The Nation Newspaper

Category: Happenstances

  • Ifeanyi Ubah’s new battle

    Ifeanyi Ubah’s new battle

    WHERE is Ifeanyi Ubah? This has been the question on the lips of many who are concerned about the whereabouts of the Capital Oil and Gas boss since he lost the gubernatorial election in Anambra State last year. Since then, Ifeanyi has become a rare face in public and even in the media, his forte in the days he combed the nooks and crannies of Anambra for electoral support.

    Now, he is no longer visible on the social radar, and some people say he might be ruing his loss of the governorship race in which he came fourth behind the APGA candidate, Willie Obaino; the All Progressives Congress’s candidate, Dr. Chris Ngige and PDP’s Tony Nwoye. While the Nnewi-born businessman-turned-politician has gone to court to challenge Obaino’s victory, he is reported to be devoting time to his businesses.

  • Ama Pepple turns pastor

    Ama Pepple turns pastor

    NIGER Delta politician, Ama Pepple, has joined the rank of politicians who have embraced the pulpit. It was gathered that the Opobo, Rivers State-born beauty now devotes the better part of her daily living to preaching the word.

    While information remains sketchy as to the circumstances in which she became a pastor, she is said to have mastered the art of preaching. She is one of Nigeria’s well known female technocrats who rose to the high echelon of public service. She was the Minster of Housing, Land and Urban Development before she was relieved of her position in a cabinet shake-up over her alleged loyalty to some of the PDP governors who defected to the ACN.

    Her sack was dramatic in the sense that she was said to have gone to President Goodluck Jonathan a few days earlier to plead with him to make peace with Governor Rotimi Amaechi. She travelled abroad immediately after she was sacked in order to rest.

    Pepple, the first female to bag a First Class honours in Political Science from the then University of Ife in 1975, has maintained a low-profile lifestyle since she came back. She is also reputed as the first female permanent secretary at the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.

  • Ibadan gears up for Angela Folarin’s 40th birthday

    Ibadan gears up for Angela Folarin’s 40th birthday

    THE 40th birthday of the wife of Senator Teslim Folarin, Angela, is still a few months away, but the ancient city of Ibadan is already getting set for the occasion. A Lagos-based event planner is said to have been contracted for the supply of every item that would be needed for an A-list birthday bash.

    Words have already started going round in the Lagos social circle concerning the event. It is said in some quarters that the lawyer-cum-businesswoman is planning a big event that would launch her back to the social scene in which she has been less than active for some time.

    Since her husband bowed out of the political scene in Oyo State, Angela has maintained a private life. Now an opportunity beckons to bid farewell to obscurity and embrace the limelight again, hence plans are said to be in top gear to make the party a unique one.

  • I’ve no Quarrel with Gbemi Saraki, says Bola Shagaya

    I’ve no Quarrel with Gbemi Saraki, says Bola Shagaya

    AS you read this, billionaire businesswoman, Hajia Bola Shagaya, is livid with rage. Her anger stems from the rumour that she is not in good terms with Senator Gbemi Saraki, the colourful daughter of the late strong man of Kwara politics, Senator Olushola Saraki.

    The influential socialite told Celeb Watch in a telephone interview that the story of her quarrel with Gbemi is baseless. ‎”In fact, she is with me as I’m talking to you,” she said. She advised those she called rumour mongers to concentrate on issues that would add value to the nation’s economy.

    There had been rumours in recent times that the two prominent daughters of Kwara State had engaged each other in a battle of supremacy as they struggle to control the machinery of the Peoples Democratic Party in the state. A report claimed that while Shagaya was happy that Gbemi defected back to PDP after her futile governorship aspiration in an obscure party, she took an exception to Gbemi becoming the party’s leader in Kwara State.

    Bola Shagaya was said to have stood against Gbemi’s nomination for ministerial appointment after her name propped up in the Presidency last month. But the said report sent Shagaya into high dudgeon and forced her to denounce their rumoured quarrel.

  • Rasaq Okoya renews marital vow

    Rasaq Okoya renews marital vow

    AARE Rasaq Akanni Okoya hardly grants an interview without speaking glowingly about his younger wife, Sade Okoya. So, when news filtered out weeks ago that the billionaire businessman would be renewing his marital vow with Sade, not a few people looked forward to the day with bated breath. Last Saturday, the landlord of Oluwa Ni Sola Estate, Ajah, Lagos, invited the who is who in the Lagos social, economic and political circles to witness the grand event.

    The day started with seraies of prayers, led by some prominent clerics in Abeke Memorial Mosque, built in the estate in memory of Chief Okoya’s mother. The couple later moved in to one of the expansive living rooms in Oluwa Ni Sola Estate, where guests had been seated to welcome the couple. National Leader of All Peoples Congress, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, and Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Raji Fashola, topped the list of very important guests who graced the event.

    In his characteristic manner, Chief Okoya thanked Sade for accepting to come into his life at the time she did. She went down the memory lane on his journey with Sade. According to him, Sade had not only been loving and supportive, she had been the mainstay of his businesses with her innovative ideas. Sade in return thanked Okoya for being her friend, her father, her husband and her angel.

  • Myma Bello-Osagie marks 60

    Myma Bello-Osagie marks 60

    IT was a convergence of Nigeria’s crème de la crème at the Oriental Hotel, Lagos, as Myma, the beautiful wife of Hakeem Bello-Osagie, celebrated her 60th birthday. From Aliko Dangote, Femi Otedola and Tony Elumelu, Governor Liyel Imoke to former Cross River State, Governor Donald Duke, Governor Godswill Akpabio, Jim Ovia, Otunba Niyi Adebayo, John Edozien and many more, prominent Nigerians from all walks of life showed up.

    Dr Myma Bello-Osagie ,a seasoned lawyer, currently serves as senior partner of Udo Udoma & Belo-Osagie, one of the leading law firms in Nigeria. She also heads its telecommunications and oil & gas teams. Her areas of specialisation include corporate restructuring, acquisitions, foreign investment, regulatory communications and equity financing.

    Highly rated for her works, she also sits on the board of various companies and acts as a trustee on the board of several non-profit making organisations, including the African Leadership Foundation, the African Wildlife Foundation and the Art and Business Foundation. She is also reputed as an avid art collector.

  • …plans high octane wedding for daughter

    ONE family whose penchant for elaborate celebration is not in doubt is that of Chief Rasaq Akanni Okoya. In this regard, another opportunity has presented itself in an impending wedding between Hadiza, one of the daughters of multi-billionaire industrialist, Aare Akanni Rasaq Okoya and Olamiju, her heartthrob and eldest son of former Oyo State Governor, Otunba Adebayo Alao-Akala.

    Already, April 12 has been picked for the solemnisation of the relationship, and the Oluwanisola Villa home of the bride’s father has already undergone a serious face-lift for the event, which promises to host many of the top players in Nigeria’s political terrain as well as captains of industry. The introduction leg of the wedding had held late last year when members of Olamiju’s family, led by the former Oyo State governor, visited the magnificent Eleganza Estate of the Okoyas in Ajah, Lagos. The session was attended by some prominent Nigerians, including the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

  • Jim Ovia gets new look

    Jim Ovia gets new look

    IF you run into the former MD of Zenith Bank International, Jim Ovia, chances are that you may not recognise him. The chairman of Visafone, a telecommunication company, currently spots a rotund face and rich moustache that make him to look different from his days as Zenith Bank’s chief executive.

    Jim Ovia has spotted the new look since he relinquished his position in Zenith Bank. His new looks are a total departure from his clean shave as a banker. In fact, it is easy for one to confuse him with an actor in full costume, ready to act a role; even when he celebrated a wedding ceremony for her daughter in the UK, he wore the same looks.

    The man, who transformed Zenith Bank to a global institution, is said to have found a new pastime in humanitarian activities. A few months ago, he built a massive school, named James Hope College, in his hometown, Agbor in Delta State. He capped the building with the appointment of a British educationist as the principal.

    According to him, he decided to help in making quality education accessible to the people and he would be replicating the gesture in other states.

  • Segun Odegbami eyes marriage again

    Segun Odegbami eyes marriage again

    THE coast appears clear for legendary Nigerian footballer, Segun Odegbami, to start scoring goals again, but not in the sense in which he did for the former IICC (now 3SC) football club of Ibadan or the Nigerian national team. He has only been given a clean matrimonial bill of health to formalise his union with Oyin Adeyemi, his lover of many years. A High Court in the Ibadan Division, Oyo State, is said to have formally dissolved his first marriage to Jumoke Tejumola Odegbami.

    A few years ago, the former Green Eagles captain was hosted by Oyin’s family in an introduction ceremony that saw Segun gladly inform the family that he was ready to tie the nuptial knot with their daughter. The family was joyous and expectant that the union would soon be consummated, but nothing appeared to be happening several years after.

    It was gathered that Segun could not go ahead with the said marriage because his marriage to his former wife had not been officially dissolved, even though they had gone their separate ways for years. This became a clog in Segun and Oyin’s wheel of matrimonial progress. But now, Segun is said to have finally divorced Jumoke and a marriage is in the offing for him and Oyin.

  • Gay moments Gay moments

    Gay moments Gay moments

    HAPPY times are here again for Anita Uwagbale. On Wednesday, the former Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria clocked 30, and she celebrated it in a low-key manner with some of her very close friends.

    A source close to her said the former beauty queen would have loved an elaborate party but she decided to lie low because her husband preferred it that way. Not many would have forgotten that her husband, Tom Iseghoni, was a guest in the cells of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over allegations of fraud and misappropriation of funds during his stint with Transcorp as the Group Chief Executive Officer.

    Before then, he had enjoyed some impressive credentials with his experience in leading global corporations, especially in America where he once resided. But he made little or no mark in Nigeria, and that, many believe, could have been responsible for the headlines he made when he was announced the GCEO of Transcorp.

    Shortly after his appointment, he called attention when he walked the former beauty queen down the aisle in an event that attracted the creme-de-la-creme in Nigeria’s socio-economic and political circles. He has been left off the EFCC hook and the couple must be happy that the storm is now over.