SHOCKER!...Chief Deji Adeleke, Walks Son Davido Out Of Public Event.

Can an artiste be more powerful than a political office holder who is more respected in her country and in the diaspora? This above question has to do with the Nigerian’s Finance Minister, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, while delivering her speech at the convocation ceremony at Babcock University, Ilisan Remo, Ogun State, on Sunday, June 1st. Dr. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, was addressing the 1,544 graduating students of the institution when Davido’s sudden entrance at the event created an uproar of distraction. The AYE crooner dramatic entrance while the special guest of honour, the Minister of Finance, was delivering her speech, made the Minister pause and watched the diversion. Davido’s arrival held the audience spell-bound that the Minister had to pause her speech and watch the students celebrate the artiste’s arrival who, happens to be part of the graduating students with a degree in Music. To respect the Finance Minister, Davido’s father, Chief Deji Adeleke, who was present at the occasion had to walk his son out for there to be calmness.

Onipan Crisis Update: LAGBUS Denies Killing Any Soldier.

Following the yesterday's riot when Soldiers allegedly burnt down BRT buses because a BRT bus driver was said to have crushed one of the Soldiers. The Army denied been part of the yesterday's destruction and blamed it on the area boys. LAGBUS Asset Management Limited, operators of BRT buses have denied that one of their buses killed a soldier. Soldiers went on a rampage yesterday around the Palmgrove area of Lagos, stopping BRT buses, asking passengers to get down, beating the drivers, destroying the buses before eventually setting them on fire. The damage yesterday is said to be worth over N100million. But speaking about it, a LAGBUS official said they had nothing to do with it, explaining that they only found a corpse in their bus and went to report it to the police; "By 10 p.m. last night, one of our buses broke down at Onipanu; by 11 p.m., a rescue team with a van went to the scene to tow the bus. Unfortunately, area boys started stoning our team which made our men to leave. Meanwhile, the driver put on hazard lights and C- Caution to alert motorists of the breakdown. “By 5am this morning, before the rescue team got to the scene, a corpse had been deposited in our bus and a motorcycle parked behind it. “When we saw it, we reported the case to the Pedro Police Station, Somolu, but before we got back to the scene, soldiers had burnt down five BRT buses and one belonging to LAGBUS. BRT buses were later withdrawn from the roads yesterday to prevent more damages. The man who died was an army corporal

Genevieve Nnaji On Vacation In The US Also Celebrates 4th of July Independence Day..PHOTO SPEAKS.

       

Nollywood actress, Genevieve Nnaji has been in the US on vacation and also joined in the celebrations of United States’ Independence day yesterday.

    

D’Banj And Peter Okoye Attend the US Independence Day Celebration Party – PHOTO SPEAKS.

Today, 4th of July is United States’ Independence day and the Embassy of the United States of America had a party in Abuja to celebrate the independence.

Peter Okoye of PSquare and D’Banj were there to party with other guests…..

 

    

'Half Of A Yellow Sun' Finally Approved for Release in Nigeria by Government Censors Board.

        

Various Nigerian press outlets and journalists (via Twitter) are reporting that Biyi Bandele's "Half Of A Yellow Sun" - a film adaptation of celebrated author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Orange Prize-winning novel of the same name - has finally been cleared by the Nigerian Film and Video Censors Board, for local release.
The announcement didn't include a date that the film will eventually be released now that it's been approved for release. According to the Board’s Corporate Affairs representative, Caesar Kagho, the film has been approved with an "18" rating, which, based on my research, is the equivalent of an "R" rating here in the USA, which matches what the MPAA rated it for USA release.  
This news comes over 2 months after the film was initially set to open in Nigerian theaters (it's already been released in the USA and the UK, and is already available on home video in both regions). 
It was to open in Nigeria, where the film is set, on Friday, April 25, but that didn't happen, as its release date was postponed, and has since been delayed, due to "delays in getting certification from Nigerian Film and Video Censors Board."
Government censors said that they delayed the release of the film because "it might incite violence in the country" given its subject matter - specifically, a scene that details a massacre at a northern Nigerian airport - in light of current political turmoil within the country. Nevermind that it's a film whose backdrop -  the Biafran war, which saw millions killed - is based on fact. I've always said, since this all began, that the Censors Board might not be giving Nigerian audiences enough credit, and ultimately, this would likely end up being much ado about nothing, as the noise created by the film's release delays may actually drowned out any made by audiences about the content, after the film is finally released.
What led to the film's eventual Census Board approval isn't yet public information. It was previously reported that the bureau wanted certain scenes to be cut from the film in order for approval to be granted. So maybe we are to assume that the producers of the film accepted the compromise.
In this case, we can probably thank the growing global reach of the source novel's author (Adichie), who would eventually utilize her influence to pen an op-ed for The New Yorker

The censors’ action is a knee-jerk political response, yet there is a sense in which it is not entirely unreasonable. Nigeria is on edge, with upcoming elections that will be fiercely contested, religion and ethnicity increasingly politicized, and Boko Haram committing mass murders and abductions. In a political culture already averse to openness, this might seem a particularly appropriate time for censorship. But we cannot hide from our history. Many of Nigeria’s present problems are, arguably, consequences of an ahistorical culture. As a child, I sometimes found rusted bullets in our garden, reminders of how recent the war had been. My parents are still unable to talk in detail about certain war experiences. The past is present, and we are better off acknowledging it and, hopefully, learning from it.

You can read the full insightful piece here.
And director Biyi Bandele followed that up with his own op-ed, sharing his frustrations with the Censors Board, in piece he wrote for CNN's African Voices, titled "Why can't Nigerians watch country's biggest movie?"
In the piece, Bandele also chastised the Censors Board, drawing a connection in sentiment between its members and Boko Haram.

Since the Toronto premiere those many months ago, I've seen "Half of a Yellow Sun" at other film festivals in all corners of the globe. And Nigerians being the ubiquitous people that we are have been present in the audiences -- quite often in great numbers -- at each of these festivals. I am yet to meet a single Nigerian who has seen the film who came out of the cinema thinking that they had just seen a film that would incite anyone to violence. If anything, more than once, I've been accosted by cinema-goers -- some Nigerian, but really, people of all races -- who have been profoundly moved by the experience of watching the film. The refrain I've heard from them is, war is nasty, isn't it.

He then called on Patricia Bala, director-general of the Censors board, to do what he believed was the right thing, and allow Nigerians in Nigeria to see the film as it's meant to be seen; not illegally, speaking to the local movie industry's piracy problem.

Whether or not the film eventually gets a ratings certificate in Nigeria, "Half of a Yellow Sun" will be seen by millions of Nigerians. The question is: will they be allowed to see it in their local cinemas and on legally acquired DVDs or will they be forced to watch it on pirate DVDs and through illegal downloads? If the biggest film that's ever been made in Nigeria is available to Nigerians only in bootleg form, the censorship board will be doing to the Nigerian film industry what Boko Haram is trying to do to Nigeria: drive a stake through its heart. I sincerely hope they both fail.

Those in the USA will remember when, as one example, Spike Lee's incendiary "Do The Right Thing" was a similar concern for distributors and theaters during the year of its release, who feared that the film would spark riots and violence. 
It didn't.

Biyi Bandele's feature film directorial debut, stars Chiwetel Ejiofor, Thandie Newton, John Boyega, Anika Noni Rose, Joseph Mawle and Genevieve Nnaji, in a drama that weaves together the lives of four people swept up in the turbulence of civil war, with a newly independent 1960s Nigeria as the backdrop.
Produced by Bafta award-winner Andrea Calderwood ("The Last King of Scotland") and Gail Ega ("The Constant Gardner"), the film is a British/Nigerian co-production and was shot at Tinapa Film Studio in Nigeria and in the UK.

 

Femi Otedola’s Daughter, DJ Cuppy Graduates From College..PHOTO SPEAKS.

 

 

Femi Otedola’s daughter, Ifeoluwa Florence Otedola aka DJ Cuppy, has graduated from King’s College, London.

She shared the news on her Facebook page, thanking family and friends for supporting her throughout.

She graduated with a

Second Class honors in Business Management.

So now we can see more of DJ Cuppy’s skills in the entertainment industry and feel her impact as a Tourism ambassador for Nigeria.

    

Nigerian Conman A.K.A ‘Fizzy’ Arrested In The UK For Scamming Pensioners Their Life Savings.

A fraudster nicknamed ‘Fizzy’ because of his love of champagne has been jailed for eight years for conning vulnerable pensioners out of their life savings. Frank Onyeachonam ran the UK end of global lottery scam that was orchestrated from his native Nigeria for seven years to fund his lavish millionaire’s lifestyle. He had so much money that he stuffed his toys with them and spelt his name with money. Pictures he posted on Facebook show he spent the cash on Gucci, Louis Vuitton and Armani designer clothes, Rolex watches (top right), Porsches and Maseratis. A property in Nigeria belonging to fraudster Frank Onyeachonam who has been jailed for eight years at the Old Bailey Onyeachonam, at his London apartment in Canary Wharf, overlooking the Millennium Dome Onyeachonam, of Canning Town, east London, had so much cash he once spelled his name out in it and posted a picture of it on Facebook He even stuck wads of what look like £50 notes in his Buzz Lightyear toy Onyeachonam spent the cash on Gucci, Louis Vuitton and Armani designer clothes, Rolex watches, Porches and Maseratis While he bled them of their life savings, Onyeachonam enjoyed a life of fast cars, champagne and designer clothes. Pictures he posted on Facebook show he spent the cash on Gucci, Louis Vuitton and Armani designer clothes, Rolex watches, Porsches and Maseratis. He even stuck wads of what look like £50 notes in his Buzz Lightyear toy. Onyeachonam, of Canning Town, east London, was found guilty at the Old Bailey of conspiracy to defraud following a three-week trial. Lawrencia Emenyonu, 38, and Bernard Armah, 51, both of Wood Green, north London, were also found guilty of money laundering. All three denied the charges. Emenyonu was jailed for 18 months while her partner Armah received an eight-month term