The Nation Newspaper

Category: Celebrity

  • Fayose’s flags set tongues wagging

    Ekiti State governor, Ayodele Fayose, is a man who cuddles controversy like a baby. It is no news that the controversial governor is one of the wealthy Nigerians who own houses in the rapidly developing Magodo Estate, Lagos State. Recently, his five-bedroom house on Adetoro Adelaja Street, off Emmanuel Keshi Street, was renovated. But the real thing that caught the eye about the newly renovated house was the hoisting of the Nigerian national flag alongside that of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    The house being a private one has left people wondering the motive behind hoisting the two flags in front of it. Perhaps the second-time governor wants people to know that the house belongs to a high ranking government official. Whatever the case, it is an unusual act that has left tongues wagging.

  • Dangote, Adenuga remain among Africa’s richest

    Year in year out, the list of richest Africans feature virtually the same dozen or so names at the top spots. This year is not any different, going by the recently released Forbes Rich List.

    The boss of Dangote conglomerate, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, is, for the sixth year in a row, the richest man in Africa with $12. 1 billion. Globacom boss and Otunba Apesin of Ijebuland, Dr. Mike Adenuga, is third on the list with $5.8 billion, while businesswoman Folorunso Alakija rounds off the Nigerians on the list with a personal fortune of $1.8 billion.

    Forte Oil boss Femi Otedola and sugar baron Abdulsamad Rabiu dropped off the list of dollar billionaires this year due to economic recession and a weakened naira. The dwindling fortunes of the two Nigerians paved the way for South Africans and Egyptians to dominate the most recent list. South Africa and Egypt are tied on six billionaires each, although the South Africans are cumulatively $7 billion richer than their Egyptian counterparts.

    This year, only two women cracked Forbes’ Africa billionaires list. They are the aforementioned Alakija and Angola’s Isabel Dos Santos. Isabel is the daughter of Angolan president José Eduardo dos Santos and the chief of the country’s national oil corporation Somangol. She is Africa’s richest woman with a fortune of $3.2 billion.

  • Biodun Fatoyinbo’s youthful congregation

    It is not every time that one needs to stand on the shoulders of giants. The shoulders of young people can do just as well, especially if they are many and supportive. Ask Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo, the head of Commonwealth of Zion Assembly. The youthful pastor presides over a congregation populated by young and vibrant professionals who regularly troop to the church to hear the word from their own.

    In thick and thin, Pastor Biodun has had the support of his mostly youthful church members. When the Ese Walter alleged affair broke some years back and threatened to ruin the church, the members closed ranks and saw their shepherd through the trying times.

    Pastor Biodun does not just feed his congregation with spiritual manna, he is also a fashion and style icon. He drives different state-of-the-art cars with number plates PB or Prov4 18. These include a brand new blue Porsche given to him by the church members.

  • Dahiru Mangal bounces back

    One time political bigwig, Dahiru Mangal, has once again resurfaced on the social scene after a prolonged romance with obscurity. The business mogul and oil baron was recently spotted at the wedding of his son, Muhammad Dahiru Mangal, to Aisha, a daughter of Sokoto State governor, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal.

    The wedding was well attended with guests, including eminent figures in the socio-political sphere. Before his disappearance, Dahiru Mangal was a powerbroker, especially during the time of former President Musa Yar’Adua. In those days, Mangal bestrode the Aso Rock Presidential Villa like a colossus, making and unmaking political fortunes on a whim.

    The untimely death of Yar’Adua, however, yanked him off the political stratosphere as quickly as he had climbed on to it. Since then, the boss of Max Air and Mangal Petroleum has been keeping a low profile.

  • Tina Ogundoyin takes back seat

    Tina Ogundoyin is reputed for bestriding the Ibadan social scene like a colossus. She carries on with the grace of a queen. Although younger socialites in the ancient city appear to be putting up a fight for the title of Ibadan social queen, none of them compares to Tina’s assemblage of name, connections and exquisite fashion sense.

    These days though, the ‘Queen of Sheba’, as she is fondly called by her admirers, has taken a step back and left the stage for the preening youngsters to strut their stuff. The prevailing situation is not unconnected with the rumoured emotional issues that developed between her and her one-time heartthrob, Sogo Agboola.

    Yeye Tina has gracefully climbed down from her public eminence to nurse her wounds in privacy. These days, she is hardly seen at celebrity gigs in Ibadan. Older and wiser, she carefully picks the events she attends and refrains from the stir-causing appearances of yore.

  • Olumide Aderinokun in marital bliss

    A few days ago, Olumide Aderinokun got married to TV presenter Stephanie Coker in a traditional ceremony attended by the who’s who of the entertainment industry. The extravagant wedding held on the 30th of last month remains the talk of the town.

    Interesting are the details about the life and origins of the lucky dude. He is a nephew of Tayo Aderinokun, the late Managing Director of Guaranty Trust Bank, being the son of the late banker’s elder brother. The handsome dude drives around in exotic cars and is said to be popular with the Lagos Island crowd.

    There are whispers, however, that Olumide’s marriage to Stephanie was possible only because the relationship between him and his Baby Mama could not progress to the altar stage. According to rumour, the mother of Olumide’s daughter, Tara, wanted them to spend their lives together but intractable issues put paid to that dream before he moved on to Stephanie.

    But there is no doubt that he is over the moon with his newfound love. The Ogun-State-born dude, who was said to have shelved his political ambition just before the general election last year, is said to have showered his new wife with a N38 million vehicle, which has sent tongues wagging in the social media.

  • Aare Rasaq Akanni Okoya hits 77

    Aare Rasaq Akanni Okoya hits 77

    Come January 12, the Oluwa Ni Sola estate home of the Aare of Lagos, Alhaji Rasak Akanni Okoya, will be filled to the brim with guests ranging from bigwigs to ordinary folks to celebrate with Aare Okoya as he clocks 77 years.

    Plans are already afoot at the Ajah residence of the Okoyas to ensure that the occasion is full of merriments befitting someone of Okoya’s status.

    The billionaire industrialist and helmsman of Eleganza Group of Companies is a man with a heart of gold. He regularly doles out generous sums to the less-privileged.

    For his 77th birthday, his daughters, who are as famous in celebrity circles as he is in philanthropic circles, are sure to leave no stone unturned in making the occasion a memorable one.

  • Bimbo Ashiru observes annual ritual with wife

    Those who know will tell you that behind the spectacular rise of Otunba Bimbo Ashiru lies his beloved wife Kemi, lovingly and gently pulling the strings like a puppet master. Unlike others who are shy to express their love in public, the two lovebirds are so much in love with each other that they have set aside the Boxing Day each year to celebrate their wedding anniversary with much pomp and fanfare.

    Last December 26 was no exception to this romantic tradition as the Commissioner of Commerce and Industry in Ogun State renewed his love for beautiful Kemi at an exquisite event that also doubled as his birthday celebration.

    Their Magodo GRA estate home looked like paradise as guests were treated to a magical evening of kingly courses and royal wine topped off with majestic music that entranced and captivated guests, including technocrats, politicians, captains of industry and top socialites and celebrities; they swayed to the musical notes while sipping choice wine from glittering goblets; while the couple held themselves aloft like royals in love, receiving acknowledging homages from happy courtiers.

  • Gboyega Adefarati steps into father’s shoes

    A regular feature of politics in Nigeria is the perpetuation of political dynasties. Like in monarchy, power is transferred from one family member to another. Fast-rising Ondo politician, Otunba Gboyega Adefarati, is the latest beneficiary of this arrangement. The son of former Ondo State governor, Chief Adebayo Adefarati, has become a formidable political force after ‘inheriting’ the political machinery of his father.

    Gboyega has been carving out a name for himself as a grassroots politician with whom people from the length and breadth of Ondo can easy connect. Although he had an unsuccessful bid to pick his party’s House of Representatives ticket for his constituency during the last elections, Gboyega has been building his political capital and has over time become one of the new voices in Ondo politics whose opinion carry a lot of weight with the people in power.

    With the way things are going, it seems only a matter of time for Otunba Gboyega to reach the top of the Sunshine State’s political pyramid like his late father.

  • Chima Anyaso expects second baby after broken marriages

    When one door closes, they say, another opens. This age long aphorism holds true for Ceecon Oil boss, Chima Anyaso, considering the recent events around him. While a heartbreak would leave some people with permanent injury, it is not the case with the Abia State-born dude.

    His earlier relationships with Onyeka Odiegwu and Neya Kalu collapsed like badly arranged cards but he strode into a fresh union with Adanna Nzeribe and it has been joyful tales ever since.

    The couple, who have been married for a little over three years, are expecting their second child after their first, Chimazala Joan-Chinyere, who was born not too long ago. Chima and Adanna seem to be enjoying the best of times.

    Adanna, daughter of the strong man of Imo politics, Senator Arthur Nzeribe, is said to be having a swell time in Chima’s house despite the short time between her pregnancies. The two lovebirds recently went on social media with a picture showing Adanna with a protruding belly. The two got married in a glamorous ceremony in the United Kingdom on August 10, 2013.