Ekiti State-born Niniola Apata, better known by her stage name, ‘Niniola’, broke into limelight shortly after emerging third runner-up in the 6th edition of MTN Project Fame. Renowned for her electrifying display of stage energy, vocal power and stage craft, she has been able to create a world of her own in the Nigerian music industry through hardwork, resilience and consistency. As our Star this week she takes on how she developed interest in music, career success so far and more. Excerpts…

The current state of the market creates both opportunities and challenges for investors. We believe that taking a portfolio approach to investing provides the best risk adjusted alternative to participating in the capital market. We provide a repertoire of products that will help investors to create portfolios with uncorrelated products. We became a multi-asset class exchange a few years ago and do offer exposure in equities, fixed income, ETFs (Golds, Bonds, Equities), real estate, REITs, etc.

CHIEF Olabode Ibiyinka George celebrated his 71st birthday recently. George, a former Deputy National Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, in this encounter, bares his mind on the state of the nation, the mistakes made by the PDP in the 2015 general elections and the way forward for Nigeria and his party.

There’s a conspiracy between the Church, the Mosque and politics to loot the nation. Offering has hugely dropped in most churches and mosques. Everybody now finds out that the whole of Nigeria is run on corruption money

REVEREND Oladimeji (Ladi) Thompson is the founder/Senior Pastor of Lagos-based Living Waters Unlimited Church and the international co-ordinator of Macedonian Initiative, a non-government, non-denominational organization established to provide succour for Christians persecuted because of their belief in Jesus. He is also a security consultant. In this interview, Thompson says unless a deliberate collaboration between the government, the Church and the Mosque was put in place to rid the nation of corruption, there is not much hope for Nigeria. Excerpts…..

Prof. Diji Aina is the Vice Chancellor of Caleb University, Imota, Lagos. In this interview, Aina disputes the claim that private universities fees across the country are too high, saying the current fees are sustainable only because the owners subsidise. He also says the products of private universities are of high quality contrary to the notion in some quarters.

At a forum organised by the Nigerian community in China to address the thriving illicit trade on drugs and its effects on not just China-Nigeria bilateral relationship, but also on Nigerians living and doing business in China, the President, Good Governance Initiative (GGI), Mr. Festus Mbisiogu, while saying 85 per cent of Nigerians believe that China exerts positive influence on the social and economic development in Nigeria, explained that China and Nigeria, as partners, are not deserving of any bad image the growing malaise of drug trafficking may rob on both nations’ integrity.

It was a long time ago, when the military took over that it all began. The military is not trained for governance; they were trained to protect the government and the people. But when they discovered they could use their powers to get into governance, they went back to their barracks and came back to rule Nigeria and we accepted them.

He was one of the first sixteen award winning Nigerian pilots enlisted and trained into the Nigeria Air Force where he was its first air accident and investigation chief. During the unfortunate 30 months of the Nigerian Civil war, then Squadron Leader August Okpe, a major participant was Chief Pilot of the Biafra Air Force and won the Distinguished Cross Medal for gallantry and excellent service.

DESPITE expectations of better business environment in 2016, the reverse was the case for operators in the manufacturing sector of the economy.

The kind of agricultural potentials we have in Edo state is enough to create more than 200,000 jobs. The minimum of 200,000 jobs is just an estimate and that is what is going to happen

The problem we have is that charlatans and all sorts of people have hijacked leadership

South Africa-Nigeria bi-lateral relations are very good and encouraging. There are a number of Nigerians coming to South Africa for various activities and so do South Africans come to Nigeria to engage in various businesses and both citizens are assisting in growing the two countries’ economies, because both countries are two major economies in Africa. As you may be aware there are over 120 South African companies in Nigeria and all of these brands are doing well and it is an indication of the significance and importance of our bond.

OBJ parades himself as a saint and therefore should be ignored. You will recall that at the beginning of Buhari’s tenure in 2015, when I read that OBJ was sending a Blue Print on governance to Buhari, I raised an alarm and advised Buhari to avoid OBJ like leper and I said then and still maintain that, a Bini parable says, “How can a eunuch prepare sexual medicine for a brother of his that can attain a sexual erection occasionally?”. I advise Buhari to dine with OBJ with a long spoon if there is need to dine with him at all.

When most of the models that auditioned for the 2016 Miss Nigeria beauty pageant held at the Eko Convention Centre applied for selection, many of them joined the contest for the fame and alluring pleasure they would derive from the event. But for Chioma Stephanie Obiadi, the 40th Miss Nigeria, her goal was nothing else but to end the night with the crown of the most coveted pageant in the country.