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Ibrahim Chatta: The Resurrection of Stanislavski (A Movie Review by Tola Adeniyi)

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Not since the display of energy and passion by Duro Ladipo as Sango at Koso, Kola Ogunmola as Lanke Omu in Palmwine Drinkard, Sonni Otti as Danda in Danda, Jimi Solanke as Overamwhen Nogbaisi in Overamwhen Nogbaisi or Columbus Irosanga [not in his role as powerful chief priest Igbudu in the 2003 Nollywood blockbuster movie Issakkaaba but the young Irosanga who almost set both the stage and audience ablaze with his act in Port Harcourt in 1975] have I been literally thrown off my seat by Ibrahim Chatta last week.

Covid-19 had locked me down and locked me up with the Nollywood series on GoTV and for several hours each passing day, it was a switch between movies and the news channels. My eyes have been entertained with the best and the worst in Nigerian movies and also pissed off with several nauseating shades of bleached skins that made me to wonder once a while whether I was seeing double in Coca-cola bodies carrying Fanta faces!

Chatta sent me to memory lane of my younger days as Macbeth in Macbeth, Mr. Sipo of Sipo Amalgamated in Dinner for Promotion, Smirnov ‘the Bear’ in Chekov’s The Bear and the sweet Prince of Aragon in Merchant of Venice among several others. What a huge loss Movie Industry has inflicted on Stage Drama!

The star-studded movie which provoked this review is titled Ofin Ilu Wa which celebrates some of the leading giants in Nollywood such as Odunlade Adekola as Chief Diviner [ Babalawo] of Ilu Ayero, Saidi Balogun as Oba Adeoti, Bukky Wright as his Olori la’afin, Segun Ogungbe as Akanji Anikinnikun, Sola Kosoko, daughter of Grandmaster Jide Kosoko, as Atoke Orodoyin, Muphy Afolabi as Deputy to Chief Diviner, Faosat Balogun as Mama Agba, Ajidara as Oba Adeoti’s father, Afeez Abiodun as Oloye and Amusan, Mr. Latin a palace courtier and many more.

A grade A movie, OFIN ILU WA, with script written by Dare Ogungbe, has all the essential qualities of the best in film production. The script, theme, message, moral, location, casting, costume, scenic sequence and flawless flow, make-up, special effects and spectacular grandeur are simply beyond words. It certainly is not a low budget enterprise. The movie will dignify the screen of any cinema house anywhere in the world.

The story is set in a rustic village where the passing Oba called up his heir to the throne and admonished him never to get drunk with power and to always remember that laws [Ofin Ilu Wa] are made for man and not the other way round. The supposed heir to the throne was not actually entitled to the throne but was rigged in by manipulation. Hence everything went wrong on his assumption to the throne.

Chief Diviner told the King that human sacrifice must be made to appease the gods. In such situations there is always a curfew and whoever broke the curfew would be the cursed sacrificial lamb. Unfortunately the daughter of Chief Priest, the Abore, whose duty it was to carry out the execution dreamt that her father was in an imminent danger and therefore travelled out to warn her father but unfortunately arrived the village late in the night and got caught in the web of the curfew enforcers.

Atoke Orodoyin was sacrificed by her father as divined by the gods. Her brother Anikinniku was enraged and was bent on vengeance. He and his militia men gang-raped a village beauty and he alone was sentenced to death. The Abore who had earlier sacrificed his own daughter for the village was enraged and confronted Adeoti the King. Adeoti responded by banishing him or with the option of suicide. Enraged Abore, challenged the King to let go his [Abore’s] son and daughter in the palace, whereas unknown to the Oba, the two children born by Olori were actually fathered by the Abore.

The dénouement was the suicide of both the Olori and the King and scrapping of the village as Abore in powerful invocations led the whole village out [obviously to found a new town!]

The whole drama starts on high pitch note. Saidi Balogun as the Oba, dramatizes his love for power drunkenness ignoring his Olori Bukky Wright’s intermittent warning that his excesses would have dire consequences.

As expected of star studded movies, all the actors in the movie proved their mettle. But Ibrahim Chatta was simply mesmerizing. He gave his body, soul, spirit and voice to Atanda Aworo’sa the revered Abore [Chief Priest] of Ilu Ayero. He became Aworo’sa personified. When it dawned on him that his daughter was the victim caught that night, he displayed unusual equanimity and stoicism which left the entire village dumbfounded. And as he moved to the scene and spot of the sacrifice, the spectators in the movie as well as the viewers in my living room were drowned in tears…first class character acting. Konstantin Stanislvski rose from his grave and became whole!

At the point Aworo challenged the King to release his two children, Chatta’s voice and looks were no longer his. And when Aworo was summoning all the villagers to move en masse in procession out of the vanquished Ayero, Chatta has assumed the aura not just of the Chief Priest but of the Oracle himself! Chatta transformed from humanity to the gods and effortlessly elevated himself to pantheon of gods!

Full of electrifying invocations and evocations of magical proportions, Chatta gave his face and eyes to Sango, the dreaded Yoruba God of Thunder, and replaced them with Sango’s. His voice rang out to thev skies and not ball the ground shook, but heavens echoed.

In fitful feat of frightening fury, the energy burst of Ogunmola, Duro Ladipo, Isoronga and Sonni Otti grabbed Ibrahim Chatta’s face, voice and limbs while he repeatedly lashes the ground with a bewitching chain. And the villagers trooped out in unquestioning obeisance.

Chatta, the Chaka of Drama and theatricalities henceforth resided in the body and soul of Konstantini Stanislavsky.

In years to come, Ibrahim Chatta’s tremendous energy, dexterity, versatility and inimitable character interpretation will be high in the curriculum of Acting Classes.

TolaAdeniyi is the Chairman, TOLA ADENIYI FOUNDATION FOR THEATRE AND THE ARTS [TAFTA}

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Police Probe Four Officers Accused of ‘Misconduct’ in Lagos

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The Nigeria Police Force has launched an investigation into alleged misconduct by officers from the Satellite Town Division, Lagos State, after a viral social media video.

The Force Media Officer, CSP Aliyu Giwa, disclosed this in a statement on Saturday.

The complainant, Rhapstar, posted the video on X on April 4, alleging incivility by officers on surveillance duty.

In the clip, police officers stopped a vehicle, ordered occupants out, and searched one individual away from the roadside-parked vehicle.

The incident triggered widespread reaction, amid concerns over alleged harassment during a roadside stop-and-search operation.

Speaking on the incident on Saturday, Giwa said the Divisional Police Officer and implicated officers were summoned, adding that an investigation into the incident was ongoing.

Giwa wrote on X: “When (Rhapstar) posted the viral video on 4 April 2026, alleging misconduct by officers from the Satellite Town Division, Lagos, we took the matter seriously and acted immediately.

“The DPO and the officers involved were summoned, statements were obtained, and detailed interviews were conducted.

“Preliminary findings indicate the incident occurred in May 2025. We are working to obtain additional details directly from the victims, as their accounts are central to the investigation.

“This process is not a cover-up; it is a demonstration of accountability.

“The leadership of the Force management team has emphasised that the rule of law is non-negotiable in the discharge of police duties nationwide. No officer is above accountability, and no incident is too old to investigate. The investigation is ongoing. We will provide regular updates.

“To every Nigerian who spoke up, your voice prompted accountability, as it should be.”

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Turaki Faction Kicks As Police Unseal PDP Secretariat

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The Tanimu Turaki-led Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has accused the Nigeria Police Force of acting in contempt of court following the unsealing of its National Secretariat in Abuja, describing the development as a partisan move that undermines the rule of law.

In a statement issued on Saturday, the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Ini Ememobong, said the police facilitated the takeover of the Wadata Plaza headquarters by individuals he described as “agents of the federal government and APC apologists masquerading as PDP members,” despite a pending appeal on the matter.

The PDP maintained that the judgment by Justice Abdulmalik, which the police purportedly relied upon in unsealing the premises, is already under appeal.

According to the party, the police, being a party to the suit, had been duly served and were fully aware of the appellate process.

It argued that by proceeding to unseal the secretariat, the police had “tampered with the res”, (a legal terminology referring to the subject matter of litigation) thereby risking rendering the eventual judgment of the Court of Appeal nugatory.

“It is most shameful that those entrusted with protecting the law are those disobeying the law,” the statement read.

The party expressed disappointment that the police, under the leadership of the new Inspector General of Police, has continued what it described as a pattern of partisan conduct since the crisis began.

It alleged that officers of the force had consistently acted in support of a faction it labelled as “Wike-backed APC apologists,” thereby deepening internal tensions within the opposition party.

Despite its grievances, the PDP called on its members nationwide to remain calm and law-abiding, urging them to avoid actions that could lead to a breakdown of public order.

“As law-abiding citizens, we admonish our members to continue to maintain peace and not undertake any activity capable of breaching public peace,” the statement added, while pledging to pursue all legal avenues to defend the rights of what it termed “genuine members” of the party.

The party also assured the public that it remained optimistic that the situation would be resolved in favour of democratic principles, warning against what it described as a “state-sponsored persecution and one-party drive.”

Invoking a note of hope, the PDP said the current challenges would ultimately give way to “joy and liberation,” expressing confidence in the restoration of what it called true democratic experience in the country.

The unsealing of the PDP secretariat marks the latest twist in the protracted leadership and legal tussle within the party, which has continued to generate political tension and raise concerns about institutional neutrality in Nigeria’s democratic process.

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Why Tinubu Was Absent at Commissioning of Sanwo-Olu’s Projects in Lagos – Presidency

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The Presidency has come up with reasons behind President Bola Tinubu’s absent at the commissioning of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s projects in Lagos, on Wednesday.

Tinubu was noticeably absent at the scheduled project commissioning in Lagos, sparking public curiosity.

However, Sunday Dare, his Special Adviser on Public Communications and Orientation, has clarified the reason behind the last-minute development.

Speaking during an interview on Channels Television, Dare revealed that the President had to prioritise urgent national security matters over the event.
According to him, although Tinubu is currently in Lagos, he has been deeply engaged in high-level State duties, particularly ongoing security briefings tied to recent developments across the country.

“The president has been busy taking constant briefs and has to prioritise when it comes to state matters, especially security,” Dare stated.

He referenced rising security concerns, including recent unrest linked to incidents in Jos, noting that the President has been closely monitoring the situation and working directly with intelligence agencies.

Dare emphasised that Tinubu remains fully engaged behind the scenes, actively coordinating with security operatives and receiving continuous updates to address emerging threats.

The absence, he stressed, should not be seen as neglect of official duties but rather a reflection of the President’s focus on safeguarding national stability at a critical time.

Tinubu skipped the Lagos commissioning not out of disregard, but to handle pressing security issues demanding immediate presidential attention.

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