Gist Arena

Wife of the President, Hajiya Aisha Buhari, on Friday called on Governor Muhammed Bindow Jibrilla of Adamawa State to swap his male Commissioner for Women Affairs, Alhaji Aliyu Tola, with a woman. Hajiya Buhari made the call in Yola, the capital, while inaugurating a free medical check-up for 2,000 women in the state under her pet project, the Aisha Buhari Women Health Initiative. She said women in the state were protesting the appointment of a man as commissioner and appealed to the governor to appoint a woman in that office instead. She said, “The women are protesting. They asked me to pass their wishes to have a woman as their commissioner for women affairs.” Tola, who was asked to deliver his speech before that of the wife of the president, seemed to have sensed the women’s countenance, tactically uttering a few words before inviting the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Hajiya Maisaratu Bello, a woman, to address the gathering. The appointmen...

Bimbo Akintola Iconic actress, Bimbo Akintola, was recently spotted at an event looking trimmed down and ravishing. Known to spark off controversy, it was not surprising when many people attributed her new looks to liposuction. When confronted with the question, the actress explained that her new look was as a result of rigorous hours of exercises. She said, “I do a lot of exercise. I did not do liposuction. If you go to Eko Gym, I am usually there by 5:40am and I work out for hours. But anytime I am shooting a movie, I hardly have time to go to the gym.”  The actress who played the part of Dr. Ameyo Adadevoh in the critically acclaimed movie, 93 Days, told Saturday Beats that so far, that role has been the toughest she has embarked on in her career.  “The storyline was great but it was a difficult task because we had to act like some people, some of them are not with us any longer. Also, the fact that they did so much to save us during the Ebola crisis...

Iya Ereko Veteran Yoruba actress popularly known as Iya Ereko is currently not happy about the ill news being peddled about her. Some days back, news made rounds that things were so bad for the veteran actress that she was contemplating suicide. It was further alleged that her son was deported from abroad and this deepened her depression. In a chat with Saturday Beats, she denied such insinuation and said it was the work of her detractors. She however told Saturday Beats that she wishes the rumour mongers anything they wish her. “I wonder who is peddling these rumours about me. I heard of the story that things were hard for me and I was contemplating suicide and I was shocked. They even went to the extent of saying that my son was deported from overseas. It is not true and I wish these people whatever they wish me. I feel the news is from my detractors. I am hale and hearty and I even celebrated my birthday a few days ago. How can I contemplate suicide when I just s...

Edo State Governor and Chairman of the National Economic Council Ad-Hoc Committee on the management of the Excess Crude Account and related Federation Account issues, Adams Oshiomhole, has said that the $1bn Sovereign Wealth Fund has been depleted to $300m. The Managing Director, Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority, Uche Orji, had last week claimed that the $1bn initial sovereign fund contributed by the government was intact and had generated N15.7bn profit last year. But Oshiomhole, who spoke with State House correspondents after meeting with Vice President Yemi Osinbajo at the State House on Thursday night, said the claim was false. He said he had evidence to debunk the claim that the fund was invested in projects that were already funded from other sources. He said, “I reported to the media that the Sovereign Wealth Fund people, in their report to us, which I have in black and white, showed clearly that they have only $300m left in the account. “...

Why do Nigerian Presidents so often fail to make quality appointments? Unlike beauty, quality does not lie in the eyes of the beholder. Every new president promises to nominate talented, qualified people to fill into positions in their government. Yet, they all make more than a few appointments that do not satisfy the call for “able, creative, and experienced people,” who will serve as “the most important ingredient in the recipe for good government.” Most of the names I have seen on President Buhari’s ministerial list do not represent the best and brightest Nigeria has to offer. The President might be having problem with the issue of trust, thereby looking to appoint only those that will stay loyal to him, but we also want him to look beyond loyalty. No matter how loyal appointees are to the President, they also need to know what to do and how to do it once they get the jobs. The ability to manage, design, and effectively carry out new programmes, implement key legislation, and...

A man was forced to spend the night on ledge seven storeys up after his lover's husband came home unnanounced. According to People's Daily Online, the married woman's lover was stuck  between two air-conditioning units all night, during the bizarre incident in China. It wasn't until the unnamed woman's husband went out to work the next day that she called firemen and asked for them to rescue him. A local fire brigade spokesman said: "Fortunately he had already dressed himself and was about to leave when the woman's husband came home, and she had managed to persuade him to scramble out the window." At first, the man claimed he could not remember how he got out onto the narrow ledge, but police eventually got the story from the woman. She admitted she had brought the man home with her, not expecting that the husband would return early from a business trip. "He had apparently been drinking a fair amount, and that proba...

The African Union has suspended Burkina Faso over Thursday's military coup. The AU said sanctions would be imposed if members of the presidential guard, who staged the coup do not release members of the interim government which includes the interim president, Michel Kafondo.  The presidents of Benin and Senegal are in the city for talks with the coup leader. Meanwhile Pres .   Buhari has condemned the coup in Burkina Faso. Below is a press statement from the presidency.. President Muhammadu Buhari and the Federal Government of Nigeria unreservedly condemn Wednesday's  detention of the Interim President, the Prime Minister and other ministers of the transitional government of Burkina Faso in an apparent coup d'etat. President Buhari and Nigeria align with ECOWAS, the African Union and the United Nations in rejecting the brazen contravention of the constitution and transitional charter of Burkina Faso by elements of the Presidential Guard under the...