Utterly confused, believe me! But why? Trying hard not to laugh but it’s not just “werking”.
Photo of the day: Is the groom wearing a suit or gown?
The President I Want | By: Chimamanda Adichie
In the wake of the abduction of over 200 Nigerian school girls by Boko Haram few weeks back, award-winning writer, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie in an article titled, “The President I Want” has condemned the lackadaisical attitude of President Jonathan towards the rescue of the girls and security in general. Read below:
Some of my relatives lived for decades in the North, in Kano and Bornu. They spoke fluent Hausa. (One relative taught me, at the age of eight, to count in Hausa.) They made planned visits to Anambra only a few times a year, at Christmas and to attend weddings and funerals. But sometimes, in the wake of violence, they made unplanned visits. I remember the word ‘Maitatsine’ – to my young ears, it had a striking lyricism – and I remember the influx of relatives who had packed a few bags and fled the killings.
What struck me about those hasty returns to the East was that my relatives always went back to the North. Until two years ago when my uncle packed up his life of thirty years in Maiduguri and moved to Awka. He was not going back. This time, he felt, was different. My uncle’s return illustrates a feeling shared by many Nigerians about Boko Haram: a lack of hope, a lack of confidence in our leadership.We are experiencing what is, apart from the Biafran war, the most violent period in our nation’s existence. Like many Nigerians, I am distressed about the students murdered in their school, about the people whose bodies were spattered in Nyanya, about the girls abducted in Chibok. I am furious that politicians are politicizing what should be a collective Nigerian mourning, a shared Nigerian sadness. And I find our president’s actions and non-actions unbelievably surreal.
I do not want a president who, weeks after girls are abducted from a school and days after brave Nigerians have taken to the streets to protest the abductions, merely announces a fact-finding committee to find the girls. I want President Jonathan to be consumed, utterly consumed, by the state of insecurity in Nigeria. I want him to make security a priority, and make it seem like a priority. I want a president consumed by the urgency of now, who rejects the false idea of keeping up appearances while the country is mired in terror and uncertainty. I want President Jonathan to know – and let Nigerians know that he knows – that we are not made safer by soldiers checking the boots of cars, that to shut down Abuja in order to hold a World Economic Forum is proof of just how deeply insecure the country is. We have a big problem, and I want the president to act as if we do.
I want the president to slice through the muddle of bureaucracy, the morass of ‘how things are done,’ because Boko Haram is unusual and the response to it cannot be business as usual. I want President Jonathan to communicate with the Nigerian people, to realize that leadership has a strong psychological component: in the face of silence or incoherence, people lose faith. I want him to humanize the lost and the missing, to insist that their individual stories be told, to show that every Nigerian life is precious in the eyes of the Nigerian state. I want the president to seek new ideas, to act, make decisions, publish the security budget spending, offer incentives, sack people. I want the president to be angrily heartbroken about the murder of so many, to lie sleepless in bed thinking of yet what else can be done, to support and equip the armed forces and the police, but also to insist on humaneness in the midst of terror.
I want the president to be equally enraged by soldiers who commit murder, by policemen who beat bomb survivors and mourners. I want the president to stop issuing limp, belated announcements through public officials, to insist on a televised apology from whoever is responsible for lying to Nigerians about the girls having been rescued. I want President Jonathan to ignore his opponents, to remember that it is the nature of politics, to refuse to respond with defensiveness or guardedness, and to remember that Nigerians are understandably cynical about their government. I want President Jonathan to seek glory and a place in history, instead of longevity in office. I want him to put aside the forthcoming 2015 elections, and focus today on being the kind of leader Nigeria has never had.
I do not care where the president of Nigeria comes from. Even those Nigerians who focus on ‘where the president is from’ will be won over if they are confronted with good leadership that makes all Nigerians feel included. I have always wanted, as my president, a man or a woman who is intelligent and honest and bold, who is surrounded by truth-telling, competent advisers, whose policies are people-centered, and who wants to lead, who wants to be president, but does not need to – or have to- be president at all costs.
President Jonathan may not fit that bill, but he can approximate it: by being the leader Nigerians desperately need now.
Thanks for jumping for every goal! Jose Mourinho writes son.
Look who’s writing an emotional letter-to his fans, a fan, his son- Jose Mourinho! I hope we’ll get to see more of this side often. I got this picture from Twitter and I hope it’s really true. Well, the letter isn’t directed to his son alone, but to all the Blue family i.e all Chelsea fans.
Didier Drogba could return to Chelsea as a player-coach
I got this from only one football source; metro.co.uk. But if this is really true, Didier Drogba’s return to Stamford Bridge would be one of the best things that has ever happened to Chelsea fans. The reason isn’t far-fetched. He’s revered in Chelsea till date.
According to Metro Sports, Drogba, whose contract in his current club, Galatasaray expires in June 2014 could return to his former club, Chelsea FC as a player-coach. Jose Mourinho is reportedly ready to offer the Ivorian a one year playing contract as a player and three-year coaching deal.
Little Olivia Idibia is a carbon-copy of her father
Four months old Olivia Idibia, the youngest child of 2face and Annie Idibia looks so much like her father. Has anyone noticed? Isabella and 2face’s other children have the same stature, facial features as their father. #stronggene
Female Celebrities Prefer Second-Hand Husbands | By: Etcetera
Some days ago I was at a friend’s place and was asked by his sisters if I was travelling abroad for the wedding of a colleague that is still being talked about on blogs and on all social networking sites in nigeria and I said no I wasn’t. But what struck me as odd was when one of them asked me “is she getting married to a BRAND NEW husband or a 2ND HAND husband”?
I stared at her in shock and confusion because up until that moment, I had never heard of a phrase as “brand new or 2nd hand husband. It became a heated debate amongst people in the house that day. ‘WOW’, I never thought a phrase like 2nd hand can be attributed to a human being. I know it is only applicable to objects. At first i was angry. How could they have said such.
But as crazy and odd as it may have sounded, they drew my attention to their observations that it is a trend currently popular amongst female celebrities in Nigeria. The guys in the house even tweaked it into a joke. Adding that it is a normal thing in Nigeria that when you can’t afford a brand new car you go for a 2nd hand one. I couldn’t help but laugh at that one. But on my way home, I thought about it for a minute and asked myself if truly a 2nd hand or brand new theory can be a determinant in finding a husband? It got me staring at every car passing by, trying to understand the rationale behind the argument of a 2nd hand husband and a brand new one. How do you determine if a husband is a 2nd hand? I asked myself. I was later told that a man becomes a 2nd hand if he was previously married or is still married to another woman before taking a new wife.
And that a 2nd hand husband just like a 2nd hand car comes in two types. Nigerian used and Tokunbo. Meaning the husband who was previously married and living here in Nigeria is the “Nigerian used”, while the one shipped in from abroad is the Tokunbo version. Shocking isn’t it? Ok, let us analyse this for a minute. It is a known fact that in Nigeria, when you want to buy a 2nd hand car you are strongly advised to take a mechanic with you. So can you also do the same with a 2nd hand husband? Should it also be recommended that when going for a 2nd hand husband you should make sure to take a medical doctor to administer all the necessary check ups to be sure you are not getting damaged goods?
Because in the true sense of it, a 2nd hand is a 2nd hand whether car or husband. And If the carburetor of a 2nd hand car can easily pack up on 3rd mainland bridge, it means a 2nd hand husband can also pack up on the way to the altar. As these thoughts were spinning in my head, I began asking myself the same questions they asked me. Why do Nigerian female celebrities prefer 2nd hand husbands? Or Why would anyone prefer a 2nd hand husband? But come to think of it, Is it that our female celebrities can no longer afford the luxury of waiting for the brand new ones to come along?
Or have the brand new ones refused to be fooled by the razzmatazz or flashy make ups, thick foundations, artificial nails, Brazilian hair and Peruvian eye lashes? Can it be attributed to a thing of choice? They said a 2nd hand husband is often an Alhaji or an Otunba with pot belly and deep pocket. Is it because of the money or societal status of the men? As long as he is fully loaded she really does not care. Some went further to say that a 2nd hand husband is already tested and trusted with a confirmed rate of performance and durability?
So figure a female celebrity asking her colleague, “What is the mileage of your 2nd hand husband? And she replies “Ahhh I nor know say hin former wives don finish am oo.. Na shaft I marry ooo, My sista nor be small thing ooo, even my doctor sef say him liver go soon park up. And na for hospital I dey sleep for the past 3 weeks. Just like 2nd hand car owner dey sleep for mechanic workshop everyday.
As my Curiosity got the better of me, I asked them for names of female celebrities with 2nd hand husbands. I was shocked beyond recognition that the list they gave me was as long as the distance from mile 2 to Badagry. According to the list, almost all married female celebrities in Nigeria has a 2nd hand husband and even some of the female celebrities themselves are 2nd hand. And some of the male celebrities also have 2nd hand wives or they themselves are 2nd hand. Well, if you don’t believe me, make a list of your own and be amazed as I am right now. My conclusion is that the issue of 2nd hand husband is not peculiar to entertainers. It is a general societal disease and it is as a result of too many failed marriages we have in the society at large. While nobody should be blamed for falling in love or getting married to whoever he or she chooses, it is also important that we position our lives to inspire the children and future entertainers who see us as role models in the society.
You may argue that it is not the society’s business what you do with your affairs. Which is very true but also remember that being a celebrity makes your life a public affair. So go ahead girls, take home the 2nd hand husbands, it is your choice and it does not matter even if he looks like an “accidented” car with scary mileage. If you love him that much and he has some money to spend, you can take him to the highly skilled American body mechanic called Dr. 90210 to panel-beat and mask all his dents. And if you are fortunate to find one whose mileage is manageable, you can take him to Ladipo market, buy the missing body parts and get a local panel-beater to fix him. And if you are a handy-woman, You can even do the servicing yourself by getting a complete first aid kit with bandages, Ampiclox and mentholatum and massage his joints every night before sleeping.
Culled from Punch Newspapers
Amaka Igwe is not dead. |By: Charles Novia
Amaka Igwe lives. The tears we shed for her are futile. She lives. The shock we express over her passing on is carthatic. She lives. Amaka Igwe did not die. She just built her loving ‘house of commotion’ in our hearts. Commotion with co-relation; commotion with emotions.
The brilliant lady who could unarguably be credited as the progenitor of Nollywood as we know it today still lives. Immortalised in our hearts. If there was no ‘Checkmate’, that superb soap opera which had a chart-topping five year run on national television, there would have been no Nollywood. For the tested and trusted actors from ‘Checkmate’ were mostly cast in the trend-setting ‘Living in Bondage’.
Amaka had groomed a new generation of Nigerian actors through ‘Checkmate’, she had prepared our minds for something explosive with her creation. There is yet to emerge a soap opera since then which has all the thrills and frills and popular appeal like ‘Checkmate’. Forget all these tin imitations. Amaka’s soap was solid steel. Unbreakable. Unbeatable. And you say she is dead? But Amaka lives!
She created characters which blew our minds. Anne Harthrope, Segun Kadiri, Chief Fuji, Peaceful Peace, Alika, Akpan, Barry Hughes, Nduka, Bennie etc. She held the nation spell-bound for five years every Thursday 8pm on the network service and gave people gossip points for the next week before the next episode. ‘Checkmate’ was her creation. ‘Checkmate’ was her success. She brilliantly wrote all the episodes, over 500 of them and produced carefully. She was far ahead of her time. The most intriguing thing about her concerning ‘Checkmate’ was that she knew when to pull the plugs. She broke our hearts by resolving the plots and finishing the soap opera on one Thursday evening in 1995.
The country was shocked and mourned. But Amaka was done with the soap. She had checkmated our expectations to see the soap opera run forever. She just knew when to stop. And that last episode of ‘Checkmate’? The best ending I have ever seen in Nigeria for any serial and come to think of it anywhere in the world. It was so brilliant. Amaka ended the plots and sub-plots and showed us all why the serial was titled ‘Checkmate’. Anne Harthrope (played by Ego Boyo who was replaced by someone else for a few months while she was on ‘maternity leave’) married Segun Kadiri ( played by RMD who gave the character a brilliant interpretation with a raspy voice and finger-on-the-cheek affectation) and just as we all sighed that at last the two enemies had fallen in love and tied the knots, Amaka gave us a twist. Anne cleverly ‘divorced’ Segun Kadiri, warning him that she only married him to give her baby a father but that she would never sell or hand over her company to him! The last scene ended with a stupefied Kadiri laughing in shock, knowing he had been ‘checkmated’.
So classic. And that was not all. She brilliantly had the cast talk to the viewers before the end credits in scripted lines about how the soap opera made its run. That episode was so good and popular that NTA Network had a re-run of it the next week. On the set of ‘Violated’ in 1996 ( her post-‘Checkmate’ opus in which I was cast as Jide, the banker) she told me how agonising it was to write that final episode. ‘I was pregnant then and I would write and discard. I can’t count how many scripts of that final episode I wrote and tore. The denouement just was not clicking. Then, finally I got the muse. And I just kept scribbling on my bed. When I finished I was so happy and screamed out to Charles (her husband) ‘Honey, I got it!’ and we both screamed and hugged ourselves!’ That piece of information stuck on my mind.
But Amaka is not dead. With enduring works such as ‘Violated’ (which re-defined and triggered the romantic drama genre in Nollywood) ‘Rattlesnake’, ‘To live again’, ‘Forever’ and ‘Fuji House of Commotion’ , how could she be dead? This lady who has been the subject of various dissertations and academic theses changed our creative landscape. Her contributions to the creative industry cannot be quantified. She was an advocate for professionalism. She was a stickler for excellence. A cerebral contributor to Nollywood’s trudge of progress. She wanted what was best for the industry. She was behind the founding of the Movie Practitioners Council of Nigeria bill (MOPICON) which has been gathering dust at the National Assembly for years.
That bill is supposed to be to Nollywood what NBA is to the Lawyers and NMA to the Doctors. Amaka wanted this bill passed. Could our fractured Nollywood please unite to ensure that this is done if only to honour and immortalise her? Thank God she got a National Honour from President Jonathan a couple of years back. An MFR. A well-deserved national honour for an Amazon of Nollywood. She believed in young talents and had an open door policy for any talent who came to her office. She had an academy too, where young and ambitious filmmakers were trained.
What about her film and television bi-ennial festival in Abuja; Best of the Best (BOB) TV? Or her radio station, Top FM? Or her painstaking contributions to the committee set up to give guidelines for the 3 billion naira grant given to Nollywood by the President? She fought tirelessly for the industry to maximally benefit from the grant. And with all these achievements, you say Amaka Igwe is dead? No, she lives. Her footprints on the sands of achievement on the beaches of our creative economy are there for all to see. Too large to fill.
Credit: Charlesnoviadaily.com
Anyone want to live in this house?
This ‘upside-down’ house is located at Shanghai, China and it’s already attracting tourists from all over the world. Can I live in this kind of house? No thanks, put me in a storex tank instead. I’ll be uncomfortable all my life.
Photo-credit: BBC News
#Bringbackourgirls: US offers to help Nigeria search for abducted school children
We can’t fight this alone. We are incapable of dealing with our own problems, we need help from all quarters. There are protests on the streets of lagos, Abuja, London etc, via social media with the use of #Bringbackourgirls hashtag. The second Nyanya bomb blast is a clever but failed attempt to divert our attention from the issue at hand but we will overcome this.
According to Reuters, the United States has condemned the abduction of over 200 school girls abducted by Boko haram in Nigeria few weeks ago and has even offered to help Nigeria in its search for them. Marie Harf, State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf told a daily briefing.
“We have been engaged with the Nigerian government in discussions on what we might do to help support their efforts to find and free these young women. We will continue to have those discussions and help in any way we can. We know Boko Haram is active in the area and we have worked very closely with the Nigerian government to build their capacity to fight this threat.”
She added, “In fiscal year 2012, the United States provided over $20 million in security assistance to Nigeria, part of that to build the country’s military, boost its capacity to investigate terrorist attacks and enhance the government’s forensic capabilities.”
Senator Chris Coons of Delaware, the chairman of the Senate’s African Affairs subcommittee also noted. “The U.S. and the international community must work with the Nigerian government to ensure these girls are reunited with their families and deepen efforts to combat the growing threat posed by Boko Haram.”
Amaka Igwe's husband on how she died.
Charles Igwe, the husband of the late movie icon, Amaka Igwe during a condolence visit by delegates from the National Executive of the National Association of Nigerian Theatre Arts Practitioners (NANTAP) narrated how his wife died. He also added that she would have still been alive if doctors at the hospital she was rushed to were not on strike.
“We were in Enugu preparing for her new soap, and Amaka was taking some of the people through acting when she had an asthma attack. After using inhaler without success, she was taken to a nearby hospital, but we were told that the doctor was not around. We then went to the teaching hospital in Enugu, where we were again told that the doctors were on strike. It was while we were taking her to another hospital that she died.”
May her soul find repose!!!