Deposed Wife-Beating Akure Monarch, Pleading For Reinstatement, Sends 18-Page Apology To Governor Mimiko

Late Olori Bolanle

The deposed former Deji of Akure Kingdom, Oluwadare Adepoju Adesina, has written an emotional letter of consideration to the Ondo state government to reinstate him as the paramount ruler.
Mr. Adepoju was deposed after this website revealed his battery of his wife, Olori Bolanle, in May 2010.   His battered wife took ill and subsequently died in July 2011.  Mr. Adepoju then relocated to the United Kingdom.
In the letter, obtained exclusively by SaharaReporters through his lawyer, Barrister Olusola Oke, the deposed Deji appealed to Governor Olusegun Mimiko, for whom he claimed to have worked tirelessly during his election campaign, to consider his plea.
"I must passionately plead with your Excellence to remember how well I stood behind you and fought with you towards ensuring that you won the election and to ensure that you also recovered your stolen mandate,” he said.
Recounting how he was deposed from the town because he allegedly poured a concoction on his estranged late wife, Olori Bola Adepoju Adesina, he said the avoidable communication gap was the reason behind the widely-reported incident.
He claimed that the escalated fracas between him and the late Olori was misconstrued by the press which, he also alleged, refused to report his own version of the story.
Dr Ige Ogunleye, the Chairman of the Osupa Ruling house which Adesina hails from, confirmed receipt of the letter, but he declined further comment.
Many sources in the ruling house disclosed that the letter comes at an important time, as the Deji throne is vacant.  SaharaReporters had earlier gathered from a kingmaker in the palace that the Osupa Ruling House is the next family to present candidates for the throne.
We also learnt that chiefs in Akure will this week complete traditional rites for the late Oba Adebiyi Adegboye Adesida. A source revealed that the daughter of the deceased, Princess Adetutu, is expected to be installed as Regent of Akure pending the emergence of a new king.
The palace source told our reporter that the belated installation was on account of family exigencies.
“The issue is that Princess Adetutu was nursing her baby when the sudden death of her father was pronounced.  But immediately after the whole rites she might will be installed as the regent of the kingdom this week or early in the New Year," the source said.
But an aide to the Lisa of Akure, High Chief James Olusoga, told SaharaReporters in a phone interview that the traditional rites would be completed with the installation of a regent, most likely between Christmas and the New Year festival period.
With just 23 days since the death of Adebiyi Adesida, the jostling for the throne has begun at a frantic pace, with members of the Osupa Ruling House lobbying kingmakers for the vacant sit.
While some seem to favour the return of the deposed Adesina to the throne, others object, fearing victimisation should he re-emerge the king.
In the letter, however, the former and perhaps future Deji seems to have leant his lessons of his experience and reconciled with those who worked against him.
Dated December 19, it was addressed to Governor Olusegun Mimiko through his Commissioner for Justice and Attorney General, Eyitayo Jegede (SAN).  It was copied to the Deputy Governor, Ali Olanusi; the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Samuel Adesina; the State Chief Judge, Sehinde Kumuyi; Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Bamiduro Dada; and the Akure Council of Chiefs through Lisa of Akure, High Chief James Olusoga.
Source: Sahara reporters

Jonathan drags Obasanjo to rights commission

Goodluck Ebele Jonathan submited Himself to the National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, for probe over criminal allegations against him by former President Olusegun Obasanjo. Former President Obasanjo had written an 18-page open letter to Jonathan, accusing him of incompetence, engaging in anti-party activities, ethnicism and training about 1,000 snipers ahead of the 2015 polls.
Jonathan, who denied the allegations in his response, is specifically inviting the rights commission to unravel the truth in the allegation that his government had begun training over 1,000 snipers to terminate his political opponents.
In a letter to the commission, President Jonathan is seeking for a thorough investigation of the allegations against him, touching on alleged human rights abuses.
The letter, signed by the Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr. Mohammed Adoke, SAN, on the directive of Jonathan, had already been submitted to NHRC.
The letter dated December 23, 2013 was submitted yesterday. Sources close to the Presidency told National Mirror that similar letters had been written to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, ICPC, and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
The two anti-graft agencies are to probe allegations of economic crimes and official corruption against the Jonathan’s administration as contained in Obasanjo’s letter.
Although, National Mirror could not get copies of the letters, a copy of Jonathan’s letter to NHRC confirmed yesterday that both the ICPC and the EFCC had also been directed to handle allegations touching on economic crimes.
In the memo signed by Adoke (SAN) and addressed to the Executive Secretary of the NHRC, Prof. Bem Angwe, the AGF requested the commission to investigate the allegations on the human rights violations contained on pages 9-10 of the letter dated December 2 written by former President Obasanjo to President Jonathan.
The memo with number HAGF/NHRC2013/Vol2/5 reads in part: “Re: Before it is too late: “May I draw your attention to the above and the attached State House memorandum dated December 23, 2013 in respect of the above subject matter.
“I am to request you to investigate the allegations bothering on the human rights violations contained on pages 9-10 of the latter dated 2nd December 2013, written by former President Olusegun Obasanjo, to President Goodluck Jonathan, attached to the memorandum under reference.
“In order to properly delineate the issues within your sphere of competence particularly as other issues raised in the letter are being investigated by appropriate agencies of government, I have decided to reproduce the relevant paragraphs below.
According to Adoke the paragraphs to be investigated by the commission are: “Allegations of keeping over 1,000 people on political watch list rather than criminal or security watch list and training snippets and other armed personnel secretly and clandestinely acquiring weapons to match for purposes like Abacha and training them where Abacha trained his own killers, if it is true, it cannot augur well for the initiator, the government and people of Nigeria. “Here again, there is lesson of his to learn from anybody who cares to learn from history.
Mr. President would always remember that he was elected to maintain security for all Nigerians for personal or political ambition or interest of anyone.
“The Yoruba race adage says ‘the man with whose head coconut is broken may not live to savour the taste of the succulent fruit’. Those who advise you to go hard on those who oppose you are your worst enemies.
“Democratic politics admits and is permissible of supporters and opponents. When the consequences come, those who have wrongly advised you will not be there to help carry the can. Egypt must teach some lessons. “Presidential assistance for a murderer to evade justice and presidential delegation to welcome him home can only be in bad taste generally but particularly to the family of the victim.
“Assisting criminals to evade justice cannot be part of the job of the presidency. Or, as it is viewed in some quarters, is he being recruited to do for you what he had done for Abacha in the past? Hopefully, he should have learnt his lesson.
Let us continue to watch,” the memo added. The Presidency had attached two exhibits to the letter including the original letter written by Obasanjo and the reply by President Jonathan.
Both letters were replete with accusations and counter- accusations, some of which were criminal. National Mirror gathered yesterday that the NHRC would invite the two dramatis personae in the crisis: former President Olusegun Obasanjo and President Jonathan to expatiate on the allegations contained in the two letters.
A source at the commission, who did not want his name mentioned, also said that those connected in the allegations would be invited to assist the rights commission by providing particulars to the allegations. The particulars, it was learnt, would guide the commission to arrive at a just conclusion on the sensitive issue. Although the commission had acknowledged the letter, no formal step has so far been taken on it.

Mariah Carey Reveal She’s Not Having Any More Kids

Mariah Carey said that after her experience with being pregnant with her now 2-year-old twins,Monroe and Moroccan, she is done having children. She revealed that she would be up for expanding her family, however, if her husband Nick Cannon would be the one to deliver the babies!
Mariah, 43, is happy with the size of her adorable family — unless her husband wants to step in and take over the whole pregnancy process!
“If Nick could have the babies himself, then yeah, bring ‘em on. We love kids,” Mariah joked during her Watch What Happens Live appearance. She then explained her humorous aside with a more serious reason for why she’s done having kids. “Here’s the thing: This is real. I’m responsible for the kids for like forever,” she said. “I look at it like, they didn’t ask for this lifestyle but here they are.”
”To anyone who has ever carried twins, it is a totally different experience … You don’t even know who you are,” Mariah revealed.
Mariah also explained that Nick’s busy schedule kept him away from her side for much of her pregnancy. “I had a very difficult pregnancy, but I was alone most of the time,” she shared. ”We love Nick, but he’s working. He’s the hardest-working man in show business.”
Mariah Carey opted for a tight leather skirt and matching boots for a shopping spree in icy conditions during her latest strip to Aspen, Colorado

Saudi Cargo Plane That Blocked Abuja Airport Runway Was Carrying Bulletproof Cars For Another Govt. Agency

The uproar generated by the purchase of two BMW bulletproof cars by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, has barely died down than another government agency has been revealed as being behind the purchase of 10 bulletproof cars, of which at least no fewer than five them were flown into the country by a Saudi Airline cargo plane that was involved in the Abuja airport mishap about three weeks ago.
The Saudi embassy in Abuja, which made the disclosure weekend, said the cars were meant to be delivered to the Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria (DICON), Kaduna.
It would be recalled that the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, was shut down for almost 24 after a Saudi airlines plane hit runway repair equipment and got stuck there until it was removed several hours later.
In its statement which was meant to clarify reports in a section of the media that the cargo plane contained illegal arms and weapons, the embassy said the cargo was neither “dangerous nor prohibited,” as it was conveying 100 tonnes of bulletproof cars which were part of a supply contract for delivery to DICON in Kaduna.
“The General Authority of Civil Aviation in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has confirmed that the aircraft was chartered by Saudi Arabian Airline, carrying bullet-proof cars and its final destination is Murtala Muhammad Airport, Lagos, Nigeria,” the Saudi mission said in a letter dated December 20.
“The detailed description of the content of the plane is as follows: -A set of bullet-proof cars weighing 58 tonnes. (And) another set of 5 bullet-proof cars weighing 42 tonnes.
“The goods were a portion of a supply contract for 10 bullet-proof cars to a government agency in Nigeria, which were to be conveyed from Sharjah (UAE) via Abuja, through: fast forward cargo US UAC, to: Defence Industries of Nigeria (DICOM), 45, Ahmad Bello Way, Kaduna, through the companies contact person: Mr Nwajpudu Livinston/CCC. (sic).
“The goods were manufactured in South Africa.
“It is important to note that, the goods the aircraft was carrying were neither those considered as dangerous nor prohibited, this is absolutely in contrary to your esteemed newspapers report which stated that the aircraft was carrying weapons”, the statement read.
It is not clear who would use the 10 bulletproof cars as efforts to get the reaction of a spokesman for DICON, Mohammed Lawal Kurfi, did not yield any useful information as he claimed ignorance of the contract and the cargo.

Letter to Jonathan: Al-Mustapha challenges Obasanjo to public debate

Mr. Al-Mustapha said he has forgiven everyone involved in his incarceration.
The former Chief Security Officer to late Head of State, Sani Abacha, Hamza Al-Mustapha, has reacted to postulations by former president Olusegun Obasanjo in his famous letter to President Goodluck Jonathan that he (Al-Mustapha) was released from prison to help the president train assassins to eliminate opposition politicians.
Speaking to the Hausa Service of the Voice of America, VOA, monitored in Abuja on Wednesday, Mr. Al-Mustapha challenged the ex-president to a public debate on the allegations he raised.
Mr. Al-Mustapha said he was away in India receiving treatment for injuries he sustained while in detention during the administrations of Abdulsalami Abubakar and Mr. Obasanjo when he heard of the allegations via a letter published exclusively by PREMIUM TIMES.
“I read Obasanjo’s letter and subsequent comments by Nigerians, I would have responded immediately, but I was away in India receiving treatment,” he said.
He also said although his name was not mentioned in the letter, he was sure the former president was referring to him.
“If he has anything to say on me, he should mention me directly or even challenge me and not make allusions,” Mr. Al-Mustapha said.
The former presidential security chief challenged Mr. Obasanjo to publicly ask him anything; saying he would provide him with answers.
Mr. Al-Mustapha swore that the allegation that he is being used by Mr. Jonathan to train assassins is false. He said he has always been in the vanguard of coming to the aide of people from the north to be recruited into the military and para-military agencies; and would therefore never involve himself in anything that would hurt the region.
“Perhaps it is Obasanjo and his cronies that are planning what he was insinuating,” he added.
I have forgiven all
Mr. Al-Mustapha said he had decided to forgive all those who had a hand in his incarceration when he was being tried for the murder of Kudirat Abiola, wife of the winner of the June 12, 1993 presidential election, Kudirat Abiola. He was initially convicted for the murder by a Lagos High Court but was discharged and acquitted by the Court of Appeal.
He, however, added that such people, including Mr. Obasanjo failed to accept that fact and still harbour fears about him and what he knows about them.
“I urge everyone to pray for Obasanjo to accept my challenge for a public debate so that the truth will come out,” he said.
Mr. Al-Mustapha said he is focused on helping Nigeria find its rhythm by uniting the people, especially the youth and the poor.
“From 1974 to the present, a lot of things are buried with all sorts of lies. But all would be revealed one day,” Mr. Al-Mustapha said.
Source: Premium Time

Jack Wilshere: Arsenal player explains reason for gesture

wilshere

Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere says the abusive hand gesture he aimed at Manchester City fans came as a result of jibes about his children.

Wilshere, 21, sat out Monday's draw with Chelsea and misses the trip to West Ham after landing a two-game ban.
"Suppose I will just have to take the abuse about my kids in future," he tweeted.  "Anyway, one more game to go! Can't wait to be back."
Wilshere will return for Arsenal's match at Newcastle on 29 December.
After Arsenal were beaten 6-3 by City at the Etihad, the Football Association decided to suspend England international Wilshere after viewing the incident retrospectively.
In another tweet, Wilshere said  he was "gutted" not to have been able to play against Chelsea, adding: "Shouldn't of reacted the way I did but I know all you dads out there love your kids the way I do."
Source: bbc.co.uk

I Love Tattoo says Iyabo Ojo

I don’t really have as many tattoos as people think I do. I just have three on me and they all have their significance. The one on my hand is a rose and it signifies love. The one on my chest is a crown and it means that I am a queen in whatever I do – I call the shots. The one I have on my back means that I see you even though you think I don’t. I see everything you are doing, so watch it. They all have meaning and I am just someone who loves tattoos. There are no negative reasons I love them. I am not the only one wearing a tattoo, there are so many celebrities, both local and foreign, who wear them. It is just something I like. I can not describe why I like it. I feel it is sexy.
Life as a single mother
My daughter is an award-winning actress. She is going to be 12 but she is not a full time actress. She is still a baby and I try to restrict her acting so that she can concentrate more on her studies. Once in a while, we allow her act and only when she is on holidays. It has to be once in a while. When I started, it was a bit stressful because my kids were quite young. I had to be a working mother and business woman at the same time. I am someone who always strives for perfection. I am a very organised person. I draw out my time-table. I have a schedule of my day-to-day life so I am never caught unawares. That is why I don’t work too much. If I have planned my month and a sudden job comes up, I will not take it. I always have a schedule I follow in life and it has always helped me. When I am working, I know how to place my kids in the right place, sometimes with my mother. When they were much younger, they used to go with me but because of school, they stayed with my mother. I have some of my sisters that stay around. Now, my kids have grown up because my boy is 14 years old and the girl is 12 and they are both in secondary school. They take care of themselves more now. Apart from that, I still try to spend time at home more than I used to when they were younger because they need my attention now. I need to be sure that they are studying. They are becoming teenagers. Teenage pressure could be much on them so I have to be the father and mother to them at all times. It was not easy initially but as time goes on, you learn how to manage it. It becomes easy as time goes on.
Their father
I relate with their father. I do not talk about it because I give respect to my children, it is their privacy and they want to keep it private. Like I said, we were not just compatible, I met him and in a very short period of time, we got married. We really did not have much time to date. I was 21 years old then. In less than three months, I was pregnant and in less than six months, I was married to him. It was a very short period of time. We basically got married because of thepregnancy. We did not want to have the baby out of wedlock. We got married and we later discovered that there was some part of him that I did not like and there were certain things about me that he did not also like. We were not friends and that was the disadvantage. He was not my first, he was actually my third. I feel apart with my first boyfriend. My second boyfriend, we did not get intimate. So my ex was actually the second but my third boyfriend. I was young, I had my first boyfriend when I was in SS3 and I was about 18 years old. Then we broke up and I had somebody else. We were more like brothers and sisters in Christ so we really did not have any s*xual relationship. Then, I met my ex-husband. He was the second man I was intimate with when it came to a relationship. I was young and the kind of life he wanted was to be married and still live the bachelor life while I wanted him to be married and stay at home. That was were we started having issues and problems but we are still friends. He still communicates with his kids.
Regrets
I do not regret leaving the marriage because I am better off. I regret rushing into marriage, but I do not use the word ‘regret’ anymore. It has become a lesson; I had to learn from that. Every disappointment is a blessing. Even though I felt disappointed that I got married at a young age and did not get to study the man I got married to and whose name I bear now, I still profited from it by having two wonderful kids. It is more than any other thing in life.
I vowed never to get married again
I said so back then when I was disappointed. When you are going into a marriage with so much expectation, hoping that is where you will end your life, you try all your best to make it work. If it does not work, you begin to have problems. Why I came back to the industry was because I found out that my marriage was not working. My job had nothing to do with my marriage. I knew my marriage was collapsing. I just needed something to keep me going. Since I had so much love for acting, I felt I should go back to what gave me so much happiness and joy because I knew that my home was not giving me that joy I needed. I felt it was not enough for me to sacrifice what would give me joy when I knew the reason why I was sacrificing it was not being appreciated.
I am an emotional person
I am a very emotional person. I am very loving but I am a one-way traffic kind of person. When I am in love, I am fully in love with the person. I give my best to the relationship. I am a very lovey-dovey kind of person and I love my man to always be there for me. Sometimes, it seems as if I am over-possessive. It is not that I am over possessive, I am just someone who wants to give everything into the relationship and expects to get the same back. When I do not get the same, I start having problems with that person. That is why I find it difficult to say I want to settle with a person. To me, marriage is a 50-50 thing. If I put in my 50, you have to put in your 50. In a situation where you cannot give me 50, then we are going to have a problem.
Rumours about me
I have cleared the air about so many things. When I was growing up and I read some things about certain people, I always used to say that there would be an element of truth in every rumour. If they talk about me and Muka Ray, I understand because we are very close. In this society, when a man and a woman are very close, people tend to think that they are dating. That is understandable, but when it comes to the case of someone like Pasuma, it is very strange to me. He never asked me out, we are friends but not as close as people portray it. For crying out loud, we are not dating. I don’t have an intention of dating him and I am sure that he does not too. He is my friend, maybe because I have been to one or two of his events. He respects me and I do too but just as a friend. He is a friend and a brother; nothing beyond that. Muka Ray and I became very close and working business partners. My boyfriend understands that. He did not bring me into the industry. He helped me because he was there before me. He helped me grow. I came into the industry myself and I got into the Yoruba movie industry through Alhaji Taiwo Hassan, Ogogo, in 2001. Bimbo Akintola brought me into the industry when I joined AGN in 1998. About a year after I joined the Yoruba movie industry, I met Muka who believed he could help me build my career. I told him I wanted to be a producer and he told me that it was good as he was also a producer. He said we could work hand in glove and that is what we have been doing. Sometimes he works, I contribute; I work and he contributes, both financially and physically. I am not dating any politician. Can’t I afford a car and a house? I am a producer, I produced about 13 movies and I’m not from a poor background. Whatever it is that I have today, I started with my father’s money. I am okay on my own. So nobody has to get me a car or a house.
My father
I come from a very well-to-do family. My grand father was very okay – Adekunle Ogunro. We are a very comfortable family. My father was a very lively man who lived life to the fullest. People call me daddy’s girl. My father ‘met money at home’, his parents were very wealthy especially my grandmother. We lived in Obanikoro. My father was someone who was so much into enjoying life that it cut his life short. He did everything in excess -drinking, smoking, spending money and having fun. I appreciate my dad for the fact that he was my father and we were more like friends. He also had me when he was young. He was 21 years old when he had my brother and 22 when he had me. He lost his life at a very young age, that is why whatever I do, I don’t get addicted. I don’t drink too much if I have to. I don’t smoke at all, only when I am on set and I have to. I don’t do drugs, never have and never will. When he died, there was some money left for us. His ownmoney. It was shared between my brother and I. It is that money I used to start my life and business – a better apartment, a shop, I travelled. My first car was from my father’s money.
About my boyfriend
He is a very caring person. It was not easy for him. He was really after me because when men come, I shut them off. I always put this defensive mechanism up. He was very patient and came in a very soft manner. We started as friends and we became lovers. His relationship with my kids is wonderful. My kids love him. He is a very busy person but any little time he has, he comes to see them and takes care of them. We have been together for a while. I keep my relationship very private. I made it public at a time and it was very stressful. When it is private, you enjoy it more because there are no third parties. He understands the nature of my job. He understands where I am coming from and I understand his too.