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Funke Akindele, a screen icon is being heavily slammeded by neizens in the country for posting a birthday message on social media while stakeholders in the entertainment industry and Yoruba movie fans are mourning Alhaji Taiwo Hassan’s passing.

Alhaji Taiwo Hassan, a veteran actor, who is popularly called Ogogo, died on Sunday at the age of 66 and he was laid to rest today in Ilaro, Ogun State.

The popular actress, who was born on August 24, 1977, turns 49 today, August 24, 2026.

She posted a birthday message thanking God for His mercies and blessings. Funke also made her pictures available and gave needed information about the roles played by some individuals in making her look stunning.

‘Today is my birthday.

🎉
My heart is full of gratitude to God for all He has done, all He is doing, and all that is still to come.

Through every season, every lesson, every win, every mistake and every challenge, God has remained my strength and my shield. Even in moments when I have fallen short, He has given me the grace to rise, learn, keep going and become better.

Today, my prayer is simple. That God blesses me with good health, long life, peace and the grace to keep walking in purpose.

I pray that my life continues to mean something beyond me. That I can touch more lives, open more doors, nurture more talents, raise more stars and give others the opportunity to become everything God has called them to be.

May I never stop giving back. May I never stop growing. May my life remain a testimony, and may the way I live inspire others to believe, to dream and to keep going.

Thank You, Lord.

Happy birthday to me.

STYLED BY ZACKSTYLING LUXURY

MAKE UP by Blessing Omagbemi

PHOTOGRAPHED By Aham Ibeleme’ the popular actress submitted in a Facebook post.

[email protected] learned that as at Monday afternoon, the Facebook post had earned over 10,000 likes while 428 people had forwarded it.

‘Happy birthday to you ma. Continued doing what you know best. My love to you’ Okwuchi Ananaba Nwachukwu wrote.

‘Happy birthday super women, may God bless your new age’ Oladunni Yunus also submitted.

Some social media users however criticized her for posting birthday message while Ogogo’s funeral was being held in Ilaro.

They accused her of being insensitive.

‘Funke Akindele!!! Today of all days! Are you aware that Taiwo Hassan, your senior colleague in the film industry, is dead and will be buried today? Don’t you read the room? Everyone will die o. It is Ogogo today, no one knows who is next tomorrow. What you guys in the Nollywood are doing is not humane. You show no sense of humanity. Well, Ogogo did not die a sudden death even though how it happened is sad. He would have been 67 years old in October. Everyone will reap all they sow’ a social media user, Adewale (@SoEdunOkanESita), submitted on X.com

Another X.com user, Olayinka Mujeeb Adeniyi (@ola_kish) also faulted the timing of the birthday message.

‘Aunty Funke.. shame on you! We are mourning the death of Ogogo…. And you Dey post about birthday. Omooo this is not fair oo’ he wrote.

‘Mrs Funke Akindele, I understand that life goes on and everyone has the right to celebrate their birthday, but posting a birthday celebration so soon after the passing of Taiwo Hassan (Ogogo) feels insensitive. Sometimes, it’s not about whether you’re right or wrong to celebrate. It’s about knowing when to tone things down out of respect for someone who has just passed away’ omoiyanofi (@papiexploring) submitted.

In Islam, the general period of mourning for family and relatives is three days while there is no universally mandated number of days for mourning in Christianity.

However, special prayers and memorial services are heavily emphasized on the 3rd, 9th, and 40th days, with the 40th day traditionally believed to be when the soul undergoes its final transitionTeam

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The African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Adamawa State has resolved its internal crisis, with party stakeholders pledging to work for the victory of the party’s presidential candidate, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, and other candidates in the 2027 general elections.

The development is seen as a major boost to Atiku’s campaign in the state, where the party had been divided over the leadership of its state chapter and the authentic governorship candidate.

The crisis had resulted in the emergence of two parallel state executive committees led by Barrister Ibrahim Sadiq Dasin and Sai’du Naira.

However, the factions appear to be closing ranks following a meeting between the newly appointed Acting State Chairman of the ADC, Sai’du Naira, and ward chairmen and state executive members from the Adamawa Central Senatorial Zone.

The meeting, held at the ADC Secretariat over the weekend, focused on loyalty, unity and the promotion of internal democracy within the party.

Speaking at the meeting, Naira expressed satisfaction with the cooperation of the party’s state executive members and urged them to remain committed to rebuilding the ADC.

He reaffirmed the faction’s loyalty to the national leadership of the party under former Senate President, Senator David Mark, and pledged to work towards strengthening the party across the 226 political wards in Adamawa State’s 21 local government areas.

Naira said the ADC had regained its strength after emerging from what he described as an unnecessary internal crisis, promising that transparency and honesty would guide his leadership of the party.

“Honestly, ADC as a party almost collapsed because of the way the suspended leader was handling the affairs of the party,” Naira said.

He, however, commended party members who, according to him, took the necessary legal steps to resolve the crisis.

“But thank God that those with the love and interest of the party at heart did all that was legally necessary to push them aside,” he added.

Naira subsequently called on members to intensify their efforts ahead of the 2027 elections, stressing the need for collective commitment to the party’s success.

“We urge you all to work day and night for the progress and victory of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and all other ADC candidates seeking elective positions,” he said.

The latest development could strengthen the ADC’s structure in Adamawa and provide greater cohesion for Atiku’s presidential campaign as opposition parties intensify preparations for the 2027 elections.

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About one in four paternity tests conducted by Smart DNA Nigeria returned negative results in its 2025/2026 reporting period, its latest annual DNA Testing Report has revealed.

The company, in a statement on Sunday, August 22, 2026 in Lagos, said the report confirmed that 23.6 per cent of recorded paternity test outcomes were negative, meaning the tested man was not the biological father.

According to the report, the negative paternity outcome declined marginally from 24.0 per cent in the preceding year and 26.1 per cent in 2023.

The report, however, cautioned against interpreting the figure as evidence that one in four Nigerian children is not biologically related to the man regarded as the father.

It stressed that its clients were people who had already developed sufficient doubts or reasons to seek DNA testing.

The report also revealed that 87 per cent of DNA tests conducted were ‘Peace of Mind tests’, representing private, self-initiated tests undertaken outside legal, immigration or court proceedings.

It said the proportion increased from 83.7 per cent in the preceding reporting period, indicating that personal concerns and the desire for certainty largely drove DNA testing in Nigeria.

Immigration-related tests accounted for 9.7 per cent, legal tests 1.9 per cent, avuncular tests one per cent, while prenatal testing represented 0.4 per cent of recorded cases.

The report further showed that older men accounted for the majority of male clients seeking DNA tests, with men aged 41 years and above representing 48 per cent of age-classified male records.

Men aged between 31 and 40 accounted for another 35.8 per cent, meaning that men above 30 constituted 83.8 per cent of the male testing population.

On the other hand, 59.5 per cent of tested individuals were children aged five years and below, a figure that remained virtually unchanged from the previous reporting period.

The company said the concentration of testing among younger children suggested that many families preferred to resolve questions surrounding biological relationships early, although the data could not establish the reasons behind the trend.

Geographically, Lagos accounted for 75.1 per cent of all classified cases, rising from 69 per cent in the preceding period.

Lekki recorded the highest number of named locations in Lagos, followed by Ajah, Ikorodu, Yaba and Ikeja, while Lagos Mainland accounted for 61.6 per cent of Lagos cases with specific location classifications.

Outside Lagos, Ogun recorded the highest testing activity, followed by Delta, Oyo, Rivers, Enugu, Edo, Abuja, Imo and Kwara.

The report said testing activity outside Lagos increased during the period, suggesting that awareness and demand for DNA testing were gradually spreading across other parts of the country.

It further revealed that men initiated 78.6 per cent of recorded first contacts with the company, compared with 15.2 per cent by women.

The ethnic distribution of clients was led by Yoruba at 52.6 per cent, followed by Igbo at 29.1 per cent, Edo at 5.8 per cent and a combined 5.4 per cent for Delta, Ijaw, Isoko, Urhobo and Itsekiri groups.

The Hausa accounted for one per cent.

Smart DNA said the figures reflected its geographical and client base rather than differences in paternity behaviour among ethnic groups.

The company also warned that its findings should not be generalised to the entire Nigerian population, stressing that its clients were not a random sample of Nigerian families.

It said the 23.6 per cent negative result represented its testing population, a group in which doubts about biological relationships already existed and therefore could not be used to estimate the prevalence of non-paternity across Nigeria.

The report maintained that while DNA testing could provide highly accurate answers to biological questions, it could not independently explain the social, cultural, economic or relationship circumstances that led families to seek such tests.