Flowering in steel

BY GREGORY AUSTIN NWAKUNOR
THE images are searing. Strikingly similar. The camera glides towards a ghetto, and a teenage boy pushing cart, comes up. He stuffs upholstery and mounds of garbage into the cart.
Another man sits on a slab behind debris. He is about 40 years old. But the signs taped in his face are those of somebody who has passed that age. Poverty has made him age faster. His smile is weary, but welcoming.
In another scene, some local peasants, who sit on a concrete, pant up to their thighs, fan themselves with local gossips.
These images are just a few of thousands of neighbourhood in Africa, where poverty sticks out like sore thumb.
Poverty walks nakedly in Africa and waiting to be clothed. On a typical day, young men and women and ill-clad kids hang around waiting for a job or something to do.
Mo Abudu, through her project, Act of Kindness, hopes to reduce the level of poverty on the continent. An initiative of the Inspire Africa Foundation, the project was launched on Thursday, April 3, 2008.
Mo says it is a way of showing that everybody's effort is needed in the attempt to improve the standard of living in the continent.
How? You ask.
"If you have ever wondered about what some amazing people do to help others, then make an effort to watch the showing of Acts of Kindness, a special feature episode of Moments with Mo, airing at the City Mall Cinema, Onikan, every Thursday this month at 6pm," she reveals, her jaw claps and eyes narrow. She appears unfazed and absolutely determined to get her way.
"Our first request is to get Nigerians to watch the show and then we ask you to perform a random act of kindness in the lives of some of those we have showcased on Moments with Mo, as well as in the lives of other less privileged in our society," she reflects.
"Oh no… wait a minute!…" She says. "Moments with Mo is giving back to the society by dedicating this special episode to the wonderful people featured in it and we are pleading with all Nigerians, young and old, rich and poor, man and woman to take a little time out to watch this special feature and do a little bit of giving! And truly, no amount ids too small. If we sit back and count our blessings and see the plight of others, it's fulfilling to do something for someone more needy than we do. And there is always someone more needy than us out there, no matter our situation in life."
According to the lady, "the programme is the first Pan African talk show, showcasing and celebrating the greatness of Africa, as well as dealing with day to day issues that affect Africans."
The topics on the show covers wide range of issues, which include lifestyle, celebrity to family and marriage, parenthood, fashion, beauty and fitness.

ON April 6, 2008, the programme was launched on NTA network. It airs every Sunday at 6pm and on Mnet every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday also at 6pm.
For the founder of Vic Lawrence Associates (recruitment specialists & consultants), "inspiration propels vision, and great vision propels action."
She believes that the programme is a platform to empower Africans, Nigerians especially, and showcase the continent in a positive light. The debut episode in November 2007, had ex-footballer and Deal or No Deal presenter, John Fashanu, and the wife of JJ Okocha, Nkechi, as guests.
Despite her busy schedule, the charismatic personality, whose warmth and understanding of people and their lives, finds time to involve herself in community self-improvement efforts.
The go-getting business woman and hotelier, whose creativity and imagination are infectious, believes that "Moments with Mo is a purpose built vehicle by which Africans and the rest of the world will come to appreciate our culture and our achievements ant to know and understand us as a people."
Mo realises that the ultimate task facing Africa is to build a world class persons and brand, to 'showcase' its own achievements in a global setting and economy.
She reflects, "Africa needs a platform, activities and an anchor through which its untold stories of success and achievement can be heard to encourage everybody on the continent, motivate people into action, educate, inform and guide their decision making, enabling them to celebrate successes and most importantly, make us proud of our heritage individually and collectively."
The warm and chatty lady is not one to shy away from a discussion about Africa. She says, "we can only but learn from their experiences, their stories and their achievements. The self-fulfilling prophecies of Africa as a failure have to stop. Every medium possible must be used to enable us take the strides necessary to make Africa the continent it rightfully deserves to be. We are blessed with abundance of natural and human resources. This is what must be harnessed and potential realised. This can and will happen with all sectors playing their role."
The quiet, but firm lady says her programme is an avenue through which the image of Africa can be improved and numerous challenges faced by Africans tackled. Her words: "the programme showcases the greatness of Africa, emphasises the new contemporary Africa, highlights the life and accomplishments of well known role models, provide an elaborate well deserved pat on the back for those who define the future of Africa, impel a yes I can attitude, by just sharing their stories to encourage and inspire others."
She blandly suggests, "it’s all about creating credible media-driven platform through which we can engage ourselves and the rest of the world as Africans."
Through the programme, she tones down the derisive manner Africa's image has been cast in the media.
With a warm smile and unmistakable steeliness, she says, "our challenge is to credibly debunk the tendency of the western media that portrays us as the dark continent, which exemplifies disease, despair, destruction, disaster destitution and deceit."
When the programme was first aired drew big headlines and stirred a new awakening in the media re-engineering the continent.
Aired weekly, each episode of Moments with Mo highlights the life and accomplishments of a usually well known, but sometimes an undiscovered African individual who by her or his own tenacity and determination, has accomplished sometimes, overcome something that makes her or him a role model to others.
The people brought to the programme tell the untold stories of their victories and challenges, in a manner that inspires and educates rather than the usual doom and gloom constantly portrayed by the Western media.
Brimming with a defined sense of purpose, she has become a kind of evangelist for accomplishment. Thematically, the programme takes full advantage of her defiant and always challenging "yes I can" attitude, always putting pressure on the individual to stand up and be counted.

BORN Mosunmola to Mr. and Mrs. Akintunde in September 1964 in Hammersmith Hospital in London, Mo, with a Master's Degree in Human Resource Development from the University of Westminster in London, brings her considerable training and education into play in her show.
Mo’s family roots are in Ondo, Ondo State. The eldest of three sisters, Mo, who lost her father at the age of 11, was undaunted with her pursuit of life ambition.
Mo spent most of her youth in the UK where she worked her way through college attending the Ridgeway School, Mid Kent College and West Kent College. She went on to receive her Masters degree in Human Resources Development at the University of Westminster in London.
She began her professional career in 1987 as a Recruitment Consultant with the Atlas Recruitment Consultancy firm in the UK. Within a few years she rose to the position of Branch Manager.
And action is what the Britain-born, Nigerian-bred Mo is going to be providing. Lights, cameras and action!
In 1990, Mo was headhunted by the Starform Group, a very successful business information group in the UK to manage the prestigious Corporate Credit Management Exhibition. Mo successfully managed the exhibition from 1990 through 1992. Additionally, she assumed responsibility for the research, design and production of several conferences and seminars whilst at Starform.
In 1993, she returned home. On her arrival, she was once again headhunted, this time by Arthur Andersen. Her initial assignment was as Head of Human Resources and Training for Esso Exploration & Production Nigeria Limited (Exxon).
By the year 2000, having successfully completed her responsibilities to the ExxonMobil HR Transition and Merger Team, Mo fully recognised Nigeria’s growing need for a trained and highly motivated talent pool that would take Nigerian businesses into the 21st century.
Taking advantage of her growing reputation as a HR specialist, she resigned from ExxonMobil to start Vic Lawrence & Associates Limited (Popularly known as VLA).
Today, VLA is rated as the fastest growing and the largest indigenous HR & training management consultancy firm in Nigeria.
While involving herself in a number of business activities her next really significant achievement was the conceptualisation and building of The Protea Hotel, Oakwood Park, situated along the Lekki Expressway in Lagos, which was commissioned in August 2004.
Of significance is her participation on the board of directors of Junior Achievement Nigeria, a non-governmental organisation promoting business skills development amongst Nigerian youth. Here Mo sits and plans with fellow board members that include the managing directors of ChevronTexaco, Coca-cola International, ExxonMobil, the Dangote group and others.
She is married and has two children; a daughter aged 16 and a son aged 10.