Annangs Stage ‘Biggest’ Reception for Udom Emmanuel
In the polity of Nigeria, Ikot Ekpene, one of the leading cities in Akwa Ibom State has some claims to fame. It has the distinction of being the first experimental local government administration in West Africa. The people of Ikot Ekpene are famous for skill in wood sculpture. Their artistry reaches a height of excellence in creating marvelous works from raffia. And that is how it got the sobriquet, Raffia City! Ikot Ekpene is perhaps best known as the headquarters of the Annang ethnic group. a dynamic socio-political group in Akwa Ibom. In recent years, the ideals of this group have been promoted by the Ati Annang Foundation, an elite socio-cultural organization for Annang sons and daughters with chapters all over the world.
Its recent assembly at the prestigious Regina Pacis Auditorium, Ifuho, Ikot Ekpene, however, took a new turn as the event revolved around the First Family of Akwa Ibom State. Incidentally, Governor Udom Emmanuel is an in-law to the Annangs, as his wife, Martha hails from Oruk Anam, one of the local government Areas that make up the Annang nation.
Approaching the venue, Cardinal Ekanem Road, it was easy to conclude from the type and number of cars that there is a gathering of eminent persons in the neighbourhood. The array of cultural displays, drummers and dancers created an unmistakable festive mood. The people danced with frenzy, which reached a feverish climax when Governor Udom arrived into warm embrace of the leadership of Ati Annang Foundation including its Grand Patron and wife, His Excellency, Godswill Akpabio, the Senate Monitory Leader and Her Excellency, Mrs. Unoma Akpabio. .
If there were doubts about the relationship between Udom and Akpabio, the Ati Annang meeting put it to rest, as there were no noticeable signs of disaffection between them. It was a copious show of warmth, laughter and backslapping all the way between the two. Governor Udom adjudged the mammoth crowd as “one of the biggest reception” since he became governor. He appealed to those litigating against government for compensation on Ikot Ekpene- Uyo Road to back down. He thanked Ati Annang for the support. Mrs. Martha Emmanuel expressed similar sentiments. She was exceedingly happy with the honour to her husband and herself. The First lady viewed the robust reception as a strong indication of support for her husband. She assured the people that the nooks and crannies of Annang land would be touched positively by the Udom administration. Mrs Emmanuel concluded that it was not possible for the governor to forget the Annangs as that would mean he has forgotten her.
The razzmatazz of inducting the governor as a new member and patron of Ati Annang Foundation was made more glorious with presentation of scholarships to 200
2BABA, DAREY, ADEKUNLE GOLD, DAZZLE AT OLORI WURAOLA
The Give-Back-concert organised by Olori Wuraola Ogunwusi, wife of the Ooni of Ife recently in support of orphanages in the country may have come and gone, but its impact on the lives of orphans will continue to reverberate for long.
The Olori Wuraola Orphan Aid Project is an initiative under the House of Oduduwa Foundation. The concert attracted multiple award winning stars like Innocent ‘2Baba’ Idibia, Darey, Adekunle Gold, Waje, Cobhams, Sound Sultan, Kenny Blaq, Funbi and Lamboghini.
Expectedly, there was no single dull moment all through the event as the super stars thrilled the audience with world-class performance that left the huge crowd inside the Eko Convention Center Lagos, asking for more.
Olori Wuraola, the queen and wife of the Ooni of Ife, who has been tagged as Mother Theresa of our time, left no one in doubt of her ability to add glitz, glamour and razzmatazz to an event that was organised to show love to the less-privileged.
She has successfully demonstrated her deep love for the poor by practically living her life to conform with her philosophy that is deeply-rooted in the aphorism that wealth is nothing if it cannot be used for the advancement of society and mankind.
Her effort to draw the people’s attention to the plights of the less-privileged, especially in the southwest zone of the country, with the good response to her call by dignitaries that include the Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi; His imperial majesty Enitan Ogunwusi, Ooni of Ife, billionaire businesswoman, Hajia Bola Shagaya; Sen. Ita Giwa; Nike Osinowo; Erelu Dosunmu, Sisi Abah Folawiyo among several others. Nollywood stars were also in attendance to lend their support to the cause.
Speaking on her dream for orphanages, Olori Wuraola said: “I want to assist in the renovation of local orphanages
She also expressed the need to
contribute individually to help the orphans achieve a good future
“We cannot do it alone, none of us can”
More than 20 orphanages are expected to benefit from the proceeds of the concert, which she promised would be used to renovate such orphanages.
ABIOLA SALAMI OPENS CHAMP CITY, LAUNCHES XCEPTIONAL WOMAN PACK
In a bid to continually inspire and develop competence amongst women and youths, Abiola Salami, founder at iamaCHAMP Group, a total capacity development firm, recently unveiled the Xceptional Woman Pack, a multimedia inspirational toolkit for women. The launch was held at the newly opened ChampCity facility located in the upscale Dolphin Estate, Ikoyi, Lagos.
Over the years, Salami has been consistent in pushing young women to go beyond their limit. He shuns ideas or norms that limit women to the confines of the kitchen or bedroom. “Women, in my opinion form the most untapped resources in the world. Many women hardly spend time to discover who they are or conscious of how powerful they are. The power of a woman lies within and not without and it is important they discover the power within so that they can be of great benefit to the world.”
The Xceptional Woman Pack is an inspirational toolkit for every woman and comprises the globally acclaimed Who Says Its A Man’s World, a 21-Day Mind Makeover handbook for Women, daily Inspiration for Xceptional Women Audio Program, The revolutionary audio program Woman, Get Out Of Your Way and The Xceptional Woman Journal.
While Salami seemingly portray a bias for women, he insisted that his work is not limited to women but also young persons. This is evident in his goal to reach 1 Billion Champions by 2026. Through his iamaCHAMP Group campaign, he is steadily reaching the set mark. In 2016, he engaged over 2.3 million champions across 30 countries. This year, his milestone is to reach 10 million champions.
It is against this backdrop that he unveiled the new ChampCity.
“ChampCity is envisioned to be the world’s destination for inspiration, inspirational content & inspirational experiences. ChampCity started in a non-ventilated one room apartment. That was where the books - Get MAD, Who Says It’s A Man’s World and Daily Inspiration for Xceptional Women were written. That was where the revolutionary audio program – Woman, Get Out Of Your Way was created. That was where we designed and implemented 4 editions of the impactful GAME Conference. That was where The American Government discovered me and sent me on a global leadership program; that was where we created and implemented the Xceptional Women Network and all her programs. I am not saying this to impress you, I am just saying this to impress upon you that we have an unrelenting commitment to serving champions across the globe.”
The upgraded ChampCity includes a 35-Seater Training Facility for hosting training programs for the workforce of organisations, women and youth; a 10-Seater Virtual Office for young entrepreneurs and SMEs who cannot afford the huge cost of renting an office and an audio-visual production studio and a VIP coaching suite for top executives.
The high profile event was anchored by veteran broadcaster, Onimisi ‘OJ’ Adaba, and had in attendance captains of industries, corporate power houses and top public officials including Mrs. Mosun Belo-Olusoga, Chairperson Access Bank Plc, Her Excellency, Mrs Bolanle Ambode, 1st Lady of Lagos State, Chief Alex Duduyemi, the Aro of Ife, Mr. Innocent Ike, Executive Director, Skye Bank Plc, Mrs. Funmi AjoseAdeogun, Japhet Omojuwa, social commentator and social media expert, Chineze Amanfo, Public Relations expert amongst others as they came to witness the first of its kind ChampCity facility being opened to the public for the first time.
Her Excellency, Mrs Bolanle Ambode who was represented by Mrs. Jumoke Bank-Olemoh, charged women and youths to develop their innate capacity as we all have what it takes to become xceptional. In the words of Her Excellency, “I am impressed with what Abiola and his team are doing and will encourage every young person to take advantage of these opportunities to grow your skills in order to become unstoppable.
REMINISCE SHINES AT GALAXY GRAND PRIME STREET CONCERT
Hip-hop artiste and Samsung brand ambassador, Remilekun Abdulkalid Safaru, popularly known as Reminisce, recently held the maiden edition of his brainchild, “The Street Concert.” The concert which held on the 25th of February at the Ikeja City Mall was in appreciation of his teeming fans that have stood by him since he caught the attention of Nigerian music lovers since 2008, when he featured on 9ice’s “Bachelor’s Life”.
At the concert, Reminisce, along with Mr. Emmanouil Revmatas, Director and Business Leader, Information Mobile and Technology, Samsung Electronics West Africa, and some executives of the company unveiled the Samsung Galaxy Grand Prime+, Limited Edition Pack. The device features a sturdy case design with a non-slip rear grip pattern, giving the smartphone a firm grip at all times. It also comes in a selection of stylish colours to suit customers various tastes.
The Galaxy Grand Prime+ runs on Android 6.0 Marshmallow with the OS refined to make it more user-friendly allowing users set app permissions, adjust settings, and more with ease. It also uses the latest version of TouchWiz, Samsung’s touchscreen interface.
Reminisce, speaking on the new product offering, said that the Galaxy Prime+ comes with really cool and exciting features that perfectly combines practicality and style.
‘‘It takes super bright selfies even in the dark thanks to the 5 MP front camera and the front LED flash. With the Smart Switch feature, people can easily transfer from existing devices to the Galaxy Grand Prime+. The smartphone is definitely packed with awesome features making it a must have for the Grand Life,” he added.
Featuring a 5-inch 540 x 960 quad high definition resolution display, the 8 mega-pixel on the back captures clear and sharp shots, in addition to the 5-megapixel front-facing camera. Videos are captured at 720p and played back smoothly, with focus adjusting as the scene changes. Users can easily trigger the front-facing camera with their palm or voice command. With the Multiple modes feature, consumers can also set up a wide selfie for a larger group, or create an animated GIF.
According to Revmatas, Samsung stands for quality, innovation, change, self-expression and excellence in performance. These same qualities are epitomised by Reminisce, whose depth of work as an artiste has made him much loved and respected among his fans and peers. It is no surprise that Samsung decided to introduce the Grand Prime+ at his concert. We are indeed very pleased to have him as the face of the smartphone”, Revmatas concluded.
The concert featured friends and close collaborators of Reminisce, which include Olamide, Ckay, Mz Kiss, BaseOne, Wale Turner, Falz, ReakadoBanks, Mayorkun, Ycee, HarrySong, Dremo, Niniola, Orezi and a host of others.
The Galaxy Prime+ comes with two SIM capabilities and available in black, gold, silver, and pink gold colours.