BIG BROTHER NAIJA ALL-STARS: ALL EYES ON FAN FAVOURITES

The eighth season of the Big Brother Naija reality TV show, dubbed, the ‘All-Star’ edition, starts today. Unlike past outings, this season will feature former housemates of the competition. Sunday Scoop looks at some of the ex-housemates who are quite popular with fans and might be part of the new show

Tobi Bakre

Tobi Bakre is no doubt one former Big Brother Naija housemates who has maximised his opportunities since he left the show. He has starred in a number of movies, including, Sugar Rush, Brotherhood and Gangs of Lagos.

His dedication to his craft has undoubtedly put him in the league of the most sought after ex-housemates.

He won the Best Actor Award at the 2023 African Magic Viewers Choice Awards.

He has 2.4 million followers on Instagram, and is a brand ambassador of the betting platform, Bet king Nigeria.

Tacha

It is no doubt that Natacha Akide has come a long way since her disqualification from the season 4— Pepper Dem edition— of BBN. She has a loyal fan base called the ‘titans’, and boasts of 3.5 million followers on Instagram.

She also competed on MTV’s The Challenge reality show. She was known to be a controversial person, even before partaking in BBN.

She has won a number of awards, including 2021 Net Honours Most Popular Person and Force of Twitter. She has also won the 2021 SCREAM awards for Brand Influencer of the Year, Fashion Brand of the Year and Social Media Influencer of the year. Akide also has multiple businesses to her name.

Elozonam

Elozonam Ogbolu is another ex-BBN housemate who has made good use of the exposure he got from the show. Elozonam is now a content creator, voice artist and TV show host. He won the 2023 AMVCA award for the Best Online Social Content Creator. He is currently a brand ambassador of Premier Cool Nigeria, and has almost a million followers on Instagram.

Kidwaya

Kidwaya Terseer is the son of a billionaire and he is unabashed about it. He is often seen hanging out with people of high calibre. He has 1.5 million followers on Instagram. He also owns a London, United Kingdom-based consulting agency, Kiddwco, which presented the sum of N100m to underprivileged Nigerians on July 13, 2023.

Erica

Erica Nlewedim was disqualified from BBN, but she has not relented in her career. She has acted in movies, such as Blood Covenant, Devil in Agbada, Bitter Rain, The Wig, and Hire a Woman.

She also has endorsement deals with brands such as Aaron Cosmetics, Access Bank Plc and Maltina. She has over three million fans on Instagram.

Nengi

Rebecca Hampson, aka Nengi, is another popular ex-BBN housemate with 3.2 million followers on Instagram. Just two months after emerging the second runner up of BBN in 2020, she was awarded the Black Women Worldwide award for Entrepreneur of the Year on November 1, 2020. She was also declared as the winner of the Online Influencer of the Year Awards at 2022 Gage Awards. Nengi was the first female housemate in the history of the show to have one million followers on Instagram while still in the competition. She has also been signed as a brand ambassador for brands such as, Payporte, Deshapeables Nigeria, and Remy Martins.

Cee C

Cynthia Nwadiora, aka Cee C, gained notoriety for being very controversial while on the show in 2018, but since she left the competition, she has also shown off her calmer side.

The 26-year-old lawyer has bagged many ambassadorial deals, and has over three million followers on Instagram. In 2018, she won the La Mode Award for Fashion Influencer of the Year.

She has also worked with brands, such as Itel, Cassie Hairs, and FTX Africa.

Angel

Like many others on this list, Angel Smith is a controversial ex-BBN housemate. She has 1.1 million followers on Instagram, and is currently one of Get fit Nigeria ambassadors. She has also worked with tea brand, Lipton; skincare brand, Jenny’s glow; and phone brand, Oppo.

Khloe

Oluwabusayo Abiri, popularly known as Khloe, is another controversial ex-BBN housemate that is loved by many. She set a lot of tongues wagging when she underwent cosmetic surgery in 2020.

With many businesses to her name, she made the 2023 Forbes 30 under 30 list.

Ozo

While on the show, Ozomena Chukwu, aka Ozo, was the butt of jokes for many because of his doting affection towards another housemate, Nengi. However, that also endeared him to many fans. He currently has 1.5 million followers on Instagram.

He has worked with brands such as FIFA, Nike, Budweiser, and Tecno.

BREAKING: TINUBU PLANNING TO ATTACK PEPC JUDGES, OBI, AND ATIKU'S LEGAL TEAM – DAVID HUNDEYIN

    ■ DAVID HUNDEYIN 

Investigative Journalist and author of The Jungle, David Hundeyin, has released a scathing allegation against Bola Ahmed Tinubu via his Twitter handle @DavidHundeyin

He said the source of the allegation has never given him any false information, and he hopes this is the first. He posted a screenshot showing his conversation with the source.

It will be recalled that David Hundeyin was the journalist who exposed Bola Tinubu’s dual citizenship and Guinean Passport and also the one who released Tinubu’s drug dealing and money laundering forfeiture case in the USA.

On a day when Peter Obi and Atiku Abubakar submitted their final addresses to the Presidential Tribunal against Tinubu, he chose to use the various security apparatus against his opposition. It is important to note that in that meeting, the highly controversial Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodinma, who got to power through a highly controversial judicial judgment, was in attendance.

Attached below is David’s Tweet.

COURT OF APPEAL, ABUJA, HAS DISMISSED AN APPEAL BY THE ALLIED PEOPLES MOVEMENT, APM, SEEKING TO DISQUALIFY PETER OBI

The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja has dismissed an appeal by the Allied Peoples Movement, APM, seeking to disqualify Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, LP, from the February 25 general election.

In the appeal marked: CA/ABJ/CV/1414/2022, the Movement had approached the court, contending that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, ought not to have recognized Peter Obi as a valid candidate for the presidential poll.

APM said this was in consideration of the time Obi defected from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to the LP.

The party argued that the period of Obi’s defection for the purpose of contesting the presidential election was in violation of sections 77(2) and (3) of the Electoral Act, 2022.

They also argued that before Obi’s defection, the LP already sent a list of its registered members to the INEC.

According to the appellant, Obi lacked the right to be recognized as the LP flagbearer because his name was not on the list of the party members that was submitted to INEC.

APM further urged the court to set aside the Federal High Court judgment which dismissed the suit it filed to challenge Obi’s candidacy.

In a unanimous decision by a three-member panel of Justices, the appellate court said there was no merit in the appeal filed by APM.

Recall that this is one of the grounds the All Progressives Congress APC Candidate and President-elect, Bola Ahmed Tinubu presented to the Presidential Election Petition Tribunal in response against Peter Obi’s Petition.

AMAECHI, WIKE RENEW SUPREMACY BATTLE IN RIVERS STATE

As the governorship and State House of Assembly elections hold tomorrow, Saturday, some residents of Rivers State are cut in between the line on who to vote for, especially for the position of Governor and of course the houseof assembly seats contestants in the state.

Some observers hold the opinion that the governorship and the state Assembly candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party are likely to win.

This is because, they believe Governor Nyesom Wike’s influence will give a landslide victory to his party, the PDP.

The PDP had won 90% of the National Assembly seats in the state, including the 3 Senatorial districts and 9 House of Representatives seats.

The Labour Party won 1 House of Representatives seat and the All Progressives Congress won 1 seat at the House of Representatives too. However, two constituencies are yet to be announced.

The PDP is being been accused of hijacking the process of the February 25 election.

The Labour Party in the state had claimed that they won the presidential election in the state, as well as most of the National Assembly seats, but their mandate was allegedly stolen by the PDP.

For the March 18 election, it is widely speculated that the APC and the Social Democratic Party, SDP, in the state, have great interest in the elections, despite not showing much interest in the presidential and National Assembly elections.

The Labour Party is also not left out as some “Obidients” have vowed to vote for LP from top to bottom, as a revenge for what happened in the February 25 election.

Meanwhile, some residents of the state have promised to follow through with Governor Wike’s alleged directive during the presidential election, to vote for the APC.

Wike is believed to have worked for the presidential candidate of the APC, now president-elect, Bola Tinubu, to make him remove his interest in APC winning Rivers governorship election.

Tinubu is reportedly caught in the middle on who to support among the guber candidate of his party, which is the APC, Patrick Tonye-Cole, the guber candidate of the SDP, which is his longtime ally, Magnus Abe or the guber candidate of the PDP, Siminalaye Fubara, whose boss (Wike), allegedly worked for his victory in the state.

Tension seem high in the state as various political parties, especially the APC and the SDP, have vowed that the PDP will not hijack the electoral process like they supposedly did with the presidential and the National Assembly elections.

The guber candidate of the Labour Party, Beatrice Itubo is also gathering momentum, as the electorates and the Obidients are gearing towards her. The support for her candidacy increased after the former state chairman of LP in Rivers state, Dienye Pepple, as well as the state executives of the party, publicly endorsed the guber candidate of the PDP.

Their decision, they said, was hinged on the fact that, “they want to support a candidate that can win the election.”

They also accused their party’s guber candidate of being, “unserious and unready to run an election.”

As for the candidate of the SDP, Abe, he has been endorsed by several groups in the state, including the Igbo community, of which the leadership have come out to refute.

He also has a large number of followers and has been described as, “a grassroots politician.”

He worked with the previous administration, where he served as Secretary to the State Government. Abe is also said to have a stronghold in his area, which is the Ogoni axis.

The candidate of the PDP is said to also have a great chance. This is because Governor Wike has managed to poach some influential leaders of the APC and SDP in the state to join his camp.

He has equally had meetings with several groups and sectors, to woo them to vote for his party’s candidate.

A week ago, he went as far as promising to employ 10,000 youths in the state, promotion of civil servants, an employment scheme and promotion of several persons. However, this strategy may have won some people to the side of the strategic Governor.

The candidate of the APC, Tonye-Cole, had earlier gathered some level of support from the people, after the presidential and National Assembly elections. Some electorates described him as, “the best man for the job.”

But this did not last, as he allegedly posted a congratulatory message to the president-elect, Tinubu on his Facebook page.

However, some people, despite the congratulatory message, have decided to vote for him, because of his experiences.

The physical campaign of former Governor, Rotimi Amaechi has also helped him gather support from people who are not in tandem with Wike’s style of leadership.

Amaechi has been vigorously campaigning for the APC candidate in what could be seen as a renewal of the supremacy battle between him (Amaechi) and Wike.

People are also expecting some guber candidates from the Kalabari extraction, where Tonye-Cole is from, to step down for him, as the many candidates from the Oceania LGA’s, will mar the possibility of a Kalabari Governor.

The guber candidate of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, Tonye Ibraye, as well as his Deputy, Tonto Dike are the first to step down.

It is uncertain if others, including Dumo Lulu-Briggs of Accord, Dawari George of Action Alliance and Sogbomabo Jackrich of National Rescue Movement, will step down for Tonye-Cole.

Tension is high, as many fear of possible violence in the Saturday’s election in the state.

The candidates of the APC, LP, PDP and SDP, all stand a good chance of winning the election. It is quite difficult to say who is likely to win as the race in the state is too close to call.

I DIDN'T ATTEND PRIMARY, SECONDARY SCHOOLS; MY UNIVERSITY CERTIFICATES STOLEN BY UNKNOWN SOLDIERS, TINUBU TELLS INEC

    Sen. Bola Ahmed Tinubu

Bola Tinubu, the presidential candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress, has told the electoral commission INEC that he didn’t attend primary and secondary schools.

The former Lagos governor, however, claimed he had two degrees from two American universities, which he further stated had been stolen by unknown soldiers during the military junta of the 1990s.

The disclosures came in an affidavit submitted by Mr Tinubu to the electoral office as part of his eligibility filings for the 2023 presidential elections.

The documents released on Friday showed Mr Tinubu left the columns for his primary and secondary education unmarked. But he said he obtained a degree in business and administration in 1979, apparently referring to his previous claims of attending the Chicago State University.

“I went on self-exile from October 1994 to October 1998. When I returned I discovered that all my property, including all the documents relating to my qualifications and my certificates in respect of paragraph three above, were looted by unknown persons.

“My house was a target of series of searches by various security agents from the time the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria was forced to adjourn following the military takeover of government of 17th November 1993.

 

“I was the chairman of the Senate committee on appropriation, banking and finance. I was also a plaintiff in one of the two suits against the interim national government in 1993.

“I went on exile when it became clear to me that my life was in danger,” Mr Tinubu said in his claim to ine

The electoral law mandates candidates to submit their personal credentials that will be published for public scrutiny ahead of elections.

Mr Tinubu’s latest claims appear to contradict his previous election submissions, especially in 1999 and 2003 when he ran for office as a governorship candidate in Lagos. He claimed both times that he attended primary and secondary schools.

He said he attended St Paul Children’s Home School, Ibadan, between 1958 to 1964; while his secondary education was at Government College, Ibadan, between 1965 to 1968.

From Ibadan, Mr Tinubu said he proceed to Richard Daley College, Chicago, from 1969 to 1971.

He stated finally to have attended both Chicago State University and the University of Chicago.

The Chicago State University confirmed Mr Tinubu as its student, graduating with a degree in business and administration on June 22, 1979.

All the submissions were, however, challenged as fraudulent by a prominent Nigerian lawyer, Gani Fawehinmi.

Mr Fawehinmi, 1938-2009, argued the matter up to the Supreme Court, which dismissed the case on technical grounds rather than on its merits.

Ikenga Ugochinyere, a political activist in Abuja, said he would challenge Mr Tinubu’s filings in court, accusing him of having committed perjury.

Mr Tinubu “commits perjury as he abandons his earlier claim of attending primary school, sworn in an affidavit to run for governor but now claims not to have attended primary school,” Mr Ugochinyere said in a statement. His “new forms contradict his 2007 affidavit that he has primary school and secondary.”

A spokesman for Mr Tinubu did not return a request seeking comments about the alleged discrepancies in his submissions to the electoral commission.

EBONYI GOVERNMENT PROSCRIBES ASUU, NASU, OTHERS IN STATE UNIVERSITY

The Ebonyi State Government on Thursday announced the proscription of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, the Non-Academic Staff Union and others at the Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki.

The only body currently allowed to exist in the university is the Students’ Union Government.

The Ebonyi State Governor, David Umahi, who met with leadership of the unions, said, “The decision was taken in order to ensure that academic and non-academic unions’ activities do not negatively affect the resumption of EBSU and commencement of academic/non-academic activities in the state-owned university.”

Meanwhile, the state Commissioner for Education, Dr Onyebuchi Chima, said approval had been given for the release of N500m for the payment of staff salaries.

He added that the institution was also granted a loan of N300m for the commencement of SMEs towards boosting its Internally Generated Revenue, while the state’s mushroom and the citrus farms were also donated to the school.

Chima said, “All teaching and non-teaching staff members are encouraged to resume normal university activities immediately. All teaching and non-teaching staff shall be paid 80 per cent of their monthly outstanding salaries except those who refused to immediately commence work. Accordingly, EBSU management and SUG are encouraged to keep records of staff that resume for work.

“In order to ameliorate the hardship of parents/students in the payment of school fees, the Visitor of EBSU/Governor of Ebonyi State University, Dr David Nweze Umahi, has approved that EBSU University Management should implement ‘staggered school payment’ system.”