I will do anything to protect my career- GODWIN JENNIFER actress

Jennifer Godwin

Few days ago naijaview24 crew caught up with Nigeria fast raising Nollywood actress Jennifer Godwin ONSET recording a movie with some big Nollywood stars. according to source jennifer has been busy since this year started trying her best to make herself relivant in the movie in dustry, when she was ask what are those thing she will do to protect her career, she opened up and said - '' I can do anything to protect my acting career.

Jennifer has stared in movies such as BEST OF FRIEND, THE POTFOLIO, THE HOOD amongs others. Jennifer is from ABIA STATE, she is a model, a dancer and an actress. WHATOUT FOR HER.......................

Human trafficking: Police rescue 2 Nigerian ladies from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia

Two Nigerian ladies who were sold to work as housemaids in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia by an Ibadan-based travel agency, have been rescued by the Oyo State Police Command.
The Commissioner of Po­lice in the Oyo State, Mr. Mo­hammed Katsina, disclosed this while parading the duo before newsmen in Ibadan at the weekend.
Besides, the police have arrested the 39-year-old man­aging director of the travel agency, Victor (surname with­held by us), who arranged the journey for the duo.
The two ladies were brought  back to Nigeria on Thursday and were received by men of the command at the Murtala International Airport in La­gos, before they were taken to Ibadan.
Narrating her ordeal, 28-year-old Biola (surname withheld) rescued from Ku­wait, said she has Diploma in Industrial Labour Relations and she travelled for greener pastures. She noted that she was told she would be em­ployed to work as a teacher, nurse or with a travel agency before she left Nigeria for Ku­wait.
According to her, the travel agent charged her N150,000 for the journey. But she only paid N80,000 and the agent al­lowed her to go with the hope that she would pay the remain­ing N70,000 after working for two months.
But what she met in Kuwait was not what she expected. She was asked to work as housemaid for certain period to get resident permit. But the work, she said, was too much for her.
According to her, she told the travel agent that received her in Kuwait, Ibrahim, be­lieved to be an Ethiopian that she wanted to return to Nige­ria. The agent was furious and demanded that she must pay him N350,000, the amount he claimed to have paid to buy her with before she would be allowed to go. Thereafter, he allegedly denied Biola her freedom.
Biola further stated that she was advised to either continue to work as housemaid or take to prostitution to pay back the money. She rejected the two offers.
She managed to call some­body in Nigeria few days later and the information got to the police.
Also, the same fate befell the second victim, 29-year-old Taiwo (surname with­held), a single mother rescued from Saudi Arabia. She holds a Higher National Diploma (HND) certificate in Account­ing. She said the managing director of the travel agency did not collect any money from her before she travelled, adding that he’s a pastor in her church.

My problem with Anenih, PDP leaders – Osunbor

Professor Oserhemen Osunbor is a household name in Edo politics. He is regarded as one of the best brains in law in Nigeria. Since he delved into politics in 1999, Professor Osunbor has remained relevant and has occupied various elective and appointive positions. He rep­resented Edo Central in the Nigerian Senate between 1999 and 2007. He was elected as governor of Edo State in 2007 after which he was removed by the election petition tribunal in 2008. Since his exit from office, he has served in various boards and agencies, among which is the Nigerian Law Re­forms Commission.
In this interview with FRED ITUA in Abuja, the Professor of Law opened up on a number of issues. He explained how his frosty relationship with Chief Tony Anenih led to his recent defection from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) where he now serves as a member of the party’s Board of Trustees (BoT). He equally has other reasons he left the PDP. Professor Osunbor spoke briefly on expectations from Nigeri­ans from the incoming government, the constitution review logjam, anti-corruption war, among others.
Excerpts:
What’s your take on the recent general elections?
The 2015 general elections have been adjudged to be free, fair and credible. There was less violence recorded in the 2015 elections than in the 2011 elections. The elections were adjudged to have been successful both by local and international observers. The 2015 elections appear to me more successful than the 2011 elections, which is why Mr. President readily conceded defeat. Incidents of rigging and inflation of votes were also less. Hence, the total num­ber of votes recorded in 2015 were lesser than those recorded in 2011. I agree that there are challenges that need to be addressed by INEC as it prepares for the next elections. That has to do with the use of card readers and voters’ cards. The shortcomings in the card readers have been exposed, particularly the use of incidence forms. I think that using forms in the last elections has opened windows for rigging and manipulation. These have to be addressed in the future and if possible, dispense the use of incidence forms. INEC should perfect the system whereby card readers can be used to au­thenticate voters. I want to see a situation where the card readers can have a tally with the total number of votes it accredited and the total number of readers. When you are using incidence forms side by side, you cannot know the number of accredited voters. That opens the window for rigging and manipulation. I want to see the incidence of under-aged voters addressed. Under-aged voting in my view, casts a slug on the integrity of our electoral system and must be addressed and stopped by INEC in future elections.
What are your expectations from the incoming government of General Muhammadu Buhari?
What I can say is that, APC manifesto has set out the problems of this country and how the incoming government intends to tackle them. I have no better agenda of my own to propose to the party, especially with peo­ple like the incoming President, General Buhari in charge and assisted by Professor Yemi Osinbajo. He is a man I know to be very thorough. The government will be guided by a great man of repute, Chief Odigie Oyegun. Of course, we have the national leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, a man of vast experience. With those people guiding the process and other personalities involved, I am sure APC administration will be able to address the concerns of Nigerians. They have articulated these concerns clearly. What remains is to translate their own proposals for tackling these problems into action.
Given the realities, do you think General Buhari can meet the expectations of Nigerians within a short space of time?
My answer is that, governance is a continuous process. I do not imagine that any government, whether in Nigeria or in any part of the world can ad­dress all the concerns of the electorate. It cannot happen. By nature, human beings are never satisfied. They are prone to ask for more. As much as it is practicable, they know that the expectations are very high. But with the antecedents of the personalities I have mentioned, the APC government will be able to address the concerns of Nigerians.
Do you intend to run for the governorship seat in Edo State in 2016? How do you intend to navigate through the web of godfathers to get what you want?
Well, let me say that the political class you talked about is the PDP po­litical class which was completely not interested in the progress of the peo­ple. That is why they have suffered the crushing defeat they have suffered. But the APC leadership is very different. That is one of the reasons I bade the PDP goodbye. I saw that they were only interested in their pockets. They were not interested in the wellbeing of their people. They were not interested in developing Edo State or Nigeria, but were after what they can get. To address your question more directly as to my possible governorship aspiration, what I can say with all sincerity is that my preoccupation is as­similation within the various levels of my new party, APC. My immediate concern is to be a good member of the party and work for its progress at every level. That includes working for the success of the government at the federal and state levels. Thereafter, we can ask for the party’s support for any aspirations, including aspiring for the governorship ticket of 2016. What the people are saying is correct. I also hear this from many people. It is the party that decides who flies its ticket, not the voters. APC is a party that shops for a winning candidate. APC does not sell its ticket. I am not aware that any candidate sells its ticket to any governorship candidate. APC will look for a winning candidate in 2016 and give him the ticket. As I say, my preoccupation is to join hands with other leaders to make APC government a success.
It appears APC is still very weak in your senatorial district, Edo Central. Going forward, how do you intend to strengthen the party?
First of all, APC is not as weak in Edo Central as it used to be. In the 2011 general elections, PDP won five out of the six House of Assembly seats. Now, the six seats have been shared equally. Even the success of PDP in Edo Central during the elections was helped a great deal by money made from Ministry of Works and National Ports Authority (NPA). Hopefully in the future, those sources of funding will not be there. The powers that they used to derive from Abuja to make themselves relevant in Edo Central will not be there anymore. They should see the handwriting on the wall that the end has come for PDP in Edo Central senatorial district and indeed in Edo state and Nigeria as a whole. Things will change for them unless they are able to change the current crop of leadership and put in place leaders that have the interest of the ordinary people in mind. They do not need mercenaries as leaders. Not people who know only themselves and their pockets. I used to tell the previous leadership, both in discussion and in writing, that until they change the leadership of PDP in Edo state and to some extent, Nigeria, PDP was doomed to fail. They did not listen to me. Now, they have reaped the rewards.
Many Edo people believe that your exit from the PDP was as a result of your inability to reconcile with Chief Tony Anenih. Can you give credence to this claim?
Well, there are a number of reasons I left the party. Maybe I should ad­dress those ones first. For me to take such a major decision, you cannot just narrow it down to one reason. One of the reasons was that, most PDP leaders, I came to realise, were not concerned about the wellbeing of the people, but saw the party as a vehicle for making money and pleasing no one else, but themselves. They are very selfish and self-centred people. The other reason is that, PDP leaders who destroyed the party in their states were rewarded with good board chairmanship and other government positions. Whereas, those who genuinely worked for the party were unrecognised and unrewarded. A party that works like that is bound to fail. Some PDP leaders exhibited extreme wick­edness, extreme vindictiveness and behaved as if they were God. They failed to realise that only one thing is constant in life and that is change. I saw the good attributes of APC leaders and the desirability and indeed inevitability of the change they promised Nigerians. I decided to embrace it. My decision was to formally declare for APC was helped by the fact that those who regard PDP as their personal property in Edo state and destroyed the party through politics of exclusion were deter­mined to make me politically irrelevant in PDP. That was particularly obvious during the 2015 general elections. They threatened PDP members never to visit or associate with me. They never in­vited me to any meeting. The result was that no PDP candidate ever visited me to seek my votes or support. On the contrary, all the APC aspirants and later candidates, recognised my worth and sought my support and vote. I had no choice but to throw my weight behind them. Thereafter, there was no looking back on PDP. I refused to allow another human being to determine my destiny. PDP never respected me as a former governor or recognised my contribution to nation building. In contrast, APC has shown me recognition and respect. I am happy to inform you that I am now a proud mem­ber of its Board of Trustees (BoT). The recogni­tion and respect the PDP failed to show me, APC is willing to show me. Because of arrogance and bad leadership among its fold, PDP power has now become PDP powerless.
Many believe that Chief Anenih played a key role in your removal from office as governor of Edo State in 2008. Was your defection to APC as a result of your inabil­ity to amend the frosty relationship with him?
To a large extent, yes. First of all, Chief Anenih did not start removing governors from Edo with me. He started it with the late Professor Ambrose Alli. He used to boast about it that he removed Alli. As you said, he has also boasted that he removed me from office as governor. I leave you to judge what kind of human being is that. I used to be very close to him while I was in the Senate and even in the early period while I was the governor. He told me one on one that he never forgives people. So, as you insinuated in your question, it is his inability to forgive and forget…I do not know the offence I committed that he could not forgive me. I leave him to his God. He is not my God.
What is your take on the veto of the constitution by President Goodluck Jon­athan?
First of all, my view is that it was very wrong for a Federal High Court to have decided that con­stitution amendment requires presidential assent. I have always taken the views that the amendment of the constitution involves not just the Nation­al Assembly, but the House of Assembly of the states. The president of Nigeria has no power to assent to any work that involves the Houses of As­sembly. Section 9 of the constitution sets out how the constitution will be amended. It did not say anything about presidential assent. But as a conse­quence of the decision of the Federal High Court in Lagos and in the interest of peace and progress, the National Assembly submitted the amendment to the president for assent. In my opinion, it was very unnecessary. I have not seen a copy of the current amendment. But what I have read in the papers is that the constitution requires two third majority of the two chambers of the National Assembly. For some purposes, it requires four-fifth majority of the Senate and the House of Representatives for some purposes. From what I have read in the papers, it will appear that in passing the recent amendments, they did not take into cognisance the difference between these two. If it involves an amendment or alteration of the Section that deals with the creation of new states and boundary adjustment, you require four-fifth majority of each of the two chambers. If you are carrying out alteration of Section 9 which is the procedure for amending the constitution, a four-fifth and not two-third majority is required. If you are dealing with the Fundamen­tal Human Rights provisions, you need more than a two-third and that is four-fifth majority. If the Na­tional Assembly only got two-third majority, then it is unconstitutional. If for that reason, the presi­dent has decided to withhold his assent, then he is in order. As I said, this is just based on what I read.
With the existing laws and court delays, do you think the incoming government of a General Buhari can tackle corruption?
The general answer that I will first offer you is that, every government is at liberty to amend any laws, including the laws on corruption. The existing laws cannot be perfect. That is why the machinery is there to constantly review our laws. The Nigerian Law Reform Commission (NLRC) which until recently I was its chairman, is there to assist government through the office of the Attor­ney-General of the Federation (AGF) to address any of these areas that require reforms and collab­orate with any committees of the National Assem­bly who have their own to propose. So, the president is at liberty to introduce new legislation or amend the existing legislation to strengthen the hands of gov­ernment in tackling this endemic problem of corrup­tion. Let me add that something very important has happened which will eliminate some of the abuses that retarded the judicial process in convicting per­sons that maybe be found guilty of corruption. That is the administration of Criminal Justice Bill which was passed by the Senate recently. It was passed by the House of Representatives over a year ago. I also hope they have been able to harmonise through the Conference Committee. Once that happens and the president assents to that bill, then it will go a long way to remove some of the obstacles that impede speedy administration of criminal justice in Nige­ria. That bill tackles problems from arrest, keeping people in detention, extracting confessions, powers to grant bail and the issue of adjournments. It also tackles interlocutory applications that impede the wheels of justice. Up to plea bargaining, the NLFC had a bill. It was later incorporated into the adminis­tration of Criminal Justice Bill. Many people say plea bargaining is not good, but it has so many benefits. It helps to speed up trials and conclusion of crimi­nal cases up to sentencing. It goes through the entire process of the criminal law process. Once that comes into being, a lot of the abuses we have been experi­encing including the question you were going to ask about the abuse of plea bargain will be put to rest. With that in place, it will be easier for the incoming administration to tackle corruption.
What about the anti-corruption agencies? Do you think they should be reformed?
Yes. I am sure that you are aware that the ICPC and the EFCC have been crying over lack of funds. The issue of funding is key. Even if you put the most committed brains to man the agencies, if they do not have the tools, they cannot work. You need to pro­vide them with the tools to deliver. While you look at the human personnel, you also need to provide them with the tools to do their work. Once you fight corruption, it fights back. Those fighting back have more resources to fight back.
Many people believe you were close to President Jonathan. He has been on the saddle since 2010. Looking back, what would you say the president has done right or wrong?
Well, I do not want to judge or assess Mr. Presi­dent at this stage. I do not want to sit here and begin to pass judgment on him. As Vice President, I was one of the closest governors to him. In fact, I was the closest to him from the South-South. He even attend­ed my mother’s burial in August 2007.

Lauryn Hill releases acoustic performance of ‘That Thing’ as apology to Nigerian fans

Lauryn Hill was scheduled to perform in Nigeria May 1, but travel delays prevented her from making the show—so, as an apology to her Nigeria-based fans, she released an acoustic version of “That Thing” on Facebook.
“We’re very sorry we couldn’t be there with you tonight,” Hill says in the beginning of the video. “We were at the airport for seven hours yesterday trying to get to you. But we’re going to make it there. We’re going to get there. We wish everybody a wonderful evening, and we’re going to leave you with this.” What follows is an acoustic performance complete with five back-up singers—including an enthusiastic (and adorable) little girl.

AVF premieres 4 movies

clara

Audio Visual First (AVF), is set to premier four movies today, Sunday, May 10, at Film House Cinema, Park Lane, Apapa, Lagos. The movies are entitled Beneath Her Veil, One Minute Man, Where Does Beauty Go and Night of Sex and the producers say the movies are a-must-watch. Commenting, the director of the films, AVF’s Adeyinka Oduniyi said: “The objective of AVF is to make qualitative movies avail­able to mass audiences. With as little as N200, a movie lover will have access to see Nigerian movies like in the days of Ade Love. Our goal is to produce 18 movies each year. We are open to partnerships and sponsorship.”
Commenting on what deter­mined the choice of cast, Oduniyi continued: “We featured Clarion Chukwra, Biola Segun Williams, Tony Umez, Yeni Kuti, Wole Ojo, Olumide Bakare, Kunle Coker, Kalu Ikeagwu and Mary Njoku. This cast were short listed be­cause of their pedigree and talent. It is a combination of old and new actors; a lot of us have missed these old actors and want to see them again.”

I reveal my cleavages in classy way –Mercy Aigbe

mercy igbe

Multiple award winning actress, script writer, movie producer and C.E.O, Mag Divas Boutique, Mercy Aigbe, in this chat with Entertainer opens up on movies, business and how piracy is short changing the mo­tion picture industry.
Excerpts:
How has this year been for you entertainment wise?
I will say it has been good and I give God all the glory though, it has not been smooth all through. I must confess that I have encoun­tered one or two ups and downs but God has been faithful.
What project are you work­ing on presently?
Presently, I am working on bringing my movie to the cin­emas. It is entitled Victims. It was directed by Lancelot Imasuen. It features stars actors like Olu Jacobs, Fathia Balogun, Seun Akindele, Ju liet Ibrahim, Saheed Balogun, and Funsho Adeolu.
Why the choice of Lancelot for directing?
I had an opportunity of work­ing on a project with Lancelot and I spoke with him. I asked him if he would like to do a Yoruba movie and he accepted. Victims is an ultra modern Yoruba film; it is a double scripted movie and the outcome is wow! You know, Juliet has never featured in a Yoruba movie but the way the script was written, she didn’t have to speak too much Yoruba and besides, she is a fast learner. It was a good experience for her and for Lancelot who is only used to directing 100 per cent English movies; it was also an opportunity for him to showcase his competence. experience for her and for Lancelot
When should we expect the Part 2 of Osas Omoge Benin?
Why is everybody asking about it now. I read comments on my Insta­gram and twitter accounts and they are all asking for the same thing. Anyway, everybody should just keep their fingers crossed even though it is taking like forever. What I do know for certain is that at the end of the day, my fans should expect the best from me. I actually don’t want to mention a specific date yet. What my fans should expect from me for now is Victims; it is going to be premiered in the U.K and the U.S and it will also be going to the cinemas.
It is the era of comedy series and we already have Funke Akin­dele’s Jenifa’s Diary, should your fans expect Osas too?
I think my fans should expect the part 2 first and then from there, we will know what is next.
What inspired your new fashion shop, Mag Divas?
I will say my love for fashion actu­ally inspired it because I am a lady who loves to look good all the time. I love being complimented for my looks and all that. So, let me say my passion for fashion is what actually inspired me.
How do you joggle being a wife, parenting, movie making and business?
Hmmm… I will say it is by the grace of God.
Do you do reveal­ing outfits?
To an extent I do. I can do the ones that reveal my cleavages in a classy way. However, I can’t re­veal sensitive parts of my body .
As a mother, will you encour­age your daughter to ven­ture into movie mak­ing?
It is actual­ly left to her and I will definitely encourage her to pursue her dreams. But from the look of things, I am not sure she will embrace the movie industry because she is on the reserved side.
What is the secret behind your looks?
I take good care of myself and I eat right. I take more of vegetables and fruits. I don’t eat late and I drink water a lot. I also visit a spa once in two weeks.
Most actresses are now ventur­ing into business, what is your take on that?
It is because piracy won’t allow us eat and that is the truth. They are caus­ing us so much pain, reaping where they have not sown. That is why people like us have established other sources of income.
What do you think can be done to stop piracy?
I think government needs to come to our rescue because I believe that if there are strong laws backing up the fight against piracy and if the laws are being enforced, piracy will be greatly reduced. As it is now we are at their mercy.
Can piracy stop you from doing movies?
It won’t but it is actually killing creativity. For instance, if you have a script that you actually want to spend as much as five to N10 million on, you probably won’t because you will be afraid of investing such a huge amount when pirates won’t let you gain from your sweat. So piracy affects the quality of production. I think you need to talk to Kunle Afolayan about it and you will under­stand me better. What is the rationale for an investor who is not sure of making profit on his own investment for going into busi­ness? Piracy is actually kill­ing good pro­duc­tion.

Why I dumped bank job for fashion designing –Gabby Ibeabuchi

Gabby Ibeabuchi

 Gabby Ibeabuchi is a frontline fashion de­signer and model. He worked in the tele­coms sector for four years, then he was into banking before he started his fashion line Twelve06. In this interview with Sunday Sun, he reflects on his life as a model and his journey into busi­ness. Excerpts:
Tell us about your­self?
My name is Gabby Ibeabuch. I’m a fashion designer. Initially, I was into modeling and then dabbled into telecommunica­tions and banking. Eventually, I settled for my passion which is fashion designing. As a model, I was a brand ambassador for so many companies including MTN and FCMB for years. I’ve done over a hundred fashion shows . I modeled for most big brands like Dakova, Mudi, Zizi Cardow, Kese Jabari, Frank Os­odi and lots of others. I was also the first Best ECOWAS Male Model in 2002. I won a contract with Mode de Paris but I didn’t pursue it because I was about starting my MBA then, which I com­pleted. After my MBA de­gree pro­gramme, I got a job in the tele­coms sector. I always wanted to work for someone I could learn from, having made a 2.1 at the university as well as in my MBA in Marketing programme. I felt I needed to contribute and also learn from the best hands. The only person that came to my mind then was Mike Ade­nuga. To cut the story short, I worked towards it and I got a job in his firm. I was in the spe­cial projects unit and we were responsible for developing the Glo brand. We traveled from one state to another to mar­ket the brand and I was there for four years. During this pe­riod, I also made clothes for my friends. As someone who is very ambitious and knowing that someday I was going to run a multinational company, I felt it was time for me to improve on what I knew and I switched to banking. I met Tony Elu­melu and somehow, I found myself in corporate banking. Then of course, I did my best in corporate banking for four years. While I was doing banking, I was also making clothes. On Saturdays, I go to the market and buy fabrics and if I couldn’t get a buy­er, I made clothes for free. At the end of the day, I just gave it a se­rious thought and I resigned to incorporate Brand 1206. When I start­ed, I knew I needed to define my market. I cre­ated a brand for those who wanted so­phistication.
Why did you dump banking for fashion de­signing?
It wasn’t easy at the be­ginning. I didn’t share my ideas with anybody when I was about to quit bank­ing. I had already got to middle level management in banking. For a young man, the pay was juicy, but I was determined and zeal­ous to make a difference. I set a timeline to quit banking within one year and I kept this to my­self. I never shared it with anybody until I was set. The day I resigned, after our Monday meeting, I just told my boss I wanted to quit and she was like “I believe something is wrong with you and when you resolve the issue you may come back, I will still hire you.” I told her that if it’s truly madness that is wor­rying me, it will never be cured. The good news is that till today, she and her husband wear just my brand.
How was business at the beginning?
At the beginning, it wasn’t easy. When I opened up and told my friends, everybody was like “Why would you do this?” I felt I made a mistake, but when I realized I had already burnt my bridge, I always told people, when you have a sec­ond option, the first one nev­er worked. I knew I couldn’t go back. Was I supposed to go back to my boss I had already told I was completely mad and would never return? I just re­solved to try and thought if it didn’t work, of course, I have my certificates. I can always do something again. Considering the image I wanted to portray, I knew I needed to set up in an area that’s conducive and since I wanted to start from Surulere, the best shot is to be on the high street and that’s Bode Thom­as. Meanwhile, because I had saved money having worked for years, I felt I needed to just start well. Friends told me, “This is risky; you can’t just start like that.” Lest I forget, while I was searching for a location, I had to go to fashion school. Even though I didn’t have the inten­tion of rolling the machine my self, I needed to understand the basics of the business. I always wanted to deliver excellence. I told my friends that in business, you don’t have to tell your cus­tomer you are sorry. It wasn’t like I shouldn’t apologize for what I didn’t get right. Every time you tell your customer sor­ry, there’s something you have done wrong. When I started, people told me my stuff was on the high side and raised a lot of discouraging questions. Initial­ly, our prices started from $150 which was between N25,000 and above for a complete outfit. Even we couldn’t cover cost but we just had to start that way. I knew we had to be consistent and that it was just a matter of time. I had to come out with something different. First and foremost, from the day our cli­ents placed an order, we gave them a date and it was usually within 48 hours and a maximum of 7 days which people are not used to. I always told them, if we deliver on the 8th day, they didn’t have to pay. I had to hire the right workers and train them. I had to guide them to en­sure that we didn’t lose money.
How do you cope with your tailors?
I had to pay them more than what the industry was paying and secondly I had to tie what­ever thing they do to additional benefit. Once I give you an outfit to do, you should do it within 48 hours. If they deliver within 48 hours and everything comes out well, I pay them additional 30 percent. I motivated them and they were all looking forward to working. In fact, some tailors asked me if they could work at night because they wanted to make more money and with that I was able to service my customers and satisfy them. We didn’t have much of the issues that would warrant us to say sorry.
So what’s your suc­cess story?
You know what business is, once one person is satisfied, he tells another person. Today, I can tell you we have sena­tors and upwardly mobile men as customers. When you do a good job, it will speak for itself. I can’t remember placing an ad­vert anywhere till date and we can’t even satiate demand now even though there’s room for improvement. We relocated from where we were to a more comfortable place at Adelabu . When I started, I needed visi­bility, right now we have part of that playing for us, all we need­ed was an environment where people will come in and feel relaxed.
Who talked you into fashion designing?
Naturally, I’m a very creative person. I always like to blend things together to get some­thing different. I have always been like that from childhood. The passion started growing when I became a model. In the course of wearing different clothes for different designers and all that, I started developing love for fashion designing. At a time, I saw the need to improve on what I was used to . That was how the passion blossomed.
As a banker, did you get a loan to start your business?
Remember I said I worked in telecoms for four years and banking for four years. I always knew I would be a business man, so I started saving from day one. Even before I started working, I was a model. When I say modeling, I mean I was a top model. I actually made a lot of money then. I was the first face of Guilder Ultimate Search. So far, I have not approached any bank. The business has got to a point where we need to extend helping hands to other people. I’m working on opening a branch at Lekki since most of my clients are coming from there. I also have a lot of customers from Abuja at the moment and I wouldn’t mind opening a shop there too.
What’s your vision for this business?
From the beginning I carved a niche for myself. I set up this business for people who un­derstand what service is and of course you cannot give what you don’t have. I have already worked on myself, I have done research to be able to have these quality things that people desire. I want a fashion busi­ness where somebody can walk in and choose from over a 100 variety of clothing and take home immediately. Currently, we have in store over 150 out­fits. I’m also looking forward to a day when somebody can walk into my shop and I take his measurement and within 24 hours they have exactly what they want. I’m also looking for­ward to a business that will be a model for the young generation, for the fashion industry where someone will wake up and say this is how we want things to be done. I want to move around countries in Africa and see somebody wearing my brand or maybe I see a local who has actually tried to ape what I have done. I look forward to a brand that will live beyond the creator. In Nigeria, when the owner of a brand goes, the brand goes with him. I look forward to leaving a legacy for somebody to carry on someday. Maybe my chil­dren. I am looking forward to a brand which most Africa pres­idents will be proud to wear, a brand an average youth will be able to reckon with always and say this is how we want to go. I’m just looking forward to a brand that will just live and stand the test of time.
What inspires your designs?
My environment. I’m nat­urally a creative person. I al­ways look forward to recreat­ing things. Every time I watch TV, I move around the streets and I’m always seeing things that motivate me to want to improve on what I’m seeing or bringing it out in a different way. For instance, in my place, we have outfits that are just exclusive, because I have a lot to do in my mind, I don’t even have time to replicate clothes. Ninety percent of clothes we have in the showroom  are just exclusive.

DOWNLOAD SONG OF THE WEEK.

http://tooxclusive.com/downloadmp3/lil-ay-making-money-lover-man/

Our Lagos: Patoranking sings for Pasuma

Fuji star, Pasuma Wonder, has teamed up with reggae/dancehall act, Patoranking on a new song entitled, Our Lagos. The song is produced by award winning Puffy Tee and mixed/mastered by Sheyman. In the last six months, Pasuma has consistently released pop singles in a quest to roll out a full album before the year runs out. He currently has songs like Abo, Omo Olope, O Ti Clear, Ife featuring Tiwa Savage, and Ogede Ti Pon, which is still enjoying massive airplay on radio and television. According to the Kwara State-born singer and CEO, Wasbar Records, his team worked very hard to make sure they put out the best. “Working with Patoranking was great, he’s a great kid and he actually ‘killed’ the song. We would drop a couple more singles before we finally release the album,” he said.

Veteran actor, Peter Bunor, passes on

http://sunnewsonline.com/new/?p=117642#prettyPhoto
Nollywood has lost yet another icon. After battling with stroke for many years, prolific and talented actor, Peter Bunor, has died, He died on Friday May 1, 2015 in Asaba, Delta State. Bunor’s son, Peter Jr., also an actor, broke the sad new on his facebook page thus: “In the early hours of today (Friday), my father, teacher, confidant passed on”. A few years ago, Bunor had suffered a devastating stroke and had complained bitterly about being neglected by his colleagues in the movie industry. The deceased featured in several productions including ‘Living in Bondage’, ‘Checkmate’, ‘Cock Crow at Dawn’, and ‘Memorial Hospital’ among others. Paying tribute to his departed colleague, veteran actor, Alex Osifo, said Bunor would be remembered as “a consummate actor who was able to interpret the characters he played convincingly. He was a God fearing gentleman. He was a quiet and amiable person. We have actually lost a gem in Nollywood

You can’t win South East in 2019, APGA tells Okorocha

All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) Board of Trustees (BoT) member in Anambra State, Chief Rommy Ezeonwuka has dismissed the recent statement credited to Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha that the All pro­gressives Congress (APC) would take over the South East in the 2019 general elections, saying the boast is laughable.
The Ogirisi Igbo urged Okorocha to focus on govern­ing his state until 2019 when APGA would take over.
He advised APC to ditch its plan to win the South East in 2019, stressing that APGA remained the only party that could take the region to the next level. “It is only APGA that has been able to tackle the problems faced by Ndigbo. The party has not stopped in looking into challenges faced by the region, like insecurity, bad infrastructure, unattract­ive foreign investment, and so on. Anambra, which is the only APGA state, has buried its war heroes. The state has the best road network in the South East. Today Anambra, under Governor Willie Obiano is number one in the whole of South East,” he said.
Ezeonwuka warned those planning to defect from APGA to relinquish their po­sition, insisting that the party was not a place to realise the selfish interests of politicians .
He commended Obiano for visiting the President-elect, General Muhammadu Buhari and assuring the latter that he would work with him to move the nation forward.
He called on other state governors to emulate the Anambra governor and give Buhari all the support to move the country forward.

PDP bombs Bode George

National Secretary of the Peoples Demo­cratic Party (PDP), Professor Wale Oladipo, has accused for­mer national vice-chairman of the party, Chief Bode George of playing divisive politics aimed at undermin­ing the party in the South- West zone. Oladipo was reacting to a communique issued by the South-West zone of the party at the weekend, in Ekiti State where they demanded the res­ignation of national officers of the party. The party’s national scribe, in a statement, faulted the res­olutions of the meeting as he noted, “that the content and tone of its resolution shows an orchestration by a few indi­viduals bent on sowing a seed of discord within the PDP fold in the zone.” He further observed that the communiqué, in no way reflected the views of major­ity of those who attended the meeting, or tallied with the opinion of the generality of PDP members in the region. Oladipo expressed indig­nation that Chief George and certain leaders of the party, who could not deliver their polling units to the PDP in the just concluded general elec­tions, could be instigating the sack of others, who delivered their wards in the South-West zone of the party. The statement read in part: “Moreover, members of the PDP in Osun State, my prima­ry constituency, have already passed a vote of confidence on me in my capacity as the na­tional secretary. “Furthermore, while some of those asking us to resign performed very poorly even in their polling units, it is on record that the national auditor and my humble self performed creditably and delivered our areas in the general elections. “It is therefore, dishearten­ing that rather than joining other well-meaning members of our great party in support­ing the National Working Committee in the on-going re-engineering process to rebuild the PDP, some elders from our zone, particularly, a former Deputy National Chairman, Chief Olabode George, who should know, have instead, resorted to divisive politics by attempting to instigate our members against one another. “What our party needs now in the South West and indeed across the country is for all hands to be on the deck as we work harmoniously in our de­termination to reposition the PDP to regain power in 2019. “Our party members are by this, therefore, charged to watch out for individuals whose agenda is to sow seeds of discord and pave way for crisis within our fold for their selfish interests.

Boko Haram fighters stoned girls to death –Survivors

 Survivors of Boko Haram horror have revealed how the militant group’s fighters stoned some of their captives to death, as the military approached to rescue the victims in Sambisa Forest.
Quoting survivors, Associated Press reported that several women also died when they were crushed mistakenly by a Nigerian military armoured vehicle. Three, it reported, were blown up by a landmine, as they were walking to freedom.
These tragic stories came from girls and women brought to a refugee camp, the news agency reported, saying that the victims are still finding it hard to believe they are safe.
“We just have to give praise to God that we are alive, those of us who have survived,” said Lami Musa, 27, as she cradled her five-day-old baby girl.
She is among 275 children, girls and women, who were getting medical care and being registered yesterday on their first day out of Boko Haram’s war zone.
Musa was in the first group to be transported by road over three days to the safety of Malkohi refugee camp, a dust-blown deserted school set among baobab trees on the outskirts of Yola, the capital of Adamawa State.
She had just given birth to her yet-to-be-named baby last week when the crackle of gunfire hinted rescuers might be nearby.
“Boko Haram came and told us they were moving out and said that we should run away with them. But we said no,” she explained from a bed in the camp clinic.
“Then they started stoning us. I held my baby to my stomach and doubled over to protect her,” she added,
Another survivor of the stoning, Salamatu Bulama, said several girls and women were killed, but they do not know exactly how many.
The survivors stated that the horrors did not end as the military arrived, as a group of women hiding in the bush were run over by an armored personnel carrier, whose operator did not see them. “I think those killed there were about 10,” said Bulama.
Other women died from stray bullets, she said, naming three she knew.
Bulama shielded her face with her veil and cried when she thought about another death in the camp: Her only son, a toddler of two who died of an illness she said was aggravated by malnutrition two months ago.
“What will I tell my husband?” she sobbed
on her part, Musa said her husband, the father of the new baby, was killed by Boko Haram when they abducted her from her village of Lassa in December. She doesn’t know the fate of their three other children.
At the camp, Associated Press reported, 21 girls and women with bullet wounds and fractured limbs were taken to the city hospital after they arrived Saturday evening. Officials yesterday were collating details of the rescued 61 women and 214 children, almost all girls.
Health workers put critically malnourished babies on intravenous drips, babies whose rib cages and shoulder blades protruded like skeletons were given packs of therapeutic food to suck from.
Through interviews, officials have determined that almost all those rescued are from Gumsuri, a village near the town of Chibok..

Fuel scarcity cripples Lagos

BY VINCENT KALU, HENRY OKONKWO, LAWRENCE ENYOGHA­SU
The fuel scarcity, which had persisted in Lagos worsened on Friday, grinding commercial and economic activities to a halt. Many commuters were stranded at different bus stops due to lack of vehicles as the few that were plying the roads jerked up their fares by 100 to 300 per cent.
Most of the filling stations in Lagos were not selling, except few that rationed the commod­ity from one or two pumps, causing long queues of ve­hicle, motorcycle and massive cluster of persons with plastic kegs hustling to buy fuel. In this vein, emergency petrol sellers cashed in to make brisk sales.
The pains would have reached the high heaven had yesterday not been declared public holiday to celebrate the Workers Day, so most people stayed at home.
Even as it were, the few who went out had to pay double or triple the usual fare. The queue at any station that was selling, stretched up to a kilometre, and blocked major roads.
Saturday Sun observed that most Lagos roads were empty. Only few private vehicles were seen on the road.
At Kirikiri, where more than five oil marketing companies: Nakeem oil, Swift oil, Tech­noil, Index Petroleum among others have their tank farms, there were no activities as most of the tanker drivers parked and left their trucks, probably waiting for the scarcity to end.
In a chat, one of the workers at the farm , who pleaded ano­nymity, said that the people needed to have been properly informed. According to him, there was no fuel scarcity but only fuel hoarding.
“The hoarding started when the Executive Secretary, Ma­jor Oil Market Association of Nigeria (MOMAN), Mr. Thomas Olawore on Thursday last week advised members of MOMAN and Depot and Pe­troleum Products Marketers Association (DAPPMA) that they had just three and a half days left for stock to be ex­hausted. This timing, accord­ing to him, is expected to lapse by Sunday midnight.
“He ( Mr. Olawore), said members were increasingly finding it difficult to continue importation of petrol for a while now, and that though it was the wish of MOMAN to continue to import owing to the efforts committed to the exercise, but market situation had continued to get tougher.
“Evidently, as a result of that statement, we are where we are today. Brother, let me tell you, on that same day they stopped selling fuel, there were still barrel loads of fuel, even we had newly arrived ships,” he stated.
He continued that if any marketer tries to sell, “such marketer will be fined, and even the tanker driver will be equally arrested.”
Ironically, the heat is not being felt by commuters only, hustlers at the depot who spot­ted our reporter lamented that they want the Federal Gov­ernment and the marketers to come to terms.
Our reporter asked them while would they care, since they are the major beneficia­ries of the scarcity and what is their job in the premises. The hustlers simply said we hustle here, we use our tanker to take turn and secure space to, which would be sold to real tanker distributor for a few as low as N100, 000.
Saturday Sun gathered that the fuel pump price varies at different filling stations, a commercial driver, who plies Begger- Mile 2 route said he bought at N150 per litre at Oando, also another driver said he bought at N200 per li­tre at FO.
Against this, emergency petrol sellers have cashed in to make brisk sales. Helpless motorists who can’t stand the crowd at filling stations, re­sorted to these black market dealers even when they sell petrol products very far above the official market price.
On Badagry expressway ( from Orile Iganmu to Agbara, a distance of more than 40 ki­lometres), there are about 20 petrol stations, but none had fuel, which caused the black market price for fuel to be very exorbitant on that route; like at Barracks bus stop, Ojo, where a five-litre keg of fuel sold for N2,000, yesterday morning.
This burden is passed on to the commuters who had to pay double or thrice the normal fare.
Innocent lives at Ijanikin. His normal fare to Mile Two, off peak period is N150, but yesterday afternoon, he told Saturday Sun that he paid N400. “ That not withstanding, we had to struggle to board the bus. The only saving grace is that today is a public holiday. If the situation continues till Monday, most people can’t go to work, and there will be crisis in this country.”
According to Mr. Nwanog­bo, from Cele bus stop, Okota to Oshodi is usually N100 but increased to N200, “ it wasn’t easy getting seat, it was surviv­al of the fittest as we struggled to enter the bus.”
Mrs. Isiaka, usually pays N150 from Oshodi to Toll Gate, Sango, Ogun State, but on Thursday night, the fare was jerked to N350.
An Okada operator plying Maza-maza to Kirikiri in a chat with Saturday Sun dis­closed that two litres of fuel were sold to him at N500. That translates to N250 per litre, in­stead of the N87 official prize, had to increase his fare to meet up with the price of fuel and make profit.
Commercial buses that ply Oshodi to Mile 2, increased the fare by hundred percent. The fare which used to be N100 is now N200 or more. Also short distances like from Oshodi to Toyota, Five Star, and Iyana Isolo, which used to be N50 was raised to N100.
A commercial bus driver, Adamu expressed his grief and told our reporter that govern­ment should not play politics with the welfare of the people. “if this continues the people will be forced to go on ram­page again.”

Military rescues another set of 234 women, children

Another set of 234 women and chil­dren were res­cued through the Kawuri and Konduga end of Sambisa forest on Thursday. They have been evacuated to join oth­ers at the place of ongoing screening. This set is in addition to the 293 girls and women earlier rescued during the ongoing opera­tion in the area.
The Director, Defence In­formation, Major General Chris Olukolade, who dis­closed this in a press state­ment, said assault on the forest is continuing from various fronts and efforts are concentrated on rescuing hostages of civilians and de­stroying all terrorists camps and facilities in the forest.
As at press time, it was not clear if the abducted Chibok girls are among them.