy? Do more of the things that make you happy, and less of the things that make you sad on a daily basis. If you let outer events influence your moods, attitude or behaviour, you become a victim of circumstances. You lose your freedom.
Appreciate what you have. Appreciation leads to happiness. Appreciate your life the way it is now, and then seek to improve it. Appreciate your friends, and your family members. Appreciate every act of kindness.
You have all you need. It is easy for you to think that you lack one or two things. The truth is that no one has it all. What you have is enough to take you to where you want to be. Don’t be conditioned by the society to feel that you need to have what the lady next door has. You should not compare yourself with others.
Enjoy life. Time ‘flies.’ Don’t be too busy with your life that you ignore enjoying yourself. Don’t let your life zoom off, enjoy it. Forget about the past and the future for a moment, and enjoy being here. Happiness should not only be experienced at the destination, but along the way to the destination.
Money is not equal to happiness. Money is an amplifier. It makes you become more of who you are already. If you have clear-cut goals, more money can make you achieve your goals faster. If you are confused, more money may increase your confusion.
Take charge of your finance. Money is important because of its purchasing power. Don’t spend on impulse. Spend from your budget. Learn to spend less than you earn because expenses will always rise to meet income.
Live on purpose with passion. What brings me the most joy is helping people to live the life of their dreams through my articles, life coaching and speaking engagement.
As you celebrate in this Yuletide season, don’t let your happiness end there. You can be happy for the rest of your life.
BY BRIDGET OLOTU
TO change your life, you need to change your environment. Most of us know that if we want to lose weight, we have a better chance of success by going to a gym rather than to a restaurant. If we want to study, we choose a library rather than a noisy environment. If we want to relax, we leave work and go to the beach or visit a tourist centre. So if you want to be rich, you need to find an environment that is conducive to becoming richer; one that strengthens all three brains.
The power of environments: In changing your financial life, there is no way that is the only path to achieving your objectives. Some have reached their financial goals working as employees; some others have done same through self-employment, while a few others reached their targets through business ownership and investment. Even some others have had to juggle two or more of these routes to reach their targets. So, this is up to you. Be true to yourself. Whatever route you choose, you need to mind your environment. Find your own environment and your way to financial success because environment is the greatest teacher of all.
FOR you to develop your financial genius and change your financial life, you need to find the environment that supports the development of your genius.
For example, Tiger Woods’ environment is the golf course. He may not do well on a football field. Kanu Nwankwo and Austin Jay Jay Okocha only thrive on a football field. Unlike Michael Phelps, they might fail woefully in water sports such as swimming. Bill Gates probably wouldn’t have done better in any other field other than software development.
Chief Gani Fawehinmi of blessed memory would certainly beat most legal heavyweights in the courtroom but may never have known how to balance his accounts.
Alhaji Aliko Dangote is a clear example of a consummate entrepreneur. It was his trading and business acumen that brought him to limelight and has given him the tremendous wealth and fame he commands today.
Otunba Gadaffi, the CEO of Mobile Toilet business picked a common but important social need and turned it into a megabucks business. Some years ago, the business was worth over half a billion naira.
Dele Momodu of Ovation magazine may never have struck gold doing any other thing than journalism. His magazine has become a must read for the socialites and fashionistas; while many foreigners see the magazine as a window into Africa and Nigeria lifestyle. Professor Wole Soyinka, that literary colossus and very successful dramatist, mightn’t have gone too far if he sits and chairs meetings in management boardrooms.
BY showing you these examples, I am saying that there is no one environment that guarantees financial success. It is up to you to decide or discover which environment you are most suited for and that can support your development and transformation.
One of the reasons many people do not develop their genius is simply because they are lazy. Many just go to work to collect a pay check. It is easier for them to be average than to work hard at developing their genius.
My questions to you are, “What do you think your genius is and what environment is best for you to develop it? Do you have the courage to change environments?” Imagine your future … if you did.
If you are dedicated and have drive, you can find your genius and locate the right environment to grow your genius.
The right environment can be as simple as going to a library and reading a book by a person you want to be like, or by looking at magazines with pictures that capture the vision in your heart. It could be listening to a speaker that can help you discover yourself.
Success requires some degree of mental and physical toughness. If you can train your left brain to understand the subject, engage your right brain to come up with creative solutions, keep your subconscious brain excited rather than fearful, and then take action, while being willing to make mistakes and learn, you can create magic! You can develop your genius.
Olotu is the CEO/Lead Consultant, DEAIM Innovative Resources Ltd., bridgetolotu@gmail.com
How to really become happy
(LIFE COACH)
BY AGBOLADE OMOWOLE
THE ultimate goal of life is happiness and fulfillment. Take for instance, the average young person goes to the college or university and studies hard to graduate with flying colours.
Being a graduate with good grades makes him relevant in the job market. He probably wants to get a good job so he could make ends meet, and the reason he needs to do all that is to be comfortable and happy.
What is happiness? “It is a feeling of inner peace and satisfaction. It is usually experienced when there are no worries, fears, or obsessing thoughts, and this happens when we do something we love to do or when we get, win, gain or achieve something that we value,” says a human capital development expert.
Discover your true life purpose. The basics of living a happy life are determining what you love doing, and what you are good at. What are those things that you do almost effortlessly? What are those things that bring you fulfillment and a sense of inner peace? When you do what you love, you become happy.
Happiness is a mindset. Being happy is a thing of the mind. If you want to live a happy life, think positively. Think about the progress of others. If however, you want to live a miserable life, think negatively.
Happiness is determined by your interpretation of events. There are two sides to everything that happens to you in life. There is a bright side and a dark side to every event. You can become better from bitter life experiences. You can learn good lessons from bad experiences.
You are in charge of your emotions. Often, one can think that happiness is the outcome of positive events. In reality, happiness actually comes from the inside, triggered by outer events. That said, regardless of what happens to you, you can decide to be happy.
Choose to be happy. What are the things that make you happy? Do more of the things that make you happy, and less of the things that make you sad on a daily basis. If you let outer events influence your moods, attitude or behaviour, you become a victim of circumstances. You lose your freedom.
Appreciate what you have. Appreciation leads to happiness. Appreciate your life the way it is now, and then seek to improve it. Appreciate your friends, and your family members. Appreciate every act of kindness.
You have all you need. It is easy for you to think that you lack one or two things. The truth is that no one has it all. What you have is enough to take you to where you want to be. Don’t be conditioned by the society to feel that you need to have what the lady next door has. You should not compare yourself with others.
Enjoy life. Time ‘flies.’ Don’t be too busy with your life that you ignore enjoying yourself. Don’t let your life zoom off, enjoy it. Forget about the past and the future for a moment, and enjoy being here. Happiness should not only be experienced at the destination, but along the way to the destination.
Money is not equal to happiness. Money is an amplifier. It makes you become more of who you are already. If you have clear-cut goals, more money can make you achieve your goals faster. If you are confused, more money may increase your confusion.
Take charge of your finance. Money is important because of its purchasing power. Don’t spend on impulse. Spend from your budget. Learn to spend less than you earn because expenses will always rise to meet income.
Live on purpose with passion. What brings me the most joy is helping people to live the life of their dreams through my articles, life coaching and speaking engagement.
As you celebrate in this Yuletide season, don’t let your happiness end there. You can be happy for the rest of your life.
Red Red... they come....
BY OYINDAMOLA LAWALThe 2009 Ovation Red Carol lived up to its promise to be a carnival of red red red and... more red. It was an opportunity to make style statement... even in the loud, boisterous romantic red -- in all its shades.
The red spirit of the season not only dominated, but marked out the significance of the night’s attire, as celebrities, fashionistas, journalists and shakers of the society gathered in different shades of the colour to impress.
Dressed in stunning outfits such as spaghetti, empire, sleeveless and halter neck among others made with fabrics such as satin, ankara, cotton, taffeta and mercury, they walked the runway leaving lasting sensual impression.
Colours were extensively used, but the most visible and lively of all was red, which created a strong aura of love and excitement.
The fashionistas with their naturally image of excitement, energy, enthusiasm and confidence were pleasant to behold.
Davina, a new rec ording artiste, however, stood out, strutting the carpet in a very thrilling red, blue and yellow ankara combination.
The event, which held at the Expo Hall, Eko Hotel and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos, lived up to its billing. It was not just a night filled with musical entertainment and comedy, it was also an avenue to give hope to the less-priviledged in the society: people living in poverty; the people Wish for Africa are serving through its low-cost medical centres in Mafoluku, Ketu and Alagbado!
A donation of N1 million was given to Wish for Africa at this glamorous event to support the various projects of the Charity!
The event was co-sponsored by UBA and the Lagos State government .
Their most memorable Christmas... and their wish for 2010
Compiled by Shaibu Husseini & Damilola Adekoya
Actress GRACE AMAH
‘I think it is going to be this one because I am travelling to Calabar for the Festival. I have never had the opportunity to celebrate Christmas on this scale. It’s either I am working or we just do the normal stay at home, eat rice and visit friends and what have you. But I am really looking forward to this trip to Calabar. It is going to be special for me. My brothers and sisters will be there and then I will be part of the carnival. As for if I can still go all out to buy a Christmas dress? Oh, yes I can; if I am moved but I can’t even remember when last I bought a Christmas dress for myself. But if I feel like, I could do that — just something special for myself. So I can, but it was a normal thing then when we were growing up. And then it was wonderful and fun. We always looked forward to Christmas as kids and young people because that was the time to go shopping with mum to pick clothes and Christmas shoes and all that. So it was fun. And on that day, we will eat and then go visiting. In terms of New Year resolution, I think it is to accomplish all those things I couldn’t do this year. Basically to meet up with all those things I couldn’t meet up with this year. I will take out more time to be able to accomplish them. It is also going to be more like being nice to people….. well, continue to be nice to people’.
Actress FUNKE AKINDELE
‘Talking about my most memorable Christmas, I don’t think I have any one I can really say is my most memorable. May be as a child, and of course to us then Christmas was always fun. We always looked forward to Boxing Day when we would have a party in my uncle’s place. But generally, there is nothing special. We are so simple in our house. We just stay indoors, cook, eat and receive friends who visited us. I am not particularly an outdoor person, so I don’t really go out as such. I take every Christmas as it comes. I stay with my family at home, eat rice, chicken and drink. And in terms of dressing, I don’t think I have ever gone out of my way to buy a dress for Christmas since I became an adult. The only thing I consciously do is to take care of my hair; and nails and it is like that for all celebrations. Of course, I believe in New Year resolutions. Because what it entails is a conscious effort to look back at what you have achieved so far in 2009 and look at where you want to be in 2010. You identify your shortcomings and try to make amends and improve on your strong areas. For me, what I decided to do in 2010 is to take things very, very easy. There is no hurry in life. It is going to be one thing at a time for me. There is no rush anymore; after all, we rush because we have life. What If we are not alive?’
Actor, EMEKA OSSAI
Well I think my most memorable Christmas will be two years ago, which was the Christmas period that I was married again. My wedding was on the 27th and 28th of December 2007 and it was memorable, not that I had all the fun in my life, but I spent the time getting ready for my marriage instead of having fun as every other person would have done. My fun was supposed to be put on hold because of my marriage prep. It always reminds me of a Christmas that was delayed because of my marriage but eventually, it was very enjoyable. I don’t subscribe to all the talks about New Year resolutions. When most people make resolutions, sooner or later they go back to what they had said they would not do. I don’t think people should wait for a particular time to make resolutions. I believe resolutions can be made at any time. It doesn’t have to be in the New Year. If you are doing something that is not right for you, I am sure that you will not continue doing it because you are waiting for the year to come to an end before you make amends.
God should touch the hearts of our leaders so that they can be compassionate to the plights of the citizens. — Caston Dada
All the best to Nigeria and more importantly, we need good leaders to lead us to the right destination. — Odunlade Adekola
In 2010, I pray there shall be no more scarcity of fuel and also for our numerous problems to be solved. — Tunmininu (Skuki)
More development, good leaders, good roads, eradication of piracy in the entertainment industry and lastly, steady power supply; that’s all I wish for Nigerians in the New Year. — Dr pat
All we need, is positive insanity… — Sunkanmi Ogunade
I wish the electricity problem to be seriously looked into, so that we wouldn’t spend fortunes on generators. Also, I wish our president a quick recovery. — Atewo (Skuki)
In the New Year, I wish Nigerians the following; needs — met, desires — granted, money — enough, labour — reward, health — good, laughter — plenty, testimonies — positive.
— Imelda j
Solar energy in Nigeria, no fuel scarcity and better economy.
— Big Bamo
My wish for Nigeria, is to have uninterrupted power supply next year. — Gbile Durojaiye
My wish for Nigeria, is to experience good and si
ncere leadership in it’s essence… — Olodun AdeMy wish for Nigeria, is for her to have more positive people in government that will pass laws in favour of the entertainment sector; in the areas of finance and rights.
— Bhiara Mcwizu
I want our leaders to be more humane; to improve on security and all other social infrastructure.
— Adams Ibrahim
I wish Nigerians all the best next year and years beyond. — Dekunle Oloyede
Nigeria is our home, no matter what! We hope our leaders will learn. I wish Nigeria will become a home for all. — Uthman Balogun
Let there be light! And there ….
— Bovi Ugboma.
Monday, 4 January 2010
Private universities award nite stirs excitement
It was fun galore last weekend at this year’s outing of Nigeria’s private universities awards ceremony held at Jogor Centre, Ibadan. The event, put together by Matador Media Nigeria Limited in partnership with Fayrouz, a non-alcoholic soft drink, drew undergraduates from about a dozen private universities across Nigeria.The event was characterized by glamour, pizzazz and splendour with top-notch celebrities in attendance. X-Project led a score of other artistes to entertain the awardees and guests to make the night a great event.
Denrele Edun of SoundCity fame added excitement to the event with his eccentric performance to the delight of guests. Both Denrele and the X Project group carted home awards of recognition as Comic of the year and Music Artiste of the year, respectively.
According to the chief executive officer of Matador, Tayo Raji, the concept behind the event was to reward creativity and excellence in the social and academic spectrum amongst private university students and their alumni.
However, the event attracted a broad array of students from other private, state and federal universities as well as individuals from the general society. “Essentially the event is created to cultivate a positive and self discovering mentality as well as foster social and academic integration amongst private university students and Nigerian youths in Diaspora. In other words, rewarding and giving relevance to the social and academic life of youths thereby inclining their minds towards productivity and excellence,” Raji said.
Senior brand manager, Fayrouz; Nigerian Breweries Plc, Ita Bassey, said the company would continue to associate with projects that help to establish a viable forum where Nigerian youths both at home and in Diaspora can connect with each other in terms of academic, trend and lifestyle amongst other social indices.
Commending the organisers of the event, he noted that it had helped in no small measure to create an avenue for young, versatile and creative Nigerians to network and co-operate while highlighting and honouring the benefits of their conceptual skills for all to see, thereby inculcating the spirit of excellence and competition amongst young entrepreneurs in a dynamic and evolving economy such as ours.
He however, urged the youths to always channel their latent talent into aspirations worthy of nation building, by vigorously tackling the menace of social vices and youthful exuberance such as cultism, drug abuse, indiscriminate sex, desperate emigration, and fraud.
University of Technology kicks off in Nasarawa
From Abosede Musari, Abuja
THE educational sector will soon receive a boost with the establishment of a $25 million University of Technology, which is about to kick off in Nasarawa State.
The project, owned by a US-based Nigerian, Prof. Manny Aniebonam, is as a result of the technical cooperation facilitated by the Directorate of Technical Cooperation in Africa (DTCA), which mandate is to attract development initiatives from Africans living in the Diaspora to accelerate growth in the continent.
The blueprint of the project was presented to the governor of the state, Aliyu Akwe Doma, by the Director General of DTCA, Sule Yakubu Bassi and the project initiator, Prof. Aniebonam, at the directorate’s recent ministerial retreat in Lafia.
Bassi noted that his directorate had been at the forefront of promoting technical cooperation in Africa and attracting African experts to enhance development of the continent. He added that the directorate has the mandate to create right environment and opportunities for professionals in Nigeria and those of African descent to invest their intellect, expertise and skills in the economies of Africa.
Receiving the blueprints, the deputy governor of the state, John Mike Abdul, expressed satisfaction with the project and promised government’s support.
Aniebonam, president of over 1,500 Information Technology professionals in America, said the university would kick off with a $25 million fund and that it would be sited in Karu local government area of the state.
In an interview with The Guardian, Aniebonam explained that the university would work on the concept of alternative energy source, adding that the solar panels produced in the school would also have industrial parks that will encourage producers of technological materials abroad to come home to develop the country.
The don also said the school will improve the science and technology status of the country through the training of youths for the advancement of the economy. “The latest knowledge in hydro-power generation will also be explored, adding that Nigeria will export technology rather than importing it,” he said.
RIVCOHSTECH fetes retiring staff
FOR their dedication to duty, selfless service and commitment to the development of needed manpower in the health sector, retiring staff of the Rivers State College of Health Science and Technology (RIVCOHSTECH), were given a send-off dinner on Thursday, December 10.
The Provost of the institution, Dr. Nnanna Victor Onyekwere, said the retiring officers had contributed to raise the number and quality of manpower in the health sector of the state.
Wishing them well in their future endeavours, Onyekwere urged them to put in same degree of effort that made their days in the school memorable in whatever assignmrnt they find themselves handling.
In a chat with newsmen, the Provost called on the youths to use their energies to secure their future and leave a worthy legacy, saying that the present generation could not sustain the legacies left to them by previous generations thereby making life difficult for the youths, but if they could look beyond the constraints they face and act now to guarantee their future, things will be better.
Onyekwere further stated that the college’s 5-year development plan is aimed at repositioning it and make it financially self-sufficient, responsive to societal needs as well as to make it a centre of academic excellence.
The event witnessed the presentation of awards to Dr. Charles Amadi, Dr. Chime Onumbu, and Dr. Goodluck Azuruonwu, among others by the Registrar, Mrs. Owanate Lawson, while souvenirs were presented to the retirees by the wife of the Provost, Loretta Onyekwere.
Display of creativity, culture as Abuja hosts NYSC Cultural Week
By Abosede Musari
It was a display of creativity and cultural expression as the National Youth Service Corps held its annual cultural week in Abuja recently. The event, which hosted corp members from all over the country, was an avenue to exhibit the diverse cultural heritages of the people of this country.
Corps members converged in Abuja to display the various cultures of their host states and communities, with dance, drama sketches and artworks. The opening ceremony held at the Eagles Square witnessed a rich display of culture from the 13 states that participated.
The most thrilling aspect of the dances was the fact that the performers hailed from different cultures than the ones they were exhibiting. For instance, a young man of Yoruba origin was fun to see doing the energetic Ohafia war dance of Abia State, with a Hausa girl doing the Bata dance of Oyo State. This added colour to the event.
A director in the ministry, Mrs. Rabi Jimeta, represented the Minister of Youth and Sport Development, Senator Akinlabi Olasunkanmi. The minister said the essence of the cultural week was to use culture as a tool to promote peace and national integration. He also urged the entertainment industry to use the opportunity of the annual event to discover talents.
Director General of NYSC, Brigadier-General Ismaila Tsiga, in his speech, said that culture remains a veritable tool for social re-engineering, value re-orientation and integration, which is why the management of the scheme places a high premium on exploring and promoting indigenous cultural values through cross-cultural understanding and unity among the teeming graduate youths.
One of the artworks that caught attention of guests at the exhibition was the NYSC hand globe. The sculpture was done by a corps member from Yobe State, Ojile Clement Adaji. The artwork is a right hand carrying a globe. The globe represents the world and had the map of Africa on it. Adaji, in an interview with The Guardian said that the right hand represents friendship and strength.
The artwork, which later won the first price in the sculpture category of the competition is adjudged to attest to the influence, which the NYSC scheme is having on the rest of Africa and the world as represented, by the strings. This, according to the curator, Aminu Magaji, was evident by the recent requests by some African countries.
African universities get Carnegie $30m boost
By Tope Templer Olaiya
The Carnegie Corporation of New York has announced that it will commit $30 million over the next three years to a new higher education in Africa strategy that will prioritise strengthening the next generation of academics and university leaders. The foundation has spent more than $100 million supporting higher education in Africa in the past decade.
Carnegie President, Vartan Gregorian, said in a statement that grants would focus on South Africa, Ghana and Uganda, while complementary discipline-based regional networks will offer competitive training fellowships to academics and researchers throughout sub-Saharan Africa.
The new phase of grant making will fall into three key areas — investing in Africa’s next generation of academics, supporting information and communication technologies for research and education, and enhancing libraries and access to information.
Carnegie was a founder of the seven-member Partnership for Higher Education in Africa, an initiative created to strengthen higher education institutions so they are able to contribute to poverty reduction, economic growth and social development on the continent.
The Partnership’s total investments over 10 years were more than $350 million, including $100 million contributed by Carnegie to support reform in universities in Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania and Uganda. The foundation is also completing a nearly $20 million scholarship and fellowship commitment to support women’s advancement at universities.
However, there was a “troubling disconnect” between the expanding cohort of students and the number of people dedicating themselves to academia, exacerbated by lack of cutting-edge laboratories and other facilities to allow more world-class research.
As a result, the growing demand for professors, academic leaders and improved research facilities was not being met, Gregorian said: “Further compounding the problem is the often inadequate preparation of those who do enter academia and the rising tide of retirements among Africa’s aging cohort of initial post-independence academics.”
Tade Aina, Carnegie’s higher education programme director in Africa, said that the new grant-making strategy was a deepening and realignment of support for African universities based on priority areas identified by university leaders and stakeholders on the continent.
Ray Charles… The Singer’s Singer
BY BENSON IDONIJESINCE the demise of Ray Charles, jazz and blues singing have not been the same. And the reason is obvious. There has always been disagreement over balance between the creative and the interpretative in jazz instrumental music, which is a matter of improvisation. But by the nature of what the singer does, he is forced to be more an interpreter and less a creator than any other musician. He is singing words; he is interpreting another person’s story in a world where songs are written for singers by master lyricists.
Besides, since most popular song lyrics are on the banal level, it becomes the task of the singer himself to bring a poignant personal involvement to an otherwise banal situation; and not too many are up to it. It is, originally, a problem in interpretation — it is the lyricist’s story, but the singer must make it his own, and by doing so, make it the story of the audience. Ray Charles was one of such few singers.
Actually, many singers dead or alive have been sufficiently talented to refract banal emotions, but for Billy Holiday and Ray Charles, this emotion transformed into an ever present reservoir of pain, which made them come out bigger and more meaningful. In such cases, you get what the song means to the singer, not what it meant to the man who wrote it. As Ray Charles once said, “I sing the songs for what they mean to me.”
Apparently, the songs meant the same thing to a significant number of Ray Charles’ contemporaries. He was simultaneously considered the best of the rock and-roll singers, the best of the Jazz singers — a category in which he won the Down Beat International Critics Poll more than once, and one of the best pop singers, perhaps second only to Frank Sinatra.
The high esteem in which his singing was held tended to obscure his considerable accomplishment as a blues pianist, band leader, saxophonist, composer and arranger.
How Ray Charles achieved this high musical status is one of the most fascinating stories of show business history. The operative word is ‘soul’, a euphemism for the music of the Negro church, which was, by the late fifties, the most pervasive influence in contemporary American popular music.
Besides, being the basic informing influence in rhythm and blues, the music of the sanctified churches also made its presence felt in the country and western field. Since these two strains accounted for the general popular style that the theatre did not, hit tunes strongly tinged with this music was recorded by people as far from the tradition as Eydie Gorme.
At the same time, jazz rediscovered an overt use of Negro church material and an uncompromising blues singer like Lightnin’ Hopkins became a national figure, and the rise to enormous popularity of Ray Charles, became obvious .
Charles reached the peak of his popularity in the 60s when he released such hits as What ‘d I say, Hoagy Carmichael’s Georgia on my mind, Swanee River Rock and the like, which he gave emotional interpretations. It was also in the 60’s that he enlisted the services of the Raeletts, three beautiful ladies, whose harmony style perfectly matched the music of Ray Charles in terms of accompaniment and group-vocal treatments. It was also at that time that he had David ‘Fathead’ Newman, one of the most forceful tenor men of that period, as a soloist.
However, Ray Charles’ popularity was explained by his long-time friend, arranger Quincy Jones far more succintly. “He gets everything inside of him out”. And it is true that Charles displayed open, unselfconscious emotionalism, probably more so than any major jazz singer. But as many people were rep
elled by that kind of naked emotion as were attracted to it. Some people suddenly became nervous, restless as his raw shouts of pain filled a room, literally embarrassed by a kind of emotional honesty which they themselves were probably never able to summon up.
Such was not the case, however, when Ray Charles worked the Apollo, in Harlem. One of his shows there was likely to take on all the aspects of a combination revival meeting and breakfast dance, with shouts, choral response, and dancing in the aisles. The most astonishing thing about Ray Charles was that, on his own terms, he was able to capture a much wider audience than the Apollo regulars: some felt that the most saddening thing was that he altered those terms as soon as he had captured that audience. Some of his fans however preferred not to be disappointed or put off by his awkward stage antics, and confine their pleasure to his recorded materials.
Actually, it was on recorded works on Atlantic and Columbia labels that some heard him extensively in the 60s, singing and playing the piano at the same time. He recorded rhythm and blues materials and did a lot of jazz singing.
I was particularly intrigued by his jazz piano as well as his effort on the alto saxophone on Plenty Plenty Soul. Here, he played the piano and took a moving alto saxophone solo, an instrument which was attempting to squeak at a point because he overloaded it with the blues feeling, the same emotion that he invested in his singing.
But the great early Charles records were based on blues and gospel forms. The lyrics were concise, full of sharp psychological truth, and, for the most part, conspicuously lacking in the self pity that was the stock-in-trade of most popular songs. Perhaps the most deeply moving were the sad, chant-like gospel-derived songs of unrequited love: A full for you, What Would I do Without You. Its alright, and Drown in my tears.
There were examples of popular materials which were transmitted into infectious gospel: My Bonnie, Yes Indeed, and the small satiric master piece, Swanee River Rock. One also finds such uptempo, rocking, happy gospel derived songs such as Talkin ‘Bout you, Hallelujah I love her so, I got a woman, This little girl of mine, and a few splendid later materials such as I want a little girl.
Since much of Charles’ impact depended on direct communication with his audience, it was a good thing that Atlantic recorded two in-person appearances, Ray Charles at Newport and Ray Charles in person.
In the presence of an audience, the vocals took on a different cast than in the studio. On the Newport album, I got a woman, has the addition of a mournful, chantlike introduction in startling contrast to the body of the piece and a seemingly endless tag that includes everything from wordless shouting to an entertainer’s gimmick such as I got a woman right here in Newport.
The Newport set also contains Ray Charles’ masterpiece, the in-person performance of A Fool for you. A slow, agonising recital of pain, with uncalculated repetition of the word, “yeah” over an apt, organlike arrangement, it ends with a hair-raising cry of anguish that is the emotional equal of anything that has ever been recorded.
No matter the short-comings that live performance might introduce, Ray Charles was one of jazz’s great singer who could also use the voice for such related musical categories as rhythm and blues, and gospel. In actual fact, his treatment of Georgia on my mind which is a straight-ahead popular song goes to show how well Ray Charles could transform any song into the blues.
The high regard in which his singing was held tended to obscure his capability as a blues pianist, band leader, composer, arranger. But it also introduced a controversial element as to what jazz singing really is. No one has come any close to a definition than a list of names –Bessie Smith, of course and Billy Holiday, and Louis Armstrong. And, despite her own protestations, Mahalia Jackson. There are others who are apparently jazz singers at some times and not at others – Sarah Vaughan, Billy Eckstine, Dinah Washington, Ella Fitz gerald, Nina Simone – and this seems to be more a matter of material and accompaniment than of the singing itself. Then there is Frank sinatra who has been referred to as a ‘semi jazz’ singer obviously because the materials he sang are in the straight popular mould. Actually, this cannot be an excuse because it was possible for Ray Charles to transform those songs Sinatra sang in the conventional style to jazz or blues, as he wished. Which explains why Ray Charles was a singer’s singer.
What’s 2face up to?
TO get to this young artist, who’s gradually turning to a legend, these days one has to really go extra mile! So, when we came across him – purely by chance – we thought we couldn’t resist the temptation to drill him a little bit! You think you’ve heard all 2face has to say? Well, try this!You’ve been in music business for 10 years, what are the things that have kept you going?
The love for all I do. I truly, deeply, love making music, writing, recording, performing… everything.
You’ve had a torrid relationship with the media, how do you manage interviews such as this?
I don’t think I’ve had a bad relationship with the press. A section, at a certain point in time, maybe. But like everything in life, there are people who want to attack and others, who want to show their appreciation of what you do. I take it as it comes.
You’ve had a turbulent last few years, is there anything that, given the benefit of hindsight, you would do different either in your professional life or personal life?
I’m thankful for all the experiences. Some have caused me some discomfort but I accept the good and the not so good as experiences you have to undergo as you grow in life.
This year you’ve gone from Abuja to Calabar to Makurdi. And there’s yet Bayelsa on the way. What is the significance, if any, of the locations chosen to celebrate your 10th year in the business?
We have tried to spread out the activities to reach as many different locations and classes of people as possible because the 2Face brand connects with all kinds of people everywhere. We had two shows in Abuja, a show for middle class fans and a VIP package; Calabar hosted my birthday bash because my friends there insisted they wanted that; Bayelsa is for my Niger Delta people; Makurdi was a charity event in support of the NAFDAC public awareness initiative. We’ll have one in Jos hopefully. It’s the land of my birth and we’re working with the state government to organise a peace walk to mark the anniversary of the crisis. Of course, there must be something for Lagos; you know now. We must represent for Lasgidi, no shaking!
What is the relationship with the mothers of your children?
We dey try. Everything is chilling! We have a responsibility to the kids.
In the last month alone, you’ve been to Canada, Malaysia and the United States. How do you cope with the itinerant musician you are? And how do your kids cope?
It gets crazy at times considering that you have to add Abidjan, Jo’burg and Nairobi to that list; plus all the local Naija runs for like Port Harcourt, Bayelsa, Abuja, Makurdi. Sometimes sef I no dey get chance even sleep. But that’s been the reality for a few years now. I’m thankful to God. I’d rather have this than be idle and unwanted. I try to create time for the kids in between these trips. It’s something to constantly work on.
Your last album, despite reports of not being a commercial success, is an apparent critical success having won several awards within and outside the country. Moving forward, how does this bring to bear on your songwriting and future materials?
We thank the Lord. It’s always been like this. The people who focus on the music have expressed a deep sense of satisfaction with the album from the onset. Those who were preoccupied with other issues really didn’t listen to the album. That’s why every now and then you hear someone say, this “na 2Face song? I no bin know say e dey that album o!” Half the people who have talked about the album say it is their favourite 2Face album yet; so sometimes you wonder where all the stuff is coming from. The album is soon to be officially released into the international market and the licensees are excited about the prospects; so really, The Unstoppable has done pretty well. There have been marketing hitches within the local market and we needed to have done a little more with the initial promotion. But it’s a young label. Every every go dey arrange as we dey carry dey go. As for songwriting, I’m spontaneous. I don’t really work with formulas. I follow the inspiration in whatever direction it leads. I don’t like limiting myself to one style and approach because it has given me a hit before.
Why does an international star of your status retire to Festac Town after traveling the world? And especially after the attacks you’ve had in the community.
FT is my hood and I’m very attached to it, I must confess. But then again, we are who we are. Whatever Nigeria is today is what we have made of it. Probably I’m saying some real world-class products can come out of all kinds of places in Nigeria no matter how tough it is to survive here. I might also be trying to call the attention of the leadership to the fact that every neighborhood can be upgraded so that all of us are not struggling to move to just one part of town. If you look around you’ll find that there are a couple of very decent stretches of property in all kinds of places – Festac, Ikeja, Agege, Omole everywhere. The general state of security, roads and other things just has to be upgraded. All of us no suppose to squeeze ourselves for just one place now. Abi how you check am?
What is the idea behind the KAMSUP Free Concert on January 1, 2010?
It is meant to be the climax of the Infinit2: A Decade Of Trailblazin’ package; my 10th anniversary celebration. KAMSuP is short code for Kids Against the Menace of Sub-Standard Products. As you know, I am a NAFDAC ambassador and we’re driving the free concert with the NAFDAC theme. My friends and I will be giving a free concert to about 5000 young people as a New Year’s Day present from Hypertek, Now Muzik and the Infinit2 production team.
You are relatively quiet despite your stature. You have given back to the society through several platforms. As someone in showbiz, why do you choose to be silent about such things when you could let your fans and detractors know what you are doing in the background?
Selfless service is best served quiet. Sometimes it gets out. Some of what I have done gets reported. Management and publicists will insist but really I would rather just do what I can. As long as the beneficiary feels the impact, they don’t even have to know who has given.
Is there a point in your career that stands out as a highlight; a point when things took a turn for the better or otherwise and changed your life for good?
Ol’ boy those kind times dem many o. I can’t pinpoint a particular one but I have a lot of major moments — good and not-so-good.
It would seem that you have been off the radar for a bit. What have you been up to?
Off the radar? Not sure how exactly you mean but ok. I’ve been up to finishing work on The Unstoppable (The International Edition), working on a few videos, executing Infinit 2 events in Calabar, Lagos, Makurdi, Bayelsa, Jos and more. I gave performances both at the MAMAs and the Channel O Awards, won at the Africa Music Awards in Europe. I was nominated for the Face of Hope, I played at the Miss ECOWAS pageant in Port Harcourt, recently did concerts in Canada, Abidjan, Kuala Lumpur, Dallas. With so much on my plate, maybe I should be permanently off the radar.
You have an upcoming exclusive event in Lagos as part of the Infinit2 series. What are your teeming fans supposed to expect?
2Face Idibia Live, Upclose and Intimate is an exclusive show for a select crowd. It is 2Face like you have never seen me before. There will be a brief cocktail, then two hours of me, my music and my audience upclose and intimate. Just like we describe am but no too fear the “intimate” part. Na intimate but no be one-on-one so no cause for panic.
Everybody has an opinion as to who you are and who you should be. Do you feel pressured because you are a role model? Do you ever have to do anything because you know the camera and the lights are on?
There is constant pressure I can’t lie. What I miss most is my freedom, freedom to be me, be ordinary, freedom to experience life, make mistakes and learn from them. But most times the pressure keeps you on your toes in a positive way because there are millions of young people looking up to me. It’s a responsibility I welcome but I am only human. I will make mistakes. I will feel low and weak sometimes. Life is like that. Maybe it’s also a good thing that people see you stumble so they know it’s a part of life. They need to draw inspiration from the success of their role models but basically find the heroes inside themselves because nobody holy pass.
What is the next step for you?
A new phase. The next decade by the grace of God: more work, better music and hopefully better results.
The album, The Unstoppable, postured as an international release (or an album targeted at an international audience). How successful was that venture in your own estimation?
We are on course. We just sorted out distribution and push. We are looking good. Everything chilling chilling.
You have worked with some rather big names in the past and are friends with multi-platinum selling recording artistes Wyclef and Akon. How did you handle the R. Kelly debacle? How do you feel about the fact that you are being discredited despite your enviable track record?
People should first of all verify the claim and sources of the guys who reported the R. Kelly disclaimer. Thereafter, I will feel obliged to really respond because I wouldn’t have any reasons to raise issues with R Kelly’s lawyers or representatives if truly R. Kelly never said that. It’s unfortunate that after recording with Clef, Beenie Man, Chaka Demus and Pliers and a lot of other great artistes I have had a lot of respect for on deals that I even did not solicit for, people would be somewhere trying to suggest that I will condescend to the level of doing what I am now being accused of. Very unfortunate. But then again, people are people. Some of us are straight-forward, others are not so straight-forward. Na so.
The CARNIRIV peace... comes to Garden City
Monday, December 14 to Sunday, December 20 upped the beat in Port Harcourt as the ‘Garden City’ hosted the second edition of Carnival in Rivers State (CARNIRIV). The cultural event was re-introduced to the state’s calendar by Governor Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi last year.
The 2009 event began on a bright note with a parade involving the 23 local councils in the state including Abua/Odual, Eleme, Okrika, Ikwere, Obio-Akpor and Andoni, among others.
Held at the specially constructed CARNIRIV Village, where Governor Amaechi, welcomed all participants and stakeholders during the launch of the Africa Cultural Exhibition Village, the eight-day fiesta held without any trace of violence that had of recent become part of the reputation of River State. It was an opportunity to show that peace had returned to the city.
The governor and the cabinet members as well as the state legislators flagged off the carnival at Artillery Junction, amid lavish rhythms of traditional drumbeats from various groups.
Governor Amaechi and his wife, his deputy, Tele Ikuru and other cabinet members led the float that was designed in boat- like form with expensive wrappers tied around it.
About 40 floats depicting different cultural icons of the state participated in the procession which lasted several hours with all the local councils in attendance. Different floats represented the sponsors, corporate organisations and representatives of all the local councils with music blaring from vehicles on move.
Groups from Akuku-Toru, Bonny, Opobo Nkoro, Okirika, Asari-Toru Local Council of the state rode through the streets in a fishlike motor train in order to demonstrate their fishing occupation with their chairman or traditional leader on top of the train.
Also, participants from Obio-Akpor councils rode along side in a crocodile-shaped train, a representation of the amphibious habitat of the people.
Similarly, Emuoha Local Council riveted the streets with cow head motor train with palm trees around emitting smokes on top showcasing their agricultural prowess.
A lot of people including pregnant women and children danced and gyrated, not minding the long distance and the scorching sun.
Other attractions include horse ride, skating on road, bike displays and lots of fun.
IN his speech, the Governor said: “We are happy with this innovation of African Cultural Exhibition Village, it has afforded our people and our visitors across the world a first- hand assessment of our cultural values, norms, tradition and our beautiful way of life. We welcome you all to the Garden City for this year’s CARNIRIV. It promises to be exciting and interesting.”
Amaechi noted that the successful hosting of the event has demonstrated to the world that Port Harcourt has changed from the way it was portrayed by the international media.
He noted that many hotels have been opened and are all fully booked, as investors are coming in to the state, showing that peace has been restored.
The Commissioner of Culture and Tourism, Marcus Nle-Ejii, was full of delight saying, “you have all seen it yourself, it is a whole lot of activities and what I thank God for is the level of comportment of the people, we are proud that peace and normalcy have returned to River State.”
According to Jackson Tompson, “at every point in time, there is need for this kind of thing. In the time past, we used to have this kind of thing, but for reasons we cannot explain it just stopped, the re-introduction of this by Governor Amaechi is the best thing that has happened to us and we have embraced it. I can’t remember last time I trekked like this, but today you can see I trekked from Artillery Junction to the Aggrey Road still feeling happy and excited.”
For Mrs. Comfort Emmanuel, who hails from Edo State but resides in Port Harcourt, the festival has helped to solve the perennial crisis in the state.
She said, “I came out not because am from Rivers State but I like what is happening here. I started with them since yesterday, I joined them as early as 4am at the Air Force base and here we are. We are all here for this event, tribe is no longer a major issue, we are here celebrating together. This can as well enhance economic activities; for example, the hat everybody is wearing, you don’t want to know whether it is a Rivers man that produced it or an Igbo man but all you care is, it is for the carnival.”
David George, who grieved that the people had been deprived such a privilege of fun and celebration for several years, said he was glad to meet his friends and love ones at the event, whom he had lost contact with.
Hear him, “Rivers State people have been deprived of fun for over 20 years. It has been long we had this kind of experience, we are so happy for this.”
An applicant, Mr. Simeon Amobi who lauded the effort of the State government for organizing the event, however stressed the need to create job opportunities for the youths.
The acting Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr. Blessing Wikina, said the carnival had restored lost glory of the state. He called on investors to make use of the opportunity and start investing in business and other ventures in the state.
Commissioner for Education, Dame Nemi Lawrence, said, “this is something that has never happened in Rivers State before where there is so much unity; here you see your brother you have not seen for several years; it will enhance economic activity in the state.”
Similarly, the state Commissioner of Information, Mrs. Ibim Semenitari, said the event was worth celebrating because it generated a lot of activities in the economy, particularly at the micro economy level, as River’s entrepreneurs seized the carnival opportunity in making greater sales.
In her words, “you can see there was a lot of alternative economy, people were selling water, ice cream and all kinds of things, those who made the floats, T-shirts as well as those who sold carnival costumes made some money.”
She explained that the carnival has a way it reverberates internally to generate a lot of income for the common people.
Mrs. Semenitari said apart from the feeling of togetherness, fun and friendliness, the cultural event in terms of tourism, showed the celebration of the rich culture of the state, which would help young people to understand more about their root.
CARNIRIV 2009 is an initiative of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Rivers State, sponsored by International Energy Insurance (IEI) Plc, Total E &P, Oil and Gas Freezone Authority and with support from SPDC while Yibs Ensemble is the Event Consultant and ZMC, a leading entertainment agency in Lagos is the marketing and communication consultant for the event.
Melody Unuakpor... a promise fulfilled
BY CHUKS NWANNEWhen Melody Unuakpor resolved to give part of the proceeds from her debut album to the Centre for Women’s Health & Information (CWHI) to start up a campaign against maternal mortality, many people, even the NGO, doubted the possibility of that happening. But for the mother of three, there’s no better way to show appreciation to God for saving her from preeclapsia, which took away her first pregnancy. In fact, it was by the grace of God that the singer survived. With the album successfully launched earlier in the year at the Agip Recital Hall, MUSON Centre, Onikan, Lagos, Melody has finally fulfilled her promise by donating part of the proceeds to the NGO, which was used to organize a one-day campaign on maternal mortality held recently in Ibeju, Lekki, a remote part of Lagos, which attracted mothers, especially pregnant women from the community and their men, who came to witness the event. “Well, I think it was a divine connection; we’ve never met Melody before. She just pulled a call through one day and said, “I read about your organisation on the Internet, I like what you are doing and I will like it to support it.’ Initially, we were very skeptical because such things never happens; you hardly find Nigerians, especially individuals, who want to support the work of NGOs,” Adebanke Akeleresi, one of the founders of the home confessed at the campaign. She commended the donor for her gesture, calling on the government and individuals to contribute to the campaign. “If you look at the figure in Nigeria, you see that the rate is very high. So, it was a great thing when she came up with the idea of giving part of the proceeds from his album launch to awareness campaign on maternal mortality. This is a community we’ve been working with before especially on women issues and we need government to support people and provide services so that when there’s complication, women will see where to go for medication. There are health facilities in the cities, but here, you hardly get such things and that’s why we’ve decided to focus on this particular area.” Speaking at the event, Melody charged women to always take care of their health, especially during pregnancy period. “Sometimes, some women are careless about their health and lack of information on the other hand, is also a problem. We really need to watch ourselves very well especially during pregnancy. I feel wonderful; I feel great. I’m happy that I’ve been able, by the grace of God, to touch lives here; it’s part of our whole existence.” On her choice of Ibeju Lekki for the campaign, Melody explained that, “people in this part of the country lack the basic information about life; a lot of them don’t have the opportunity of coming to the cities. Funny enough, when such complications starts, a lot of them believe it must have been sent from the villages or by their enemies. I think campaigns like this will help to enlighten them on how best to take care of their health especially during pregnancy.” Meanwhile, Melody, who just concluded the shooting of her music videos, plans to extend the gesture to other parts of the country. “This is something I will like to continue. In fact, I was touched when I saw all these pregnant women gathered here for this project. It’s something we need to continue no matter how much; no amount is little.” The event featured lecture by some experts, who were contracted to speak to the women. Free drugs and counseling were also parts of the benefits for participants.
Murphy’s law
BY WOLE OGUNTOKUN
THIS is the last piece for 2009 and The Whisperer wishes everyone reading a beautiful end to the year and hopes only your good dreams will come to pass.
Earlier this month, The Whisperer wrote on this page, of his love and admiration for the female actor and singer, Brittany Murphy.
It was her essence that seemed to shine through and if some could not get what the fascination was about, it did not matter to him.
She appeared in the movies, Clueless; Girl, Interrupted (where Angelina Jolie-Pitt won herself an Oscar); the critically acclaimed Sin City and Edward Burns’ The Sidewalks of New York, among many others.
Seeing Brittany in a movie was enough to make me watch it. For those who follow The Whisperer’s articles, her name was a recurring theme; and it had to do with that happy face of hers, a child-like spirit even the magic of celluloid could not hide and the fact that she was always a delight to watch.
And then she died. Just like that. We were told she collapsed in the bathroom of the home she shared with her husband and died of a cardiac arrest at the age of 32.
I was numb with shock though I had never met with Ms. Murphy and was just a couple of weeks earlier, threatening to run the obstacle course that is the American Embassy if only to meet her.
Brittany was born to a mother of Irish and Eastern Europe descent and a father who is Italian-American, a product of the American dream but she was gone just like that, without notice or any kind of advance warning.
For me, it was like the death of Michael Jackson to many others. They had never met him either but felt that he had touched their lives in many ways.
How does someone whom you have never met affect you? All those of you who talk of Mandela or the grown men who have pictures of Christiano Ronaldo on their walls can explain that to the people asking.
It is not a thing that can actually be grasped; it is the idea of the person, the very essence (that word again) that connects with you when you come across the work, art or life of the person in issue, and Brittany was one of those who did it for me.
Nicole Kidman too, for those who may be wondering if there is a pattern, and a long list of people of African descent for those who may think I am stuck only on people of European/American descent.
And we come to the point of my writing today. What if I was attracted only to a certain kind of woman? Japanese? Korean? Aboriginal?
How does my love interest in only a certain kind of woman affect the life of anybody else?
Why do people make it a point to study the lives of others as if their lives depended on it while they leave their own cooking fires unattended? (Cue Tiger Woods to walk past at this moment)
MURPHY died and across the world and in many places, the rumbling started. How does a 32-year-old die of a cardiac arrest? The allusion? She might have been messing around in her bathroom with some substances.
The point is I do not care whatever she might have been doing. A beautiful woman died, and therein lies the tragedy.
She had no business dying. She should have lived to find more glory and fame, walk down the red carpet to pick an Oscar, give The Whisperer a hug on her way past his seat and a quick whisper in the ear saying, “I made it, Wole.”
We do not ask how children under the age of five years get cancer but they do. Will the truly wretched stand up and say it was on account of something the child’s parents did in a previous life?
Brittany Murphy died and that is the long and short of it. If she was not murdered, we must let the matter be and not whisper in dark and dank places of how she might have lost her life.
They say only people with good businesses mind their own, it would be a good thing if we could get more people to focus on theirs.
By the way, for those who do not know me, I have never smoked, drank or touched any substance that is labelled ‘a hard drug’. Am I human? Yes, I am.
I was talking to my friend yesterday, and she spoke of a rumour that went past her just after we left university, of me living in the home of a certain female ‘friend’ at one time in that area called Adeniyi Jones Avenue, Ikeja, where the truly well-heeled stay.
I remember the accommodation because I stayed there for a few years. It was a mighty house in which I counted seven bedrooms and back-quarters bigger than the houses most people stay in.
The thing, however, was the house was owned by my maternal uncle, my mother’s older brother and I stayed there alone except you wanted to count the times my first cousin, Bomi, my uncle’s daughter, would wander in from the university in Ibadan and spend time over.
It was her father’s house after all. The originators of the rumours were people I considered my friends, people I had fellowship with and prayed alongside.
It was mindless gossip, malicious, without basis, and therein lies Murphy ’s Law – the world is full of undeveloped minds and they will come after you, alive or dead.
STILL, what do we care that some people seem only obsessed at churning out grist for the rumour mills?
An elderly producer I used to think knew the limits of wisdom went on the pages of a newspaper a few days ago, to say Funke Akindele’s movie, Jenifa, only came to life because she was dating the marketer.
I felt demeaned, violated by reading such drivel and I couldn’t even begin to imagine what Akindele herself must feel like.
So, I ask that as we hurtle through the last days of this year and brace ourselves for the New Year, we make this world a better place in the little ways we can by not succumbing to this version of Murphy’s Law where people will speak evil of others just because they can.
Remind yourself that the best days of your life are not behind you, they are ahead of you. May 2010 be the best year you have lived through yet. Amen.
laspapi@yahoo.com
THIS is the last piece for 2009 and The Whisperer wishes everyone reading a beautiful end to the year and hopes only your good dreams will come to pass.
Earlier this month, The Whisperer wrote on this page, of his love and admiration for the female actor and singer, Brittany Murphy.
It was her essence that seemed to shine through and if some could not get what the fascination was about, it did not matter to him.
She appeared in the movies, Clueless; Girl, Interrupted (where Angelina Jolie-Pitt won herself an Oscar); the critically acclaimed Sin City and Edward Burns’ The Sidewalks of New York, among many others.
Seeing Brittany in a movie was enough to make me watch it. For those who follow The Whisperer’s articles, her name was a recurring theme; and it had to do with that happy face of hers, a child-like spirit even the magic of celluloid could not hide and the fact that she was always a delight to watch.
And then she died. Just like that. We were told she collapsed in the bathroom of the home she shared with her husband and died of a cardiac arrest at the age of 32.
I was numb with shock though I had never met with Ms. Murphy and was just a couple of weeks earlier, threatening to run the obstacle course that is the American Embassy if only to meet her.
Brittany was born to a mother of Irish and Eastern Europe descent and a father who is Italian-American, a product of the American dream but she was gone just like that, without notice or any kind of advance warning.
For me, it was like the death of Michael Jackson to many others. They had never met him either but felt that he had touched their lives in many ways.
How does someone whom you have never met affect you? All those of you who talk of Mandela or the grown men who have pictures of Christiano Ronaldo on their walls can explain that to the people asking.
It is not a thing that can actually be grasped; it is the idea of the person, the very essence (that word again) that connects with you when you come across the work, art or life of the person in issue, and Brittany was one of those who did it for me.
Nicole Kidman too, for those who may be wondering if there is a pattern, and a long list of people of African descent for those who may think I am stuck only on people of European/American descent.
And we come to the point of my writing today. What if I was attracted only to a certain kind of woman? Japanese? Korean? Aboriginal?
How does my love interest in only a certain kind of woman affect the life of anybody else?
Why do people make it a point to study the lives of others as if their lives depended on it while they leave their own cooking fires unattended? (Cue Tiger Woods to walk past at this moment)
MURPHY died and across the world and in many places, the rumbling started. How does a 32-year-old die of a cardiac arrest? The allusion? She might have been messing around in her bathroom with some substances.
The point is I do not care whatever she might have been doing. A beautiful woman died, and therein lies the tragedy.
She had no business dying. She should have lived to find more glory and fame, walk down the red carpet to pick an Oscar, give The Whisperer a hug on her way past his seat and a quick whisper in the ear saying, “I made it, Wole.”
We do not ask how children under the age of five years get cancer but they do. Will the truly wretched stand up and say it was on account of something the child’s parents did in a previous life?
Brittany Murphy died and that is the long and short of it. If she was not murdered, we must let the matter be and not whisper in dark and dank places of how she might have lost her life.
They say only people with good businesses mind their own, it would be a good thing if we could get more people to focus on theirs.
By the way, for those who do not know me, I have never smoked, drank or touched any substance that is labelled ‘a hard drug’. Am I human? Yes, I am.
I was talking to my friend yesterday, and she spoke of a rumour that went past her just after we left university, of me living in the home of a certain female ‘friend’ at one time in that area called Adeniyi Jones Avenue, Ikeja, where the truly well-heeled stay.
I remember the accommodation because I stayed there for a few years. It was a mighty house in which I counted seven bedrooms and back-quarters bigger than the houses most people stay in.
The thing, however, was the house was owned by my maternal uncle, my mother’s older brother and I stayed there alone except you wanted to count the times my first cousin, Bomi, my uncle’s daughter, would wander in from the university in Ibadan and spend time over.
It was her father’s house after all. The originators of the rumours were people I considered my friends, people I had fellowship with and prayed alongside.
It was mindless gossip, malicious, without basis, and therein lies Murphy ’s Law – the world is full of undeveloped minds and they will come after you, alive or dead.
STILL, what do we care that some people seem only obsessed at churning out grist for the rumour mills?
An elderly producer I used to think knew the limits of wisdom went on the pages of a newspaper a few days ago, to say Funke Akindele’s movie, Jenifa, only came to life because she was dating the marketer.
I felt demeaned, violated by reading such drivel and I couldn’t even begin to imagine what Akindele herself must feel like.
So, I ask that as we hurtle through the last days of this year and brace ourselves for the New Year, we make this world a better place in the little ways we can by not succumbing to this version of Murphy’s Law where people will speak evil of others just because they can.
Remind yourself that the best days of your life are not behind you, they are ahead of you. May 2010 be the best year you have lived through yet. Amen.
laspapi@yahoo.com
Monday, 7 December 2009
Yuletide calls
BY OYINDAMOLA LAWALAS the Yuletide approaches, many ladies will be pre-occupied with the thoughts of what to wear — shoes, accessories, outfits, and jewellery, among others, that will make fashion statement.
Dressing and being classy is all about exuding confidence that sticks out in the apparel. From the retro prints of the 70s to Roman goddess togas; the dazzling metallic to exotic floral prints and sash, colours such as lime green and pretty corals, in the last few months, the runway has seen a whole range of designs that will rock 2010.
What to wear during Yuletide
As you shop for those classic, timeless, elegant and gracious fabrics to wear for the season’s outing, adding some romance to your look will not be a bad idea; try on sleeveless dress that has sash at waist.
Also, you can shop for garments and accessories for the season and beyond; go for outfits that complement your shape, beauty, appearance and complexion.
When shopping, it is best to choose clothes that flatter your body shape. You should buy clothes that look great on you; do not compromise on this as you’ll be the better dressed for it.
Your clothes need to swathe over your figure and flatter them. They shouldn’t just drop down your shoulders in shapeless manner. Opt for fitted and tailored garments because those are what look absolutely stunning.
Shoes and Bags
These accessories can either literally make or break an outfit, investing in a pair of shoes and bag for everyday wear will update your outfit, it also says a bit about who you are. A big bag looks great; moreso, you can have a lot of items in it. It looks timeless, elegant and fashionable. For shoes, opt for high-heeled pumps, wedges, ballet flats, loafers and brogues.
Makeup
When choosing makeup that will enhance your beauty, either foundation, powder blusher, bronzer, eye shades, eye pencils, mascara, eye liner, concealer to mention a few, go for one that suits your skin and is appropriately coloured.
For everyday, use mineral makeup that will give you a lovely, fresh glowing look that will look radiant and appear as if you are not wearing any makeup at all. It will not sit on your skin, but will be feather light and you will not even feel it at all.
Most importantly, you are beautiful so, start walking with elegance and grace. Be confident yet not cocky; be gracious, and you will exuberate that aura of classiness. Do not slouch when sitting down; make sure you sit up with your back straight.
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