The Nation Newspaper

Category: Saturday Magazine

  • Do you care for clean chin?

    Do you care for clean chin?

    THERE’S nothing quite as frustrating as cleaning up with a close shave, only to suffer from razor bumps. But, if you suffer from razor bumps and ingrown hair, there are ways to combat this unsightly and uncomfortable condition. Razor bumps occur when the skin gets irritated or when it starts itching after you have shaved. What follows next are bumps which will form small hard outgrowths that cause a lot of discomfort and pain.

    Finding a solution to this condition is always a difficult task. Nevertheless, there are several ways to combat these tiny ugly monsters. For example, there are some bump removing products that are highly effective.

    However, adhering to the following rules, one could minimize the effects of razor and shaving-related skin irritation.

    *Rinse your blade under hot water before you begin to shave.

    *Scrub your face with a facial scrub lotion. This will help remove dead skin, bring out ingrown hair and reduce razor burn rashes.

    *According to some school of thought, the best time to shave is after you must have taken a shower or after washing your face in warm water.

    *Use new razor blades always.

    *If you are using an electric clipper, be sure to clean and sterilize the blades regularly.

    *Brush off hair on the blade after each stroke.

    *After you must have completed shaving, wash your face and head in cold water with antiseptic soap.

  • Residents rejoice as new bridge links 24 Akwa Ibom communities

    Residents rejoice as new bridge links 24 Akwa Ibom communities

    Conceived some years ago for the purpose of connecting more than 24 communitiesseparated by water for several years in Akwa Ibom State, the completion of Iwuo-AchangBridge ushers in a new life for residents, writes KAZEEM IBRAHYM

    AS Lagosians hail Governor Babatunde Fashola’s administration for constructing the Lekki-Ikoyi Link Bridge, the people of Akwa Ibom State, particularly residents of Ibeno community, are also rejoicing over the construction of a 600-metre bridge by the Niger Delta Development Commission across the Qua Iboe River, using an indigenous contractor.

    Built by Viche Resources, a subsidiary of the Roudo Group, the Iwuo-Achang Bridge is meant to connect about 24 communities in two local government areas in the state, which had been separated by the river over the years. For decades, residents of the affected communities had to travel in boats with the attendant risks before the NDDC came to their rescue. Now, with the bridge in place, they have an alternative means of transacting business and relating with one another.

    The newly constructed seven-kilometre road and 600-metre bridge connect villages like Iko, Rikang, Akata, Opolom, Ikot-Enwang, Okoroutip, Iwochang with 16 other communities. The Nation investigation revealed that before the project was completed by Viche Resources, most of the contracts awarded to foreign companies in the area were abandoned because of the swampy terrain, communal restiveness and other security issues.

    Completing the project was not without some pains to the construction firm as two of its employees were abducted by kidnappers in the thick of the militancy in the Niger Delta region. But with the determination of the company’s management to end the sufferings of the people of Ibeno and open up the economy of the area, the construction of the road and bridge was pursued to a logical end.

    Speaking with our correspondent, one of the construction company’s engineers, Tony Maduka, explained that the company had to cast the beams for the bridge about five kilometres away from the project site and had to transport them with barges. According to him, the company also had to travel 40 kilometres to procure sharp sand to fill the earthwork for the road.

    Explaining some of the problems encountered while executing the project, Maduka said he gave glory to God that the company was able to deliver the project many people had thought was not possible. “It is now clear that what foreigners can do, indigenous contractors can also do it. The first day I went to the site, I was afraid because the place is a mangrove and swampy area, but I summoned courage that the job would be done.

    “We encountered a lot of challenges while doing the job because the area is swampy. During the militancy era, it was terrible because two of our engineers were kidnapped. The project was carried out by mainly Nigerians. Most Nigerians are surprised that an indigenous contractor could build such a state-of-the-art bridge. To them, such construction could only have come from Julius Berger, Gitto, RCC, Setraco and other foreign construction companies operating in Nigeria.

    “The contract has been satisfactorily completed and it is waiting to be commissioned. It is to the credit of Viche Resources and NDDC that a Nigerian company was able to undertake and complete such a challenging job while other expatriate companies given jobs in similar terrains abandoned them.”

    Corroborating Viche’s development efforts, an elder in Ibeno, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said it is a shame that our own government has allowed itself to be hypnotised by the ancient argument of disparity in the expertise of local and foreign firms even in the face of glaring engineering and scientific feats of our people who end up doing the job for these foreign firms.

    His words: “Most of the major jobs awarded by the Federal Government and its agencies since independence have expatriate companies as 95 per cent beneficiaries. Most of these firms were companies with no history until they got to Nigeria. Their promoters only come to Nigeria with their brief cases, elegant words and confusing arguments.

    “The only investment they make is their hotel bills and they end up with mouth-watering contracts. They build a portfolio of resources so extensive that it guarantees them influence and authority where they should not have it. They put down enough seed money to finance the propaganda that Nigerian contractors are not competent or disciplined. It is a shame that our own government has allowed itself to be hypnotised by the ancient argument of disparity in the expertise of local and foreign firms even in the face of glaring engineering and scientific feats of our people who end up doing the job for these foreign firms.”

    Appraising the standard of the project, the Managing Director of NDDC, Dr. Christian Oboh, said encouraging local contractors to execute projects is part of the core mandate of the commission. “That is what the policy of the NDDC says because the Niger Delta area is a challenging environment. Those that must work there must have an idea of what the environment looks like. It is Nigerians who know how challenging the environment is.

    “When we came here, we realised that most of the local contractors were actually not performing because they were not being paid. I can tell you that very few Nigerian contractors would put their money because of instability or whatever happens in NDDC. We reached an agreement where we singled out that particular project and many other projects that we will put under fast track. I can tell you that I am happy Viche Nigeria didn’t fail NDDC.”

    Asked if NDDC was willing to extend the dualisation of the road so that the people of Eastern Obolo could benefit from the gesture, Oboh said there were plans by the commission to extend the road to Eastern Obolo. But he said the due procurement process must be followed.

    Oboh said: “The process of procurement must be followed. We appreciate what Viche Resources has done. But as the managing director, I do not just have the sole power to award the contract to Viche Nigeria. If I do, I would have given Viche Resources the process a long time ago. What we have done is that we are trying to provide for it in our budget.”

    The paramount ruler of Ibeno, Dr. Effiong Achianga, said the construction of the bridge had brought relief to the people. According to the monarch, there is need for government to encourage the local contractors in the construction industry so that the kind of competition the country is experiencing today in the telecommunication industry would be replicated in the construction industry.

    He said: “Viche Resources impressed me with what they have been able to achieve. I was initially skeptical about their competence, but having seen what they have done here, we are all happy.

    “I am appealing to the NDDC and the Ministry of Niger Delta to allow Viche complete the extension of the road to Eastern Obolo and other communities within Ibeno.”

    In the mean time, the people are in joyous mood as they await the inauguration of the 600-metre Iwuo-Achang bridge.

  • Lekan Alabi gears up for 35th wedding anniversary

    The Ikolaba Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oloye ‘Lekan Alabi, and his wife, Chief (Mrs) Adetokunbo Alabi (nee Laditan), are getting ready to celebrate their 35th wedding anniversary in Ibadan, Oyo State and London, United Kingdom between August 9 and 12, this year.

    Towards this end, the Ibadan high chief travelled to London last month to hold a meeting with the anniversary’s planning committee members. The celebration will feature a thanksgiving service at the London Central Mosque and Saint John’s Wood Anglican Church, Lords Roundabout, London NW8, where the couple were joined in holy wedlock on Saturday 12 August, 1978.

    A wedding anniversary dinner will hold thereafter at a Bayswater restaurant, London, while the honeymoon will be spent at Lalupon, Ibadan, where the couple were conferred with their first chieftaincy titles of Akogun and Yeyemeso of Lalupon respectively in 1991.

    The officiating minister, who conducted the Alabis’ wedding service in 1978 and their 30th wedding anniversary thanksgiving service in 2008, Rev. John Ranking, is billed to conduct the forthcoming 35th anniversary at the same church in London.

  • Ekiti First Lady clocks 50 without fanfare

    The likeable First Lady of Ekiti State, Erelu Bisi Fayemi, joined the league of golden age on Tuesday without pomp or ceremony. The kind-hearted wife of Governor Kayode Fayemi shelved many programmes that had been lined up to celebrate her 50th birthday.

    Those who should know told Celeb Watch that the postponement had to do with the passing on of the former deputy governor of the state, Mrs Funmi Olayinka, on April 6, 2013. An insider said the First Lady’s 50th birthday shindig had been shifted to October. She only had a thanksgiving service at the Government House Chapel in Ado-Ekiti.

    Born in Liverpool, England on June 11, 1963, Erelu Fayemi is a product of both Nigerian and UK universities. She has acquired professional experience as a gender activist, social change crusader and journalist.

  • Fascinating Nigeria :The Country’s new identity

    Fascinating Nigeria :The Country’s new identity

    Though virtually every knowledgeable person about tourism would agree that Nigeria, as a tourist destination,has huge potential. However, the country always struggles when it comes to attracting a large number of in-bound tourists.

    The highest number of tourist arrivals into the country constitutes mostly business tourists who come to explore business opportunities in the country. With the rather positive outlook of the Nigerian economy and the forecast that it would be bigger than the South African economy by 2020, many international investors are being attracted into the country on business trips because of this.

    Religion has also helped in boosting the number of tourist arrivals into the country. Outside business, probably the biggest tourist attraction into the country is Pastor T.B. Joshua. On a weekly, if not a daily basis, tens of foreign tourists troop into the country from within and outside Africa to visit the Synagogue Church of All Nations. They come in search of solutions to both physical and spiritual problems. That they keep on coming might just be an indication of usefulness of these trips. There is no doubt that without Pastor Joshua, these people would probably not dream of visiting Nigeria.

    There is also the annual Shiloh by the Living Faith Church Worldwide held in Canaanland, Ota, Ogun State. Thousands of Christian pilgrims from all over the world also troop into the country for the annual programme normally held in the month of December.

    Outside the Christian churches, the annual Osun Osogbo festival attracts its own tourist traffic to Nigeria. The tourists that visit Osogbo for the festival are little eclectic, ranging form the adventure seekers from Asian countries like Japan, researchers from countries like Germany and Osun worshippers form South America, the Caribbean and North America. This festival holds annually in August.

    Despite all these prospects by religious organizations and other private initiatives, the Nigerian tourism industry has not properly flourished. The Nigerian Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC) has the mandate to develop and market Nigerian tourism, while the policy formulation to drive the tourism industry forward rests on the parent ministry, Ministry Tourism, Culture and National Orientation. While the NTDC has embarked on different activities in the past to develop and market the tourism endowments of the country both locally and internationally, the full benefits of these efforts have not been achieved. This is because the blueprint for the tourism development of the country is lacking. To address this , the Federal Government some years ago decided to develop a tourism master plan that would serve as a blueprint for the development of tourism in the country. The project was to be jointly financed by the Nigerian government and a counterpart funding coming form the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO). This was done. The committee was led by the Minister of State for Agriculture, Dr. Franklin Adejuwon, a tourism expert. The UNWTO sent some experts to work with their Nigerian counterparts. After close to three years on the field and at the cost of millions of naira, a master plan was produced. It was presented to the then president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo. Since then, every effort for the implementation of this master plan has not been successful. In other words, there is actually no particular plan on ground to grow the Nigerian tourism and develop it.

    However, this has changed with a recent press conference by the Minister of Tourism, Chief Edem Duke, that the Nigerian tourism would have a new brand identity: Fascinating Nigeria. Duke said plans had been completed for the launch of a new brand identity. According to him, the project had been on for some time.

    He said: “We have been working on this for the best part of one year with virtually no resources at our disposal. On January 9, for those who may have been following the activities of the Federal Executive Council, the tourism brand identity was approved for Nigeria. Then it became expeditious for us to work aggressively towards that brand Nigeria launch. As I speak to you, it has been resolved that the first week of July, 2013, that brand will officially be launched in Abuja.

    “ In pursuant of that, we have been developing the collaterals that will support the brand. You will agree with me that there is no bookshop you go to any where in the world that you see respectable collateral about Nigeria. There is no mission of Nigeria that you go to, anywhere in the world, that you find materials that speak of the various endowments of this country and I think that Nigeria deserves more, as the biggest black nation on the face of the earth, as the source market for the tourism revenue of other countries. I sat and listened to President Jacob Zuma as he related to our president that Nigerians are the greatest contributors to his country’s tourism revenue. He also said he was going to open a South African Tourism Office in Lagos, Nigeria. I think that Nigeria deserves a swift, appropriate and dignified response. Not a response in that kind of sense, but that we also have something that we can be very proud of.

    “The collaterals that we present to you today will be supported by a number of activations in the mass media within the limit of our own resources. That is what I came to share with you this afternoon.

    “At the appropriate time, first week in July, we will also share with you various brand strategies which we have developed in the ministry. It is my belief that when we have this going, we will be talking about an identifiable Nigerian tourism brand.

    “I love to hear people talk about Incredible India, Malaysia Truly Asia, Kenya or whatever they are. Our brand identity is Fascinating Nigeria because there is no where else in the world that this appellation best suits. Whether it is in business, nature’s endowment, agriculture, investment climate, whatever, but tourism is the first letter of recommendation and our culture is the major collateral for this to activate.”

    Anybody that has been privileged to have gone round the country would not have any problem accepting the Fascinating Nigeria as a brand identity for the country. There are so many things the world needs to see about Nigeria. Is it the rich diverse culture or the people or the eco-tourist attraction of the country? The endowments are so vast. The only problem of just mouthing a brand identity without the necessary depth is that it would sound hollow.

    All the countries that have developed their tourism with its concomitant tourism benefits did it based on clear-cut action plans. They develop tourism master plans and based on the plans, they begin the process of implementation. The viable plans come first before the brand identities. Nigeria needs to do the same.

    The Minister of Tourism must be commended for its effort in creating a brand identity for Nigeria, but the implementation of the tourism master plan, which has not yet been done, should come first. Mouthing a brand identity without a plan of action to develop the Nigerian tourism is like putting the cart before the horse. If this is not done, after the euphoria and noise about catch-phrase, the tourism will still be in the same position.

    The most difficult in destination building is to develop content that would, to a very great extent, determine the identity. Nigeria needs to go back to the master plan and look how it can be implemented. If there are grey areas in the plan, it could be rectified. If this is not done, all the euphoria of brand identity would just be all motion and no movement.

  • Akpabio ‘s wife marks 42 in style

    Akpabio ‘s wife marks 42 in style

    The age of 42 usually passes without much of fanfare. But when the super rich decide to celebrate, it is bound to generate interest. That was the case with dark and lovely Ekaete Unoma Akpabio who turned 42 on Monday.

    It was pay-back time for the beautiful wife of Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State, as family members and friends rallied round her to make her 42nd birthday a memorable one. But her disposition on the day pointed to the fact that she is not given to celebrating her birthdays in a very loud manner. Rather, she sees it as no more than another day in her life.

    While her birthday was meant to be a low-key celebration, the presence of top dignitaries showed she is a gold fish which has no hiding place. Top-of-the-range drinks and assorted meals were served at the occasion.

    The First Lady of Akwa Ibom State was simply full of excitement on that day.

  • ‘I sewed 45 agbada for MKO before I met him’

    ‘I sewed 45 agbada for MKO before I met him’

    Popular fashion designer, Otunba Wasiu Taiwo, is also the owner of Continental Suites, a hotel in Abeokuta, Ogun State. In this interview with OKORIE UGURU, the product of London College of Fashion talks about his humble beginning as a tailor and how he became an elite tailor for top personalities, including the late politician and business mogul Chief M.K.O. Abiola. Excerpts:

    How did start fashion designing business?

    I will start by saying that whatever you do, put all your interest in it. It is very important. At times, when I sit down and look at myself, I look my children and then cast my mind back to a period in the past when I was just a local designer. I look at my colleagues with whom I started and I thank God. The reason is that while I was very busy, trying to work 24 hours, I worked alone for three to four hours in the night. That was when I drew most of my inspirations. Everywhere would be quiet.

    With my 20 years experience, when I finish a product, I still find fault. This tells me that there is room for improvement. But the first thing is to have interest, believe in God and be honest in whatever you do.

    Maybe I should actually ask how you got into tailoring business…

    My father was a local designer. That is a long story. I started by sewing jackon, that is the embroidery on agbada. I tell people that I became self employed or self sufficient at the age of 12. He used to give me the agbada to give to somebody to do the embroidery for him. All the time, immediately he finished the agbada, he would call me and instruct me to take it to the man that would put the design. They called it jackon.

    Each time I got there, I would be wondering how somebody could be putting designs on agbada. If I had the time, I would stay and observe how he was doing it. I was there one day to deliver an agbada to him. He was not in the shop but I was hearing his voice. I shouted to him that I was around. The design he was working on, he had left it on the table. I sat down, took the material, lapped it the way he used to do and continued from where he stopped. He came in and shouted: ‘You want to spoil this material?’ He then looked at what I had done and was baffled.

    He asked me where I had learnt the trade before and I told him I learnt it from him; that I watched him to see how he was doing it. He said I did it perfectly, as he could not distinguish where he had stopped from where I had started. He told me that since I had the interest, any time I was around, he would give me the opportunity to learn.

    One day, my father gave me an agbada to take to the man. I decided to go to the market, buy the thread and took my time to do it little by little, hiding it from my father. I completed it the third day and took it to my father. He gave me money to take to the designer, but I told him that I did it myself. He did not believe me. I repeated what I had said and he went to the man to confirm it. Then, they were sewing agbada for N50 and another N50 for the embroidery. So, if the complete set of buba, agbada and sokoto was N50, and the embroidery too was N50, my father looked at it and said I was in business. He said: ‘Henceforth, do it and I will be giving you 10 per cent of the money.’

    How old were you then?

    I was 13 years old, and as a small boy, he did not want to spoil me with money. So, I could put hand in my pocket and do whatever I wanted to do. I could give money to my friends. That was how I picked interest in tailoring.

    After some time, the 31 battalion of the Nigerian Army wanted to award their school uniform to contractors and we were the tailors around. My father did not even bother. Then, I had started buying ready-made clothes, loosening them and trying to sew them back. I tried teaching myself how to sew. So, immediately they called for contractors for the uniform, I went there to represented my father and myself. I took a job for my father and myself and bought a sewing machine with the money I made form that job. I was given a room and I had the machine in the room. So, I could do anything I liked with it. That was how I developed the habit of working at night.

    To God be the glory, I was at the London College of Fashion. I returned to Abeokuta and decided to stay here because I believed I had some idea about the business and I wanted to share it with my people first, because I know that if I had stayed back in London, I would excel. That is how it has been till date. That is the system I have put into the hotel business, because if you have eye for sewing, you have eye to see how things should be put in their proper place.

    How did you attract big names to your tailoring business?

    It was not me but my products. When I sew for you, people will look at it. The only major one that I had to struggle to get was that of the late Chief MKO Abiola. When I looked at the newspapers and saw what he was wearing, I believed I could sew better clothes for him.

    I was in his house for three days. I had a friend called Kujima then, who worked with the wife. I told him that I wanted to sew for MKO Abiola. I told him he could see that I had better collections than the man was wearing. I told him I would do something that the man would appreciate much more than the clothes he was wearing. He said, ‘Okay, let us go.’ I took my bag and we went to Lagos. That was in 1990.

    On the first day, we were in Abiola’s house from morning till night. I could not believe what I saw.

    What did you see?

    I saw people from the North, East and every part of the country in his house. All these people wanted to see him and they were killing cows everyday to feed them. I looked at myself and said, ‘Everybody here wants to see this man; I don’t think I can see him.’ I said if I went to them and said I wanted to introduce myself to him as a tailor, who would take me there? Some people had been waiting for two weeks to see him. I believed it was being arranged state by state. Sometimes, they would just arrange envelopes for all of them and they would go. Before you know it, another set would come.

    I said maybe this man would think I was coming to beg for money. I asked myself how I would introduce myself to him. Then suddenly, my mind just told me…okay, he was in Abeokuta when he wanted to declare for SDP (Social Democratic Party). So, just struggle to get closer to him, just to have his measurement.

    After that, I just went straight to the market. I bought five sets of complete agbada (flowing gown) piece; the best material in the market. My mind told me that I didn’t have to wait for the man; that I should buy the material, sew it and take it to him. I started dropping five sets of Agbada piece. I would do so again the following week. I would go to the market, buy the materials and drop it in his house. I was dropping five sets of material every week without waiting to see him. So, when I looked at the newspapers, I would see him wearing my dress.

    Then, he was just preparing to go into politics. When I looked at the paper and saw that it was my dress he was wearing, I said this man, I have got him. I sewed the first, second, third, fourth, fifth; about 45 sets of agbada without even seeing him. I used a style that God put in my mind that I should put my cards in all the pockets. Five cards went with one piece. So, as I was delivering the five pieces, there were 25 cards going at the same time. So, anywhere he went, if he put his hand in his pocket, he would see my card.

    When I went to deliver a particular set, one of his aides told me he was going to be in Abeokuta at so and so time to see Chief Segun Osoba who was the governor of Ogun State, and that he would try and call me. I gave him my land phone number, because there was no GSM then. When he called me, I rushed to the place and luckily, he was wearing my dress. He was coming out with the governor, Ebenezer Obey and others. I beat all the protocol and faced him. I said: ‘Are o! My name is Wessy, the designer of your outfit. The man just opened his mouth and could not close it. He embraced me and held me so tight that I could not breathe.

    He said, ‘Iwo ni Wessy? Ori e pe (you mean you are Wessy? You are superb).’ He was so happy that he told the personal assistant that wherever he would be the next day, I should come and see him. I can’t forget that. He said I should bring my receipts. He said: ‘Whenever I looked at your card and saw that you are from Abeokuta, I would be very happy that it is coming from home.’ So, I went to Lagos the next day and he paid me three times the bill I had issued him. He told me that I should not be buying materials for him.

    He took me to one room that was filled with leather. Immediately you approached the lobby, you will be smelling leather. Another one, a very big room, was filled with all kinds of materials. When he opened the door and I entered, there was a wall-to-wall wardrobe filled up with clothes that the doors could not be closed. You would be moving one leg, pushing clothes before you could take another step. I have the picture of the room in my mind. I said this was a man I was looking for and spent three days without seeing. That was the person that anytime I came, he would hold my hands and we would go into his room. Each time I think about that, I thank God.

    There is no profession that cannot take you anywhere if you are good in it. So, this was the man that I sat with in his private sitting room upstairs anytime I came. He told me on the first day: ‘Wessy, remove all these cards from my bedroom. I saw my cards in his wardrobe, in the bedroom, everywhere. I was trembling. I was inside MKO’s bedroom? Me? I could not sleep that day when I got back to Abuja with his cheque. So, MKO became somebody I was talking with on the phone. So, whatever you are doing, do it well. And the most important is to be honest, because that was what lifted me up finally.

    Were the measurements of the clothes you had sewn for him correct?

     

  • DHL employees rescue Nigerian student stranded in China

    MAGNANIMOUS employees of foremost courier firm, DHL Express Ltd, proved a few weeks ago that their job is not all about dispatching mails and cargo. They offered a lifeline to a distraught Nigerian student, Oluseun Faleye, in far away Peoples Republic of China.

    Oluseun, a final year student of Electronics and Telecommunications at the Shenyang Aerospace University (SAU), China, was staying in the Asian country on borrowed times following his inability to defray school fees until the gesture saved his drowning educational dream.

    The story of the embattled student was first published in The Nation on Sunday, April 7 in the Deputy Chairman, Editorial Board, Mr. Tunji Adegboyega’s column, wherein he urged members of the public to lend a helping hand to save Oluseun’s drowning educational dream. He was due to graduate in July but could not defray the tuition fees for lack of fund.

    Adegboyega, had captured Oluseun’s plight under the headline “The Faleye metaphor” thus: “…when Oluseun Samuel Faleye received his letter of admission into Shenyang Aerospace University (SAU) in China in September, 2011, to study electronics and telecommunications engineering, in furtherance of his course at the Nigeria College of Aviation Technology, Zaria, his joy and that of his parents knew no bounds. Faleye had in 2011 concluded his diploma programme at the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology, Zaria, which on March 30 of the same year signed a memorandum of understanding with SAU for the purpose of admitting the college’s products for a two-year degree programme.

    “His father, Chief S.A. Faleye, had in a letter of consent to the consular-general in the Chinese Embassy in Lagos, undertaken to take full responsibility for the payment of his school fees and any other financial involvement, before things started going awry. Any parent would not have thought twice before consenting to such a project. Prior to the signing of the MOU with the Chinese university, products of the Nigeria College of Aviation Technology used to secure employment with the airlines or other aviation agencies with their diploma certificates. Faleye had hoped to get a job after the Zaria training.

    “However, a new policy which made it mandatory for those of them from the Zaria college seeking employment in the aviation agencies to have first degree came into being at about the time Faleye was leaving the college. This apparently informed the college’s decision to sign the MOU with the Chinese university so that the diploma holders would be able to go there for their first degree programme.

    “Faleye and his colleagues were thus in a quagmire, as none of those agencies employed the Zaria college’s diploma holder after that policy took off; at least initially. It was after he had stayed at home for about a year doing nothing that his parents decided to fulfill all righteousness: if what would get him employment was obtaining the first degree in the Chinese university with which the college had signed an MOU, so be it. So, they pulled resources together to ensure that their investment on their son in the aviation college would not be in vain.

    “Unfortunately for him, it was after he had left for China that some of the aviation agencies changed their mind and recruited some of his colleagues. Unfortunately too, for him, things did not go as planned as they sometimes don’t. The projection of raising the about N4 million needed for the school fees soon got derailed… his father, in his 70s, had to sell some of his property to ensure he completes his studies. His programme, which commenced in 2011, is supposed to end in July. But Faleye, the last child of his parents, is in a quagmire: he is not sure of concluding the programme due to the financial challenges he is currently facing. About N1 million is standing between him and the conclusion of his programme. If help does not come, all the investments in China since 2011 when he secured admission into the college would go down the drain.

    “When he realised the precarious situation in which he is, he managed to secure a teaching job in China. But that country is a no-nonsense country, they quickly stopped him because, as they said, the job is for their citizens. As things stand, Faleye is willing and ready to enter into agreement with any individual, corporate organisation or institution that is ready to offer assistance, on how the money would be repaid. “

    Soon, after the piece was published, some Nigerians, including one Prof. Adeleke Ojo of Igbinedion University, Okada, Edo State, offered Oluseun the sum of N100, 000 while Adetumbi Omoniyi and one Asimi also gave him N2000 and N1000 respectively. However, the total sum was a far cry from the amount needed to bail Oluseun out of his fix. This prompted Adegboyega to once again run the story on April 17. The story caught the eyes of the DHL benevolent employees who investigated the veracity of his story and found it to be true. Hence, the employees of the courier firm pooled a whopping N1.5 million together and forwarded same to Oluseun’s school so he could complete his degree programme.

    Explaining the motive behind the gesture during a chat with our correspondent, the Chairperson of the Employees’ Corporate Social Responsibility Committee, Mrs. Funmi Glover, said: ”Over 15 years ago, we started a fund called United Nations International Children Education Fund(UNICEF) with one per cent of all employees monthly salary to assist in the execution of some projects undertaken by the international organisation. The projects were not forthcoming and that was the reason why we changed the name to Employees CRS Project in 2012 and Oluseun is the first individual beneficiary of the scheme.”

    Expatiating further, Mrs. Glover, who doubles as the Human Resources Manager of the company, said: “It was one of our members called Festus Oluwatuyi, who actually read the article in The Nation and brought it to our attention. We presented his case in our meetings and carried out a lot of fact-checking including his background, the story and other necessary checks. We painstakingly debated his situation in order to determine whether he actually deserved our help because we are also accountable to all the employees, who are contributors to the fund.

    “We got in touch with his former school in Nigeria, which confirmed that he is one of their former students and that it had a relationship with the Chinese university. We also spoke with Oluseun on skype and phone before we finally agreed to assist him

    “The total amount forwarded to him was about N1.2 million, including his return ticket to Nigeria when he finishes his studies. While we cannot guarantee him employment in our company, we shall use our goodwill to solicit employment for him in the aviation sector.”

    Responding, Oluseun’s father, Chief Samson Faleye, thanked DHL employees for their kind gesture, adding that but for their timely intervention; his son would have been deported.

    “I cannot thank DHL Express employees enough for offering my son a lifeline to complete his studies in China. I had taught that I would be able to raise enough money to see him through school but my hopes were dashed and I could not raise enough money to carry out the responsibility despite selling a two-acre plot of land in Ogun State for the purpose of paying his school fees when his admission came through.

     

  • Africa Fashion Week London holds in August

    The 2013 edition of Africa Fashion Week London, the third in the series, will take place from August 1 to 3 at Old Truman Brewery at the capital’s hip and happening district, Shoreditch.

    Fashion designers all over the world are fast preparing for their moments on the runway in front of thousands of fashionable Londoners and guests coming in from across the world and all over Africa as well as celebrities, dignitaries and VIP guests, including this year’s patrons, Abuja-based businesswoman and architect, Mrs. Fifi Ejindu, and London-based Nigerian artist, Yinka Shonibare MBE.

    Amongst the African and African-inspired designers from across the globe signed up to showcase on this international runway are also three ladies getting ready to dazzle a thousand-strong audience: Meg Alabi of Alabi Couture, Toyin Lawani of Elegante by Tiannahstyling and Asake Agoro of Asake Oke who has recently relocated to Lagos from London. Having participated in some way in last year’s Africa Fashion Week London, they are no strangers to the event, and it was perhaps last year’s success that inspired them to hit the runway in their stylish strides this year.

    Meg Alabi of Alabi Couture, who exhibited her designs at AFWL 2012, says, “AFWL is a great avenue to reach a targeted clientele and a great platform whereby we showcase our ready-to-wear collection with a twist.”

  • Joko Oni hits 60

    Joko Oni hits 60

    One of the pillars of high society, Joko Oni, will clock 60 in the next couple of days. But you would hardly notice it because of the sophisticated nature of the boss of Gold Rush whose life is guided by the philosophy that only good deeds last.

    With a smile that hardly vanishes from her lips, she enjoys a pretty physique that has improved with age. As usual, she would be all smiles as the high and mighty in the nation’s socio-political milieu gather in a few days to honour her. Little wonder preparations for the big day are in full throttle in her house.

    With friends in high places, nothing short of a grand 60th birthday is expected.