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Tag: comfortable

  • My family was comfortable but I lived like a servant —Redeemer ‘Varsity Pro-Chancellor

    As the Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of Council of the Redeemer University, Prof. Adetokunbo Adesanya chairs the council that makes laws for the university and in charge of the general management of the university. A legal luminary, a businessman, an investor and business counsellor, Prof. Adesanya, for over 10 years, sat on the board of Guaranty Trust Bank Plc and other companies. In this interview with PAUL UKPABIO and BIODUN ADEYEWA, Prof. Adesanya, who is a pastor, tells the struggle of growing up despite being born born into wealth and opulence.

    WHAT can you say shaped your life into the person you are today?

    I had a disciplinarian for a father. He never believed in spoon-feeding anyone. To put it in a nutshell, I had a tough background and upbringing and that shaped who I am today.

    Where did you grow up?

    I grew up in different places. I started life in Cameroun, came to live in Lagos and schooled in Ibadan, before leaving for England.

    What took you to Cameroun? Were your parents there?   

    Yes, my father was there; he was there in the Cameroun where he was practising law. Then I came to Lagos. I went to school at Ibadan primary school; I went to secondary school in Dublin, Ireland as well.

    So, would you say that you were a privileged child?

    That would be a paradox.It is a paradox in the sense that, I was in a family that could have been said to be comfortable, very comfortable but I lived like a servant.

    How did that happen? Were you in a polygamous home?

    Oh no, my dad was just a strict fellow, very strict. I cannot remember a car ever taking me to school as a child. In fact, the railway was working at that time. And I remember that the trains were working then and the railway ticket fare was one shilling three pence. I used the railway but it was his clerk who used to take me to the train station to board a train. And whenever I got to Ibadan, I used to board a bus to school then, which was in Molete. At a later time in life, he told me that, the reason why a car was not taking me to school was because it was he who had the car and if there was a change in his circumstance, he wouldn’t want it to affect me. He said if I had the privilege of being driven to school, that I would get used to it and if anything happened to him and I couldn’t be driven to school anymore in a car, that my friends will laugh at me. But if I never enjoyed anything that he had, even if anything happened to him, nobody would know.

    I remember when I came out of the university, when my mates were getting very good cars, I could only get the least of the cars in those days from my dad. It was called Daihatsu. It was the least of the cars, comparable to Picanto of today.

    Did that help you in any way to personally develop yourself? Did you see it as a challenge?

    Oh, I lived through it. Like St. Paul said in the bible, the son of a king under tutelage is a servant until he assumes the throne. Well, I lived through it. I endured it. It actually taught me to know that one can exist in any circumstance. Of course, part of the explanation he gave me in later years was that he deliberately wanted me to go through that kind of lifestyle to know that no man is superior to another. That it is only circumstances of life that puts you wherever you are. Today, I cannot walk pass a man sweeping on the road and not greet him. It taught me humanity. While it was tough for me to live under those circumstances, the benefits are enormous. Perhaps if more people had had that experience, we probably wouldn’t have the kind of Nigeria that we have today.

    You went on to study Law, who determined that choice for you?

    First, I wanted to read Medicine but I had always admired my late father in the legal world and in his lawyer’s robe. He was a cynosure to me. When the choice presented itself, I didn’t have difficulty in choosing Law. I studied at the University of Ife.

    How was the University Ife in those days?

    (His face warmed up in a full smile) Oh, Ife then was comparable to the best universities in the world. It was different from the other universities in Nigeria, which operated the course system; that is, if you failed a course, you had a choice of retaking the examination. If you failed a subject in year one, you could carry it to year four. But it wasn’t so at the University of Ife. Once you fail one subject, you repeated that year. Nothing was easy at the University of Ife in those days. We used to have this joke that even if you were in Physical Education department, to make sure that it is difficult for you, they will probably say you should be running backward instead of forward during physical exercises. I remember one of our lecturers, now Prof.Itse  Sagay, who is today in charge of Anti-Corruption, there was an external lecturer who came from Cambridge to mark our papers and he said this fellow deserves a first class but they gave him a 2:1 result. The university body replied him that there wasn’t anything like first class; that they had never given anyone first class before; that 2:1 was the best. Today, Prof. SagayOsagie has two bachelors degrees. He had to go to Cambridge, where he eventually got a first class.

    What kind of student were you on campus?

    People said I was a gentleman because I went to a public school in England. The training we were given there was to rise to become a gentleman in behaviour and in every other aspect of life. And I came straight from England to the University of Ife to study. I remember that I used to see young boys like me then jump the queue, push the girls, but I would stand up to them and tell them no, that is not right! So, before I knew it, people had started telling stories about me on campus, calling me ‘that Oyinbo boy!’ (Laughs). Yes, I was not born again at that given time, but it wasn’t about being born again then. It was more about being proper. I loved to be proper

    Did you meet your wife on the campus?

    (Laughs) No, I didn’t find her there, that’s actually another aspect of my life on campus. I can tell you that throughout my stay in the University of Ife, I never dated a girl. Again, that was part of the training I received in the public school in England. The way I saw it then was that, it was difficult to go out with a person when you knew that you were not ready to marry. We were taught not to break a girl’s heart! So, I had to discipline myself to know the boundaries. So, I met my wife after campus. She is an accountant who veered off to become a school administrator and proprietress.

    How did you get to become the Pro-Chancellor and got associated with the Redeemer University?

     

  • $64b debt profile comfortable, says DMO D-G

    There is no cause for alarm over Nigeria’s $64b debt profile,  Debt Management Office (DMO) Director-General Dr. Abraham Nwankwo said yesterday.

    Nwankwo said the country’s $64b debt profile is 84 per cent internal and 16 per cent external.

    He said the country can afford to borrow $25 billion annually for the next 10 years.

    Nwankwo, who spoke when he appeared before Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts, said: “We have been sensitising Nigerians that we need to do better because our tax- Gross Domestic Product (GDP) ratio is very low compared to countries in our debt role.

    “Their entire GDP ratio is about 18 per cent whereas for Nigeria, it is about 6 per cent, which means that we are not being effective in collecting taxes to reflect the size of our economy.

    “This has implications for debt service. Certainly there is the need to be careful even though there is space we need to relate debt service to revenue. The solution is that we have a big gap to fill because when we move upward from the 6 per cent tax-GDP ratio, we will have a lot of money to solve our problems including servicing our debts.

    “For now our debt servicing-GDP ratio is still very low, but we are optimistic because there is room to collect tax from the existing level of economic activities.”

    Nwankwo also justified the loans taken by the country, saying repayment period for most of the loans is spread for 40 years.

    The Senate committee expressed concern about the use of borrowed funds at the meeting. It said the Federal Government should take any form of misapplication of borrowed funds seriously.

    A member of the committee, Senator Philip Gyunka (Nasarawa North), demanded to know how the loans obtained by the country are applied and whether they were applied for the purposes they were sourced.

    Gyunka noted that he believed that if the facilities were applied for the purposes they were obtained, the country would have been better.

    He noted that instead of applying the loan judiciously, some of them were misapplied without punishment being meted to those involved.

    The lawmaker said the present generation of Nigerians must not allow a situation where the upcoming Nigerians would accuse the older generation of mortgaging their future.

    Gyunka also frowned at the situation where the solid mineral sector of the country is left untapped.

    According to him, the government should take the issue of diversification seriously in the interest of the development of the country, insisting that the debt profile of the country is low.

  • I’m most comfortable in bum shorts

    I’m most comfortable in bum shorts

    Actress Biodun Okeowo, aka Omo Butty, has starred in several Yoruba films since breaking into Nollywood in 2006. However, Okeowo, a single mother, has also veered into movie production. In this chat with VICTOR AKANDE, she talks about her experience as a producer, plans for marriage and how she handles advances from male fans.–Nollywood actress Biodun Okeowo

    WHAT’S the new thing happening to you in the movie industry?

    Nothing new, but I’ve been extremely busy on set.

    Busy shooting your own films or acting in films by others?

    Acting in films by others..

    I heard you have not recouped your investment in Omo Butty, what are the challenges that producers encounter in shooting their own films?

    I am yet to make my money from Omo Butty. I have close to N1million outstanding. The challenges are many and they include location problems – that is getting an appropriate place to use for your job, having to beg or pay people to use their homes. I think we need government intervention in this aspect, probably in the form of a film village. The second problem is piracy. Monkey dey work, baboon dey chop.

    I thought lack of sincerity on the part of film marketers is also a problem…

    Yes! But not all of them… Some owe you money and blame it on piracy. That’s why I said we need government. Government should wade in.

    Are you discouraged from further production of your own films?

    I am not totally discouraged. I’ve worked with Corporate Pictures after then and it was smooth. I was paid very well from that partnership, but I’m just taking my time. Moreover, I’m not the every-time producer. I produce one movie in a year because I like to give my best. Even if it is a small budget story, I still take my time to deliver to my audience.

    If you are asked to rate yourself, which category would you say you belong now, as an actress, A, B or C?

    I can’t place myself. Only people can say

    Would you say acting pays your bill entirely?

    No! But acting opens doors for me.

    How do you mean; it makes men to call you up and dash you money?

    When I say doors, do men bear doors? Haba! I mean doors – businesses, favours etcetera…

    But you know this is the perception of a many people…

    Yes ooo! That’s why I answered the question too. Thanks for asking. You know, as a popular face, you get to the bank and you don’t have to queue. You get to other places and while people are begging for favours, you receive it without sweat. I can go on and on.

    Meanwhile, some actors feel disturbed by their fans when they are spotted in public, do you have any such disturbing experience?

    Not at all. I love my fans.

    How do you handle advances from male fans?

    I love having them around me. So far, I am not being pulled and dragged.

    Don’t you get more disturbing advances from them because you are single?

    It’s a different thing. You are mixing things up here. You said fans, not men. It’s my fans I’m referring to, not men.

    I said male fans, and I know why… of course, they will come to you as fans.

    Yes that’s unavoidable. Men will come in form of fans and later turn to toasters. But I handle them politely. Some of them later become my platonic friends.

    Any plans to re-marry and get some rest of mind or would you say you enjoy the attention?

    Well, I’m using this medium to tell you that I’m not single. Moni Oluwa, and I am well rested in terms of mind. And it’s so glaring.

    It is rumoured that you are married to Kunle Adegbite, could he be the Oluwa you are talking about here?

    When the time comes, you will know. There is no further talk on that.

    Let’s talk about your style

    I’m a free-styled person. I love fashion. I love to look good.

    What is your attraction to bum shorts all about?

    I just love it.

    Would you say it’s your best casual wear, and why?

    Yes o. It is my very best casual wear and I’m most comfortable in it

    Or could it be because you know you have good legs?

    (Laughing) Do I? I don’t know. Except you tell me… me just like am ni o. I love maxi dresses too, but I hate three-quarters.

  • Eaglets comfortable with new venue

    Eaglets comfortable with new venue

    The Nigeria U-17 side have said that the move to Abeokuta from Calabar for the second leg of their Africa U-17 qualifier against Congo will not affect them.

    “We have no problem playing here in Abeokuta in spite of the fact that our fans in Calabar would miss us, said Prince Udofia, the team’s coordinator.

    “In fact, we thank  the Ogun State Football Association led by Ganiu Majekodunmi who has ensured that all is well since our arrival.

    Meanwhile, Abeokuta is home coming of sort for Golden Eaglets’ goalkeeper, Akpan Udoh. Though hails from South-South in Akwa Ibom, Udoh has lived mostly in Ogun State-precisely in Ijebu-Remo.

    The former Under-13 goaltender attached to Remo Football Academy was one of the lads picked by Uplift Team- a project by Mrs. Olufunso Amosun – to tour Udinese last year.

    “I’m happy to come back to Abeokuta particularly with the National Under-17 team, said Udoh who was a silver medal winner for Ogun State at the 2013 chief of Naval Staff Cup.

    ” We are looking forward to a good game against Congo DR and we are therefore, calling on the fans to come and cheer us on Saturday.”

  • We’re comfortable with APC, says New PDP

    We’re comfortable with APC, says New PDP

    The ground for a super coalition ahead of the 2015 general elections may have been established, with yesterday’s declaration of the Abubakar Baraje-led faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that it feels “more comfortable” in the company of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    The faction said it shares with the APC a common goal of rescuing Nigeria from the precipice and putting it firmly on the path of sustainable development.

    Yesterday’s declaration is coming on the heels of the visit last week of the leadership of the APC to four of the aggrieved G7 PDP governors, who they urged to team up with the opposition party to defeat the PDP.

    The APC leadership team, which included Gen. Muhammadu Buhari and Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, visited Sokoto State Governor Aliyu Wamakko, Kano State Governor Rabiu Kwakwanso, Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido and Adamawa State Governor Murtala Nyako.

    In all the places, they got messages of hope.

    Today, they are billed for Port Harcourt to visit Governor Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi.

    In a statement yesterday, the spokesman of the New PDP, Chukwuemeka Eze, said:

    “The presence of APC and New PDP leaders in large numbers at the Sokoto State University’s inauguration was a positive development, which raised hope for our fledgling democracy.

    “It is a good example of politics of tolerance and cooperation, which we consider necessary if the country is to experience peace and tranquillity, without which there could be no development.”

    The faction, however, stated that its romance with the APC is without prejudice to the ongoing negotiation between it and the Bamanga Tukur- led PDP.

    It nevertheless expressed the hope that wise counsel would prevail in the protracted peace talks between the Baraje and the Tukur factions, with the latter meeting the conditions stated by the former.

    Relishing its relationship with the APC, the Baraje faction continued: “Some have interpreted this to mean that a political marriage may be imminent between the New PDP and APC.

    “While nothing is impossible in politics, it is necessary to state that we have not at this point closed the door on the on-going negotiations between us and President Goodluck Jonathan, who is also the national leader of our great party, PDP, the reformation of which is our preoccupation for now.

    “The increasing closeness between leaders of the New Peoples Democratic Party (New PDP) and those of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has raised questions in the minds of many Nigerians and fuelled speculations on the possible merger of the two parties.

    “Speculations along this line have heightened since last Tuesday’s inauguration of the Sokoto State University, where both APC and New PDP put up a strong presence, with our national chairman, Alhaji Abubakar Kawu Baraje, leading a high-powered team that included former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Governors Murtala Nyako of Adamawa, Musa Kwankwaso of Kano, Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers and Sule Lamido of Jigawa; as well as our National Secretary, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, former Osun State governor, to the event.”

    “The chemistry between the team and that of APC, led by Gen. Muhammadu Buhari and Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, was indeed unmistakable. The APC leaders have since then intensified the lobby for a marriage between both parties, even visiting some of our governors to directly invite them to join their party.

    “All these visits on our state governors simply demonstrate our new status in the politics of Nigeria as the new bride of Nigerian politics. And we hope to play the role as expected of us, as we hold the key to Aso Rock come 2015.

    “We heartily congratulate the administration of His Excellency, Governor Aliyu Wamakko, a good Ambassador of our great party, the New PDP, on this laudable achievement, and pray that Sokoto State University does not only experience a smooth take-off but also develop into a model centre of academic excellence.”

    The meeting of APC leaders with Amaechi, according to a government source in Port Harcourt, will hold at the Government House in the Rivers State capital.

    The source said Amaechi will be joined by his deputy, Tele Ikuru, commissioners and other top government officials.

    Members of the National Assembly from the state, the 26 members of the House of Assembly loyal to Amaechi, leaders of the PDP and other allies of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) chairman would also receive the APC chieftains.

    The meeting, according to the source, will hold in the afternoon and a communique may be released.

    .The APC leaders are visiting Port Harcourt at a time the Supervising Minister of Education, Chief Nyesom Wike, who is also the grand patron of the Grassroots Development Initiative (GDI) is moving round the 23 local government areas of Rivers State for GDI’s inauguration.

  • Onaiyekan: I’m not comfortable with my national honor

    The Metropolitan Bishop of Abuja, John Cardinal Onaiyekan, has faulted the Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON) national honour bestowed on some Nigerians.

    The cleric said he was not comfortable with being a recipient of the national honour.

    Cardinal Onaiyekan spoke in Kabba, his home town in Kabba Local Government Area of Kogi State, at a reception in his honour.

    The Catholic Bishop said his elevation to a Cardinal and the honour given him by Kabba indigenes have added to his high sense of responsibility.

    He urged Nigerians to be good to one another.

    Cardinal Onaiyekan called for national honours on worthy individuals who have made their marks genuinely to give the younger generation a sense of diligence and patriotism.

    The Cardinal urged the Federal Government to work out a social welfare scheme for the aged, adding that such policy would make Nigerians to be more sincere and hard-working when they serve in their prime.

    Kogi State Governor Idris Wada, who was represented by his deputy, Yomi Awoniyi, described the elevation of Cardinal Onaiyekan as a blessing to the state.

    The governor said the Cardinal is a positive reference for the youths.

    He urged him not to relent in his service to humanity and the state in particular.

    Wada also urged the cleric to always pray for the administration and the state for divine guidance.

    The governor said the state government was working on a policy that would cater for the aged, adding that the policy would be unveiled as soon as the modalities were completed.

    A cleric, Rev Jerome Megbelehin, advised the people to shun fetish beliefs and rely on God.

    He described the Cardinal as a man who got to his exalted position through commitment, hard work and trust in God.

    The highlights of the reception were the cutting of a reception cake, the renaming of a township road, setting up of an endowment fund and establishment of an annual lecture in honour of Cardinal Onaiyekan.

  • Now that we are comfortable, people are saying my father used other people’s luck

    Good evening Aunty Adeola my name is Stephanie. I am 18yrs old.

    Please I don’t want this published in your column. I and my family stayed in a compound for more than 15 years. I and my elder sister were out of school for more than 2 years due to financial problem. My dad is a nice man who helps people in simple way he can. Now God has made a breakthrough for us and we are being accused of using people’s glories. Nobody answers our greetings and nobody wants to associate with us, and the people behind all these stories are those my father has helped.

    Law 10 in the book, 48 Laws of Power is – Infection: Avoid the unhappy and unlucky.

    It goes on to say, ‘You can die from someone else’s misery—emotional states are as infectious as diseases. You may feel you are helping the drowning man but you are only precipitating your own disaster. The unfortunate sometimes draw misfortune on themselves; they will also draw it on you. Associate with the happy and fortunate instead.

    That is that. We’ve all met them and we all have them. We all have people who drain you of energy instead of enriching us, the people who pull us down instead of pushing us up, the people who require more than they can provide; the negative, wining, needy, manipulative people who can turn a happy day into a living hell.

    They are toxic people. One thing is that no matter how good our intentions are in general, most of us have problems with dealing effectively with this kind of people.

    The good news is that there are effective ways to deal with toxic people.

    1. Avoid them: The best way to deal with toxic people is to not deal with them at all; to avoid them. In some cases it may not be an option, but more often than not, it is.

    It is also common to believe you can get a toxic person to change while interacting with them. But, unless you are a professional, you will not get them to change and trying it simply is not worth it.

    2. Set firm boundaries: Toxic people will often use you, one way or another. They may complain to you all the time while you listen hopelessly (?), or they may constantly get you to get them out of trouble. This is where boundaries come in. Boundaries are reflections of what you are and are not willing to do. Setting firm boundaries means not allowing toxic people to use you in any of these ways. It means refusing to listen to them complain, refusing to get them out of trouble. When you have firm boundaries, there is basically nothing bad any person can do to you.

    3. Get over your guilt: Most toxic people are very skilled at making others feel guilty when they don’t do what they want. This makes it particularly hard to set and maintain firm boundaries with them. But, there is a way out of this dilemma: getting rid of your guilt. It is your own guilt which toxic people use to break down your boundaries. When you can set and maintain boundaries with them without feeling guilty, the weapon they have against you is gone. Realize that your guilt is irrational, pointless, and it is used against you by toxic people. This is the best way to get over it.

    4. Do not defend yourself: When you avoid toxic people and you set boundaries with them, they frequently resort to accusing you, complaining and playing the victim in an attempt to get you to change your behavior.

    One of the worst things you can do when this happens is to defend yourself. It is usually a futile action and it only keeps an immature dialogue going which eventually helps the toxic person get what they want. You won’t get anywhere with them by defending yourself and your actions.

    Unfortunately, toxic people are everywhere. And they tend to attach themselves to those persons who are kind and have the most to offer. When you have the people skills to deal effectively with toxic people, you have the option to respond to their attaching in the best ways for you.