₦airaland Forum

The leadership of the Concerned Northern Forum (CNF) on Monday appealed to politicians who are 60 years and above to stay away from the 2023 presidency.

CNF position was premised on the condition of service in civil service whereby people above 60 years of age are sent on retirement even when such people are good at what they do.
Spokesman for the Forum, Abdulsalam Mohammed Kazeem in a statement said, the next Nigerian president must be a “cosmopolitan leader” full of energy, vast in ideas and one who understands the politics of trade, international affairs and foreign policy.

According to him” the leadership of Concerned Northern Forum (CNF) appeal to Nigerian political merchants who are over 60 years of age to stay away from 2023 Presidency.

“In Nigeria today, our civil service (rules) will not retain any individual above 60 years of age no matter his/her experience and value the said distinguished/accomplished individual will add to our system.

“Most of Nigeria’s political elites sources of wealth/ ideology is questionable. Their state of health is unknown. Primary, secondary and university/polytechnic attended are unknown while their age, name, parents and even state of origin are being disputed.

“Available research carried out by our group showed that most of our political elites inclinations to be Nigeria’s president are for reasons not beyond lust for power and affluence, with no blueprint on how to tackle the enormous challenges bedevilling us as a country.

“The time has come and we are ready to give our mandate to those candidates below 60 years with good manifestos and the political will to help address our immediate, short term and long term problems which have made us the poverty headquarters of the world despite our abundant resources.

“The time is now and the 2023 presidency for us should be based on an Individual’s competence, health status, integrity & credibility.

“We cannot allow the recycling of old politicians who have been instrumental to the enormous problems facing our country from 1999 till date to still come and lead us to more uncertainty. Their achievements are looting, corruption etc. You don’t expect a man to be doing the same thing and you expect different results.

“Our nation deserves a cosmopolitan leader, who is full of energy, vast in ideas and one who understands the politics of trade, international affairs and foreign policy.

We call on progressive youths to take advantage of the ‘not too young to run’ to participate actively, not only in social media, rather they should help mobilize and sensitive their fellow youths on how to get permanent voters card, become a member of a particular political party, aspire for political offices, and equally encourage others with leadership potential with either finance, free consultancy services or soft words of encouragement, which will demonstrate that we are ready to lead our nation too”, he said.

“Today I’m here in Paris. I am very happy, really very happy, I really want to continue to fight and reach new objectives. I don’t know how many more years but I am really enjoying myself. I thank my team-mates at Barça, Paris & Argentina,” Messi said after receiving the award.

The 34-year-old Messi led Argentina to the Copa America title in July after losing in four major international finals.


The Argentine also complimented Robert Lewandowski for his brilliant performance. “Robert, you deserve your Ballon D’Or. Last year, everyone was in agreement to say that you were the big winner of this award,” said Messi.

I’m very emotional, it’s a very special moment,” she said at the Paris ceremony through a translator. “I would like to start by thanking all my teammates, especially my current (Barcelona) teammates. For me it’s a collective success.”Cristiano Ronaldo finishes outside the top three in the Ballon d’Or for the first time since 2010. Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandowski won the “Striker of the year” while Italy stopper Gianluigi Donnarumma clinched the best goalkeeper award. The Kopa trophy for best young player went to Barcelona’s Pedri. Chelsea, meanwhile, won the best club award.
Ballon d’Or 2021 Winners:

Ballon d’Or (Men): Lionel Messi (PSG/Argentina)

Club of the year: Chelsea Football Club

Yashin Trophy for best goalkeeper: Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG/Italy)

Ballon d’Or (Women): Alexia Putellas (Barcelona/Spain)

Striker of the year: Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich/Poland)

Kopa Trophy for best young male player: Pedri (Barcelona/Spain)
The last recipient of the Ballon d’Or Award was Lionel Messi. He won the prestigious award for a record of 6 times in 2019. As the honour is set to be presented to the best player in the world in Paris on Monday, France Football has released a 30-man shortlist for the 2021 awards. The winners of the Kopa Trophy presented to the best performing player under 21 years of age, and Yashin Trophy, presented to the best goalkeeper, will also be announced.

The VAR should have reviewed the Referee's penalty decision to award Chelsea a penalty in the week 13 Premier League match against Manchester United at Old Trafford Stadium.

Another entertainment match between Chelsea and Manchester United in the week 13 English premier league match at Stamford Bridge. Both teams started the game with high intensity but Chelsea were in control of the game right from the first minute of the match. The blues dominated the match with the like of Silva, Jorginho, Loftus-cheek and Odoi.It was a brilliant first half performance from Chelsea but Manchester United were more solid in the defense. Chelsea missed several chances that could have given the lead. The second half of the game started with the same velocity but Manchester United capitalized on Jorginho's mistake.

Jadon Sancho scored for the Red Devils after Jorginho failed to clear a long ball played by United player. The England international converted the ball brilliantly in the 50th minutes of the game.Chelsea continued with the high pressing despite despite been on a goal down. The VAR decision not to review the Referee's decision to award Chelsea a penalty have been heavily criticised. The penalty should have been reviewed because it was not an intentional foul by Wan Bissaka.Chelsea continued with the high pressing despite despite been on a goal down. The VAR decision not to review the Referee's decision to award Chelsea a penalty have been heavily criticised. The penalty should have been reviewed because it was not an intentional foul by Wan Bissaka.Jorginho converted the Penalty nicely to give Chelsea the equalizing goal. The blues could have scored the winning goal but Rudiger missed a last minute chance.

In this interview by IMOLEAYO OYEDEYI, actor cum movie producer, Temitope Iledo, popularly known as Topright, bores his mind on the challenges that often force upcoming actors into dirty deals in the Nigerian movie industry and the trail-blazing impact Nigerian music jams are having outside the country among other sundry issues. Excerpts:

In recent times, what are the films you have produced that have had remarkable impacts in Nollywood?

I recently made three movies. The first is entitled, ‘The Prodigal son’, which replicated the biblical story of a young man that travelled outside his parent’s house to squander the wealth he inherited from his father, only to return home after many years to plead for his dad’s forgiveness. But to make the film more appealing to humanity and impactful, I tweaked the plot a great deal and featured many top Nollywood stars as I have done in the previous seven other movies I have produced.  I believe the film really impacted peoples’ lives because I received a lot of feedbacks from people across social media.

After that, I shot Jagunlabi, which I made in Dubai. For the movie, I had to move the entire cast and crew to the place and the film was another blockbuster. I used the film to pass a message to irresponsible parents out there, who are not committed to raising their children with sound moral upbringing to the extent that they won’t even question their children when they notice that he or she is exhibiting some questionable character. In the movie, I paraded the likes of Ayo Adesanya, Jide Kosoko, among others. But the latest one from my stable now is entitled, ‘Afefe’ (Wind). It is currently gaining traction on social media. I released its first part last month and within three weeks, it has grossed about seven hundred and fifty thousand views on YouTube. I finally released its second part last week Friday, October 29. Presently, it has grossed over two hundred thousand views on YouTube.

Afefe is the story of a young man accidentally whisked away by a strong whirlwind, only to return in a spirit form with some powers and started tormenting dubious politicians and public office holders. The film was directed by Wale Razak and had the likes of Yemi Solade, Jide Kosoko, Ayo Adesanya, Yinka Quadri among others. So, with Afefe now, I have produced nine movies so far. But I really can’t count the number of movies I have featured in, because you know, as a promising actor, who has been privileged to produce high-rated movies, other producers will want to feature you in their movies. But all have been simply the grace of God.

 

For someone who has produced quite a number of movies in Nollywood, what has been the driving force behind your movie-making?

As you know, there are many producers and actors in the industry, but on my part, my main aim for movie production is to address trending and burning societal challenges through the screen. I have discovered that many Nigerians prefer to watch movies than read books, which confirms the poor reading culture that we have in the country. But as a young and visionary movie-maker, I always tailor my script towards addressing issues like divorce, domestic violence, poor parenting, infidelity in relationships and marriage, cultism and corruption among public office holders, which is endemic in Nigeria.

I try to build a captivating, but highly instructive storyline around the current happenings in the society. Sometimes, I use real-life occurrences but made use of fictitious names to protect the image of the persons involved in those incidents. And so far, the result has been impactful. The next film coming from my stable is entitled, “Young couple”, which I am currently packaging to address the difficulties that young people face in the early years of their marriages that often make them consider divorce. It is still in the pipeline. But as usual, it will really blow peoples’ minds.

 

You recently launched Topright entertainment brand. What exactly are the unique solutions it is bringing on board?

I have been in the movie industry since 2012 and Ijebu has been my boss. I learnt so much from him, after which I started featuring in movies and producing my own films. As someone that has greatly been tutored by veterans in the industry including Afeez Owo, Wale Razak among others, I thought of other ways to make indelible imprints in the Nigerian entertainment industry aside through Nollywood and this was what birthed my entertainment brand. I launched it a few months ago and I have signed two artistes on my record label. One is an Afro-Pop artiste, popularly known as Josh King and the second one is a comic skit-maker, Tosin Popoola. Above making them have more visibility in the industry, I want to help them achieve their dreams by giving them platforms to showcase their talents to the world. In view of the fast rate at which new talented entrants are making their way into the industry through my platform and several others, I believe the Nigerian music and film industry are set for a quantum leap in the coming years. And I am really grateful to God for making me one of the emerging change makers in the industry. Already, Nigerian music is renting the air across the world. I just came back from my vacation in Tanzania, where I saw how Nigerian music have taken over their streets and malls. These are signs of great things to come.

 

What triggered your production of movies or can we say acting is no longer lucrative?

What triggered the production of the movies is my quest for recognition and acceptability in the movie industry. This is because as an upcoming actor, people won’t get noticed until one projects oneself. In Nollywood, one has to belong or else, one would not be invited for jobs. It was only directors that always call me for movie roles. In view of this, I saw the need to showcase my talents to more people in the industry. And since I did all the movies, more players in the industry have been calling me because they have seen me in different characters.

And this is what keeps inspiring me to use my money to do more movies. The truth is just that as an up and coming actor in the industry, one has to struggle and make one’s own movies which will give the leverage to play any role and appear many times. This is because no producer or director will want to trust an actor with their movie script in view of being new in the industry. Though, as a fresh actor, one can get to do some dirty jobs and deal in a bid to get one’s face on the screen; one will definitely survive the process if one is committed. It’s just that one has to suffer before gaining prominence in the industry. It’s just that you have to suffer before you can gain anything in the industry.

 

How have you been getting funds to finance your movie production?

After quitting the industry for a while, as I said earlier, I went into business to gain a certain level of financial freedom. Even since I came back, I have continued to run my businesses side by side with my movie career because it is through them I get the money to fund my movie productions which as I said, I needed to continue to embark upon in a bid to get more recognition in the industry. Though, the whole process has been really challenging, I have benefitted immensely from the mentorship of my boss, Ijebu. I always consult him whenever I embark on any new project in terms of the right casting, equipment among others and he has been very supportive.

 

For somebody who is becoming known as a producer and actor, what do you think about the quality of movie productions in the industry today?

Aside from producing movies, I like watching good movies that portray elegance and a high sense of professionalism right from scripting and type of equipment used, especially the quality of cameras being used which all contribute to the overall standard of a film. These are some of the things I consider when I shoot my movies. I could remember that when I was about making Jagunlabi, my director, Wale Rasak, who was the brain behind the storyline, told me that he wanted to see me in another character, clearly different from those I had been playing in my past appearances. He told me that he saw a very unique instinct in me and that I needed to unleash more of my acting potentials for people to see. His words really motivated me to embark on the movie.

 

But in all, do you have any regret and what lesson has it taught you?

There is one. And I must say it is one of the most painful parts of my movie career. But I see it as part of the experience I needed to get to the very top in the industry. What happened exactly was that there was this movie I spent a huge sum of money on packaging, from the scripting down to the casting. It cost me a lot. But to my surprise, after the whole process, virtually all the marketers I met rejected the movie, including the online TVs even when it featured stars. They all complained of only its storyline, nothing else. It was really painful, but I had to just dust it off and moved on. Though, many asked whether I didn’t check the story well before embarking on the project, I didn’t mind them. You must be ready to lose millions. This is because you can shoot a movie for two million Naira and hardly make five hundred thousand Naira at the end of the day. There are days you will be lucky, and there are days, you won’t.

Another thing I learned from the mistake is that only one scene can destroy a multi-million naira movie project. This is because the acceptability of the audience is very key. Many of them are intelligent and can predict the end of a movie right from the beginning, even though we, producers, often tend to prevent that. We all know that there will always be a consequence for every bad or criminal act, but if a story now portrays a character that goes scot-free after destroying many lives, such isn’t acceptable because a movie shouldn’t contrast the moral standard of any society.

Cristiano Ronaldo stormed down the tunnel after Manchester United's 1-1 draw with Chelsea on Sunday.
Michael Carrick, the caretaker manager, benched Ronaldo for the game at Stamford Bridge.

However, the 36-year-old came in in the 64th minute to replace Jadon Sancho, who scored the game's first goal.

Sancho put United ahead after pounced on a Jorginho error and slotted the ball past Edouard Mendy after absorbing all the pressure in the first half.

The league leaders, however, drew level as Jorginho converted a penalty after a foul on Thiago Silva inside the box.

It was a sad evening for Ronaldo, who appeared dissatisfied with his team's choice to bench him.

Before getting reprimanded for his dissent, he sarcastically clapped at referee Anthony Taylor at his decision to give a Chelsea drop ball late in the game.

Ronaldo also failed to make a single shot, losing all six of his defensive duels and failing to dribble successfully in any of his tries.

The Portugal captain stormed down the Stamford Bridge tunnel after the final whistle, shaking none of the Chelsea players' or match officials' hands.