Justin Bieber Calls for New Legislation in Wake of Photographer's Death

Justin Bieber is calling for new legislation followingthe death of a photographer who was killed in an attempt to photograph the singer's white Ferrari.

"My thoughts and prayers are with the family of the victim," Bieber said in a statement Wednesday. "Hopefully this tragedy will finally inspire meaningful legislation and whatever other necessary steps to protect the lives and safety of celebrities, police officers, innocent public bystanders and the photographers themselves."

The incident reportedly occurred Tuesday shortly before 6 p.m., the Los Angeles Times said, when an unidentified photographer crossed Sepulveda Boulevard near Getty Center Drive in order to take pictures of Bieber's car, which had been pulled over on the 405 Freeway for a traffic top. A friend of Beiber's was driving the car; the pop star was not present.

The photographer reportedly was hit by another vehicle as he crossed the street to return to his own car and later died at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center.

According to the Times , the photographer was not crossing in a crosswalk, and the motorist who struck him was fully cooperating with authorities.

A first-of-its-kind anti-paparazzi law was passed in 2010 and punishes paps driving dangerously to capture images they will sell but since has come under scrutiny. Last year, a Los Angeles Superior Court judge threw out charges related to the law, saying it violated 1st Amendment protections by over-reaching and could affect other photographers. In that case, Bieber had been pulled over on the 101 Freeway in the San Fernando Valley and was cited for speeding. Bieber said he was being chased by a paparazzo at the time.

African Americans Turn Out in Force for Quentin Tarantino's 'Django Unchained'

Quentin Tarantino's Django Unchained -- starring Jamie Foxx as a slave in the pre-Civil War South -- is doing strong business among African-American moviegoers.
This despite the fact that Django , from The Weinstein Co., features more than 100 uses of the N-word, igniting a debate over whether the movie is racially insensitive.

But much as Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds sanctified violence against Nazis, Django targets another bad guy nobody can sympathize with -- a slave owner. When Foxx's character is freed by a bounty hunter, played by Christoph Waltz, the duogo after Leonardo DiCaprio's character, the ruthless master of a plantation.

Opening on Christmas Day, 42 percent of Django's initial audience was black, according to exit polling data. TWC estimates that the percentage now is holding steady at about 30 percent, while a look at the top-performing theaters for Django further confirms that it has crossed over, playing to both white and black moviegoers.

" Django is playing well to African-Americans and to audiences across the board. You can't have these kind of numbers otherwise. It's getting everybody," TWC president of distribution Erik Lomis said.
Django has grossed $77.8 million so far in
North America and has a strong shot at becoming Tarantino's most successful film at the domestic boxoffice, eclipsing the $120 million earned by Inglourious Basterds in 2009. Sony is TWC's partner on Django and will handle the movie internationally.

Of Django's top 10-grossing theaters, three cater heavily to African-Americans: The Cinemark Egyptian 24 in Baltimore, the AMC Hoffman Center in Alexandria, Va., and the AMC Southlake 24 in Atlanta. And another three draw a mixed audience, including the AMC Empire 25 in New York City and the Regal Atlantic Stadium 16 in Atlanta.

Other top 10 theaters for Django include AMC Regal Union Square in New York City and the ArcLight in Sherman Oaks. While these locations nearly always make the list of top-grossing theaters for any given film, the Egyptian and Hoffman Center don't as a rule pop up unless a movie crosses over, such as TheBlind Side .

For example, none of the top 10 theaters for Django's fellow holiday releases The Hobbit: An Unepexpected Journey or Les Miserables are in heavily black communities.
There's no racial breakdown for the recent Denzel Washington drama Flight , though the Egyptian was the only black theater making the top 10 list.

Conversely, Foxx's Ray , released in 2004, played to a predominately black audience.

When testing Django , TWC held two simultaneous screenings in New York. One audience was made up of African-Americans, while the other was a mixed audience (about 15 percent was African-American). The film received top, identical scores from the two audiences.
Just before Christmas, Spike Lee publicly chastisedTarantino for being "disrespectful" of black poeple and called for a boycott of Django .

Tarantino has maintained that he won't be influenced by what he calls social criticism.

"I believe in what I'm doing wholeheartedly and passionately. It's my job to ignore that," he said in a December interview

Terry G Buys Acquires Range Rover Sport

2013 is definitely looking like a good year for celebrities in Nigeria, just yesterday Jobberman announced Funke Akindele as their ambassador and also recently Gabriel Amanyi a.k.a Terry G posted a picture of his newly acquired Range Rover Sport.

Am sure you will agree with me that the year is definitely looking good right from the beginning.

Charly Boy New Year's Message

Charles Oputa, a.k.a. Charly Boy has joined
the group of people who give New Year
messages.
In his usual character, Area Fada as he's also
called lampooned the government of Nigeria and
also talks on other areas the masses are suffering from.

"In quiet moments like this, nothing runs through
my mind than remembering all my haters, foes,
enemies, friends, and those dear to me. It's New
Year. Another time to make resolutions and aspire
to acquire the desire we admire even if we
mis-fired last year, we have this year to re-fire.

But can I candidly wish you a happy and
prosperous New Year when our national
patrimony has been cornered by thieves, gangsters,
fraudsters in stacked robes!

We live in a war situation, continuous Armageddon,
Boko Haram bombers, poverty, insecurity, pen
robbers who loot our treasures with impunity and
squander the future of our youth who are
morphing into anti-social scum bags.
All I can wish you this year is survival.

May God help us to simplify our lives and live without
cluttering it.

Let's get ready for this year. God bless.
CHARLYBOY, AKA, AREAFADA."

Controversy Over Suntai's Twins Photograph

The photograph of the ailing governor of Taraba
State, Danbaba Suntai, released through the News
Agency of Nigeria (NAN) and used by frontline
newspapers in Nigeria on Wednesday is generating
controversies.
Governor Suntai sustained injuries when a small
plane he was piloting crashed near Yola Airport in
Adamawa State on October 27, 2012. There were
five other passengers in the plane at the time of
the crash.
Most Nigerians who called Nigerian Tribune to
comment on the picture of Suntai with his wife,
carrying one of his recently born twins, on the front
pages of newspapers said they smell a rat.
The readers are of the view that all one needs is
just to take a simple look at the picture to know
that it is simply a fluke.
Some of the readers even likened the whole saga
to the days of the late President Umaru Yar'Adua.
They argued that the release of the picture would
be part of a scheme by his close aides to halt the
handover of power to the state's deputy governor.
Trying to interprete the picture, one of our readers
wondered if Suntai did not have any external
injury, as the Suntai in the picture showed a blank
looking person with a smooth skin.
"The blank look of a new father carrying a baby
even suggests the brain-dead theory or how can
you be carrying a bundle of joy and be looking
blank?" the reader asks.
Suntai is currently at the Medical University of
Hannover Hospital, Germany, a world-renowned
centre for trauma management.
A few weeks ago, Governor Gabriel Suswam of
Benue State told a church congregation that Suntai
was in bad shape, while insinuating that Christian
governors were being targeted for elimination.
Meanwhile, most churches in Jalingo, the state
capital dedicated several minutes to giving praises
to God over the governor's pictures.
At St. Joseph's Catholic Church, Mayogoi Jalingo,
the congregation got excited when the presiding
priest, Reverend Father James Vontih, broke the
news that the said pictures of the governor were
posted on Tuesday.
The story was not different at Unity Chapel in the
Government House, Jalingo, when the
congregation was informed by their minister,
Pastor Ishaya Bambur, who presided over the New
Year activities in the church.
Pastor Sqailer Maigoge led the congregation in
rejoicing, singing praises, saying the Lord has
done something great to the people of Taraba
State at the beginning of 2013, as the picture of
the ailing governor came handy with the new year.

K1 Hates It When U Are Making Progress - Obesere

'After the death of Alhaji Sikiru Ayinde Barrister, K1 started parading himself as the new king of Fuji. He can't be the new King when General Kollington Ayinla is still alive.

That is rude! Ayinla has been playing music long before all of us, that makes him our father.Even after Ayinla's death, K1 will still not have the right to call himself the leader of fuji musicians. He has never been a King over me. He is the Lord of his own music.

He is rude to even the elderly ones and that is why someone like me will never agree with him on anything. This type of bad attitude of his is what has made me not to respect him. I am the type of person who will always voice out when I am not cool with something.

Even K1 himself knows I don't take shit from anyone. He tries to sing about me, say good things about me whenever we are together in public, all to let people think all is well between us and to curry my good side. But we both know that is all camouflage.

K1 doesn't like anyone who is making progress. He's a snob. He doesn't have a good character. Because of him, I want to change my kind of music from Fuji. I give respect to only those who deserve it." - Abass Akande Obesere

Genevieve Dumped Me - D'banj

Some of you think the relationship between D'banj and Genevieve Nnaji was a publicity stunt...it wasn't! The sexy stars dated off and on between 2009 and early 2012.
D'banj recently opened up to Toolz on the Juice about his relationship with Ms Nnaji and said he doesn't knowwho dumped who
" Genevieve was a friend…(but now) I haven't seen her…I don't know who dumped who.

I can tell you for free that Genevieve did the dumping. Not necessarily because she wanted to, but because she had no choice. There were just too many women around D'banj. It seemed at a point, a lot of women wanted a piece of the Kokomaster, including a close friend of the actress who allegedly began an affair with D'banj behind her back. Genny decided she'd had enough and ended things in late 2011.

Genevieve and D'banj briefly reconciled in early 2012, but ended things for good after D'banj started flauntinghis relationship with Ghanian actress, Nadia Buhari.

The relationship which began in late 2009 after the two met at the airport, became public after D'banj granted an exclusive interview to Stella Dimoko Korkus in March2010, expressing his feelings for Miss Nnaji.

D'banj said:

"We have been trying to keep this quiet but yes, , I am dating Genevieve Nnaji. I am in love with her. It's been long I felt this way about anyone. I don't know what other words to use to qualify my feelings. She's my baby, she's my everything and I love her."

People in the know claim that it wasn't only the other women in D'banj's life that ended their relationship butalso because Genny herself was not committed to the relationship. D'banj was said to have been hurt after heheard that Genny had also allegedly dated another popular Nigerian singer.

President Jonathan Disown Poster

President Goodluck Jonathan, Wednesday, said he had no hand in the posters campaigning for his presidency in 2015 in Abuja, saying those who were behind it were only doing their own thing, and not acting as his agents.

Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity,Dr Reuben Abati said the president is focused on delivering on his mandate for Nigerians and would not be distracted by the politics of 2015.

According to Abati, 'those pasting the posters are trying to express their own view. The president had stated that he will talk about the presidency from 2014.Those doing these do not have the consent of the president.

According to him, "what is most important now is for the president to deliver on his electioneering promise to Nigerians and not to embark on the pasting of posters".
He said: "It has not come from the president. Nigerians should take the president for his word and ignore any other information to the contrary".

Nse Ikpe- Etim Engaged

The actress, Nse Ikpe-Etim who rose to fame after her fiery portrayal of a wife in Nollywood blockbuster "Reloaded" got engaged over the holidays.

The actress is keeping the name of her fiance under wraps for now. However, sources tell us that the proposal was simply beautiful.

A wedding date is yet to be decided has the couple is savouring their engagement.

Osagie Elegbe In DebtMess

If what gistbank.blogspot.com gathered from an already deletedFacebook wall post of an up and coming actress, Keshi Thomas, is anything to go by, then, Asola Osagie Elegbe, former Edo State chapter chairman of Actors Guild of Nigeria, AGN, might be in a big trouble.

This is because Elegbe, according to what we gathered from sources, is owning Keshi some amountof money which he is yet to pay the actress, who was his former member.

A source confidently told us that Keshi posted a on her Facebook wall in December 2012, "It is high time we elect people who will represent the guild on all ramifications, not those who turn around to blab their mouth, go around borrowing money from members and yet refuse to pay back. Using his office to oppress others."

This post has since been deleted but we were able to get the screen shot of the Facebook post from a source who had already munched it before it was deleted by Keshi.

Digs done by gistbank.blogspot.com indicate that Keshi gave the former Edo AGN boss in August 2012 some money to solve some certain issues. The total amount Elegbe borrowed from Keshi was put at N70,000 but has only paid back N31,000 and has reportedly refused to pay up the N39,000 left.

When contacted about this story, Elegbe told us on phone that there was more to the story than we think. He then said that when the time comes, he will open up on the alleged debt mess withKeshi. Elegbe said, "she (Keshi) has her own side of the story and she can broadcast it to any length."
"As far as I am concerned, I will tell my own story when the time is right. By the time I tell my story, we would take it further,"
Elegbe explained to us

We also contacted Keshi on the phone.

According to her, Elegbe has refused to pay back her money and has also refused to pick up phone calls made to him.
"I asked the former Edo State AGN secretary, Joel, if he (Elegbe) was capable of paying back my money because I got the money from someone else and he (Joel) gave me assurances of Elegbe paying back the money tome.

"But thereafter, he refused to pay up my balance (N39,000). I posted it on Facebook hoping he would be ashamed of it and pay backmy money but that didn't shake him. I also spoke to Emma Ogugua (AGN's BOT vice chairman) and Lancelot (Nollywood director) about it, but he (Elegbe) said he would pay when he has the money. Now, I hear he is travelling out of the country. He doesn't pick up my calls again," Keshi narrated to gistbank.blogspot.com

The source who hinted us about this story however, declined to tell us if their is or was any romantic relationship between Elegbe and Keshi. But we were informed by the source that the two were close before now.

A Picture Of Olamide And His Girlfriend

Here is a picture of rapper olamide and his girlfriend. Is she beautiful. Dropr Your comment and let me know.

Iyanya Quizzed By Police Over N1.7M Scam

Nigerian artist Onoyom Mbuk aka Ojay Iyanya and his manager Ubi Franklin are presently doing everything possible to get out of police trouble after they allegedly refused to show up for an event they were paid for.

We learnt Iyanya was paid the total amount of 1.7Million Naira to perform at 2 different Nite of a Thousand Laughs shows in Benin city and Port -Harcourt by producer Opa Williams.

The trouble started when Iyanya refused to show up for the two shows.

He apparently travelled to Port Harcourt alongside comedian Bovi and rapper Olamide on a fully paid flight by Opa Williams.

"We were all disappointed, we waited in vain. As soon as Bovi announced he was not going to show up, everybody started leaving," an attendee of the event.

Today police quizzed Iyanya and his manager after Opa Williams reported them at Mile 3 police division.

Iyanya's manager Ubi Franklin made the confirmation below few hours ago while speaking with NET

"Yes I was at the Police Station this morning, we have decided to return all money paid to us, it's not a problem," Ubi-Franklin told NET.

Below is Franklin's side of the story.

"We were paid to attend and perform at the Benin and Port Harcourt shows but we missed both due to reasons beyond our control. We missed the Benin gig because we were in Ghana as at that time and we arrived pretty late for the PH gig. We however had issues with initial payment from the show organizers also."

Iyanya and his manager have been released while police continue their investigation.

I'm Not Dead - Muyiwa Ademola

While we all mourn the sudden departure of actress Bisi Komolafe who died on New Year's eve after a battle from an abortion related complication, we learnt another Nigerian yoruba actor, Muyiwa Ademola was involved in a tragic car crash that almost killed him.

Popularly called Authentic, Muyiwa Ademola was involved in a near-fatal motor accident where the car he was driving got damaged beyond repair in Lagos state Nigeria.

The actor was rescued from the scene by vigilant residents where he was immediately rushed to a nearby hospital.

He has been discharged from the hospital and doing well.

To debunk the rumour that Muyiwa Ademola is dead, the actor sent the message below to a couple of media houses and gistbank.blogspot.com was copied in the email.

Below is an unedited email received from the actor a couple of hours ago:

 "MY NAME IS MUYIWA ADEMOLA A.K.A. AUTHENTIC,I'M JUST USING THIS MEDIUM TO TELL YOU ALL THAT I'M ALIVE THOUGH, HAD AN ACCIDENT FOUR DAYS AGO BUT GOD SPARED MY LIFE. THANKS FOR YOUR LOVE AND CONCERN."IKU KONI DA EMI WA L'EGBODO O, AMIN".

Thank God for sparing his life.

May God continue to protect us all.

2015 Presidential Campaign Posters Of President Goodluck Jonathan Are Out!!!!

President Goodluck Jonathan's Presidential campaign posters for 2015 out already in 2013…yes you read right, the posters were seen in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

The question to ask now is…who is engineering this? because the glossy posters were strategically posted in the high brow areas of the Federal Capital Territory, the poster did not however indicate the source or sponsor of the advertisement.

2015 Presidential campaign in 2013….what do you think?

Let's have your comments

P - Square Prevents May D From Performing With Them

The last has certainly not been heard of the P Square and May D split, as the influential twins ensured that their former protege, did not perform at the just concluded Calabar carnival.

May D was billed to perform alongside P Square and Akon at the Calabar festival, his name was already on the list. True to their words MayD arrived at Calabar, but when the show started J Martins had replaced May D on stage.

According to our source, when May D was put on the list of performing artistes, the organizers didn't know he wasn't with SquareRecords anymore, so P Square on getting to Calabar intimated the organizers on the latest development and so they had to drop him at the last minute.