By Joshua Olomu

Omolara Omojola, a 24-year-old contestant representing Ekiti in the 2023 Queen of Peace Nigeria International Pageant has been crowned Queen of Peace Nigeria.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Omojola, a graduate of  Tourism and Hospitality Management from Ekiti State University, was crowned the new queen on Friday night  in Abuja.

She defeated 12 other contestants to emerge the overall winner of the Queen of Peace Nigeria 2023, organised by Messengers of Peace Foundation.

Contestants for the pageant were selected from the six geopolitical zones of the country and 10 were crowned at the grand finale.

Miss Ella Eze, who represented Enugu State emerged Queen of Peace International, Miss Hope Ameh was named  Face of Messengers of Peace Foundation and Miss Esther Asuquo  emerged  Queen of Peace Teen.

Other winners are Miss Maureen Onogu, Queen of  Peace North Central; Miss Mary Ukor, Queen of  Peace North-West; Miss Gloria Kongvong, Queen of  Peace  North-East; and Miss Favour Chukwu, Queen of  Peace South-East.

Others include  Miss Oluwaseun Fatoba, Queen of  Peace South-West and Miss Regina Ochuole, Queen of  Peace South-South.

In his remarks, the National President, Messenger of Peace, Dr Suleiman Adejoh, said that the annual event was geared towards promoting peaceful coexistence through pageantry .

Adejoh said that the contestant were made to pass through mentoring on peace and how to promote peaceful coexistence of the country.

“The main objective is to work for the promotion of peace across the country irrespective of tribe, gender and religion.

“The Queens will represent the six geopolitical zones of the country, while the lead Queen will be promoting peace in Nigeria and the International Queen shall be responsible to promote peace through Nigerians living abroad,” he said.

After the queens took the oath of office,   the new Queen of Peace Nigeria  told NAN on the sideline that she was grateful to God and the organisers for her victory.

“I intend to passionately work with agencies and stakeholders that are interested in promoting peace in the country to sensitise Nigerians on the need for peaceful coexistence ,” Omojola said.

NAN reports that comedians, music stars and other entertainers drawn from the FCT and beyond thrilled fans during the night of the show. (NAN)(nannews.ng)

Edited by Deji Abdulwahab

By Taiye Olayemi

Nigeria’s first over water resort, Ziba Beach Resort has been unveiled in Lagos on Thursday.

Speaking during the unveiling ceremony in Lagos, Dr Olufemi Olumide, Chief Executive Officer of the Beach Resort, described the leisure centre as a place of comfort and peace.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Ziba Beach Resort is located at Okun-Ajah, Lagos Island.

Olumide said it was specially designed to suite Nigerians who were in the habit of travelling abroad for the purpose of leisure as the beach resort offered top quality service as obtainable across the globe.

According to him, the facility accommodates  17 rooms of nine beach facing rooms and eight over water rooms, a beach spa, games room for adults, playground for kids, several swimming pools, indoor cinema, conference rooms and others.

He said that visitors could also have access to child minding services, a fire pit, horse riding and lots more services that could guarantee visitors’ comfort.

“We began the construction of this place 14 months ago, we are happy that we arrived at this point. It has been a beautiful journey of struggles and joy.

” Building in Nigeria entails a whole lot of challenges but regardless, we are here.

” We just want to make a statement that it is possible to bring the excitement and memorable experiences to be enjoyed in other world class resorts across the globe to Nigeria as well.

” We will ensure we adopt continuous improvement on the facility,” he said.

Olumide added that visitors ought not panic over security around the resort .

Also speaking, Dr Tricia Olufemi-Olumide, Managing Director of the beach said that the idea of coming up with an over water beach resort occurred to her eight years ago.

Olufemi-Olumide said haven visited lots of beach resorts across the globe including the exotic ones in Maldives, she came to the realisation that most beach resorts operated in Nigeria were mere beach houses.

She said that the entire idea was to create a place worthy of the name “Beach Resort” in Nigeria, a nation with breath-taking coastal area.

She said the emergence of Ziba beach resort was meant to upscale leisure and holiday lifestyle experiences while contributing to the growth of nation’s tourism industry.

“We conceived Ziba out of the deep desire to enable Nigerians experience premium holiday lifestyle without traveling out of the country and to contribute our quota to the Nigerian tourism industry.

“We have invested a lot in the water system here, as a way to improve on the quality and neatness.

Also, we have invested a lot in internet connections to ensure visitors gain access to wifi wherever they are within the premises,” she said.

According to her, the services of professional hospitality consultants have been engaged to keep the members of staff busy with the process of training and retraining.

She said this was considered neccessary as the quality of service delivery would be continously upscaled.

She explained that the staff had been engaged to work at the resort due to their reasonable years of experience from renowned hotels within the nation.

She said Ziba beach resort was designed to service the physically impaired, the aged and babies with the availability of wheelchair ramps and other facilities.
(NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Deji Abdulwahab

By Collins Yakubu-Hammer

Two Korean Dramas, `Penthouse’ and `The Fiery Priest’ are set to be premiered on African Independent Television (AIT) from September.

The Director of the Korean Cultural Centre in Nigeria (KCCN), Mr Kim Changki on Thursday in Abuja said the essence is to give Nigerians a feel of Korean entertainment.

He said that sneak preview of the two movies were premiered to a selected audience at the Centre on Wednesday, Aug. 23 to mark the monthly Korean Cultural Day.

According to him, K-Drama showcases the lives of Koreans, because, KCCN tends to promote Korean Culture in Nigeria.

“In the month of May, two Korean animations were aired on AIT; and by next week, the two dramas will be air on AIT; this is a way of spreading Korean lives and culture.

“It would have been a good thing for Nigerian actors and their counterparts from Korea to collaborate on set, but because Nigeria and Korea are far apart, they need time to make it happen.

“ Korean movie industry needs to understand Nollywood and vice versa, establish relationship and interact more to make that happen.

“Recently, I recommended about four people to go to Korea and participate in a training course; that is one of the things we do to foster interactions to get us to where we want to be,’’ Changki said.

According to the KCCN director, the movie Penthouse S1 is a series, written by Kim Soon-ok and directed by Joo Dong-min.

He explained that, the series spins the story of a real estate and education war, adding that, it depicts the solidarity and revenge of women who turned to evil to protect themselves and their children.

“The second movie `The Fiery Priest’ is an unconventional priest with anger management issues, a rookie detective and an ambitious prosecutor work together to solve a murder case involving a senior Catholic priest.

“The priest is an ex-covert military officer who leaves the military and becomes a priest after not being able to stop a tragedy at war.

“However, when a senior priest at his parish is murdered, he pulls all his old covert military life back to the surface to get revenge, but he still keeps it priestly,’ Changki said.

He said the movies would premiere on AIT from Sept. 1, every Friday between 3pm to 3:50pm, adding that it will also be shown on Gotv, Dstv and Startimes. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

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Edited by Ekemini Ladejobi

By Taiye Olayemi

Veteran Fuji Musician, Adewale Ayuba, says he will be releasing his new single “Uncommon” on Aug. 27.
Ayuba told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that the new single would be released to further popularise and digitise Fuji music.
He said this was necessary as African music had begun to gain recognition in the Grammy and other global awards.
He said that talking drums and some other local musical instruments were used while producing the single to make it truly  fuji and African.
“I will be releasing another single on Sunday, Aug. 27.
“Uncommon is my signature music and will be available on all music streaming platform. People will know that I am an uncommon artiste right from time with my new album.
“I want Nigerians to know that my music is uncommon, as an artiste. I am like a Chameleon; I can go to different levels.
“Uncommon speaks about what I have done in the entertainment scene, being the first artiste to take fuji music to the universities in 1990, before then people saw it as music for the old people.
“I have been able to ensure that as a fuji artiste, I go beyond performing at birthday and burial parties, I work more on producing albums and singles.
“That is the way the music can gain more popularity,” he told NAN.
Ayuba said that the three-minute single also conveyed morals which had to do with the essence of hard work and seriousness in life.
He encouraged other fuji musicians to intensify efforts at producing more singles and albums to ensure that fuji genre of music does not go into extinction
He also urged them to focus on grooming their music and not to imitate Western music. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Chidi Opara/Vivian Ihechu

By Mateen Badru

Nigerian actresses, Moyo Lawal and Marvelous Dominion will on Aug. 27 thrill Lagos audiences on stage at the Muson Centre with captivating performances in the much anticipated Play: ‘Anonymous nipples’.

Anonymous Nipples is an adaption of the book with same name written by theatre producer and investment banker, Joseph Edgar, also known as Duke of Shomolu.

A statement signed by Mofoluwake Edgar, Managing Director of the Duke of Shomolu Foundation, the platform producing the Play, revealed that the book explores very strong themes of pain, sexuality, fidelity, polygamy, alternative sexuality, communications in adult relationships amongst others.

“Written and directed by famed theatre director, William Benson, Anonymous Nipples is expected to shock audiences with its bold treatment of taboo topics,” Edgar said.

She said the play was brought up to discuss incidences of violence and breakdown in relationships.

“We decided to bring this Play up at this moment as a result of the need to force discussions around the topic especially with the high incidences of relationship break down, violence in relationships all leading to a sense of foreboding in society.

“The book Anonymous Nipples was written to foster better sexual communications in responsible adult relationships by throwing better light on topics that are usually not broached but remain very germain to the strengthening of these adult relationships,” she said.

She added that the weekend would be a compendium of two plays with ‘A trail of Choices’ which takes on life’s journey from the prism of five ladies taking place on Aug. 26 while Anonymous Nipples will take place on Aug. 27.

She that “Anonymous Nipples” and “A trail of Choices” provide a menu of two exciting new plays that would shock and enthrall even as they provide life lessons through very engaging song and dance sequences. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

Edited by Folasade Adeniran

By Joshua Olomu

Nigerian music superstars David Adeleke, also known as Davido, Divine Ikubor, popularly known as Rema and ace comedian AY Makun have been listed among the ‘100 Most Notable Peace Icons in Africa’.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the stars were named in the ‘Peace building row call’ at unveiling news conference by the organisers on Friday in Abuja.

Other Nigerians who made the list include former President Goodluck Jonathan, former Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osibanjo; Sultan of Sokoto, Mohammadu Sa’ad Abubakar and President of the African Development Bank, Akinwumi Adeshina.

The Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwatse III; Cardinal John Oniyekan; Bishop Matthew Hassan-Kukah and renowned tele-evangelist, Pastor Chris Oyakhilome, also made the list among others.

Amb. Kinsley Amafibe, Project Director, Africa, for the 100 Most Notable Peace Icons in Africa, congratulated the artistes and other Nigerians who made the highly coveted ‘peace list’.

According to him, the peace icons are Africans drawn from different backgrounds, who have used their talents, positions and resources to build and promote peace across the continent.

He said those who made the list were painstakingly selected for their consisted commitment to humanitarian initiatives, positive influence on communities and youth empowerment, among other criteria.

“It is with immense excitement that we announce the revelation of the esteemed list titled “100 Most Notable Peace Icons in Africa.”

“This initiative stands as a testament to our commitment to acknowledging and applauding the remarkable individuals and collectives that have played key roles in nurturing peace, harmony, and positive change the African continent.

“This initiative celebrates the dedication of those who have labored continuously to reduce conflicts, advance social bond, and establish connections amidst diverse communities,” he said.

According to him, by sharing their narratives, our intention is to amplify the ripples of their endeavors, produce a collective resolve to foster a more calm and prosperous Africa.

“Within this illustrious roster of 100 Most Notable Peace Icons in Africa, we encounter a rich shade of leaders, economist, financial expert, sports personalities, religious leaders, industrialist, entertainment entrepreneurs and traditional rulers.

“They have transcended boundaries and overcome challenges to leave inerasable legacies, with each narrative as a tribute to perseverance and determination, enclosed in the cherished values of Africa- unity, harmony, and progress.

“The profiles and accomplishments of these icons are showcased on our official website, www.100mostnotable.org, a digital monument honoring their contributions across Africa and beyond,” he said.

NAN reports that other recipients of the recognition across the continent include Rwanda President, Paul Kagame; Kenyan President, William Ruto; South African President, Cyril Ramaphosa and Joyce Hilda Banda, First Female President in Malawi.

Ex-Cameroonian football star Samuel Eto’o Fils, veteran Ghanaian actor John Dumelo, American-born Senegalese singer, Akon , the first lady of Mamibia, Monica Geingos are also listed among the peace icons.

Amafibe said the “100 Most Notable Peace Icons in Africa” initiative stands as a celebration of hope, unity and advancement for the continent.

He, therefore, urged Africans to unite in constructing a future, where peace and prosperity flourish through education, empowerment, and sustainable development.

“The unveiling of this plaque transcends mere symbolism but serves as a call to action, an exhortation to perpetuate the values embody by African Icons

“This plaque would serve as a perpetual reminder to both present and future generations that peace entails more than the absence of conflict; it encompasses the proactive cultivation of understanding, cooperation, and shared prosperity.

“The legacy of these African Icons shall persist as a wellspring of inspiration for individuals, nations, and the entirety of the African continent,” he said. (NAN)(nannews.ng)

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Edited by Isaac Aregbesola

By Itohan Abara-Laserian

Nigerian Disc Jockey, Jimi Sadare, known as DJ Jimbo, says the success of an artiste’s work lies solely in the hands of a DJ.

DJ Jimbo made the assertion during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Lagos, upon his return to Nigeria after a European tour.

According to him, it is about time artistes in Nigeria and globally begin to recognise the contributions of DJs in their journey to stardom and turning any music to hits.

Dj Jimbo, who is also a fashion icon and content maven, said: “Every true artiste knows that the success of his material or song lies in the hands of a DJ.

“A DJ, be it at a radio or club, already has followers listening in or attending shows, concerts, festivals among others.

“His playing an artiste’s material automatically connects to the audience and if it is good enough, backed by popular DJ’s rotation, can turn the music into a hit for the artiste, that’s direct marketing.”

He, however, expressed his displeasure with DJs not properly recognised in an artiste’s quest to stardom and global acceptance.

“Out there, I don’t think DJs are getting the proper recognition in the journey to stardom of an artiste.

“A lot of artistes’ careers have been stifled because they did not have the means, wherewithal or knowledge as to get their music delivered to the street’s ears.

“With a DJ in the picture, half of the artiste’s job is done and as such,they need to be celebrated and compensated more.

“Using myself as an example, I bought an old album of an Ivorien Music Group over the weekend, in Paris.

“On listening to it, it brought back memories and I am going to share one of the hit tracks on my radio programme, which I have run for the last seven years, on Inspiration Family Radio,” he said.

Speaking on how he had fared, DJ Jimbo said that as DJ with over 30 genres of music in his portfolio and the fact that his listeners, crowd, guests or audience are paramount in his delivery, good beats are the most important part of a song.

“Two weeks ago, I was invited as a guest DJ, to entertain a diverse crowd of people, at a Lounge in Amsterdam.

“At some point while playing a Soulful House track,I decided to mix it with a Ghanian Afro Life track, which I knew the audience had never heard of, that fusion completely brought the house down.

“A professional DJ must have deep knowledge of music from basically every country of the world. With this music, he can arrange a top playlist to suit the crowd’s mood and carry the audience along,” he said.

According to DJ Jimbo, the rise of technology, specifically, Artificial Intelligence (AI) which basically is a computer that requires human intelligence such as speech recognition, visual perception and translation between languages, cannot take the place of a DJ.

He said that a DJ determines what to dish his crowd by physically seeing, assessing and feeling their energy.

“The brain’s ability to make use of what the eyes see, which is visual perception can not be handled by AI,” he said.

According to him, the presence of a DJ, his timely hype,dress sense, time to end the programme or acknowledge celebrities, can only be achieved by him.

He said he had an ‘electrifying’ European tour where he visited Paris, France, and engaged in rendezvous with esteemed producers, legendary DJs and fervent entertainment aficionados.

He said from France, he arrived Amsterdam, Holland, where he dialogued with top sculptor, Nelson Carrilho, who has numerous landmark pieces all over Europe, prominent promoters, lounge proprietors, and pioneering producers among others. (NAN)

Edited by Folasade Adeniran

By Taiye Olayemi

An anti-child trafficking film, “Sound of Freedom” would premiere in Lagos on Aug. 18.

Joy Odiete, Chief Executive Officer, Blue Pictures Entertainment, the film distribution company, disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday.

Idiete said that “Sound of Freedom” was fast becoming an advocacy performance for Jim Caviezel, a renowned actor, and other members of the cast against the nefarious trade in children across the world.

“Jim Caviezel’s latest work, ‘Sound of Freedom’ is scheduled to hit the big screens as from Aug. 18, 2023.

“Incredible things are happening to children all over the world despite their innocence. Everyone must rise against child trafficking, and watching this film better prepares all of us for that task.

“God’s children are not for sale,” she said.

Odiete noted that fans of Jim Caviezel, who spectacularly portrayed Jesus Christ in the film, “The Passion of the Christ”, are set for great times in cinemas across Nigeria and Ghana.

She said Caviezel acted as Tim Ballard, a former U.S. Government Agent, who embarked on a mission to rescue children from sex traffickers in Colombia.

According to her, the plot centers around Ballard’s Operation “Underground Railroad”, an anti-sex trafficking organisation.

“The film was directed by Alejandro Monteverde and produced by Lukas Behnken and Eduardo Verástegui

“The film features star actors like: Bill Camp, Yessica Borroto, Perryman, Eduardo Verastegui, Cristal Aparicio and Javier Godino, among others,” Odiete said. (NAN)(nannews.ng)

Edited by Oluyinka Fadare

By Joshua Olomu

The President, Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Emeka Rollas, says the maiden edition of the Youth Educational Film Festival (YEFF) will showcase films for education, value re-orientation and youth empowerment.

Rollas said this on Tuesday at the Pre-YEFF Stakeholders meeting in Abuja.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the festival scheduled to hold in September is organised by AGN in collaboration with the Abuja Film Village (AFV) and the group “I am the Future of Nigeria Youth Initiative”.

AGN president said that the meeting was to seek the inputs, ideas and suggestions of relevant stakeholders towards ensuring maximum participation of youths.

He added that the meeting was to ensure that relevant government’s agencies in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) rally support for the festival.

“The objective of the Youth Educational Film Festival is to provide a channel for educators and filmmakers in Nigeria to share ideas and methods towards promoting educational contents.

“Therefore, the essence of having the youth educational film festival is to provide a platform for young filmmakers to showcase their talents, foster creativity, promote education and stimulate critical thinking among youths.

“We strongly believe that Nollywood is a viable tool for transformation and will help reduce some vices in our society,” he said.

Rollas added that the event intended to showcase films that would educate and inform the teeming youths through screenings, workshops, discussions and cultural activities.

According to him, the target group for the festival are children, adolescents, youths, as well as teachers in primary, secondary and tertiary institutions and their families.

In his remarks, Alhaji Adedayo Thomas, Executive Director/CEO of the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) described the YEFF as “unprecedented”.

According to Thomas, the Board will do everything within its reach to support this vision.

Earlier, Mrs Noni Okocha, Chief Executive Officer of “I am the Future of Nigeria Youth Initiative” explained that the films selected from the project would focus on addressing disturbing national issues.

According to her, the films will address illegal migration, drug abuse, domestic violence, child and sexual abuse, among others.

She called on government at all levels to support the initiative and ensure that their youths participate in it.

The pre-event stakeholders meeting had in attendance representatives of relevant MDAs, including the Federal Ministry of Education, National Film and Video Censors Board, Nigerian Film Corporation and the National Library.

Others include the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs, Federal Ministry of Information and Culture, FCT Universal Basic Education Board and the FCT Secondary Education Board, among others. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)

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Edited by Dorcas Jonah/Deji Abdulwahab

A Nigerian movie producer, Seun Oloketuyi on Friday said the history inspired him to choose biopic on Nigeria’s longest-reigning first-class monarch, Awujale Sikiru Adetona.
Oloketuyi, who just released a biographical film titled “Awujale’’, said this while speaking with newsmen in Lagos.
According to him, history is imperative in preserving culture. It is always tough working on a person’s biography but it’s important to always stick to facts.
“One of the reasons why I work on biopics is the fact that history is being forgotten.
“If you have little children, most of them know the history of queen of England, Martin Luther King, but they don’t know the history of Oba of Lagos or the history of Awujale.
“There are lots of inspiring women in Nigeria whose stories can be told. Our choices are usually based on inspiration and that’s the first thing that drives us,’’ movie producer said.
According to him, it is imperative for parents to make their children learn history of their states and the country at large.
“So, we feel that this is a story that needs to be told. Apart from that, the fact that a lot of people don’t like to read, entertainment will help many find their way to historical things.
“It will also inspire us. A lot of young Obas will now know that they are supposed to be custodians of culture and tradition,” he said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the movie producer had done some biopics on President Bola Tinubu as a governor, Gov. Yahaya Bello and Lamidi Adedibu, `Alagbara Ibadan’ (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)

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Edited by Dorcas Jonah/Deji Abdulwahab