Monday, 19 May 2014

Godfather Dorobucci, Don Jazzy lounges with Billionaire Oil Mogul [PHOTOS]

Witness to terror: Nigeria's missing schoolgirls

Full coverage of CNN international correspondent Nima Elbagir's Chibok journey will screen on CNN International on Saturday 17 May at 2100 CET, Sunday 18 May at 0030 CET, 0400 CET and 1200 CET and Monday 19 May at 0730 CET.
(CNN) -- The militants pulled into the northeastern Nigerian village of Chibok under cover of darkness, their target a girls' boarding school filled with students ahead of final year exams.
Armed and wearing military uniforms, they told the girls they were there to protect them.
The girls started to assemble in the yard as ordered to, not realizing the men were from Boko Haram -- the group whose name roughly translates as "Western education is sin" -- until it was too late. More than 200 were loaded onto trucks and spirited away: the group's leader later announced that he would sell them.
Map: Nima Elbagir's route to ChibokMap: Nima Elbagir's route to Chibok
Since the mass abduction on April 14, the world's attention has been focused on Chibok, but CNN was the first global news organization to send a team to the scene of the atrocity.
The journey from the relative safety of Nigeria's capital, Abuja, to the remote countryside stalked by Boko Haram can take eight to 10 hours, but logistics and security concerns meant that it took CNN international correspondent Nima Elbagir's team four days to complete the trek.
For most of the route, the road was tarmacked and the team constantly stopped at checkpoints manned by the military, police or vigilantes looking out for militants. But for the final 45 minutes the tarmac and checkpoints disappeared and the team swerved through the bleak, potholed landscape at full speed with flak jackets beside them.

Some girls managed to escape Boko Haram, making a desperate dash for freedom after the militants loaded them into cargo trucks.
"We would rather die than go," one of those girls told CNN. With fear in her eyes and voice, the young woman, who asked not to be identified, described what happened on that horrendous night.

Families had sent their girls to Chibok Girls Secondary School for a desperately needed education but Boko Haram's attack left the school a burned-out shell.
Chibok is part of Borno state, where 72% of primary-age children never attended school, according to the U.S. Embassy in Nigeria.
The militants destroyed everything they could at the school. One of the girls who managed to flee said their attack had ended both her education and dreams of becoming a doctor.
Outrage over the mass abduction has prompted a global campaign, calling for the girls to be freed through the Twitter hashtag #BringBackOurGirls.
But in Chibok the outrage is overlaid with despair. CNN's Nima Elbagir spoke to the mothers of two of the missing schoolgirls.
They described hearing gunfire before discovering their daughters had been taken away.
The kidnapping has left an indelible mark on Chibok. During the day, it looks like a normal village. But at night the fear and terror is visible.
The women, elderly and children go to sleep -- and the young men stay awake, doing patrols, keeping vigil.
The men arm themselves with whatever they can -- machetes, homemade bow and arrows, in the hope that they will be able to protect their families. CNN's team joined them.

Around the world, the #BringBackOurGirls campaign continues and foreign governments including the United States, Britain, France, Israel and China have offered help to Nigeria's government find the girls.
But the schoolgirls are still missing, their relatives still praying for their return and the residents of Chibok still haunted by the attack that left them cowering in the bush as Boko Haram plundered their village.


Hot Outfits At African Fashion Week Nigeria Live!

Africa Fashion Week Nigeria is set to add to Nigeria’s events landscape with the first International Fashion Runway Show that has special focus on up-coming designers in the country. Themed: “The People’s Runway” the event is has the objective of illuminating the creative exploits of the real talents in the Nigerian Fashion turf, especially the relatively undiscovered ones, to help them build sustainable careers for themselves. It is also showcasing the achievements of the established designers and celebrate the veteran icons of the Nigerian fashion sector.
Happening now at the Eko hotel, Lagos, Pulse,ng will continually update the gallery below with all the hottest fashion, straight from the runway.
Enjoy! The best of African fashion is on display. Keep refreshing the page for more.

Pregnant Kaffy Doing The Dance At Peter Okoye’s Wedding

World Record holder in dancing, KafayatKaffy’ Shafau, has shown that the passion she has for dancing can never abate, even at the advanced stage of her pregnancy, as she thrilled all during the wedding of Peter Okoye and Lola Omotayo on Sunday, 17 November, 2013, at the Arc Event Centre, Lekki, Lagos.
Kaffy showed that she has still got the agile and flexible skill she had as a single girl, the skill that got her recognition as the dancer who could last longer than others and her name in the Guinness World Book of Records.
During a rendition of P-Square’s hot single, ‘Personally’, Kaffy surprised all with the way she twisted, turned and kicked it up.
And she had a pair of high heeled shoes to go with it!

Join Jimmy Jatt On His 6 City Tour!!!!

Veteran DJ in Nigeria, Cool DJ Jimmy Jatt who recently celebrated his 25th year as a prima DJ in Nigeria has announced his anniversary tour.
Jimmy kicked off his nationwide tour with a press conference last week as well as sample tracks with top musicians in the Nigerian music industry. Jimmy Jatt and his crew will touchdown in Port Harcourt, Ilorin, Benin, Calabar, Abuja as well as Lagos to show the citizens of Nigeria what he's made of and why he is remains a force to reckon with after twenty five years.
So get ready hip-hop lovers,party goers and club hoppers for the best and coolest DJ in Africa will be visiting your cities between the 30th of May and 14th of June 2014.
Other projects scheduled during his anniversary celebrations include
  • An official video ‘Glasses Up’ featuring Tuface and Burna Boy will be released as the theme song for the anniversary.
  • The DJ Jimmy Jatt documentary
  •   The 25th Anniversary formal dinner August 3, 2014
  • The launch of the DJ Jimmy Jatt foundation for the Entertainment Arts with its first project for up and coming DJ’s in October July 2014
Jimmy also recently released a hit track Spin remix featuring Vector, Tenim and KaySwitch.

Chika Ike Is Now A Village Warrior

Nollywood star actress, Chika Ike, is currently one of the most versatile in the industry as she can fit in and interpret any role given to her by casting directors; and to boot, she plays such roles perfectly.
In the past, she has acted the role of a mad woman, Princess, truck pusher and Okada (commercial motor cycle) rider, so well one would think she was born into the roles.
In this location shot, Chika plays the role of a Village Warrior and from what we gathered, she was at her best yet again and the movie which would soon drop, promises to be another hit.
Can't wait!

Africa Fashion Week Nigeria Almost Ruined By Fire

The Africa Fashion Week Nigeria day one was almost ruined by a shocking fire attack at the Eko Hotel, Lagos last Sunday night.
The fire started from burnt electricity cables on the over-heated lights in the hall and later turned out to become a huge fire burning just above the bunch of camera men filming the very colourful run way.
Organisers swiftly came to the rescue asking the already frightened crowd to move out of the hall so fire extinguishers could be used to put out the fire.
"It was really scary. But we are happy, it was curbed before anyone got hurt," a guess told us.

Thursday, 15 May 2014

Short Aki, wicked Patience and other tales

Actors Aki and Patience Ozokwor joined wife of the Rivers State Governor, Judith Amaechi at the ‘Celebrities read to children’ segment of the Port Harcourt World Book Capital 2014 opening events.
THE question drew giggles from the audience.
“Why is Aki so short?” the child asked innocently and with a straight face.
However, some of his peers and the adults in the hall could not contain their sniggers as they waited expectantly for the actor’s response. But Aki (real names Chinedu Ikedieze) simply took it in his stride.
Using the theory of creation to explain his point at the session held inside the banquet hall of Hotel Presidential, Rivers State, he told the child that he was born that way. “God didn’t create men equally. If you look around, you will see that some people are tall and others are short, even shorter than I am. I am short because God has created me this way. For instance, my grandfather was 7.5 feet and according to my family members, they said I reincarnated in this form as my grandfather but I don’t believe that. God didn’t create men equally,” he said.
The occasion was the ‘Celebrities read to children’ segment of the recently concluded opening of the Port Harcourt World Book Capital 2014 and with Aki on the hot seat were actress Patience Ozokwor and the state’s First Lady, Mrs. Judith Amaechi. Founder of the Rainbow Book Club, the executors of the project, Mrs. Koko Kalango, moderated.
Education is vital
Asked the secret of becoming a Nollywood star, the actor told his inquisitors to get quality education first. “The door to Nollywood is wide open and ready to admit anybody. But you need to go to school first; it’s best to go to school. You don’t become a star overnight. There are different stages you must attain before you become a star but you must go to school because that’s where you lay a solid foundation. Give 70, 80 or 90 per cent to your studies and the rest to Nollywood.”
On his state of origin and if he and his sidekick, Pawpaw (Osita Iheme), are blood brothers, Aki said: “I am from Abia State, a full blooded Nigerian and a full blooded Igbo man. Pawpaw is from Imo State. He grew up in Abia and I grew up in Imo. Fate brought us together and we are not the only short people in Nigeria. The wind of friendship brought us together.”
One of the children also enquired about his age and Aki responded with: “I’m a full adult; I’m above 20 years. I am in my 30s. When I was as young as you, one of my favourite actors was an American known as Gary Coleman. He was so short that I used to think he was a boy. I never knew he was a man. I’m in my 30s and I’m married, if you didn’t know.”
The actor who also told his audience he graduated from the Institute of Management Technology (IMT), Enugu with a degree in Mass Communication thereafter read a chapter from ‘Jaja of Opobo’. Highlighting the moral of the excerpt he read, the actor told his audience to be humble at all times. “Always try dialogue, don’t be belligerent. You should learn to turn the other cheek and think before you retaliate. Christ rewards; if you forgive, He rewards,” he said.
‘Wicked’ Patience
Next up was Ozokwor who read an excerpt from ‘The Barber’s Clever Wife’. She began by telling the children about herself and family. She disclosed that she has eight children but explained on noticing the stunned looks on the faces of the audience that four are biological while the others are adopted. “But I have become so used to them that I don’t regard them as my adopted children. I have grandchildren already, I am praying to have great grand children,” she added.
Like Aki, she also reiterated the importance of education, urging the children to face their studies squarely and not be carried away by the glamour of Nollywood. “You can’t do anything except you read; you can’t interpret a role so read.”
Asked why she plays wicked roles in movies, Ozokwor said: “I can’t get tired of answering this same question all the time. We have different specializations and it is the duty of the director to play an actor in a role that best fits. I think it is because producers and directors discovered that I play such roles very well.
You [fans] are the reason I play the role and once you tire of seeing me in the role, producers will stop.”
Highlighting the lessons of the excerpt she read, Ozokwor said she saw herself in the barber’s wife because she also went through some rough times in the past. She disclosed that she and her husband struggled after they were both retrenched and that she had to resort to making and selling pastries to maintain the family. In the midst of all these, her husband became ill and was bed-ridden for several years before his eventual death. Left with the task of raising four children, she did not despair and has done a good job with them, including the adopted ones.
Reject gossip
Mrs. Amaechi, who read from ‘Beem Explores Africa’, was also not spared by the children during the interaction. They asked her several questions including her residence, life as a governor’s and sustaining the reading initiative of the Rainbow Book Club.
The question that provoked the most heartfelt response from the First Lady was: ‘Were you a housemaid before you got married?’ asked perhaps because of a rumour that she was once a house help.
Responding, Mrs. Amaechi said being a house girl does not make an individual worthless in the society. “The ability to make the difference is in your hand, you are not defined by what somebody says about you; don’t be stigmatised. God is interested in making ordinary things extra-ordinary. A good example is Jesus Christ who was born in a manger.”
Continuing, she disclosed that her biological mother died when she was four and that she was raised by an Aunty she described as a great educationist who also made her marks outside Nigeria. The First Lady added that she received quality education by attending Port Harcourt Primary School which her husband has since changed to a technical school and Federal Government Girls College, Abuloma. She capped off her education with a degree in Urban and Regional Planning from Rivers State University of Science and Technology.
The First Lady who also touched on her roots cautioned the children against listening to gossip. “The time for gossip, use it to praise God. Slander won’t work; close your ears to slander and barbaric things. Lies can kill a nation. Shun gossip and slander but face your book. Love your neighbour as yourself and don’t listen to people who speak evil,” she said.
100 years around Port Harcourt
Earlier before the session, ‘100 Years around Port Harcourt’, comprising stories about neighbourhoods in the state’s local councils and written by public school children was presented.
Top officials of the Rivers State Government including the deputy governor, Tele Ikuru, commissioner for education, Alice Lawrence-Nimi and commissioner for information, Ibim Seminatari, who later reviewed the book, graced the event.
Speaking after some students of the schools had related their experiences while writing the stories in the book, Mrs. Kalango disclosed that she and Titi Horsfall, a writer based in Port Harcourt edited it.
The book presentation also featured a short stage play, ‘The fate of Okoama’ which underscored the importance of reading and peace.

Tuesday, 13 May 2014

Female passenger disappear

Woman Disappears In A Lagos Bus After Collecting Money From An Old Man. Wonders are not going to end, not today or tomorrow because we wake with some chilling happenings around the world, just in Ikotun area of Lagos, Nigeria yesterday evening, a woman who had volunteered to be a commercial bus conductor, to collect transport fares from the passengers, because no one was doing that had disappeared.
She had collected N50 from one old man who was at the back of the bus and immediately she did this, she began to shake violently and there was confusion in the bus. The driver had to stop the bus and there was so much shouting around.
The passengers started talking to the old man to undo what he must have done to the lady. The old man accepted to reverse whatever he must have done to the lady and pleaded that he had to touch the ladies breasts which was agreed.
It was then; he began to run his hands on her b****t to bring her back to normal and in the process, the woman and the old man disappeared.
The journey ended there because everyone abandoned the bus and fled.It is reportedly said that it was a kidnapping incident.

Are D'Banj and Genevieve engaged?

Obviously fooling around, Peters made the joke more expensive saying D’banj had done so in the presence of his G.O.O.D Music label boss Kanye West and beau Kim Kardashian. ‘D’Banj proposed to Genevieve yesterday, in the presence of Kany West & Kim Kardashian‘, @RealSusanPeters jokingly tweeted last Thursday. It’s not surprising for D’banj and Genny’s name to come up in such scenario. After featuring in his ‘Fall in love‘ video back in 2010, the Nollywood actress was rumoured to have been in a relationship with D’banj. But acts did not help matters as they played along, encouraging scenarios that suggested they were an item…... 

Read More at thenet.ng/2012/06/are-dbanj-and-genevieve-engaged/ Follow us: @theNETng on Twitter | theNETng on Facebook

Don Jazzy has done it again. As usual.

The new sounds emanating from Mavin Records gives us reason to rejoice, not only in the melody, but also to celebrate the living legend that Don Jazzy is.
Few men can be trusted to deliver the best of materials at the top level, consistently, and without fail. Don Jazzy belongs in that class. With each mention of the ‘Doro’ word, his brilliance is revealed, again and again.
The stars at Mavin Records, consisting of the ever-relevant Tiwa Savage, Dr. Sid, and D’Prince, coupled with the unproven newer generation - Dija, Reekado Banks, and Korede Bello, can look to a brighter future, individually, and as a family. Each of them possesses something unique and definitely brings it to the table.
In the mid-tempo, feel-good song, ‘Dorobucci’, we see that. Don Jazzy gave us the fatherly feel, Reekado Banks took us on a chorus of some sort, with his street persona shining through his vocals. Tiwa Savage’s dynamism, borne by her light voice, made us hit certain notes. Dr Sid stabilised proceedings, with a reminder of his ‘Siductive’ delivery. The ‘Surulere’ man made us dream again and dropped lyrics to excite the pervert in us.
Korede Bello, found joy and unrestrictive happiness in this song. A mainstay of the industry, the young man with slick fingers pushed up our joy, with his ‘Doromega, Dorosuper, Dorostar, Doromegasuperstar,’ line. He seems to always have a little something extra in his bag of tricks.
Dija played safe. Which is a good thing. Her repetitive lines added familiar value, giving us a consistent balance in our auditory perception of the wonder, and gives D’Prince a perfect spot to spring in, with his ‘Doro is a cheerful giver.’ Pervert alert?
With D’Prince, the Doro-feel just gets better. Not the catchiest of lines, but the feel-good feel is maintained. All the dynamism to carry the song has been done by Tiwa, Korede, and Reekado. D’Prince is some sort of water-carrier. Not outstanding, but fitting in with others and improving the general product.
Reekado Banks and Don Jazzy took the final stage, street comes alive in the chorus again, and Don Jazzy says goodbye in style.
The beat has landed, a hit has been done, and Mavin Records have the perfect collaboration to play to their strengths.
Don Jazzy has done it again.

Monday, 12 May 2014

HOW TO WRITE A BUSINESS PLAN

1.Analyze the potential markets for your business. Consider which segment of the local (and/or international) population will be seeking to use your products or services. This needs to be more than mere guesswork and involves doing accurate and intelligent research. You need to analyze secondary research collected by outside observers, as well as getting primary research that you collect yourself, with your own methods and observations. Consider the following areas of inquiry:
  • Is there a viable market for the product or service you want to sell?
  • How old are your potential customers?
  • What do they do for a living?
  • Is your product or service attractive to a particular ethnic or economic population?
  • Will only wealthy people be able to afford it?
  • Does your ideal customer live in a certain type of neighborhood or area?
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  • 2.Establish the size of your potential market. It's important to be as specific as possible in regard to your market and your product. If you want to start a soap business, for example, you may believe that every dirty body needs your product, but you can’t start with the entire world as your initial market. Even if you’ve developed such a universally needed item as soap, you need to identify a smaller, more targeted customer group first, such as children under eight who might like bubblegum scented bubble bath, or soap made for mechanics. From there, you can analyze demographic information more specifically:
  • How many car mechanics are in need of soap in any given community?
  • How many children in the United States are currently under the age of eight?
  • How much soap will they use in a month or a year?
  • How many other soap manufacturers already have a share of the market?
  • How big are your potential competitors?

 3.Identify your company’s initial needs. What will you require to get started? Whether you want to buy an existing company with 300 employees or start your own by adding an extra phone line to your home office desk, you need to make a list of the materials you’ll need. Some may be tangible, such as five hundred file folders and a large cabinet in which to store them all. Other requirements may be intangible, such as time to create a product design or to do market research on potential customers.
4.Prepare product samples. If you’re going to build a better mousetrap, you may have constructed a prototype out of used toothpaste tubes and bent paperclips at home, but you’ll need a sturdier, more attractive model to show potential investors. What exactly will your mousetrap look like? What materials will you need? Do you require money for research and development to improve on your original toothpaste tube and paper clip construction? Do you need to hire an engineer to draw up accurate manufacturing designs? Should you patent your invention? Will you need to investigate federal safety standards for mousetraps?
 
5.Research possible locations for your business. Call a real estate broker and look at actual retail spaces in the neighborhood where you’d like to open your restaurant. Make a chart of the most expensive and least expensive sites by location and square footage. Then estimate how much space you require and how much money you’ll need to allow for rent.
 
6.Determine your start-up cost. Make a list of all the tangible and intangible resources you need to get your business going. The total estimated price of all of these items will become your start-up cost whether you’re buying highly sophisticated computers or simply installing a new telephone line on your desk. If there’s any item in your estimates that seems unreasonably high, research other alternatives. But keep in mind that it’s better to include every element you truly need along with a reasonable estimate of the cost of each item, so you don’t run out of money or default on your loans. Be honest and conservative in your estimates, but also be optimistic.Don't aim for the best of everything at the beginning. You can forgo the expensive trimmings of an office of a more well-established company and stick to the basics at the beginning. Get what is affordable, works and is actually needed and don't buy frills.
 
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Put yourself in the shoes of potential investors. Ask yourself, “If I were going to invest X amount of dollars into a concept or idea, or even a product, what would I want to know?” Gather as much helpful and credible information as you can. Depending on your product, you may need to search long and hard for relevant information.
  • Don't lose heart if you discover some, or even all, of your ideas have been adequately covered by the market. Don't ignore this reality; instead, work with it. Can you still do a better job or provide a better widget than your competitors? In many cases, it's likely that you can provided you know the market well and how to add value in ways your competitors are not doing. In other cases, it may be a case of focusing more narrowly or more broadly than your competitors are doing.
8.Identify potential investors. Banks and other funding sources don’t lend money because people with interesting business ideas are nice. They follow specific guidelines, such as the Risk Management Association (R.M.A) database, which are designed to ensure that they will make money by investing in or lending to your business. Lenders will typically look to the company's Capital, Capacity, Collateral, Conditions, and Character or what is known as the 5C's of lending when underwriting a loan. You'll need to have covered all these bases well before seeking funding.
 

HOW TO PLAY A GUITAR

1.Identify the parts of the guitar. Whether you're playing an electric or an acoustic guitar, the instrument is essentially wood and metal. Copper-wound strings vibrate to create sound. The wooden body resonates that sound to create the warm tones we associate with a guitar.
  • The strings run between the headstock of the guitar, where they are affixed to tuning pegs that can be rotated to tighten and slacken them, and the bridge, where they're fixed to the guitar's body. On an acoustic guitar, the strings are fixed to the bridge with removable pegs, and on an electric guitar the strings are generally strung through a eyelet.
  • The neck of the guitar is the long wooden piece of wood, flat on one side (this is called the fretboard) and curved on the other. The fretboard is inlaid with metal frets that demarcate the different notes.
  • An acoustic guitar will have a sound hole in the body where the sound will resonate, while an electric guitar will have as many as three magnetic pickups which will channel the sound through an amplifier.    2.Hold the guitar correctly. Before you start wailing like Hendrix, make sure you're holding your guitar right. If you're right handed, you'll play the guitar by strumming about halfway between the sound hole and the bridge with your right hand and fretting the strings on the neck with your left hand.
  • To play your guitar, sit up in a straight-backed chair or stool. When you orient the guitar to your body, the smallest string should be pointed toward the ground and the thickest string should be pointed up at the ceiling. Hold the back of the guitar so it touches your stomach and chest and rests on the leg of your strumming/picking hand.
  • The guitar should be held mostly with your leg and by cradling it in your body. Your left hand is used to stabilize the neck and fret the strings. Hold the neck in the V created by your thumb and forefinger. You should be able to smoothly move your left hand up and down the neck without having to hold it up.
  • Even if you hold the guitar correctly, you may experience some discomfort while getting used to playing. Do not become discouraged if your shoulder hurts in addition to your neck, arms and hands. You will eventually get used to it.
3.Tune the guitar. It's no fun to play a guitar that's not in tune and can lead to some bad habits when you're first starting out. Tuning regularly will also familiarize you with which string and fret combinations correspond with which notes.
  • First learn the name of each string. The strings are commonly notated, from the highest string, which should be closest to the ground, to the lowest, eBGDAE. A useful mnemonic to remember the string arrangement is EveryBody Gets Dinner At Eight.
  • Electric tuners are easy to use and very accurate. Hold it to the guitar and pluck the high E. The tuner will tell you if the guitar is "sharp" (too high) or "flat" (too low). Pick each note and tighten the string to make it go higher, or give it some slack to lower it. Make sure the room is quiet when using a tuner because the microphone on the tuner can pick up other sounds.
  • If you cannot afford a tuner, you can also tune your guitar without one by matching each note to the corresponding note on the piano.
4.Practice fretting the strings. The frets are the metal strips that run perpendicular to the strings that mark each note. To play a note, press your finger down between the metal strips, not on them. To say that you're playing the third fret means that you place your finger on the string in the gap between the second and third fret. Hold the string down firmly so that it only vibrates between your finger and your strumming hand, with the tip of your finger doing the pressing.
  • Every time you move from one fret to another, the resulting pitch will be half a step higher as you move toward the body and a half step lower as you move toward the headstock. Practice moving up and down the fretboard, pressing the frets and getting a feel for the pressure you need to use to play a note.5.Hold the pick. A pick, or plectrum, is a small tear-shaped piece of plastic used for picking out individual notes and strumming the guitar. They're cheap and available at any music retailer. While it's not essential to learn to play guitar with a pick, it's most generally the way to start.
  • Make a fist with your picking hand and your thumb flat on top of your curled fingers. Hold the pick by grasping it perpendicular to to your fist between your thumb and index finger, with no more than a few centimeters of the smaller end sticking out of your hand.