The London Assembly which is part of the Greater London Authority, scrutinizes the activities of the Mayor of London. The body has the power to hold the Mayor and Mayoral advisers accountable by publicly examining policies and programmes.
Her name is Florence Eshalomi, a resident of South London.
Florence has lived in South London all her life. She is the eldest child from a single-parent family. She’s also the first to attend higher education.
She began handling big responsiblities at a really young age.
She started working at the age of sixteen and takes care of her mother who suffers from sickle cell anaemia. She had to juggle the demands of family responsibilities, education and employment at the same time.
Since joining politics, Florence has held various key positions at different times.
She was elected to Lambeth Council in 2006, 2010 and 2014, representing Brixton Hill ward. She has worked in the public, private and charitable sectors in a number of different campaigning, research and public affairs roles. She has taken a leading role in local and national campaigns to encourage more young people and people from under-represented background to become more active in public life, politics and the arts.
She is currently the Public Affairs Manager at the Runnymede Trust, UK’s leading independent race equality institution.
Now, she’s about to join the London Assembly.
If elected, our wonderful @FloEshalomi -who has been an excellent Brixton Hill Cllr- will be the first ever Nigerian on the @LondonAssembly!
We really hope she gets this position!
Update: We previously wrote that Florence Eshalomi might be the first Nigerian to join the London Assembly. She isn’t the first to do so. Kemi Badenoch was the foremost to join the Assembly. Florence might be the first to be elected.
Hair is political. Even Chimamanda agrees.
African hair has undergone a tremendous evolution, from naturally curly or kinky hair to the chemically straightened hair to weaves and weave-ons.
Black people have over centuries, found ways to change the way their natural hair is, just to fit in with society.
Kinky hair was seen as inferior to long wavy hair. Men and women have long began to embrace their God-given textures.
Choosing to buck the norm, they’re all going back to base.
But some workplaces in these modern times still find natural hair unacceptable, as this young Ghanaian-Canadian lady came to find out.
Akua Agyemfra is a 20-year-old Humanities student at York University in Canada.
She got a job as a server at a restaurant in Toronto.
Like most college students, she got a job at to be able to pay the bills.
On her third day of training, she was sent home for wearing her hair in a bun.
According to her, the assistant general manager of the restaurant told her she was not allowed to wear her hair in a bun, saying it was company policy. The manager said her her hair had to be worn straight down.
The manager said she expected servers to look like they’re going to the club, not coming from one.
Yes. she said that. Please, how does wearing a bun look like one is “coming from a club”? That doesn’t make any sense. Akua showed the manager that her natural hair doesn’t fall straight. But she was still sent home.
Being a non-confrontational person, she left without standing her ground.
She realized when she went home that it was a violation of her rights. Sending her home based on her hair is wrong.
Akua said, “Management at Jack Astor’s did NOT specify that I had to wear my hair down every single shift. If they did, I would have NOT taken the job because I know my hair cannot be straight everyday. I had extensions during my interview and my two training shifts. After I took out my braids, my Afro didn’t not comply to the “straight hair” rule. To maintain it and look presentable, I had to put it in a bun.“
She has since quit her job at the restaurant. But she didn’t take the situation lying down.
Server told to alter hairAre you black and working in the service industry? Have you been asked to wear your hair differently on the job like Akua Agyemfra? Contact us: tonews@cbc.ca
Posted by CBC Toronto on Thursday, March 10, 2016
Akua sees their dress code as discriminatory. She has shared her story and been interviewed by media outlets and this has led to more awareness about Black people having to alter their hair just to fit in in the work place.
She says “I’m not going to compromise my roots and edges because my employer wants me to. My scalp has a right to breathe just as much as the woman standing beside me.”
You go girl!
But the thing is that this situation happens here in Nigeria where we ought to know better. Some workplaces forbid their employees from having afros or locs.
Banks and most other big corporate organizations are notorious for this.
This needs to change.
Having afro or locs doesn’t prevent people from doing their job.
Featured image via Akua Agyemfra.
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Everybody — well most people — knows that Donald Trump is bad news. And though he wasn’t taken seriously when he decided to run for president, the whole world is watching his campaign trails and rallies and debates with morbid fascination.
He is anti-Muslim, anti-Black, anti-Latinos. In fact, he is anti-everything!
The man is so dangerous that the possibility of his winning the U.S. presidential election is as big a threat to the global economy as Islamist terrorism, according to Global Forecasting Service.
He’s against what America stands for, a country built with the sweat of immigrants.
Posted by BuzzFeed News on Monday, March 14, 2016
And he offers to pay for their legal fees.
So it wasn’t surprising when this happened at his rally recently. But it hit close to home, because it happened to one of us. A Nigerian.
Adedayo Adeniyi, a 20-year-old student at East Carolina University, attended Donald Trump’s rally in Fayetteville, North Carolina. out of curiosity.
But he was randomly targeted and thrown out of the event by police, because he’s Black!
The shocker happened as he was being escorted out of the event.
A middle aged white man, looked him directly in the face and said, “F you” three times, right before slapping Adedayo hard in the face! This happened while he was being bundled out like a bag of beans.
The gall. The effrontery.
These are scary times, if this is happening in his rally, imagine what will happen if this man actually becomes president! That is enough to give anybody nightmares.
We really hope that this man doesn’t become president, because if he does, this quote perfectly captures what will happen.
We’re also sure that the population of people living in the African continent will definitely increase.
But the important question is, how was Jhené able to achieve such feat?
Everybody know that it’s not easy to date a Yoruba boy and she managed to marry one.
Is she an Igbo girl?
Though born in the United States, she’s of African American, Japanese, Spanish, Dominican, German Jewish, French, and Native American descent. So it is possible she has an Igbo ancestor. If not, she must have the skills of an Igbo girl! And her middle name is Efuru too.
Respect to them for keeping their private life private. We wish them a happy married life!
Some people believe that beauty is skin deep, while some believe that beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.
But how about a lady that has both kinds of beauty?
Shalom Nchom does.
The 20-year old Nigerian was burnt all over her body when hot oil fell on her and her little sister at her mum’s store. She was 9-years old when it happened.
Shalom had burns on her face, ears, head and shoulders. She also lost most of her hair.
After this happened, things were not the same for her. She became a sort of pariah. Her friends ran away from her and she began to have suicidal thoughts.
Shalom’s aunt who lived in America was able to get her and her family visas to America, so she could have reconstructive surgery.
It was when she met other burn victims with cases worse than hers that she began to see things differently.
She began using makeup at the age of thirteen as a way to cover up her scars.
She used it as her way of dealing with the bullying she faced in school, because of her looks. But despite using makeup, she says that it isn’t the reason why she’s happy. She’s happy because she loves herself.
Shalom Nchom is now a freelance makeup artist and Youtube vlogger.
Shalom began doing makeup for her friends and classmates who admired her work. Her Youtube channel is a medium through which she inspires other burn victims.
Shalom believes that we should all love ourselves, makeup or no makeup.
Watch her video.
If we know one thing, it’s that Nigerians are vocal. Very vocal. We can’t be oppressed or suppressed.
Who wan try?
And with social media, ain’t nobody holding us down.
We speak our mind.
But what happens when Nigerians fed up with our numerous problems attack the wrong person or party?
What is going on here?
That is the story of Nasser Al-Saadi from Qatar and senior executive at Aljazeera, who got caught in the crossfire between the people of Nigeria and the National Assembly.
Nasser’s relationship with Nigeria began in June of 2015. His Twitter handle came under attack from angry Nigerians when the National Assembly began giving more trouble than they already do. The members got a wardrobe allowance that totalled N8.64 billion!
As Nasser’s Twitter handle is @Nass, which is the same as the acronym ‘NASS’ for National Assembly, he got a lot of misplaced fury.
His handle literally became infamous on this side of the world.
That moment when your #Twitter handle becomes "something important" in a different country. #NASS#Nigeria
If you’ve ever wondered if children are more capable of leadership and making decisions than the Nigerian Senate, you wouldn’t be wrong. They keep making decisions and bringing up Bills that boggles the mind. And don’t forget the way they prefer to fight over issues like cats and dogs, than settle things in a matured manner.
Now we hear that the Gender and Equality Bill has been turned down.
Senate President now puts the Bill to Vote and the Nays have. The Gender and Equal Opportunity Bill does not pass second reading.
This Bill should have been passed! It should have been passed like ten years ago! That it is even up for discussion is just unbelievable.
When the Senate who has the responsibility to set things aright, is messing up, it doesn’t bode well for the country. Like, at all!
What are our boys to think?
So the Senate didn’t see a Bill that aims to promote equality, development and advancement of women, as well as freedom of movement, economic activity and access to education as important?!
Do they care about women at all?
The bill would have protected widows, underage girls and rape victims. It would’ve kicked against violence against women! So the vicious circle just continues until something is done.
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As if Nigerian medical students don’t have enough to worry about — like strikes, inadequate facilities and whatnot — the National Universities Commission (NUC) has decided to add something else!
According to the Executive Secretary of NUC, Prof. Julius Okojie, all medical students will spend a minimum of ten to eleven years in school before getting their degrees.
According to him, the 2015 document for the training of medical students mandates that students spend four years studying for their first degree in a science-related course. After which they will proceed to medical school to spend another seven years. Which will now be a total of eleven year — four years more than it currently is.
Wait! What?!
Is he joking?
It seems he might not be joking afterall! Proj. Okojie made the announcement while delivering a lecture at the matriculation and inauguration of the University of Medical Science, in Ondo State.
How unfortunate. Very unfortunate.
We know they’re trying to copy the foreign system of medical education, but this one is too much now!
In the American school system for example, students go for a pre-med degree for four years, before medical school, which is another four years. Then three to seven years residency and fellowship.
It’s different if they actually plan to make infrastructure and facilities available and up to standard.
But knowing Nigeria, that will probably never happen.
If this is actually implemented, just imagine what will happen. By the time medical students are through, their counterparts would have gone far in life.
This is so sad! It’s so unfair!
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Featured image via PJNaijaExpress.
First, the music duo fired their manager, who is also their brother. Then they split because of the same family drama.
Now to cement that they’re not joking, Peter dropped his first solo single on March 8.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMroyGYqQ8A
The song is about his swag and how people wants to know how he does his thing. You know, the usual danceable song.
Peter also has a new name. It’s Mr P!
https://www.instagram.com/p/BC-KvRGysBh/
Paul Okoye dropped his own single seven days later.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0E69RJOPPM
Paul aka Rudeboy, pours out his heart in this song “Call Heaven“. In it, he expresses his feelings about the ongoing drama.
Paul also posted this photo of his mum on Instagram.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BC6-J2Yxvkv/
In his song, Paul remembers the promise he made to his mum. And he wished both his parents were still alive.
In the meantime, Peter now has a new manager.
His name is Olatunde Michael. He was previously the Head of Channel at Soundcity, as well as a Station Manager for Trace TV Nigeria.
Man! They seem to be saying “Up yours” to each other.
The situation looks final too! Things will never remain the same.
So Falz Da Bahd guy dropped a new music video and the mini movie is already a challenge to Nollywood.
These are the thoughts that crossed our mind while watching it.
Leggo!
Of course it’s by Bahd Guys Records.
Ah! This one is a movie oh.
Yes! Adeyemi Okanlawon! This is Clarence Peters handwork too.
Ah! Indeed this is a movie!
Is this view from a helicopter or a drone?
Falz has become a news reporter. Lmao! Shawn Stober.
Ah! They kidnapped Simi.
Rescue mission on the way!
Lmao! See Adeyemi’s face. Looks like the rescue mission was successful.
Okay. Flashback.
Liking how local they went for the video.
Fine boys, no pimples.
Aww. He’s going to surprise his bae.
It’s like they’re not a couple yet. See the serious eye she’s giving him.
Yasss! The song has begun. Skip to 5:25 mins if you don’t want to watch the drama.
Her friends are not nice oh. All this shege for one person.
Nice ad placement.
Nawa oh. Stand off because of love.
Eh heh! Sexy teacher.
Falz has become a stalker. She doesn’t want oh.
The Yoruba mother has arrived. Lmao! He is finished!
Eh ya. Look at him. Because of a girl.
She finally changed her mind. Lol!
This bomb blast na one in town!
They kidnapped all the girls!
Wow! See abs! See chocolate abs!
Adeyemi is using Simi to blackmail him.
What?! There’s part three?! Seriously?! It has turned into a Nollywood movie series! And it was about to get really good too!
Is this a music video or a movie? Either way, we love it! It was rather entertaining. This is obviously the continuation of the Jamb Question video. Although Adeyemi is the bad guy here, we still like him jaare! Falz and Simi have undeniable chemistry and they’re really great actors. This video is obviously a combination of good music and good cinematography. Definitely looking forward to part three!
