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In Career Gems September 13, 2019 By Women of Rubies

FG APPROVES INCREMENT OF VAT FROM 5% TO 7.2%

Value Added Tax (VAT) is payable on goods and services consumed by any person, whether government agencies, business organisation or individuals.

The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmedconfirmed the approval of the increase at the end of the weekly Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Wednesday, September 11th.

The new rate which will take effect from sometime in 2020, is however subject to an amendment of the VAT act of 1994 by the National Assembly.

“This is important because the federal government only retains 15% of the VAT, 85% is actually for the states and local government and the state needs additional revenue to be able to meet the obligations of the minimum wage.

“This process involves extensive consultations that need to be made across the country at various levels and also it will involve the review of the VAT Act. So, it is not going to be implemented immediately until the Act is reviewed,” the minister said, according to Punch.

Well, check out how Nigerians are accepting the news on twitter

Fatai Razaq@Razakidae

Increasing #VAT_to_7.2% to pay salaries will only trigger both supply-driven (increase in the price of goods) and demand-driven inflation ( civil servant buy more goods). Coupled with the recent increase in electricity tariff-will bring more suffering and make us poorer. https://twitter.com/nigeriantribune/status/1172026449773174784 …

Nigerian Tribune

✔@nigeriantribune

BREAKING: FEC raises VAT to 7.2%https://tribuneonlineng.com/breaking-fec-raises-vat-to-7-2/ …
Tribune Online#NigerianTribuneAt70

3

2:39 PM – Sep 12, 2019

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Credit: Bella Naija

In Career Gems September 13, 2019 By Women of Rubies

BARBIE RELEASES PILOT AND ENGINEER DOLLS TO ENCOURAGE YOUNG GIRLS INTO STEM SUBJECTS

Mattel’s Barbie has announced three new dolls in partnership with Virgin Atlantic.

Created to encourage young girls to pursue careers in aviation, the three dolls include a pilot, engineer and member of the cabin crew.

The new dolls are part of Barbie’s Dream Gap Project, which was launched to combat the fact that girls as young as five can start to limit self-belief and doubt their full potential. This initiative aims to level the playing field for girls globally and highlight role models across a number of industries.

Virgin Atlantic has highlighted pilots and engineers for these new Barbies because, according to the Women’s Engineering Society, just 12 per cent of the UK engineering workforce is female and just 4.3 per cent of UK pilots are women.

Nikki Humphrey, SVP of People at Virgin Atlantic, said: “We know that women are currently underrepresented across a number of careers within aviation. We also know we can’t change this position overnight. Therefore it’s imperative we play the long-game, highlighting to primary aged children that any job role is open.

“Our partnership with Barbie marks another milestone in our commitment to this. It’s astounding that girls start believing they can’t follow a certain career path from as young as five and it’s our ambition we close this dream gap. By working with Barbie, it allows us to speak directly to our future generation of aviation workers, whether they aspire to be cabin crew, engineers or pilots.”

Virgin Atlantic’s cabin crew Barbie (Virgin Atlantic)

Designed to show both ethnic and body diversity, the dolls have been designed to reflect real Virgin Atlantic workers with the pilot doll wearing flat shoes – a step away from Barbie’s signature heel – and the engineer wearing flat safety boots.

All three dolls will be on sale on board Virgin Atlantic flights and in select stores later this year.

Credit: EveningStandard

In Career Gems September 13, 2019 By Women of Rubies

UZOMA ASAGWARA BREAKS 150-YEAR-OLD JINX BY GETTING ELECTED INTO THE CANADIAN PARLIAMENT

Nigerian-born Uzoma Asagwara has been elected into a Canadian legislative assembly as a lawmaker in Manitoba. Until Tuesday’s vote, no black person had ever been elected to the Manitoba Legislature in the 150-year history of the province.

That makes Asagwara the first Black, queer woman in the legislature.

She won the Union Station seat for the NDP.

Asagwara, a first-generation Canadian whose parents are Nigerian is a longtime community activist in Winnipeg’s core.

She also becomes one of three Black people to have been elected into the 150-year parliament.

Credit: fabwoman.ng

In Rubygirls September 13, 2019 By Esther Ijewere

#RUBYGIRLS| “I HAVE BEING AMBITIOUS SINCE MY CHILDHOOD”-KOLAJO BLESSING

Kolajo Blessing is a 20 year old law undergraduate at Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU). She is the First Female President of OOU’s Literary and Debating Society and also the First Female President of VeeCee Success Stories. Blessing is an excellent writer and a great spoken word artist. She shares her “Ruby Girl” story in this interview.

Meet Me!
My name is Kolajo Blessing Oluwabukola. I am 20years of age and a 400level law student of the faculty of law, OOU, Ago-iwoye. I am an indigene of Oyo state, Okaka town to be precise but I reside in Oyo town with my parents. Blessing is simply a girl who tries to find happiness in all situations and what I love doing most is making a caricature of everything around me, impacting in others is a part of me.

My Inspiration
If I am going to answer this question sincerely, my answer will be God as the source of my inspiration. I get inspiration generally from what comes my way, no specific person inspires me. I have been an ambitious kind of girl right from my childhood, I hardly settle for less, so, I choose friends and acquaintances that are in line with my goals and mindset. People of like minds that can keep me going regardless of the situation and these are the kind of people I am surrounded with, they all inspire me. I also get inspiration from reading about the life others, I read any biography or memoir I lay my hands on, at the end, I feel refreshed and the strength to keep going gets renewed.

Hobbies
My number one hobby is playing on words, and I do this every minute. Naturally, I am a very punny and funny person, this particular act tends to make the people around me smile and it makes some feel I’m not serious. Secondly, I love creative writings most especially poems, flash fictions and mythical stories. These are my major hobbies, others include, dancing, athletics and new discoveries.

Biggest Fear
Not being able to live out all my dreams. By the time I am old and death comes, I want to be able to say that “I have truly lived” so my biggest fear isn’t death or any other thing but realizing in my old age that I have done nothing for humanity.

Would you rather like to go back in time to correct a mistake or time travel two years to the future?
The past is gone, even the mistakes I made back then are part of my body of knowledge today, why will I want to change that? I will prefer to time travel two years to the future so that i will know what knowledge to acquire so as to dive through the challenges of that period before I get there, getting there will just be a smooth sail.

What would you do if you weren’t afraid?
I will write 100 poems in a day.

If given the chance to be the President of Nigeria for a day, what will you change?
The outcome of the word “change” has been a disaster so far in the country. So, I won’t bother changing anything, I will just invest largely on research and fund the country’s inventors.

In a time when people pay less attention to improving their vocabulary, what is your reading and learning of vocabularies routine?

This question seems funny to me because I don’t have a time set aside for developing my vocabulary, because it is my lifestyle. As a spoken word artist that loves being satirical, I learn tons of small words and I get to decode big grammars from the small words, it helps me to be more punny. For instance the word “military”, is a small word, if I want to study it, the first thing I do is… How can I be satirical in its usage? “military” satirically, “meal eatery” they sound alike right? I have achieved what many might not be able to with that word.That’s what my vocabulary routine is like. I check the meaning of small words more than I do for big words.

Impact of being the first female President of VSS & Literary and Debating Society and juggling my academics

Being the president of Veecee Success Stories and the president of OOU literary and debating society totally streamlined my lifestyle and disciplined it in a hard way. When I was appointed, people said it will affect me academically and it did, but positively I had 4.50 last semester which I never had when I wasn’t the president of any association and I really had nothing to do. So, I arrived at the conclusion that it’s a matter of mindset, I determined back then that I will not lead an association that promotes success and be a failure academically due to tight schedules and I paid the price of hard work. Being a leader is one of the hardest task that I have been given but the most practical arena to learn so far I have learnt that “a leader should never be too small to lead and too big to serve.” As regards my rehearsals, that is a part of my lifestyle, I hardly get a separate time to rehearse for my performances, I make use of my friends indirectly, I rehearse while joking with my hallmates, as long as you have the words in your head putting them together in a punny, rhythmical and sensible way that passes an information will never be difficult. I also record my works on phone and I listen to them while moving around or when I’m stuck in a boring or irrelevant gathering, that’s part of the ways I rehearse too. As the first female president for the two associations, my dreams and goals were solidly on these two realities, I do not look down on myself because of my gender, whatever I set my mind to achieve, regardless of the gender barrier, I go for it fully.

What keeps you up at night?
My academics, prayers, poetry or worries.

Future plans

As regards what I do, I have so many plans to take my pen and voice to another level. Right now, I have two unpublished anthologies written by me the first one is titled “ONCE UPON A DAY AND OTHERS,” the second one is titled “HER BRUISE (ABUSE)”. I also have an unpublished novel titled “TO THE HOME THAT BLEEDS.” They will all be published when I have the resources to do so. As regards spoken words performances, I do not just see myself performing on big stages but I see myself promoting the world of poetry with that tool.

Advice to girls younger than me

Search within yourself, identify your gift and passion and start making it your area of influence. Your voice isn’t too small to be heard.

Instagram ID: @kolajo_blessing

Want to be featured as a #Rubygirl? Send a mail to womenofrubies@gmail.com

In Interviews&profile September 12, 2019 By Women of Rubies

CELEBRATING MO ABUDU, A MEDIA MOGUL EXTRAORDINAIRE

Mosunmola Abudu, popularly known as Mo Abudu, is a Nigerian Media Mogul, philanthropist, and former Human Resources management Consultant. She has been described by Forbes as “Africa’s Most Successful Woman”.

Abudu was born in Hammersmith, West London. Her early years were spent in the UK. She attended the Ridgeway School, MidKent College, and West Kent College. She also gained a master’s degree in Human Resource Management from the University of Westminster in London.

EbonyLife TV

In 2006, Abudu started EbonyLife TV, a network airing in more than 49 countries across Africa, as well as in the UK and the Caribbean. It is a subsidiary of Media and Entertainment City Africa (MEC Africa), EbonyLife TV is located at Tinapa Resort in Calabar, Cross River State, Nigeria.

In March 2018, Sony Pictures Television (SPT) announced that they had concluded a three-year deal with EbonyLife TV that would include co-production of The Dahomey Warriors, a series about the Amazons who took on French colonialists in a 19th century west African kingdom.

EbonyLife Films

Abudu established EbonyLife Films. Her first film as executive producer was Fifty. Teaming up with The ELFIKE Collective in 2016, she produced The Wedding Party, which became the highest-grossing title of all time in the Nigerian film industry Nollywood.

Moments with Mo

Abudu is the Executive Producer and host of a TV talk show, Moments with Mo, which is the first syndicated daily talk show on African regional television.

By October 2009, over 200 episodes had been recorded and aired with topics ranging from lifestyle, through health, culture, politics, entertainment, tradition, to music and inter-racial marriages. Guests have included celebrities, Presidents, Nobel Laureates, and the 67th US Secretary-of-State Hillary Clinton, Abudu says the show “highlights the life and accomplishments of a usually well known, but sometimes an undiscovered African individual who by his or her own tenacity and determination has accomplished something, overcome something or been a catalyst for something that makes her or him a role model to others.”

Aired on M-Net with TV coverage in 48 African countries, the show now also airs on terrestrial and cable TV in other parts of the world.

The show’s success and intention to change the world’s perception of the African continent has led to comparisons to Oprah Winfrey, with The Independent and Slate Afrique calling her “Africa’s Oprah” or “Nigerian Winfrey”, respectively.

The Debaters

Abudu is the creator and executive producer of The Debaters, a reality TV show. Funded by Guaranty Trust Bank, it launched on 3 October 2009. The show focuses on “giving Africa a voice” by promoting oratory.

Forbes Africa recognised Abudu as the first African woman to own a Pan-Africa TV channel (2013). She was listed as one of the 25 Most Powerful Women in Global TV by The Hollywood Reporter in (2013) and received the Entrepreneur of the Year award by Women Werk in New York (2014). In 2014, she was honoured with an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters (Honouris Causa) from Babcock University.

In 2019, Mo Abudu was appointed as the Chairperson of the 47th International Emmy Awards Gala, thus making her the First Nigerian to hold that position.

Credit: Wikipedia, pulse.ng, Google

In self development September 12, 2019 By Women of Rubies

RITA CHIDINMA: I BECAME THE PREGNANT WOMAN IN CLASS

I’d look at pregnant women in my class, struggling to meet up with one assignment or the other, always asking for lecture notes and sometimes looking completely lost, worn out and confused in their maternity dresses, and I would wonder why they didn’t just take it one at a time, why they bothered with pregnancy considering how stressful the final year of school was. I thought they didn’t have their priorities right.

I tried to help one in particular, Ugochi, as much as I could because we were pretty cool prior to her wedding and subsequent pregnancy. But, I have to admit, inside me I was insensitive. I thought she could come to school earlier, actually do an assignment before the deadline, write her own notes most of the time, “if only she put her mind to it.”

Well, guess what. Just a few years down the line, I became the pregnant lady in class. Here I was, with a son, pregnant and running a post graduate program. I never seemed to catch a break. There was simply no time to accommodate all I had to do in one day.

By the time I woke up, prepared breakfast, dressed and dropped my son off at preschool, came back to prepare for my own school, stayed in traffic to get there, I would be completely exhausted. I joined the no-makeup gang not out of my own will, but because I didn’t have the precious few minutes it would take to get some makeup on. I constantly asked my colleagues a whole lot of questions trying to make sure I was up to date on everything going on. I’d sacrifice hours of sleep, spending it on my table writing assignments, studying or doing research work. It finally dawned on me: I had become the pregnant lady in class. I had become the lady with the rounded belly and maternity dresses, always looking tired and barely meeting assignment deadlines, and who everyone unconsciously grouped as “not one of us.”

How did life become so busy? I was no longer in the “cool gang.” Lots of females dressed better than me in class (because they weren’t pregnant, obviously) and I never seemed to stop being in a hurry. My attention was always needed elsewhere, and so my day was always planned to the last hour, detailed. Take, for instance, me being in school by 3 PM. It meant I would be late to pick up my son from preschool. And how about lunch and dinner and chores, guess who that was on too?

I quietly dusted most of my colleagues in the first semester results, and they were all astonished. Most of them couldn’t believe I could still make good grades despite all my responsibilities. The results were a huge consolation to me for all my sleepless nights, but I couldn’t help but feel terrible for all the times I was insensitive toward pregnant women who were trying their best to meet up with family life and schooling.

Women are the real superheroes, and deserve to be celebrated. Ugochi, my classmate back in our undergraduate days, was probably trying her very best to meet up with everything. And the same goes for most pregnant and family women out there. Some have to work 9-5 every single day, and still find a way to meet up with other numerous responsibilities. Oh and they still find a way to be graceful while at it. Some play the role of wife, mother, nanny, cook, primary care giver, business owner and career woman, all at the same time, without breaking a sweat.

So if you’re reading this today, show some love to that pregnant woman in your class, or at your place of work. A kind word from you might just be all the encouragement they need to adjust their capes and go about their day.

Culled from Bella Naija

Credit: Rita Chidinma

In Career Gems September 12, 2019 By Women of Rubies

#WITHOUTUS: SOUTH AFRICAN WOMEN GOES ON A ‘NO WORK, NO SCHOOL, NO PURCHASE’ STRIKE TO MAKE A STATEMENT

The rate of sexual violence in South Africa is said to be among the highest in the world. Recently, a 31-year-old was kidnapped and shot dead in a Nature Reserve, while a 21-year-old nursing student was abducted outside a hospital and raped. These led to the Twitter movement #AmINext, which had women asking if they would become the next victim of murder.

With the #WithoutUs protest, the women are sitting in their homes, refusing to go to work, to school, or even participate in the economy. They say no woman on the streets of South Africa, on Wednesday, September 11, will be found buying or selling anything.

Some women have however said that while they support the protest, they have to go to their places of work, else they’ll lose their jobs. So they’re wearing black in solidarity.

Hopefully, the voice of Women South Africa are heard and the protest yields a positive result.

Credit: Bella Naija

In Career Gems September 12, 2019 By Women of Rubies

WENDY WILLIAMS TO FORCE HER NEW HUSBAND TO SIGN A PRENUPTIAL AGREEMENT

Wendy Williams has plans to get married again – but insisted she’s learned from her mistakes with ex-husband and manager Kevin Hunter.

The outspoken TV host filed for divorce earlier this year, after reports suggested Hunter’s longtime mistress, Sharina Hudson, had given birth to his baby while Wendy was battling substance abuse issues in a sober home.

She later confessed in an interview with Andy Cohen she was aware of “a lot of things” about Hunter’s “double life” throughout their marriage, but added that his fathering of a child was “unforgivable”.

While the difficult experience hasn’t put Wendy off the idea of re-marrying, she now insists on “a man with a full career and his own money and his own situation”.

Speaking to host Mehmet Oz on “The Dr. Oz Show” in the U.S. on Wednesday, the star suggested she’s dating “many men,” but admitted this time round she plans to sign a prenuptial agreement and live in a separate home to her partner.

“I say this all the time… I’m a wife. I’m not a girlfriend and I will get married again. There will be a prenuptial agreement, and by the way, Mehmet, we will not be living in the same house,” Wendy Williams said.

She later told the host it would be “marriage under new circumstances,” adding: “Like, ‘All right. Let’s stay at your place tonight. Let’s stay at my place tonight… But… you buy the third place. How about that?’

“I need a man with a full career and his own money and his own situation. I don’t want anything from you, except your love and respect. (And) don’t ask anything of me, but love and respect.”

Credit: allhiphop.com

In Interviews&profile September 12, 2019 By Esther Ijewere

#7QUESTIONS| “I LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT MYSELF”- NIKE FOLAGBADE

Nike Adedokun Folagbade helps people heal from past hurts, find true love and build healthy relationships.

She is a Master Practitioner of Neuro-Linguistic Programming and a Results Coach.Nike answers our famous #7questions below;

1. What is your biggest fear?

My biggest fear is that I can achieve so much more but I limit myself due to all manners of fearful thoughts running through my mind. So, my fears stem from a place of “hoping that I do not hold myself back from achieving great feats”.

2. In your darkest moments, what do you do?

Hmmm. I cry. I do cry a lot, it’s my way of relieving myself. Other things I do are, find a resources that can lift me up from that burden (video, book, etc).I can talk to someone who can also help me find clarity and strength. I’ve learnt not to keep things to myself for too long.

I pray and ask God for help and comfort.I may also withdraw and reflect on some things rather than running aimlessly. I journal also, it’s a way of expressing myself when I don’t want to talk about it.

3. What is that one thing you would like to change about yourself?

Well, I think that I love everything about myself and I see life as a feedback. But if I could work on something, it will be my mind. I want to have a more positive and firm outlook towards life. I could be quite negative sometimes due to past experiences and weakness but I’m learning mindfulness and healthy thinking daily hence it’s not really about a change because that would mean that I want to erase my story, personality and experiences.

4. Where do you see yourself five years from now?

Wow! I see myself having a structured academy that helps the singles and married equip themselves for a better and healthy relationship and marriage through various training programs and courses. I see more lives being transformed and empowered through me. I see God opening international platforms to take the message of healing, wholeness and transformation to other nations. And also helping the corporate bodies find transformation and productivity in what they do.

I see myself taking part in economic and political issues in Nigeria as it concerns Youth. I see myself in media using creative mediums to reach out to people for effective change and transformation.

I also see myself investing and building great businesses and modeling bliss to people through my marriage.

I see myself as a more confident, fulfilling and positive woman.

5. What keeps you going?

– Seeing lives change through the work I do.

– Feeling the burden to do more.

– Having God strengthen me frequently through His words and Spirit.

– Seeing God glorified in the lives of people.

6. What is your stand on feminism? Do you consider yourself a feminist?

I believe that feminism means fighting for the rights of women and ensuring equal opportunities.

So, yes I’m for all of that. I want more women empowered and confident about their lives with equal access and opportunities but I do not mindfully consider myself a feminist when it comes to fighting for certain issues like it’s being done now. I believe that women are unique and different from men so it’s not a battle of “who is better?” but “what can we do together?”. Men also need help because they have been nurtured the wrong way which is affecting their outlook towards life so I’m passionate about helping the both genders embrace their uniqueness and live a more fulfilled life.

7. What keeps you up at night?

– Communicating with God

– Reading and strategy.

– Meditation

–

You want to be featured on #7questions? Send a mail to info@womenofrubies.com

In lifestyle September 11, 2019 By Women of Rubies

NEW STUDY REVEALS MOMS NEED A FULL YEAR FOR RECOVERY AFTER GIVING BIRTH

Growing a baby a beautiful experience, but it’s also demanding on your body. New mothers may be told by books and doctors that they’ll be back to “normal” within six weeks of giving birth, but a new study has found that most women take much longer to recover.

Dr. Julie Wray, a researcher at Salford University in England, interviewed women at different stages of post-partum life. She found that the standard six-week recovery period is a “complete fantasy,” and it can take a full year to recover from childbirth.

It’s not just physical recovery that’s needed, but mental as well. Many feel the pressure to get back on their feet soon after childbirth and feel it may be necessary to head back to work as early as six weeks.

Wray found that recovery should start in the hospital. Back in the day, women spent more time in the maternity ward learning how to take care of their infant and getting breastfeeding advice. Now, some women are discharged as early as six hours after giving birth and expected to just go with it, according to Wray’s research.

“The research shows that more realistic and woman-friendly postnatal services are needed,” Wray concluded. “Women feel that it takes much longer than six weeks to recover and they should be supported beyond the current six to eight weeks after birth.”

Recovery after childbirth is different for everyone, but the general consensus is that a full year to heal the body and mind is much better than a month and a half.

Culled from redtri.com

FG APPROVES INCREMENT OF VAT FROM 5% TO 7.2%

BARBIE RELEASES PILOT AND ENGINEER DOLLS TO ENCOURAGE YOUNG GIRLS INTO STEM SUBJECTS

UZOMA ASAGWARA BREAKS 150-YEAR-OLD JINX BY GETTING ELECTED INTO THE CANADIAN PARLIAMENT

#RUBYGIRLS| “I HAVE BEING AMBITIOUS SINCE MY CHILDHOOD”-KOLAJO BLESSING

CELEBRATING MO ABUDU, A MEDIA MOGUL EXTRAORDINAIRE

EbonyLife TV

EbonyLife Films

Moments with Mo

The Debaters

RITA CHIDINMA: I BECAME THE PREGNANT WOMAN IN CLASS

#WITHOUTUS: SOUTH AFRICAN WOMEN GOES ON A ‘NO WORK, NO SCHOOL, NO PURCHASE’ STRIKE TO MAKE A STATEMENT

WENDY WILLIAMS TO FORCE HER NEW HUSBAND TO SIGN A PRENUPTIAL AGREEMENT

#7QUESTIONS| “I LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT MYSELF”- NIKE FOLAGBADE

NEW STUDY REVEALS MOMS NEED A FULL YEAR FOR RECOVERY AFTER GIVING BIRTH

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