meusic: Emmy Collins takes ThisDay Newspapers to court + Omowunmi is Lagos State Environmental Ambassador

I heard this story sometime last year but I honestly didn't take it serious until I saw Emmy's facebook status message yesterday. It read

"1st they ingnored me hoping I wud just go away but then realised it wudn't happen so they eventually responded to the case file against them @ Lagos State High Court. See u in court THIS DAY newspaper. They say one man can't make a change, I say busllshit. This one is for every model, designer OR individual who has ever been screwed over by them. WISH ME LUCK GUYS"

For those who don't know the genesis of this case, below is an interview he granted another newspaper late last year explaining his own side of the story.

Why I am suing ThisDay Music and Fashion Festival Organizers —Emmy Collins

How I got involved.

I was in Club 10 in Victoria Island early this year when Ruth Osime, the Editor of ThisDay Style Magazine met me and told me that they would want me to participate in the ThisDay Music and Fashion Show. I asked her the for me to take part she should make it official by sending me an official letter to participate in the show. I wanted to be part of the show because what they sold to me seemed like a charity event that would benefit Nigeria in the way of attracting investors to Nigeria. I bought into the idea.

The cancellation of the show.

I came down from UK for the show, did a collection for the show which cost me tens of thousands of pounds and I spent like two months working on that collection which included things I was going to do on the runway and actually I wanted people that would be there to know what fashion is all about. I did what I did because of the passion I have for the art and not necessarily for the money. When I came back, I was informed that I was going to be at the show that would hold in Lagos but later shifted it to Abuja. When we went to Abuja, we spent three days getting ready for the show and just thirty minutes to the show, it was cancelled. The same show that I spent so much money to come and participate was cancelled with a wave of hand. What amazed me was that when they knew all the way that they were going to cancel the show, they didn't even tell me. It started with a rumour and we spent three days there preparing for the show, fixing and teaching the models and even on the last day, I was still working. I just went up to my room dressed up and came down only for the rumour to start and then it became clear that the show was cancelled.

Seeking legal redress.
I waited up until last two weeks when I started sending them letters from my lawyer, the organizers did not even get back to me with as much as an explanation for the cancellation of the show and that is not professional. What we did was to send them a letter telling them that they had no right to behave the way they did and that I did cut a lot of expenses in preparation for the show and that what we want from them is to pay for those expenses because the stress I had gone through. Before I came back to Nigeria for this show many people, Nigerians for that matter, advised me against coming down because they felt that there would always be a negative intention in the invitation but I said no; I even wanted to get so many Nigerian designers, many of whom have never come home to Nigeria, back home and start up something like I have done here. I wanted us to have a whole building where we will showcase our products but they were not interested because of the kind of elements they have heard exists in Nigeria.

Depressed.

I was really depressed because when you put so much passion in what you do and it ends this way, it is very depressing; I was depressed not only for the money, I was depressed for the disrespect not only to me but to the entire Nigerian public who came for the show that day. The Abuja show was supposed to be Music and Fashion show which was the package the public paid for but when you produce the music part of the show and cancelled the fashion part and nothing was said about refund. That sounds like scam to me. I did not know that that is how the ThisDay thing works but since this happened I have started hearing things about ThisDay that doesn't sound so good and one funny thing is almost everybody knows these things about ThisDay and nobody was talking about it. I think someone is supposed to be talking to the EFCC now because what ThisDay is doing is like a money laundering scheme to me because when I come to think about it I ask myself where does Africa come into this? Where do we get the investments? Are the investments going to come from Naomi Campbell, Ozwald Boetang or Jay Z? So you ask yourself what was the essence of all those things.

Suing for damages.

I want to let you know that I am going to sue ThisDay and the whole money that we are going to sue them is £75, 000 and we are going to sue them here in Nigeria and in the United Kingdom. I am not going to be intimidated by anyone. Even when I told some people that I was going to sue ThisDay they got scared and pleaded with me not to do that before they run me down. For Christ's sake I can sue the president if he does something bad to me.

Role of the Banks.

What I apparently want to do now is to include banks that were involved in this in the suit because they should know more about the whole scam going on. I think the banks that are backing this whole thing should be brought to book to account about what's really going on.

Why suing when participation was for charity.

My complain at the moment is that they invited me for a show which I run cost and the show never happened. Now if the show had happened, everybody would have been happy and nobody would be complaining. And from what I am hearing, the show was not meant to happy; I don't know if that is true or false. I am complaining that after this show was cancelled, the organizers couldn't even write me a letter or give me a call to explain why the show did not hold. I believe if they had written me that letter I wouldn't be here right now; they lacked simple courtesy. I am not suing them because they invited me to participate in the show and they will pay me a certain amount of money, that's not what I am contesting. Why I am going to court is that ThisDay invited me to participate in a show and that show never happened and I had wanted to organise a preview of my collection in Lagos prior to the show on my own but I had to cancel that preview because I was transferred to Abuja. The essence of a preview is to showcase your collection and in that preview you make sales and get money but I was made to cancel all these opportunities because of I show that would never happen.
Source: nationaldailyngr.com

I don't know if going to court is necessary (I tried it once...it was a total waste of my time and money) but I salute his courage.

What do you guys think?

Meanwhile check out some of Emmy's fantastic designs below...

I don't know if you guys see it, but there's something totally cool and different about Emmy's clothes. Totally in love with him...his clothes I mean...lol

Goodluck with this case Emmy, God knows you need it :-)

Moving on...

Omowunmi Akinnifesi; Lagos State Environmental Ambassador

2005 Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria, Omowunmi Akinnifesi is Lagos State Environmental Ambassador. She was endorsed by the Lagos State Governor some weeks back...
Check out the pictures...

Congrats babe!

Austin Osagie Photography/Centaur Photographers

Austin Osagie has been around for a long time...more than seventeen years as a photographer. I shot my first modeling job with him in 1998...and we've shot many others since then. He's my official photographer. He shot all the pictures of me you all have seen of recent (minus the i-tees). A really great photographer with world class equipments. You can call Austin Osagie on 08065440228. His office is at 34, Calabar str., off Adisa Bashua, Masha, Surulere.

Be sure to check on him for your events, weddings and portraits.

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