Entertainment
Boat driver transporting late Junior Pope, other actors not certified- NSIB
By Francesca Hangeior
The Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau has released a preliminary report on the boat accident involving Nollywood actors in Anambra, revealing that the boat driver was not certified.
The NSIB revealed this on Friday during a press briefing coinciding with the release of four other final and preliminary reports by the agency.
The Director General, NSIB, Alex Badeh, presented two final reports on aviation incidents, one preliminary report on an aviation incident, and a preliminary report on a marine accident, accompanied by 20 safety recommendations.
The boat was carrying 12 actors and crew members when it crashed, resulting in the loss of five passengers, including popular Nollywood actor Mr. Paul Odonwodo, also known as Junior Pope.
The Director of Transport Investigation, who presented the preliminary report and other findings during the briefing, stated that the speedboat capsized, throwing all occupants into the Anam River. According to him, five passengers were fatally injured, and seven were rescued alive.
The NSIB was not officially notified but learned about the accident through social media. Investigators from NSIB’s Enugu Regional office were dispatched to the accident site on April 12, 2024.
According to the agency, initial findings revealed that the boat driver was not certified, the fibre boat was not registered with the National Inland Waterways Authority, and the outboard engine fibre boat was carrying 12 passengers and one boat driver.
The director said, “There was only one person on the wooden fishing canoe. This rowdiness in the boat distracted the driver and he was not looking out as required.
“The boat was on high speed and the crossing canoe was moving at a much slower speed.
“The only occupant of the canoe, on sighting the fast approaching boat jumped into the river and escaped; The boat collided with the canoe at a high speed which resulted in the boat capsizing and all persons onboard were flung into Anam River.”
The report indicated that although five passengers aboard the boat sustained fatal injuries, the driver and seven other passengers survived the collision.
“Only one passenger on the outboard engine fibre boat was wearing a life jacket. The only passenger wearing a life jacket came with it and was not provided by the operator.
“The passenger wearing the life jacket was one of the survivors. The boat was fitted with an outboard engine. There was no manifest of passengers and persons onboard the boat. The rescue operation was not timely and there were no trained divers around to assist in the operation.”
In its safety recommendations, the bureau urged the National Inland Waterways Authority to ensure that all boats involved in commercial activities within the national inland waterways are registered, adding the authority must ensure adequate safety measures are implemented and enforced in our inland waterways.
Junior Pope died after their boat capsized in the Anam River in Anambra state on April 10, 2024.
Disc jockey Kudirat Gbemisola, popularly known as DJ Kulet, has disclosed that she was once involved in prostitution before turning her life over to Christ.
She made the revelation during a testimony session in a church service on Sunday, where she spoke about her past experiences and personal transformation.
Kulet said her former lifestyle in Surulere, particularly around the Lawanson area of Lagos, was widely known, adding that she had lived a turbulent life during that period.
In a post shared on Instagram on Monday, she described her journey as one that moved “from a mess to a message,” noting that she was once homeless and engaged in prostitution while living on the streets of Lagos.
She recounted how her living conditions gradually improved over time, beginning with a single-room apartment rented for her by a man, followed by a self-contained apartment also sponsored by another benefactor before she was able to sustain herself through her work as a disc jockey and rent a room-and-parlour self-contained apartment.
Kulet also said she once lived for two years in a building without a toilet facility due to incomplete construction by the landlord, forcing her to rely on external facilities.
She added that her circumstances later improved further, allowing her to move into a four-bedroom en-suite apartment funded through her DJ career.
She said she bought a house in Surulere in April 2024 and paid in full, including agent fees, without funding it through sex work.
She said, “How Jesus bought me my own house in Surulere, the same Surulere where the devil once messed me up. Jesus Christ turned my mess to a message (His gospel).
“I was once homeless, and sleeping around. Of course you know me because I was very popular then. I was into prostitution. I was roaming the streets of Lagos homeless. Then a man rented a face me I slap for me. My cheap asewo work now elevate me to a room self-contained with a man’s money until Jesus Christ now elevated me to a room and parlor self-contained, then my DJ work don dey pay but the landlord frustrated me. He did not do the toilet for two years, I was going around to defecate.
“After two years of living in a house without a toilet, I was elevated to a four bedroom ensuite apartment where I’m currently living through my work as a DJ. Fast-forward to April last year, God bought a house for me here in the same Surulere. I did not sleep around to pay, and I paid in full with agent money.”
Actress and filmmaker Toyin Abraham has called on her fan base, known as “Toyin Titans,” to stop attacking her former protégé, Pelumi Olawuni, popularly called Abike Shugaa, following their ongoing public disagreement.
In a Snapchat video posted on Monday, Abraham appealed for forgiveness and urged supporters to move past the controversy that has continued to generate online attention.
“Please, to everybody, it’s okay. Please forgive her,” she said.
She noted that anger is a normal human emotion but encouraged restraint, adding that people should not allow the issue to escalate further.
“There is no one that cannot get angry. Even Jesus was angry… let everything slide. This is a new week. Toyin Titans, no distractions, please,” she said.
Abraham further appealed for calm, stressing that it was a new week and urging her fans to avoid distractions.
She also referenced upcoming professional engagements, including several YouTube film releases and a major project scheduled for December.
“We have a big task ahead of us. We have a lot of YouTube movies coming, and we have a bigger task ahead of us in December,” she said.
Abraham also spoke on past controversies, including the backlash she faced in 2023 and 2024 after publicly supporting President Bola Tinubu.
She said critics heavily targeted her during that period.
“For those asking why I didn’t spill the tea in 2023 and 2024… they were bashing me that period, they wanted to kill me,” she said.
She noted that her experience with Abike and recent feedback had shifted her approach to relationships and boundaries.
She said she had learned her lesson and Abike had learned hers, and urged fans to change the topic.
“You said create boundaries, I will create boundaries. You said I should stop helping people, no problem. I have learnt my lesson, her too has learnt hers. Let it slide, let us change the topic,” she added.
Her appeal followed Abike’s disclosure on Sunday that YouTube issued a privacy-related notice on her video about the dispute.
The platform flagged timestamps for potential privacy concerns and gave her the option to edit or remove the content before further review. No strike or penalty has been issued.
Abike responded sarcastically, stating critics organised to mass-report the video.
The fallout became public after Abike uploaded a detailed video last Friday, now with over 100,000 views, outlining their relationship from mentorship to its breakdown.
The video included allegations of control, betrayal, and threats, which Abraham has denied.
Tensions heightened when Abike accepted a PR package from Funke Akindele for “A Tribe Called Judah,” a decision she said she had communicated in advance.
While Abike insisted she was telling her side after years of silence, Abraham has declined a point-by-point rebuttal and said she will not engage in public disputes.
Popular Nollywood actress, Doris Ogala, has raised alarm over the presence of armed policemen in her house.
Expressing fear, the actress who captured how the police surrounded her residence very early on Tuesday, stated that she was never invited.
While calling on the public to hold the founder of Grace Nation International Ministry, Pastor Chris Okafor responsible if they don’t hear from her again, she accused the clergy man of orchestrating yet another attempt to arrest and imprison her this morning without her legal representative.
“I have police people in my house. I don’t know how they entered my house. They said they’re from Lagos. Chris doesn’t want to leave me alone. He has carried me to three different courts and more than seven police stations.
“They have surrounded my house. If you people don’t see me again, please hold Chris Okafor responsible for my disappearance”, she said.
DAILY POST reports that the fight between her and her pastor began in late 2025, when a video of Chris Okafor’s engagement to Pearl Okafor went viral on social media.
Reacting to the engagement video, Doris called out the clergy man for dumping her to marry a younger lady after years of her sexual relationships with him.
Okafor who did not deny the allegations, allegedly paid Doris $10,000 for settlement.
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