Nigeria News
I Wanted To Be A Movie Star
Lola Omotayo, the heartthrob of Peter Okoye, one half of the P-Square music stars, tells BAYO ADETU on how her relationship with the musician started and her plan of being an actress
Many people got to know you when your relationship with Peter Okoye started. Who really is Lola Omotayo?
Simply put, what you see is what you get. I can’t really define who I am per se, but I’m humble, caring, loving and a professional in the oil and gas profession. I take my work and family very seriously because they are very important to me, my family in particular.
Lola Omotayo
Can you summarise the journey of Lola Omotayo from a little child to who she is now?
The journey has been a very interesting one. My Dad is a Nigerian and my mother is a Russian. I was brought up in a household where both cultures are very important to my family. As a child, I went to boarding school where I learnt how to speak Yoruba. It wasn’t one of those glamorous schools, it was in Ondo State. Basically, my father wanted me to have reality check of where I come from and what I need to aspire to be as an adult. From my mother’s angle, she imbedded her own culture on us as well. She insisted that we speak Russia at home, and we speak Yoruba at home as well, so I got the best of both languages. Eventually in 1990, I went to the University of Ife for a short while to study Psychology, but Nigeria was in a terrible state then; universities were on strike and all that. So my father said ‘why can’t you come to America,’ because he was working there then. So I applied to study Theatre and Film in San Francisco University, America. I wanted to focus more on directing because I didn’t want to become an actress, but eventually life just took me through a journey and I started working for an I.T company there. That was how I started building my career before going into advertising. Many years later, I decided that I’m going to move to Nigeria, but before then, I did some interviews to ensure that I secure a job before coming here. I got a job with ECONET as their Events Manager. I worked there for over a year before Daily Times called me. The paper was trying to rebrand then and they have secured the service of Adrian Wood who was with MTN. I decided to join them because Adrian Wood was like my mentor. I joined Daily Times and gave it my all, but some top people there didn’t really have their game correctly, so I had to find my way. I worked for an advertising company called FKG2 and spent about five years there. We did a lot of things and it was interesting, that was where I met Peter actually. One of our clients, British American Tobacco (BAT) and P-Square were doing something on Benson & Hedges then. We were on a road show together. I was still in the company when I gave birth to my son, but because the job was so demanding, I travel a lot and all that, I opted to work in my father’s company, Nosco Oil & Gas, so that I can have time to take care of my baby. I joined as an executive director in order to bring fresh ideas to the company. It was a new terrain for me, but I learnt quickly.
Your heartthrob, Peter is quite successful, but you seem not to depend on his wealth. What’s your driving force?
I believe that as a lady, you have to support your partner. You can’t put everything on your partner; it is important to add value as well. Even though I’m not bringing as much as he brings to the table, at least, I’m adding value and making things a lot easier. Honestly, that’s the way I was brought up; I can’t rely on someone for everything. I have to be independent. I should be able to buy something for my kids without asking their father for money. I feel good as a person knowing that I can do things for myself, not that I want to feel above him in anyway, but I just feel it is important for me to add some value to his life as much as he adds to mine.
What advice do you have for Nigerian ladies who put all their financial burdens on their partner?
I think that is the core of our problems in this society because we put so much pressure on the man to take care of us, pay our bills…we put so much pressure on them, and that tempts some men to start doing some shady businesses. Women put too much pressure on men in this part of the world. Also, a lot of women are greedy and lazy, so they just want to get married and stop working. It doesn’t mean women should go all out and work for the men, but somehow, you just have to make things easy for him. I see a lot of young ladies out there; it is not as if there are no jobs for them to do, the problem is that they don’t want to do certain type of jobs, they want everything to come easy. I started the very hard way, I didn’t start the easy way like people assume. I had to work myself up there because I had a vision. A lot of young ladies in Nigeria see people driving fancy cars; carrying fancy bags and assume that a man is supposed to do all of that for them, so they sell themselves in order to get it. But you don’t have to do that. You can always find ways to make money legally.
Assuming you didn’t come from a wealthy family, how would you have coped, considering the tight economic situation of the country?
I think it is still about family values. I came from a humble background; I didn’t come from a very rich background. My parents worked really hard and I saw the care that they took to ensure that they instil the best on their kids, so I drew my strength from there. You have to fight for whatever you want; if it is education that will take you there, then, you have to go to school and ensure that you get the needed degree. And if you are creative, you can do other things, may be design clothes and all that. It doesn’t have to be a big job. Dangote didn’t start with millions of dollars, so you have to be focused and work on it gradually to get to where you are going. In fact, coming from a privileged background is difficult because it won’t make you enjoy how life really is. For me, my father really threw me to the dogs; he wanted me to see how life was. He could have enrolled me to some fancy schools when I was growing up, but he wanted me to see how life is. He made me rub shoulders with people who had nothing. I have friends who came from rich background and today, they have nothing. I also have friends who came from poor homes and today they are doing well. It is about values and hard work.
Ironically, some Nigeria men don’t like ladies who don’t depend on them. How has that been between you and Peter?
I love Peter because he was never intimidated. When I met him, he was just trying to build himself and I was very proud of him. I have a lot of respect for him, his talent and I saw that he had a vision. Peter doesn’t get intimidated by anything; in fact, he supports and encourages me all the time. I think he’s happy that he doesn’t have to do everything; he can rely on me that I will take care of our kids.
What actually attracted you to Peter?
Peter has drive. He has vision and pursues it. He doesn’t let anybody distract him from that vision and that I saw in him, which a lot of people didn’t see. Some people were like, ‘what are you doing with a musician? Are you crazy?’ but I saw something very different and unique about Peter. I saw the goals he set for himself and how he accomplished those goals step by step, and I was very impressed with that. I also saw that he wasn’t a selfish person. He was a generous person from the outset, even though he didn’t have much then, he was always generous. I like a man who is generous, not for the financial reason, but also to see how he can add value to other people’s lives; that is very important to me. He is also a good listener; he listens to people, listens to me…those are the things that attracted me to Peter. He’s an amazing guy.
How romantic is he?
Peter is very romantic as well. He does things that an average Nigerian guy will not do. There was a Valentine’s Day that he came to my house with a guitar and played some love ballads for me. That was really cool and I loved it. Those are the little things that he does that really touched me.
How challenging is it to date a celebrity?
Having a relationship with a musician is one of the most challenging situations to be in. There are things you have to deal with; a lot of women, intruders, fans. You have to appreciate and respect the fans, but you also have some of them who are thinking of other things. I think it’s one of the most challenging relationships one can have. You won’t even spend much time with your partner because he’s on the road most of the time doing shows and concerts; even during holidays like Christmas, Easter and New Year, they are not around. So I’m not really enjoying that part. But I thank God that we are managing it very well.
With your background in theatre arts, should we expect you in Nollywood soon?
No. it’s not my thing anymore. May be I had the interest 10 years ago, but not now. But if I have to make films, it will be Yoruba movies.
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Posted in Nigeria News. A DisNaija.Com network.
Source: PM News
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The Kano State Government on Saturday said it has transferred 1,098 ‘almajiris’ to different states of the country.
The commissioner for local government, Murtala Garo, disclosed this while presenting a report before the state’s task force on COVID-19 at the government house, Kano.
Almajiris are children who are supposed to be learning Islamic studies while living with their Islamic teachers. Majority of them, however, end up begging on the streets of Northern Nigeria. They constitute a large number of Nigeria’s over 10 million out-of-school children.
Mr Garo said the Kano government transported 419 almajiris to Katsina, 524 to Jigawa and 155 to Kaduna. He said all of them tested negative for coronavirus before leaving the Kano State.
Despite the coronavirus test done in Kano for the almajiris, the Jigawa government earlier said it would quarantine for two weeks all the almajiris that recently arrived from Kano.
Mr Garo said another 100 almajiris scheduled to be taken to Bauchi State also tested negative to COVID-19.
In a remark, Governor Abdullahi Ganduje said the COVID-19 situation in Kano was getting worse. He appealed for a collaborative effort to curtail the spread of the virus in the state.
Mr Ganduje, who commended residents for complying with the lockdown imposed in the state, said the decision was taken to halt the spread of the virus.
Kano State, as of Saturday night, has 77 coronavirus cases, according to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control.
The decision to transfer the Kano almajiris is part of the agreement reached between Northern governors that almajiris in each state be transferred to their states of origin.
However, even before the latest agreement by the governors, the Kano government had been transferring almajiris to other states and neighbouring countries after it banned street begging in the state, most populous in Northern Nigeria.
Despite the transfers, however, no concrete step has been taken to ensure such children do not return to Kano streets as there is freedom of movement across Nigeria although interstate travel was recently banned to check the spread of the coronavirus.
Sourced From: Premium Times Nigeria
By Ugochukwu Alaribe
Operatives of the Abia State Vigilante Service, AVS, popularly known as ‘Bakassi Boys’ have arrested 24 market women hidden in a container truck, at Ekwereazu Ngwa, the boundary community between Abia and Akwa Ibom states.
The market women, said to be from Akwa Ibom State, were on their way to Aba, when they were arrested with the truck driver and two of his conductors for violating the lockdown order by the state government.
Driver of the truck, Moses Asuquo, claimed he was going to Aba to purchase stock fish, but decided to assist the market women, because they were stranded.
A vigilante source told Sunday Vanguard that the vehicle was impounded while the market women were sent back to Akwa Ibom State.
Commissioner for Home Land Security, Prince Dan Okoli, who confirmed the incident, said that smuggling of people into the state poses great threat to the state government’s efforts to contain the spread of COVID- 19.
Sourced From: Vanguard News
Operatives of the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID), Yaba of the Lagos State police command have arrested one Mrs Nene Steve for allegedly killing her maid, Joy Adole
The maid was allegedly beaten to death by Nene for requesting for her salary at their residence located at 18, Ogundola Street, Bariga area in Lagos.
Narrating the incident, Philips Ejeh, an elder brother to the deceased said that he was sad when they informed him that his sister was beaten to death.
He explained that the deceased was an indigene of Benue State brought to Lagos through an agent and started working with her as a maid in January 2020.
‘’She reported that her boss refused to pay her and anytime she asked for her salary she will start beating her.
She was making an attempt to leave the place but due to the total lockdown she remained there until Sunday when her boss said she caught her stealing noodles and this led to her serious beating and death,’’ Ejeh said.
He called on Lagos State Government and well- meaning people in the country to help them in getting justice for the victim.
The police spokesman, Bala Elkana, stated that the woman and her husband came to Bariga Police Station to a report that their house girl had committed suicide.
Detectives were said to have visited the house and suspected foul play with the position of the rope and bruises all over the body which confirmed that the girl had been tortured to death and the boss decided to hang up the girl to make it look like suicide.
He said: “The police moved on with their investigation and found a lot of sign of violence on her body that she has been tortured before a rope was put on her neck.’’
He added that the police removed the corpse and deposited it in the mortuary for autopsy to further ascertain the cause of the death.
Elkana said the matter has been transferred from Bariga police station to Panti for further investigation while the couple have been arrested and will be charged to court.
Ostensibly alarmed by the latest killings of dozens of soldiers by Boko Haram insurgents, President Muhammadu Buhari has summoned an urgent meeting of Service Chiefs to find ways to stop the trend.
He has also dispatched the Minister of Defence, Mansur Dan Ali, to the neighbouring Republic of Chad for an urgent meeting with President Idris Deby and his defence counterpart.
Knowledgeable sources said in Abuja on Friday that the president is worried by on the deterioration of security situation on the Nigeria – Chad Border that has led to the recently increased Boko Haram terrorism in the area.
The sources which did not want to be named in Abuja said: “Nigeria has a Chad problem in the Multi-National Joint Task Force (MNJTF) put together to secure the Lake Chad basin areas and repeal the Boko Haram terrorist attacks against all the countries neighbouring the Lake.”
The sources noted that Chad is believed to be having their own internal security challenges and this has reportedly led to their pulling away their own troops manning their own border around Lake Chad, saying: “That lacuna is being exploited by the Boko Haram terrorists, who go in and out of Nigeria, Niger and Cameroon to launch terrorist acts. This is a clear illustration of the fact that terrorism is beyond national borders.”
When contacted, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, confirmed that the Defence Minister is going to Chad but said he is unaware of the purpose.
Meanwhile, the military authorities are said to be in the process of identifying the families of the latest victims with a view to making contact with them.
Credible sources revealed that it is the reason the president is yet to make any pronouncement on the matter.
“The President has called an urgent meeting with the Service Chiefs, as well as the fact that families of the latest victims of the Boko Haram are being identified and contacts made before a government pronouncement on the tragic attacks. This, it is understood, is the reason for the silence of the government over the incident,” the source said.
Sourced From: Tribune
Nigeria records 55 new COVID-19 infections, total now 165,110
Military, Police Ring Abuja to Forestall Boko Haram Attack
UFC: Usman gets N584m after beating Masvidal
Insecurity: Lagos bans occupation of abandoned buildings
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