Letting go has never been something that I am good at…however, it is a part of life and no matter how difficult or painful, when it's time to let go, we have to let go.
Big Brother Nigeria ended on June 4, amidst a lot of controversy, loads of fun, entertainment and oh! Yes, there was no short supply of romance. I addictively watched this show for 3 months and during that time, I learned so much about Nigeria, its people and their music.
It is not everyday that you get to meet the cast of your favourite TV show, so when the opportunity to meet the housemates became available, I fully embraced it and it introduced me to a group of talented and humble individuals who are certainly going places. This is my tribute to the wonderful Big Brother Nigeria housemates. I would like to say "goodbye and thank you for the wonderful company you provided".
• Ichemeta 22
I did not really know much about her as I only started watching the show during the week that she left the house but on meeting her she seemed a nice person and I agree with Helen, Ichemeta does enjoy talking...
• Yinka 27 He is a very open & straight to the point kind of guy. I think he is also a bit shy at times. He is not the type of person who will be in your face all the time, preferring to stay in the background but he is a talented young man who has dreams of making it big in the entertainment industry. BBN has definitely presented him with the platform so hopefully he will get an opportunity to finish his book, that he has been writing since 1996 (Yinka!!!!). If it's taking this long, man, you better give Dan Brown some serious competition!
• Chinedu 24 He was born on Valentine's Day and is for that reason, expected to be a romantic. He openly stated that he was going to the BBN house for girls and indeed he met his Juliet in the form of Joan. He's blessed with a sense of humor, a gift for rapping and a personality to match.
Soweto was a surprise for him; it was definitely not what he had expected. The fancy cars and houses he saw there did not fit the profile of the Soweto he had in mind
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• Joan 25 The best word to describe Joan would be "misunderstood". I was not a fan of Joan during her stay in the house because I thought she was cold. My assessment of her after meeting her is that she is just a reserved person and being reserved is definitely not a crime in my book.
She is on the July 2006 Cover of True Love Nigeria and that interview gave insight into the trauma that she has been through in her short life. All I can say about Joan is that she is a very strong woman and I wish her the best in whatever she does next.
• Maureen 24 Wow!! What a beautiful soul, she is bubbly, friendly and she has big dreams. She gave viewers a lot to talk about after switching from Joseph to Gideon in a matter of days. She was unapologetic about it and said that as a girl she wanted to be with someone who made her feel special and Gideon did that for her.
Maureen is just as you have seen her in the house. She is a sweet person, who warmed up to me like we were friends for ages. I hope her dreams of acting and making it in the advertising industry are realized. One of the highlights of her visit to Soweto was seeing Winnie Madikizela-Mandela.
• Gideon 23 The first thing that comes to mind when I think of Giddy is "Sexy". I only met this good looking brother with a gorgeous bod briefly but I can officially add "Flirt" next to the "Sexy". He has been chosen as a brand spokesperson for a top Nigerian company so he is definitely staying in the limelight. Did I mention that he sings as well?? Male viewers suggested that he should keep his shirt on…female viewers (me included) DISAGREED (jealousy ain't nice boys!).
• Ebuka 24
He is the well spoken, fun loving and Guinness drinking lawyer of BBN. In Ebuka's case I honestly believe there was some sinister force working against me….. According to me, a Nigerian version of Michael Scofield (Prison Break) and he happens to be the ONLY housemate I DID NOT GET TO MEET (Why, Lord why???????).
He was kissed by more girls than any other guy in the house, he drove the sisters crazy. Look at his picture and you will understand why. Now I cannot talk about Ebuka and not mention Fransisca. She declared her love for him but Ebuka ended up with their fellow housemate, Helen.
• Helen 25 She was the self-declared CHEF of the house and when she left, the remaining housemates were thankful that they could at last get to eat what "THEY' wanted to eat not what she thought they should eat. The viewers labeled her a gossip, something which she also admitted during her diary room sessions. My thoughts on that issue are that human beings are natural gossips; we just do it in different forms. Although the gossiping became a bit too much for Franca at times, I did not find anything out of the ordinary about girls gossiping about other girls.
I only met Helen briefly and she was awesome. She is currently working on her own cooking TV program and modeling is definitely on the cards.
• Joseph 32 Where do I begin to talk about Joe? He was the quietest person in the house but out of all the housemates I met, he was the most talkative (followed closely by Chinedu). There is not one word to describe Joe but I can think of Humble, Intelligent, Thoughtful and Kind. He got the most marriage proposal from female viewers and parents who were proposing on behalf of their daughters. Sandy was attracted to him due to him being so domesticated, most especially his cooking skills. He on the other hand, felt that he needed more time to know a woman before jumping into a relationship. About the cooking, Joseph says that he cannot define an ideal woman by whether or not she can cook, that would be limiting (I couldn't agree more Joe, couldn't agree more).
• Frank 29 Ooh, Crazy! Comedian! Dancer! Musician! Actor! These are all things that Frank can be accused of. If these were crimes, he would be found guilty and remain in prison forever. He is a gifted performer and his competitive nature would come in handy in this dog eat dog world. Viewers accused him of being a snake because he would sit and counsel a fellow housemate only to go and nominate them for eviction the next minute. His favourite reason for nominating anyone was: 'SOMEONE GOTTA GO" and the 2nd time he was up for eviction, viewers felt that he had to go because SOMEONE GOTTA GO. I enjoyed his crazy moments in the house and boy; he does the kwasa-kwasa like you have never seen before!! And oh, he's never heard me sing before but we're recording a song together…..ain't that something!!
• Sandy 29 Sandy was Helen's partner in crime and the sad part was that the victim of their gossip, Franca, would always walk in on them just as they were mentioning her name. I cannot talk about Sandy and not mention that she considers her ass to be her biggest asset (?) and she showed more flesh than any female housemate. She dreams of becoming a teacher and her love for children was evident during the Children's party they had to organize in the house.
• Ify 29 Oh my goodness!!!!! My favourite female housemate, Ify the style queen! When I saw her, I went screaming, she also couldn't help but scream. And as always, she was looking ultra fabulous!! She is one of the most talked about housemates on Big Brother Nigeria. Firstly because of her so called accent, which Nigerians believed was fake and inconsistent and secondly, it was because she had a 'thing' with Katung, though she had a boyfriend outside the house. Like somebody once said, these two had every reason not to fall in love but it happened, they had no control over what they felt so we wanna punish them for that??? Let he who is innocent cast the first stone.
No matter what people said about her, she is Ify, well mannered, a lady to the core, well groomed, she has more style than Paris Hilton and Beyonce put together (ok maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration) and I love her to bits!
• Fransisca 22 Baby Franca was the dancer and singer of the house. She also had the biggest crush I had ever seen on reality television. It made me uncomfortable at times because the recipient of her affections did not feel the same way. Other than that she is a beautiful person inside and out and I know she is going places. She fell in love with South Africa in a big way and I wouldn't be surprised to hear she is relocating here.
• Katung 26 K-Black, the epitome of intelligence, the life of the party, and he is oh-so-funny. He is the only person who was not secretive about having a strategy when going into the house and damn, that strategy paid off because it earned him a $100 000.
Katung's diary sessions were witty and thought provoking. If anyone had fun in the BBN house it was no doubt Katung. From sharing a bed with glamour queen, Ify every night, to winning most of his tasks and finally being crowned the winner? Who could ask for more!!
Sadly his parents had to step down from their leadership positions in the church because they felt they could not be good leaders if their own son was on international TV, drinking, smoking and doing all sorts of things they were preaching against. He was in tears when he asked his mom to forgive him for what he put them through.
You can never get bored with Katung around and he makes you feel special the minute you meet him. (He only forgot to ask for my number, I would have gladly helped him spend the N14 million..).
On a serious note though, Channel O please give him a job, he wants to work for you guys!!!
This has been a wonderful journey for me, I feel like I was the 15th housemate, though my participation was limited to the couch and I never got evicted. My prize may not have been a trip to London, Australia, Dublin, a flat screen TV nor the N14 million,and though I may not be an overnight celebrity like the rest of them,I made lots of friends and gained appreciation and respect for my fellow Africans. For that I say Thank you.
My next trip out of South Africa? Definitely to Lagos!