Not many in her homeland appear to know about her unique story.
But in other lands, especially Europe and America, she is a ‘goddess’
whose works are cherished by kings and presidents.
Without a doubt, the story of Nike Okundaye, the face behind the huge
success story of Nike Arts Gallery, located in Lagos, Abuja and Osogbo,
is as compelling as it is inspiring.
At a time when young Nigerians are in desperate need of a role model and
inspiration in what self-belief and hard work can achieve, Nike’s rise
from the status of an unknown village girl born into a seeming
insignificant family in a rustic village to a globally celebrated icon
would make an A-list inspirational novel.
Born in her native village of Ogidi, Ijumu Local Government Area, Kogi
State, young Nike had high dreams about what type of future she wanted
for herself. But her dreams were truncated even before they could take
form when she lost her mother at age six. “I was six when my mother
died,” she said with a tinge of sadness.
With the blow inflicted on her dreams by her mother’s death, young Nike
was taken away to live with her grandmother. At the time, many believed
that by going to live with an old woman, the young girl’s future had
been compromised. But events have since proved that destiny may indeed
have been at work in her journey through life.
She had her first contact with the world of arts through her
grandmother, who at the time, was the leader of cloth weavers in the
community.
She said: “I come from a family of craftsmen. My parents were crafts
people from Ogidi in Ijumu Local Government Area, Kogi State. My life as
an artist is something that I was born with. I started weaving at the
age of six.
“I started with weaving different things, including adire, a traditional
Yoruba hand-painted cloth design. As a matter of fact, I can say
everything that had to do with textile. They taught me how to weave,
using a little calabash. Gradually, I graduated to using bigger
materials.”
Though Nike was six years old and barely able to tell the difference
between her left and right hands, she already had a picture of the kind
of future she wanted.
“My grandmother was the head of all the weavers in our community. So,
even as a little child, I already had a dream that I would own a big
studio when I grew up. People came from different areas to buy the cloth
from her. So, at that time, I already sensed that I might not have the
opportunity to go to school.”
With the death of her mother, her grandmother, whose responsibility it
was to look after her, did not pamper her in any form. She ensured that
the virtue of hard work was instilled in Nike’s young, impressionable
mind.
At that time, young Nike, unaware of the reason behind her great
grandmother’s action, would cry, believing that she was being
unnecessarily punished. “I would cry and lament because I thought she
was wicked and punishing me. But today, I always thank her for
inculcating in me the virtue of hard work. It was through her that I
learnt that you must persevere in whatever you do and never give up on
your dreams.”
Although she lost her mother at a time she needed her most, Nike
believes that destiny might have been involved in the way her life
played out, including her mother’s death. According to her, the mother
was a very hard working young woman who would have spared nothing to
ensure that her child got a good education up to the university level.
“Even at that young age, I knew that my mother was very hard working.
And I am very sure that if she had not died, she would have trained me
up to university level. My father was a farmer. He also did several
other things like basket weaving to supplement his income. So,
definitely, I would have been educated very well if my mother had not
died.
“But today, I look at my childhood and all that I went through as
something designed by destiny. Who knows, maybe if my mother had not
died and I had gone ahead to be educated, I may never have had the kind
of opportunity that I have today and may never have risen to the level
that I am.”
Nike never went to school to study art, the vocation that has brought
her to global spotlight. Vocational training in art was passed down to
her by her great grandmother, the late Madam Ibikunle. Watching her
great grandmother in the art of adire textile processing and helping her
out, Nike walked up the line to become an expert in adire making,
dyeing, weaving, painting and embroidery.
A product of the famous Osogbo Art Movement, Nike is today a world
acclaimed artist and textile designer. She brings vivid imagination as
well as a wealth of history and tradition into the production of adire.
Her works are celebrated in major capitals of the world, with her
designs exhibited in countries like the USA, Belgium, Germany, Japan and
Italy, among others.
Nike spent the early part of her life in Osogbo, a recognised hotbed for
art and culture in Nigeria. During her stay in Osogbo, her informal
training was dominated by indigo and adire.
Nike’s romance with international exposure began in 1968 when she had an
exhibition at the Goethe Institute in Lagos. Since then, she has grown
to become a major name on the international art circuit. She is most
outstanding in paintings and design of adire, beadwork and batik.
Among Nike’s proudest achievements was her invitation to Italy by the
Italian government in 2000 to train young Nigerian sex workers on how to
use their hands to engage in creative ventures. Her invitation was as a
result of complaints to the Italian government by the young Nigerians
that they left Nigeria in search of work, not knowing what they would be
forced into. When Nike got to Italy, she taught them skills in craft
making and many of the women became self-reliant in no time and stopped
their old means of income.
In 2006, she was awarded one of the highest Italian national awards of
merit by the government of the Republic of Italy in appreciation of her
efforts in using art to address and solve the problems of Nigerian sex
workers in Italy.
About two years ago, her adire painting was accepted at The Smithsonian,
the world’s largest museum, located in Washington DC, US. Some of her
works can be found amongst the collection of prominent personalities
around the world, including the White House.
While little is known about Nike and her works across the country, two
former presidents of the USA, Bill Clinton and George Bush, were so
enthralled by her works at various times that they sought audience with
her during their visits to Nigeria. Much more than just meeting and
shaking hands with the two former presidents, it was Nike that decorated
George Bush’s room in Abuja during his stay in the country.
These two incidents, Nike told The Nation, were some of the best things to have happened to her.
She said: “When President Bill Clinton of the US visited Nigeria, he
asked to meet the woman behind Nike Gallery, and I was taken to Abuja to
meet him. It was the same thing with President George Bush. I was
invited to meet him in Abuja during his visit to Nigeria. I was the one
that decorated the room where the president stayed during the visit.
What honour can be greater than this? I feel accomplished.”
As an accomplished artist, Nike has taught in several universities in
the US, imparting the knowledge of her traditional adire designs in
thousands of eager students from across the world. Her teaching
exploits, she disclosed, have taken her to revered institutions like
Harvard and Edmonton in Canada.
“I have lectured and held workshops in several noble institutions across
the world. Some of the universities include Harvard, Columbus,
Edmonton, Ohio and in Los Angeles, among others. My first experience
with teaching was in 1974. At that time, I taught people with doctoral
degrees.”
Interestingly, all the education she had at the time, according to her,
was the traditional education that parents pass onto their children.
“The type of education I had at the time was the education that is
passed from parents to their children, not the education you get in a
classroom. It was the practical type of education,” she said with a wry
smile.
In 1983, she established the Nike Centre for Art and Culture in Osogbo,
Osun State, where trainings are offered free of charge to Nigerians in
various forms of arts. The centre was opened with 20 young girls who
were picked from the streets and offered a new life in arts. So far,
according to her, more than 3,000 young Nigerians have been trained at
the centre.
Nike OkundayeThe
centre also admits undergraduate students from many universities in
Nigeria for their industrial training programmes in textile design. The
centre now admits students from Europe, Canada and the United States of
America. International scholars and other researchers in traditional
African art and culture also visit the centre from time to time for
their research works on the processing of adire fabric and African
traditional dyeing methods.
But she says the true story of the gallery started in her bedroom about 47 years ago.
“The gallery you see today actually started in my bedroom in 1968. In
2008, we opened the one in Lagos, and my husband was always the
motivator. It was intended to give the young and old a platform to hear
their voice.”
As she spoke, with signs of fulfillment splashed on her face, her
husband, Reuben Okundaye, a retired commissioner of police, who had
remained quiet since the interview started, suddenly joined in the
conversation.
He said: “It is with practical education that she has continued to teach
and impart knowledge into people with doctoral degrees and masters in
Fine Art. Some of these people even come here under the cover of night
to seek advice from her. Yet, some would say she is not educated.”
Speaking about another experience, Mr. Okundaye said he once had an
encounter with a prominent Nigerian who told him that his wife would
have been made a minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria if she was
educated. Surprised, he said he took a swipe at the man, telling him his
wife was better educated than most of the people that were being
flaunted.
He said: “You can imagine, I was discussing with one big man the other
day and he said that my wife would have been made a minister if she was
educated. I was angry and I asked him what he meant by that. Here is a
woman who teaches people with doctoral degrees in higher institutions
all over the world, yet you say she is not educated. But when the chips
are down, they come to her for advice.”
Asked how she feels whenever she teaches in the classroom, Nike looked
up as if relishing her achievements, and said: “I feel fulfilled. It was
a very high sense of fulfillment. Imagine, a little girl who grew up in
a rustic village without any sign of hope for a good future. Now I
stand before PHD holders and teach them. I have been invited to meet
presidents of foreign countries. I think I should be proud of my little
achievements and be grateful to God.”
In spite of her seeming low education, she insists she has no regrets
about not attending school. “I have no regrets at all. I give thanks to
God for making all these things possible for me. I also thank my husband
for standing by me all these years. I must confess that it was not easy
coming this far. You will agree with me that for a woman to be
recognised, she has to work three times harder than a man.”
Reechoing his wife’s position, Mr. Okundaye said Nike could not have had
any regrets, having attained the heights sought by many across the
world. “You asked if she has any regrets. How can that be possible? What
kind of regret was she supposed to have with all her achievements? She
is fulfilled in every sense of the word,” he enthused.
Expectedly, the couple was attracted to each other by their mutual love
for arts. Okundaye told The Nation how it all started: “I have always
been an arts lover. I have some of her works. Perhaps, like you said,
maybe it was destiny that brought us together.”
With a sterling career as a police officer, which saw him attaining the
rank of Commissioner of Police and serving in more than four states, the
couple has in the last 20 years of their coming together enjoyed the
beauty of marriage and weathered the storm together.
Nike, who would be 64 in a couple of weeks, has also successfully
created an identity for herself. Her most treasured clothes, she
confessed, are adire fabrics. And it is not surprising that she cannot
remember the last time she wore anything other than that.
“You may be right if you say I have created an identity for myself with
my adire clothes. It is the only thing that I am known with. I don’t
wear any other clothe, even when I travel out of the country,” she said.
Aaron Swartz and Jonathan James commit suicide in different years; surprisingly the prosecution team trying them was the same.
Two
of world’s most wanted hackers had committed suicide and no one still
knows why. Aaron Swartz and Jonathan James, both hackers by profession
and most wanted by the FBI have committed suicide in face of the federal
investigation against their hacking crimes.
Interested thing is
both hackers were not connected to each other in any way but were being
tried for hacking by the same department and the case was being overseen
by the same Assistant United States Attorney Stephen Heymann. Could
this have any hand in their suicides.
Some people close to Swartz
say that it was an overzealous federal prosecution team contributed to
Aaron Swartz’s suicide. On January 6, 2011, Swartz was arrested by MIT
police on state breaking-and-entering charges, after installing a
computer in an Institute closet which he set to systematically download
academic journal articles from JSTOR. Federal prosecutors later charged
him with two counts of wire fraud and 11 violations of the Computer
Fraud and Abuse Act carrying a cumulative maximum penalty of $1 million
in fines, 35 years in prison, asset forfeiture, restitution, and
supervised release.
While James, who was implicated in the largest
hack of personal identity committed suicide on May 18, 2008. Jonathan
James was found dead in his shower with a self-inflicted gunshot wound
to the head. His suicide was apparently motivated by the belief that he
would be prosecuted for crimes he had not committed. “I honestly,
honestly had nothing to do with TJX,” James wrote in his suicide note,
“I have no faith in the ‘justice’ system. Perhaps my actions today, and
this letter, will send a stronger message to the public. Either way, I
have lost control over this situation, and this is my only way to regain
control. … Remember, it’s not whether you win or lose, it’s whether I
win or lose, and sitting in jail for 20, 10, or even 5 years for a crime
I didn’t commit is not me winning. I die free.”
As said above,
both hackers were from different backgrounds and had been accused of
doing something very different. James was accused of stealing tens of
thousands of credit card numbers, while Swartz was more of a social
activist. He was an advocate of free culture and an open Internet.
The
question remains whether the over zealous prosecution somehow hammered
the fact into both James and Swartz’s mind that they would never escape
the law. Whatever the case, it seems that no one will be held
responsible for both the suicides and both the hackers deaths have been
to relegated to rather ignominious death.
I
was very unhappy during that period, personally, professionally, and
emotionally, and my life was feeling like a failure on all levels. As
I’d been in the habit for years of writing my thoughts down in letters
(which I usually never delivered), I picked up my trusty yellow legal
pad and began pouring out my feelings.
This time, rather than
another letter to another person I imagined to be victimizing me, I
thought I’d go straight to the source; straight to the greatest
victimize of them all. I decided to write a letter to God. This
letter was a spiteful, passionate letter, full of confusions,
contortions, and condemnations. And a pile of angry questions. Why
wasn’t my life working? What would it take to get it to work? Why could I
not find happiness in relationships? Was the experience of adequate
money going to elude me forever? This were all I included in my letter
to God but at last I get to know that there are lot and lots of people
who I am much more better of and a lot of people who really want to be
me then I get on my Knee and do you know what I began to do? I
began to Give God thanks for HE is so good to me, for giving me another
chance to see this day and for making me +1 this day 3rd may and to my
family and friends.
MARSHAL
HAPPY BIRTHDAY BROTHER
PART ONE BY MARSHAL
I want to thank you for the good times we’ve shared and for the ones we’re yet to create!
Giving someone lei symbolizes the love, affection, and respect you have
for that person. I have some special leis to honour a few people this
day. To my great family, you have been inspirations to me. You have
helped me so much over the years with your unconditional love and
support, allowing me incredible security. The faith and values you’ve
instilled in me have blessed my life abundantly. I wouldn’t be who I am
today without you, so thank you from the bottom of my heart. My
mother – I have loved you for as long as I can remember and will
continue to, till the day I die. Thank you for always being there for me
and wanting to protect me. My brother’s/sister’s– You bring great
joy to my childhood memories and continue to bring me joy today. I know
you care for me deeply; you prove this to me time and time again with
your actions. I love you and am honoured to have you as my family.
To my friends– such incredible times together, we have laughed till it
hurts. Rare is a friendship as precious as ours. I love you all more
than you’ll ever know.
SECOND PART BY MR FOXIE Hello
everybody let me grab a handful of minutes of your attention and
congratulate our "newly-born", David, on his birthday, and wish him a
couple of things. Well, to be frank, I am very glad to be here today and
to see him celebrate his birthday surrounded by friends and close
people. I have known him since our freshman times in Ebonyi State
University and it is a pleasure for me to note that he hasn't changed a
bit in two years, and is still a cheerful energizer of all our student
parties and the soul of the Foundation (OMFI). I always wondered how he
contrived to find time for everything, David has always been and is a
good mixer ready to listen to a problem and offer some advice. Not less
outstanding were his academic merits, as this may he celebrate with
honours. But first and foremost, David is an amazing person, and on
his birthday I'd like to wish him simple human happiness. I wish him
harmony that comes when all the components of life are balanced: when
daily work brings delight and in the evening you hurry back home to be
with your family. I wish David inner comfort when you know that
somewhere near, at the distance of a phone call, there are old friends
who care about you and if you feel blue, they will always come to your
place with beer and chips to disperse your problems with a hearty laugh
and recollections of turbulent student days. I wish him a year full of
pleasant little trifles and joys that give one strength to make great
achievements and reach one's goals. May David most cherished dreams come true, as we stand up and raise our glasses for his birthday and happiness
What an honor and a privilege it has been to witness this amazing young
David and his journey towards adulthood. And tonight, David as you
stand on the brink of a new chapter in your life, please know that we
are so incredibly proud of you and we love you. May you continue to
walk as sure-footed as you always have, may you remain as grounded as
you have always been...and may you stay in mind and spirit, forever
young. HAPPY BIRTHDAY! AND LONG LIVE OMFI FOUNDATION INT’L RESPECT TO MY GREAT HERO (MY DADDY)
NATIONAL BROADCAST BY PRESIDENT GOODLUCK EBELE JONATHAN, GCFR ON THE 2015 GENERAL ELECTIONS,FRIDAY, MARCH 27, 2015
Dear Compatriots,
As we prepare to go to the polls tomorrow, I have come before you
this morning to express my immense appreciation for the opportunity you
gave me to lead this great nation of ours in the past four years.
I also wish to place on record, once again, my sincere gratitude for
the support you have given my administration without which the
significant progress we have made in recent years would not have been
possible.
In spite of the many challenges we have had to contend with since
1999, our present democratic dispensation continues to endure and grow
stronger in keeping with the yearnings and aspirations of our people.
We have all worked very hard to nurture and strengthen our
democratic institutions and promote the good governance practices which
they were designed to deliver for the better well-being of our people.
I believe I can say without fear of contradiction that we all
clearly cherish the democracy we now have and will never willingly give
it up for any other form of governance.
This much-cherished democracy of ours is about to be put to the test once again.
I urge you all to troop out en-masse to peacefully perform your civic duty of voting for leaders of your choice tomorrow.
As we do so, let us all – political party leaders, contestants,
party members, party agents, supporters and ordinary voters alike, be
very conscious of the fact that the eyes of the entire world are on us.
We must therefore comport ourselves in a manner that will further
strengthen our democracy and consolidate our place in the comity of
truly democratic nations.
I made a commitment on assumption of office to progressively
deliver freer, fairer and more credible elections in our country. In
keeping with that commitment, the Federal Government has given the
Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) all necessary support
to ensure that it conducts very successful elections tomorrow and
on April 11.
We have all been assured that INEC is fully ready for the elections.
I believe that we can all trust that they are certainly more ready now
than they may have been before security issues and other concerns
necessitated a re-scheduling of the dates for the 2015 general
elections.
As an administration, we welcome the fact that millions of Nigerians
who were yet to receive their Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) as
at February 14, and would therefore have been unfairly disenfranchised
if the polls had gone ahead on that date, have seized the opportunity
of the re-scheduling to collect their cards and can now exercise their
right to vote tomorrow.
We are also glad that our gallant Armed Forces have successfully
stemmed the seizure of Nigerian territories in the North-East by the
terrorist group, Boko Haram.
They have recaptured most of the communities and territories
formerly occupied by the insurgents, making it possible for thousands of
internally-displaced Nigerians to begin returning to their homes and
communities.Jonathan’s broadcast message on the general elections
I heartily commend the very courageous men and women of our Armed
Forces for the immense sacrifices which they continue to make in
defending the nation and protecting its citizens.
I also thank all Nigerians for keeping faith with us over the past six weeks.
I call on all political parties and politicians in the country to
allow the free, unfettered will of our people to be expressed without
any hindrance in the coming elections in keeping with the hallowed
principles and tenets of democratic governance which we all profess.
The will of the people freely expressed through the ballot is the bedrock of all democracies and ours cannot be an exception.
Let us all therefore be prepared, as true democrats, to graciously
accept the outcome of the elections as the rightful choice of our people
from whom all political powers in our democracy must emanate.
My administration has done its utmost best in the past four years to deliver on our promise to positively transform our country.
Tomorrow’s election is another very important milestone as we
continue our march towards the fulfillment of our God-given potential
for greatness.
The election offers us another opportunity to empower leaders of our
choice once again, and to show the world that genuine democracy is
alive and well in our beloved nation.
I will like to restate my belief that no political ambition can justify violence or the shedding of the blood of our people.
I reaffirm once again, my personal preparedness to ensure fair play
during the elections and to deploy the resources and institutions of
state only in the manner prescribed by our laws.
Let me warn, however, that as President, Commander-In-Chief of the
Armed Forces, I am under oath to protect the lives of all Nigerians and
the security of our country at all times. I will never abdicate my
responsibilities in that regard.
Democracy allows dissent. It encourages differences and even fervent
disagreements. But elections must never be mistaken for war or an
opportunity to set fellow citizens against each other and tear our
beloved nation apart.
Those who may harbor any intentions of testing our will by
unleashing violence during the elections in order to advance their
political ambitions should think again as all necessary measures have
been put in place to ensure that any persons who breach the peace or
cause public disorder during or after the elections are speedily
apprehended and summarily dealt with according to our laws.
The nation’s security agencies are also fully prepared and ready to
deal decisively with any group or persons who attempt to disrupt the
peaceful conduct of the elections or cause any form of public disorder.
Our dear country, Nigeria is the largest democracy amongst black
nations of the world. We are a nation of great accomplishments, with a
proud history of evolving affinities.
Let us go out tomorrow to vote peacefully and set a fitting example
of political maturity for other emerging democracies to follow.
I wish you all and our dear nation, very peaceful and successful elections.
May God Almighty continue to bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Nigerians will cast their votes Saturday to determine who will govern
Africa’s most populous nation. Polls suggest the 2015 presidential
election will be the tightest race in Nigeria’s history. Whoever wins
must take on a slew of issues, including a tanked economy, intensified
attacks in the northeast by the Boko Haram militant group, and security
concerns in the oil-producing south. Below is our guide to what you need
to know ahead of the March 28 presidential election.
THE CANDIDATES:There are 14 presidential candidates on the ballot,
but national polls have shown the race will come down to two players:
the incumbent, President Goodluck Jonathan, and his primary challenger,
Muhammadu Buhari. Jonathan,
57, is running for reelection and this race is essentially a rematch
against Buhari. He beat Buhari in a landslide victory in the last
election in 2011.
But Jonathan's popularity has plunged in recent years amid concerns
over national security and government corruption. Jonathan is a southern
Christian from the petroleum-rich Niger Delta region and a member of
the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PCP), a conservative party that
generally leans toward the center-right. Jonathan has faced criticism
for alleged corruption and failing to end the Boko Haram insurgency. The
incumbent has pledged to address both issues if reelected a second term.
Buhari,
72, is a former military dictator and a member of the All Progressives
Congress, an opposition party formed to take on the PCP that is pushing
for shared power between central and state governments. This will be
Buhari’s fourth time running for president, after running unsuccessfully
in 2003, 2007 and 2011. Buhari is a northern Muslim from Katsina state.
He last held public office in the late 1970s as the chairman of the
Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation and the federal commissioner --
now called "minister" -- for petroleum and natural resources. Buhari
took power in a military coup from 1983 to 1985, after overthrowing a
democratically elected government. If elected, he has pledged to crack
down on government corruption and reinforce Nigerian security forces. KEY ISSUES IN THE ELECTION: Security, corruption and
the economy are the crucial issues in Saturday's election. Boko Haram
began its violent uprising in Nigeria in 2009, and the terror group now
controls a vast swath of the country's northeast. The Islamist militants
have spread their brutal attacks into neighboring Cameroon, Chad and
Niger since February. Tens of thousands of people have died at the hands of Boko Haram
insurgents, and one million others have fled their homes. Nigerians
will cast their vote in part on who will make them feel safe.
Corruption is out of control in Nigeria. Nigeria generates some $70
billion in state revenue per year, and whoever wins the presidency will
have a critical say in dispensing these funds. Under Jonathan's
administration, over 70 percent of the federal budget is spent on public
officials' salaries and benefits. Rural areas desperately need funding
to improve education, health, transportation and commercial development.
Nigeria has recently become Africa's largest economy. The country relies
heavily on the oil sector, with more than two-thirds of state revenue
coming from gas and oil exports. But global oil prices have dropped more
than 50 percent in recent months, choking Nigeria's currency. The
country needs major reforms
to diversify its sources of revenue beyond the oil sector. Neither
candidate appears to have a clear plan for tackling Nigeria's looming
economic crisis.
VOTER SECURITY:Nigerian officials have beefed up
security measures ahead of Saturday's general elections. Authorities
announced Thursday the closure of all Nigeria's land and sea borders
until after the election. The closure took effect midnight Wednesday and
will hold through midnight on Saturday. Abubakar Magaji, permanent
secretary in Nigeria's interior ministry, said the closure of borders
was "to allow for the peaceful conduct of the forthcoming national
elections," Al Jazeera reported.
Vehicular movement will also be restricted in Nigeria on Saturday
from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and police officers will be meticulous in
ensuring security during the general elections, according to
Inspector-General of Police, Suleiman Abba.
"The IGP wishes to reassure the public of the commitment of the Force
to the provision of round-the-clock security before, during and after
the general elections for the teeming citizens of the country," Abba
said in a statement, according to the Daily Independent newspaper in Lagos.
Drogba said he wanted to remain a member of the Chelsea "family" beyond the end of the current English season.
The Ivory Coast
forward made the announcement as he received the 2015 Football Writers'
Association Tribute Award at a dinner at London's Savoy Hotel on
Sunday.
Drogba returned to
Stamford Bridge in pre-season, following spells in China and Turkey with
Shanghai and Galatasaray respectively, but there has been no word yet
from Chelsea chiefs as to what will happen to the forward when his
current contract with the west London club expires.
But
the 36-year-old made it clear Sunday he wanted to stay at Chelsea, even
if he was no longer involved in a playing capacity beyond the end of
the current campaign.
"When
you have achieved so much and won so many trophies like we have done in
the past 10 years, that creates something special," said Drogba, who was
powerless to prevent Chelsea losing 4-2 at home to third-tier Bradford
City on Saturday in one of the greatest FA Cup upsets of them all.
"I
hope, and the club makes me believe, I am part of this big family, so
we are going to find the best thing for both of us to promote the club
in the best way."
Drogba added: "When I left
this club (the first time), I was saying that I had done everything I
wanted to do, but I think now that I did not do everything, I think
there is more to do.
"I love this club and would love to be part of this club for the future, with the new players."
- Mourinho praise -
Premier
League leaders Chelsea have a chance to atone for their Bradford defeat
when they face Liverpool at Stamford Bridge in the second leg of their
League Cup semi-final on Tuesday, with the tie all square at 1-1.
"Everybody
was disappointed and of course we are not proud of what happened
(against Bradford), but the good thing is in two days we have another
game, so we have to focus on this game and try to play better than we
did at the weekend," said Drogba.
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho,
in his first spell with the Blues, brought Drogba to the club from
Marseille in a £24 million ($40.7 million, 30.3 million euros) transfer
in 2004.
Drogba went on to score 157 goals for Chelsea over an
eight-year period and left the club in 2012 shortly after scoring the
winning penalty against Bayern Munich in the Champions League final.
In
a personal tribute to Drogba in the FWA dinner programme, Mourinho
wrote: "Throughout my career, I have always refused to say which is my
favourite player or the best person, because so many have given soul and
blood to play and to fight with me, but if I have to choose one who
represents all the good things you want in a player and a man, I think
in this moment I would choose Didier."
Portuguese boss Mourinho added: "I can say that he is a phenomenal person."
Yo Gotti tells Hip Hop Since 1987 why he decided to grab Wayne and
Ludacris for the Errrybody remix he put out a few weeks back. He also
talks about performing in front of his home crowd, the stories behind
some of his other recent projects, what he has learned from the rap game
and more.
Nicki Minaj has been added to the list of performers for the 2014 American Music Awards.
Minaj will be joined by pop-rock singer-songwriter Skylar Grey for
her recently released single, "Bed Of Lies." It was also announced that
she will sing alongside Ariana Grande and Jessie J for a performance of
their summer smash "Bang Bang."
Live pre-show red carpet coverage will stream online for fans worldwide starting at 5:00 p.m. ET / 2:00 p.m. PT on November 23.
The 2014 American Music Awards will broadcast live from the NOKIA
Theatre L.A. LIVE on SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 23rd (8:00-11:00 p.m. ET/PT)
Andre Bauma is a
ranger at the Virunga National Park in the DRC, home to the critically
endangered mountain gorilla. When poachers target the mother gorillas,
Andre adopts the babies.
