WordPress

Author: Eniola Oladele

  • Business mogul urges African countries to focus on innovative collaboration

    Mr Kennedy Finta- Nnaji, President of Nigeria Union in Japan

     

     

     

     

     

    Collaboration

    By Oladele Eniola

    Lagos, June 28, 2024 (NAN) A business mogul and songwriter, Mr Kennedy Finta- Nnaji, has called on African countries to focus on innovative collaboration for development of the continent.

    Finta-Nnaji said this in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday.

    “African countries should endeavour to focus more on innovative collaboration with countries who truly have their best interest at heart and they must desist from receiving aid from the western world.

    “Western world uses aid as an old fashion tactic of extorting from African countries as they always find a way to get it back and when this happens, the ripple effects of this is always negative.

    “We must focus on developing ourselves by looking inward so as to find solutions because the truth of the matter is that no one would solve our problems except we do that by ourselves,” he said.

    Finta-Nnaji, who is also the President of Nigeria Union in Japan, said his new song titled “Japan x Africa – A brighter future”, is aimed at promoting collaboration between Africa and Japan.

    “The song passes the message to everyone from our leaders to the youth in the country and most importantly, we must utilise the message the song passes.” he said.

    He urged African countries to strengthen their bilateral relationship with Japan, noting that the country has good intentions in developing African countries.

    He noted that Japan had a good history with African countries over the years, urging African leaders to leverage it.

    “African countries and Japan can collaborate through innovation as this would help both nations to invest together for mutual benefits.

    “Japan has little or no bad history with Africa and this goes to show their true intent in developing countries through proper channels as this would benefit both sides equally.

    “There are a whole lot of things that Japan has to offer through innovation collaboration and we must ensure that we benefit from this.” he said.

    Fintan-Nnaji, who is also a patron of the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN), Lagos chapter, noted that the song-Japan x Africa – A brighter future- is available for streaming and listening on all musical platforms. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

    ENI/FAA

    ====

    Edited by Folasade Adeniran

     

  • Muslim faithful dress elegantly in celebration of Sallah

    Some Muslim faithful posing for a picture at the praying ground located at Magodo Phase 2.

     

    Eid-el Kabir

    By Oladele Eniola
    Lagos, June 16, 2024 (NAN) Muslim faithful on Sunday were elegantly dressed as they marked the Eid-el Kabir celebration.
    A correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) who went around some parts of Lagos to monitor the celebration observed that muslims were beautifully dressed as many households were seen celebrating the day.
    At the prayer ground located at Magodo Phase 2, elderly women and girls were dressed in the attire popularly known as Abaya, while the men adorned beautiful sewn jalabiyas, and posed for pictures after the prayers.
    The whole atmosphere was filled with joy, laughter and happiness despite the economic hardship in the country.
    Mr Qudus Awotayo, a father of two, urged everyone to pray for the country to overcome the current hardship facing the masses.
    “I’m always grateful to Almighty Allah for granting us life to see this day and celebrate it because in all of what is happening, we must be thankful for the gift of life.
    “I use this opportunity to pray for the country so that Allah can grant us solutions to the issues we are facing as a country,”  he said.
    Oluwaseyitan Afeez who came along with her friend to the prayer ground, said she was grateful for the holiday noting that it was a time for reflection and revaluation.
    “People should use this time to reflect and reevaluate themselves in order to be better and impact the people around them.
    “We need to learn to be of good influence to people around us as this will have a positive effect.”
    At the praying ground at Ile-Zik, in Ikeja, muslim faithful gathered around as they prayed for peace and unity in  the country.
    Mr Debo Oyedeji, who was with his wife and children, urged muslims to help one another as the period should be used to make positive impacts.
    “People must take it on themselves to help one another during this period and in other times because we must imbibe the spirit of giving.
    “We are obliged to lift others and by doing that, we will be blessed in several ways that cannot be imagined or explained.” he said.
    Mr Afeez Oguntayo, said he would use the holiday to rest and have lone time.
    Also, some households were seen celebrating the holiday as they entertained guests with foods and drinks.

    A visit to Magodo, Ikeja, Yaba, Ogudu G.R.A and other environs showed people celebrating and dancing to music. (NAN) (http://www.nannews.ng)

    ENI/NCI/FAA
    =======
    Edited by Nkiru Ifeajuna/Folasade Adeniran
    Slaughtering of a cow by a household in preparation for celebration of Eid-el Kabir at Ogudu G.R.A

  • Fans thrilled as D’banj gives exciting performance at Afrika Shine

    D’banj performing at the the Afrika Shrine on Tuesday night

     

    D’banj
    By Oladele Eniola
    Lagos, June 12, 2024 (NAN) It was vibes and fun as Nigerian singer and rapper, Oladapo Oyebanji, popularly known as D’banj, entertained his fans at the New Afrika Shrine in Lagos on Tuesday night.
    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that D’banj performed to the excitement of the crowd, as part of celebrations to mark his 20 years of musical excellence in the entertainment industry.
    D’banj had earlier announced saying “I will be celebrating my 20th anniversary on June 11 at the Shrine. It is free of charge for everybody, as I’m going to be giving back to you (fans) for all that you’ve given to me.”
    The 43-year-old performer also announced plans to host 20 shows in 20 cities in Nigeria before touring other African countries, then America, and Europe.
    He will then return to Nigeria in December for the Koko Festival.
    ‘Mobolowowon’, ‘Why me’, ‘Tongolo’, ‘Mr Endowed’ and ‘Oliver Twist’ were among several of his hits he performed for the enthralling crowd.
    The event also witnessed brilliant performances from Peruzzi and Made Kuti, with the latter having a joint performance with D’banj.
    The stage was also a platform for some up-and-coming artistes to showcase their talents as D’banj brought up some fans to the stage to perform their acts.
    Some of the fun seekers expressed excitement about the event while speaking with NAN.
    Leke Adesesan, who was there with his girlfriend, said he was excited about the event and commended the organisers for the initiative.
    “I have never really had the opportunity to see D’banj perform live before, so, as soon as I heard about it, I registered for the event and ensured that I was here.
    “His performance has been so great, I’m enjoying every moment of this and I wish the end wouldn’t end so I can have more of this,” he said.
    Nnamdi Nwachukwu, who came in the company of his friends, said he was thrilled and had been entertained with the performance all through the night.
    “I have been dancing since when I came into here, as you can see it has been a great performance from D’banj and the other performers.
    “I have also been waiting for the day to see Made Kuti perform. So, you can imagine my excitement when that happens and I got to witness such great performance for free,”he said.
    Also, Sandra Okafor who attended the event with her female friends, advised that new artistes should learn the act of performance instead of miming when performing.
    “The new generation of artistes must learn how to perform live whenever they want to entertain their fans instead of miming when they are on stage.
    “There is a unique difference when performing live as D’banj as shown this, and we have been dancing all night long because live performances come with a different vibe.”
    For Joseph Atah, who said he is single and lives in Igando, he expressed gladness to have witnessed the performance, noting that it was uplifting for his mental health.
    “This performance has been so great and uplifting for me mentally because it has been a tough couple of days for me. So, this has really helped to calm my spirits.
    “Performances like this have a way of changing one’s mood and I’m so glad I could make it here because I was kind of reluctant coming due to the distance,” he said.
    On her part, Nike Adebayo said that the performance was elevating, urging organisers to come up often with such free events.

    “Having such shows can be great for networking which in turn helps people in creating a bond that can lead to opportunities,” she said. (NAN) (http://www.nannews.ng)

    ENI/FAA
    ====
    Edited by Folasade Adeniran

  • NLC strike, Real Madrid UCL triumph, others top news trends

    Trends
    By Oladele Eniola

    Lagos, June 9, 2024 (NAN) Spanish professional football club, Real Madrid, kicked off the weekly news trends as they won their 15th Champions League title with a 2-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund on Saturday, June 1.

    Madrid had won six titles in the past 11 years while Dortmund were looking for their second championship in the club history.
    The much-anticipated match was played at the Wembley Stadium.
    Dortmund outclassed Madrid in the first half as they created multiple scoring chances but didn’t take them as the game went into halftime  in a scoreless draw.
    Madrid began to assert control into the second half as Dani Carvajal finally broke through with a header off a corner kick from Toni Kross who was playing his last game for Madrid.
    Shortly after, Vinicius took a pass from Jude Bellingham and sent in for a 2-0 lead as Toni Kross retired a Real Madrid Legend as he closed with season with a Champions League and La Liga Trophy.

    On Sunday, June 2, American professional boxer, Deontay Wilder, was handed another loss by Zhilei Zhang in a fifth round knockout at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

    The battle of the power puncher did not favour Wilder from the outset as both fighters strayed the bout tentatively but Zhang’s offence was more effective in the early going.
    Wilder was unwilling to let his hands go in the fight and Zhang took advantage of it as he dominated the first four rounds.
    In the fifth round, Zhang landed a glancing right hand and finished it off with a crushing fight that sent the defenceless Wilder tumbling to the canvas thereby handing him his fourth defeat in five matches.
    Many have predicted that the latest defeat has ended Wilder’s career with the latter admitting before the match that he may retire if he lost.
    The day also witnessed Islam Makhachev successfully defended his lightweight title at UFO 302, as he defeated veteran Dustin Poitier with a fifth round submission.
    In the fifth round of the fight, the Russian was spoting a substantial forehead cut as a result of repeated takedown by Poirer in the third and fourth round.
    Makhachev completely turned the tables on Poirer by winning, by submission of the final round and had prevailed in 14 straight UFC fights, a steak that started with a victory over Chris Wade on Sept. 17, 2016.
    On Monday, millions of Nigerians were without electricity after the national grid was shut down as part of a general strike by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) over the hike of electricity tariff and lack of consensus on a new minimum wage.
    The strike also hounded activities in critical sectors of the economy as schools, businesses , hospitals and airports were shut as long queues returned to fuel stations.
    On Tuesday, the NLC and TUC suspended their industrial action for five days after a meeting between the labour leaders and the Federal Government.
    Labour noted that the suspension of the strike was taken to give the government time to deliberate on the unresolved issues at hand.
    On the same day, actress Toyin Abraham said she had decided to keep her political affiliations private in the future, adding that she had learnt her lesson following a social media exchange that occurred on X , formerly Twitter.

    The exchange began when an X user identified as Otunba (@ManLikeIcey), wrote, “Maybe one day Toyin Abraham will divulge the plans Bola Tinubu shared with her to the public. I strongly believe we deserve to hear. Thank u @toyin_abraham1.”

    In response, Abraham said  that she had been assured of “good governance and happiness for everyone by Tinubu’s camp”.

    ”You asked me in a polite way, so, I will definitely answer you, of course, I was told and promised good governance and happiness for everyone and which I believe,” she stated.

    She expressed reluctance in bearing  the brunt of public scrutiny should the promises fail to materialise.

    “If things didn’t go well why do I have to be the one to suffer for it because I remember I voted (ex-president) Jonathan and I was bullied but I didn’t put blame on anyone after everyone chose (ex-president) Buhari. So, please why would they be cursing and trolling me every time.”

    The X user asked further,  “Thank you for your prompt response. Do you believe he has failed at the moment in governance or not?”

    Abraham replied, “I have faced my life and career because I am not a politician and I’m not in government, I have learnt my lesson never ever to be open with my choice again.”
    On Wednesday, Kayode Egbetokun, Inspector-General of Police, appointed Yetunde Longe as the Secretary of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).
    With this appointment, Longe became the first female secretary of the force.
    On Thursday, Garett Southgate, the manager of the England Senior team announced the final 26-man group for the UEFA Euro 2024 tournament commencing in Germany next week.
    The big names to miss out are  Harry Maguire, who was removed due to injury while Jack Grealish did not make the squad due to lack of playing time at club level.
    Others who did not make the list are : James Maddison, Curtis Jones, Jaread Branthwaite, Jarell Quansah and James Trafford.
    Surprisingly, Manchester United left back, Luke Shaw, who has been largely unavailable for his club in the just-concluded campaign, made the final equal while youngsters, Kobbie Maino and Adam Wharton were also included.
    Still in the world of sports, the Super Eagles played out a 1-1 draw with the Bafana Bafana of South Africa at the Godswill Akpabio Stadium in Uyo on Friday.
    The result was Nigeria’s third consecutive draw in the Group C World Cup qualifiers and leaves  Nigeria in fifth with three points in the log table.
    The Super Eagles were behind when Themba Zwame struck in the 28th minute as Hugo Broos’ team were disciplined at the back to prevent the eagles from scoring.
    Early in the second half, Dele Basiru equalised but the scores remained that way till full time as Nigeria remained fifth on the table with South Africa in fourth.
    Also, it was a night of glitz and glamour as Nigerian singer and rapper, Oladapo Oyebanji, popularly known as D’banj celebrated his 20 years of musical excellence in a sophisticated ceremony.
    The event witnessed several guests and fans mime along while D’banj’s songs from 2004 were played to their delight.
    Among the celebrities that turned up at the event are: Clarence Peters, Legendary music video director; Nollywood actres, Funke Akindele; Afrobeats Musician, Femi Kutu; Timaya; ID Canada; Kenny Ogungbe; Bisola Aiyeola, Mr Macaroni, Ini Edo , Tobi Bakare amongst others.
    On Saturday, in a friendly match between Croatia and Portugal for the Euro 2024 tournament, Cristiano Ronaldo’s team was defeated 2-1.

    Ronaldo was an unused substitute as  Portugal lost the game to a Modric penalty and Ante Budimir strike. (NAN) (http://www.nannews.ng)

    ENI/FAA
    ========
    Edited by Folasade Adeniran