The Nation Newspaper

Category: Celebrity

  • Keem Bello-Osagie in low-key 60th birthday soiree

    Keem Bello-Osagie in low-key 60th birthday soiree

    POPULAR socialite, Keem Bello-Osagie, turned 60 a few days ago. But contrary to popular expectations, he opted for a prayer session and very low-key celebration that had just a few of his close friends and family members in attendance. And to cap it all, the austere event took place in far away London.

    Bello-Osagie is a Nigerian businessman listed by Forbes as the 40th richest in Africa. A Harvard Business School-trained petroleum economist, he chairs the Nigerian arm of UAE telecom provider, Etisalat. Through his holding company, Premium Telecommunications Holdings, he is said to control about 12 per cent stake in Etisalat Nigeria.

    In the 1980s, Bello-Osagie held various public offices, including an assistant to the president’s adviser on petroleum and energy. That was followed by a brief stint at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation. In 1986, he set up a petroleum consultancy outfit known as CTIC. In 1998, he reportedly bought 51 per cent of the shares of United Bank for Africa from the Nigerian government and sold it for a reported sum of $120 million in 2004.

    He is one of the largest donors to the African Leadership Academy, a residential secondary institution in Johannesburg that works to turn out Africa’s brightest students.

  • Kessington Adebutu explores new grounds

    Kessington Adebutu explores new grounds

    THE story of popular businessman and founder of Premier Lotto in Nigeria, Chief Kessington Adebutu, is one that has dispelled the notion that underprivileged kids cannot break into the rank of high society or that coming from a humble background would always work against one’s ability to climb the ladder of success. Adebutu’s main asset is the ability to sense change and quickly adapt to it. That perhaps explains his ability to survive and thrive where others fade out.

    He has once again proved his ability to turn a moribund business around by opening the former Gateway Hotel, Abeokuta, for business again after acquiring and renaming it Park Inn by Radison. Adebutu reportedly acquired the hotel from the Ogun State Government in the twilight of the Otunba Gbenga Daniel administration.

    The deal was said to have been executed by Gateway Holdings, the agency responsible for managing the state’s investments. The hotel, which had almost lost its glory, is now wearing a new look with a new name after millions of naira were said to have gone into its renovation.

     

  • Kunle Enitilo fetes friends

    KUNLE Enitilo has no doubt carved a niche for himself in the troubled oil and gas sector. And he has continued to demonstrate his passion for oil and gas business. Only recently, the pint sized businessman and World Oil boss gathered dignitaries from all walks of life for a classy party to mark the official opening of Word Oil’s mega filling station and corporate headquarters in Lekki, Lagos.

    The boss of World Oil spared no expense to ensure that the party was classy and memorable. Held inside a special marquee provided by KFA Rentals on a large expanse of land on which the station is located, guests were not only treated to the best of food and drinks but also the best of music supplied by 9ice, Orezi, Lace, Atorise and a couple of talented comedians.

    The joy he felt was apparent on seeing the huge turnout of friends, family members and well-wishers. It was an evening of fun and excitement as guests danced to the lovely music supplied by the stars on parade.

  • Where is Omowunmi Akinnifesi?

    Where is Omowunmi Akinnifesi?

    THE absence of Omowunmi Akinnifesi, ex-beauty queen and Lagos  State’s Ambassador for the Environment turned businesswoman, has been so conspicuously absent at social events in recent times that the social circle is already abuzz with speculations about her whereabouts.

    In 2005, she was crowned the Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria at the age of 18, making her eligible to represent Nigeria at the Miss World pageant in China the same year. At the global event in China, she shone brightly and even had to engage in tree planting for the Chinese government.

    T o the dismay of her fans and high society, however, Omowunmi, currently the CEO of Elle Poise, a public relations and usher-hiring outfit, has vanished from the social radar.

    In her days as Nigeria’s beauty queen, no A-list event was complete without her. She effortlessly dazzled all and sundry with her modish attire and stunning gait on the red carpet. As would be expected, her sudden disappearance from the social scene has given rise to speculations and unfounded rumours about her whereabouts.

  • Yemi Osindero on the roll

    Yemi Osindero on the roll

    BUT for divine grace, Dr. Yemi Osindero would have been swept off in the tsunami that robbed seasoned British investor, Richard Branson, of the ownership of the defunct Virgin Nigeria Airways. Armed with solid experience from Goldman Sachs, a First Class degree in Engineering and a versed knowledge of investment finance, Osindero, then the Chief Operating Officer of Virgin Nigeria, was said to have alerted the helmsmen of the company to the precarious economic condition of the airline at the time.

    However, his alarm was allegedly dismissed by the powers that be in the company, as he was told that there was nothing to worry about. But a suspicious Osindero probably saw farther than everyone else and decided to leave the airline when the ovation was loudest. And true to his suspicions, the airline wobbled and caved in the wake of global economic recession.

    Osindero has since joined Standard Chartered Bank Private Equity as a director with primary responsibility for the West African markets.

     

  • Ita-Giwa buries dad

    Ita-Giwa buries dad

    FEW women are gifted with both beauty and brains. Among the lucky ones is Senator Florence Ita-Giwa. At 69, she is still full of life. Recently, Mama Bakasi, as she is fondly called, staged a lavish burial ceremony for her stepfather, the late Godwin Akinwale Bajomo, at The Haven Event Centre, GRA, Ikeja, Lagos.

    There to grace the occasion were close friends and associates of the founder of Children of Bakassi Foundation, including Sisi Abba Folawiyo, Yeye Oge Opral Benson and Mrs Ireti Asemota, among others. Ita-Giwa ensured that her guests were pampered with choice dishes, drinks and dessert.

  • Obina Onuoha makes statement

    The saying that when you are big, you are big does not necessarily refer to people with large frames. It is rather about people who have the rare ability to turn stone into gold. In this regard, Obina Onuoha, a prominent player in the oil industry, is a big man.

    The nephew of the late controversial businessman, Maurice Ibekwe, is blessed with enormous resources which have earned him recognition beyond the shores of Nigeria. His shrewdness and business skills distinguish him as a businessman.

    Onuoha is the brains behind Premier Petroleum Products, among which is VIVA engine oil. Popularly called Obino 10-10 by childhood friends, Obinna trained at the Harvard Business School and makes no pretence about his preference for the elite in terms of association.

    In addition to his palatial home in Abuja and other properties owned by him, he has just completed a mind-bogging edifice that houses his brand, Premium Petroleum. The new building is located on the popular Admiralty Way, Lekki Phase 1, Lagos.

  • Quiet celebration for Wale Babalakin at 55

    Quiet celebration for Wale Babalakin at 55

    The Chairman of Bi-Courtney Group, Dr. Bolanle Olawale Babalakin, turned 55 on Wednesday. But his enthusiastic friends and well-wishers got a shocker. No champage was popped as he was wont to do. Nor did he make a room for acolytes to clink glasses in his honour.

    Rather, everything about his 55th birthday was low key, leaving many of his friends, acquaintances, associates and family members to wonder what was amiss. Olawale, hitherto known for his loud and extravagant shindigs, appears to be letting go of his old ways.

    In spite of the turbulence that has hallmarked his business concerns in the last few years, the erudite lawyer cum business man has chosen to be happy.

  • Omosede Igbinedion maintains high taste

    Omosede Igbinedion maintains high taste

    In spite of being separated from the man who once meant the word to her, Omosede is making the best of what life can offer. Remarkably, none of the inadequacies of life has affected her glowing looks.

    A member of the House of Representatives representing Ovia Federal Constituency, Edo State, Omosede is reputed for her love of luxury, and she is quick to profess that the habit rubs off on her son, Alexander, who was fathered by her estranged hubby and Benin prince, Aven Akenzua.

    Only recently, she displayed on the social media pictures of high end clothing and accessories costing a fortune, which she recently acquired for her son. Not one to do things in half measures, she was said to have done the shopping for her son’s clothes in some foreign outlets.

    With her fresh move to the National Assembly, those who used to gossip about her are now said to stop in their tracks once they sight the mother of one.

  • Funmi Goka avoids the limelight

    FUNMI Goka is no doubt a highly respected society woman. An accomplished professional, she has a thriving career in the oil and gas industry. In 2011, she was appointed Deputy Managing Director in Agip Oil, a status rarely attained by women. Funmi, who trained as a lawyer, has a career that spans more than 20 years in the company, serving in various positions of responsibility and in different departments.

    Married to a Ghanaian national, Frankie Goka, she is the daughter of the late Chief Oladipo Davies, a former nationalist and minister in the First Republic. Notwithstanding her fame on and off the social scene, her frequent absent at big parties hosted by people of her class has not gone unnoticed.