MULTIPLE AWARD WINNER, AUTHOR,, CORPORATE MC, MENTOR, PROMOTER & AMBASSADOR FOR PEACE -UNIVERSAL PEACE FEDERATION. WE PROMOTE THE SUCCESS STORIES OF AFRICANS & CARIBBEANS AROUND THE WORLD. CONTACT US NOW ON +447882809005
Tony Tokunbo Eteka Fernandez is an International Award Winner, Published Author & Poet, Broadcast Journalist, MC and Youth Empowerment Consultant . He is also The CEO of AFRICA4U and The Founder of Africans in The Diaspora
People also see him as a Cultural and Social entrepreneur, which means he is skilled in working with many different communities, bringing people together in successful focused events. Tony has organised many cultural events …involving both BME and mainstream communities. He is skilled in hosting events that reinforce community cohesion and bringing different kinds of people together. He has organised events in The UK, The U.S.A, Holland, Germany, Romania, Malta and Nigeria and has visited over 22 European Countries.
Tony has also organised The Black History Month Celebrations at The UK House of Parliament for over five years in a row
He continues to promote the true life and success stories of Africans in Europe and Africans around the world and has organised several small scale literary and awards initiatives aimed at empowering young people.
He has also spent time as an International broadcaster and was The Producer and Presenter for AFRICA4U International Radio Talk Show at Reading4u Radio Station for nearly three years.
Tony has interviewed high profile Members of Parliament, Distinguished celebrities and some of Africas best musicians including Ivonne Chaka Chaka and Kanda Bongoman.
He has also been a guest on BBC Radio on numerous occasions to discuss the community cohesion events he organises at UK House of Parliament and also to recite some of his published work in memory of Nelson Mandela, 50 Years Anniversary of The race relations act and major community issues. Tony has also a Guest on popular Radio stations in Nigeria and The States
In the last few years he has been very passionate about Youth empowerment, community cohesion and cultural intelligence.
Tony was born in South London and has lived in several parts of England and Nigeria . He started writing at the tender age of nine, a habit he expressed with creative enthusiasm. Tony writes Poetry, short stories and proverbs on personal development. He is currently working on his 4th book which will also be his first novel. He is also into Public Speaking at Special events and Social functions and is a Mentor for young people in the UK Community.
He completed a Bachelor of Arts degree at The University of Lagos, Nigeria in English and World Literature. He later went on to attain a teaching qualification at The Frances King International Training Institute, South Kensington London, it was here he studied Teaching English as a Foreign Language. He also studied Web Design at The City University in London.
He published his first book in June 1999 called “The Beauty in the Dark” (A Collection of Poetry which received critical acclamation in many circles around the world). .Tony’s aim in life is to inspire the young generation and to encourage the youth to make the very best of their dreams and aspirations,. He published a 2nd book in June 2009 called ” The Sound of Running Water” – A Family gift book of proverbs and quotations on Personal Development and Positive Thinking .
In December 2009, he published his 3rd book called “One Moment of Peace”.- A collection of Poetry inspired by personal experiences and spiritual growth.
Besides the fact that the Artist has won International online awards, he is mostly inspired by Life experience, love, music and cultural awareness. He was Resident Poet at the 5th London Poetry Festival in 2009 and has been a guest on BBC Radio on very many occassions including The famous Anne Diamond Show. He has also been a guest on a few SKY TV stations and several International Radio Stations around The World
A cousin of Basil, Roland Butcher had come to the United Kingdom at the age of thirteen from his native Barbados.[1] He was an aggressive middle-order batsman, who represented Middlesex between 1974 and 1990. His intuitive batting style owed much to the archetypicalWest Indian calypso flair.[1] He “secured his place in history when he became the first black player to represent England, making his Test debut at Bridgetown in 1980-81”.[3]
Butcher came to prominence during Middlesex’s successes in 1980 when they won the County Championship and the Gillette Cup, impressing with a rapid half-century in the final of the latter.[4] He had actually made his England debut two weeks later, impressing with another half-century on his one-day international debut against Australia.[5] He struggled more however on the 1980-1 tour against the West Indies who had the most powerful bowling line-up in the world at the time and did not play for England again.
In 1983, “he suffered a sickening injury which threatened his eyesight when struck by George Ferris“, but managed to recuperate and return to the sport.[3] He continued to enjoy success with Middlesex, winning the County Championship again in 1982 and 1985, and featuring in victories in the finals of the NatWest Trophy in 1984 and 1988 and the Benson and Hedges Cup in 1983. In 1987 he won the Walter Lawrence Trophy for recording the fastest century of the season (in terms of balls faced) against Sussex
SOURCE- WIKIPEDIA
MORE ON MR ROLAND BUTCHER
England Cricketer, TV & Radio Commentator, Cricket & Football Coach, Author, Mentor, Innovator
First Black England Test and One Day International Cricketer. Professional cricketer with Middlesex County Cricket Club for 20 years. Director of Sports University it the West Indies 2004 – 2019. Director Barbados Cricket Association. Cricket West Indies Cricket Committee Member.
WINNER OF INTERNATIONAL MALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR 2022
What a weekend it has been for me, I had a wonderful birthday and I just woke up to find out I am the winner of International Male Artist of The Year for Gospel Choice Music Awards 2022 (USA). It is just so amazing to be recognised internationally and this means a lot to me. My main focus is to spread the Gospel through songs and impacting lives.
I am truly honoured and a massive thanks to Gospel Choice Music Awards for this recognition to all my amazing fans and others who voted. God bless you all.
The trophy is on it’s way and will share it when it arrives
Bradford’s Sinead Campbell is a singer-songwriter, creative producer and Music Instigator with Bradford Producing Hub. She supports the music scene within the district, curates music events and runs Bradford Buskival.
She is a soul singer who delivers smooth RnB basslines & propulsive rhythms. She seeks to inspire confidence in others and stands for connectedness. She has shared the stage with the likes of Basement Jaxx, Aswad and Arrested development, has support from BBC Introducing amongst others and is just getting started.
COMING SOON ON THE TONY TOKUNBO FERNANDEZ SHOW – INTERVIEW WITH BRADFORD BASED SINEAD CAMPBELL
COMING SOON ON THE TONY TOKUNBO FERNANDEZ SHOW- OUR INTERVIEW WITH THE AMAZING MERCIA
Mercia will be on the show to discuss how she survived Cancer on two occasions and her campaign to beat cancer through early intervention.
THIS IS A SHOW YOU CANNOT AFFORD TO MISS
ABOUT MERCIA
Mercia Jensen lives in Birmingham, West Midlands. She is a graduate of The City University, Birmingham where she studies Paediatrics. She also studied sociology at The Open University and Psychology at The University of East London. She is very passionate about making a positive difference in many communities.
Mercia is a Cancer Ambassador. She is also The Birmingham Representative for our UK Based AFRICA4U ASSOCIATION
One of the most traumatic periods of my life was when I was returning back to Nigeria with my family after ten years sojourn in Britain. The anxiety become more intense considering the fact that I was returning back with a foreign wife with two children as at then. What was paramont in my mind was how my family was going to cope with the Culture shock usually associated by foreigners in a new and strange environment. Interestingly and coincidentally this happened 45 years ago, the same year the Nigerian West Indian Association came into existence (from hindsight, we may have prompted these young pretty ladies with great foresight to take that decision to form the association – most probably in readiness to our grand entry into Nigeria)
Surprisingly enough, it was my wife’s idea that we return back to Nigeria having successfully completed our studies. Her idea was that the earlier we settled down in life the better for us. This came to me as a pleasant surprise because in all honesty, I was not quite ready to return home. My idea was to stay back for another year or two, make some good money, buy a good car and furniture etc. before heading back home. Looking back I am so happy that we took that bold decision at the time we did; the fact that my wife chose Nigeria rather than Jamaica or any other place for that matter gave me so much joy.
On our arrival back in Nigeria the focus was to try and adapt and settle down as soon as possible. The process became easier than anticipated. The plan was to try and look out for some of my old friends. In this process, I was able to locate the venue for a monthly meeting of my alumni association – Saint Patrick College, Calabar. At this meeting an old school mate, on realizing that I was married to a West Indian Lady was able to introduce me to his good friend Joe Nwoga who was also married to a West Indian – Norma Nwoga. A visit to the Nwoga’s was hurriedly arranged. You can imagine my wife’s excitement when she met a Caribbean sister in Nigeria for the first time. This was 45 years ago and that meeting marked the beginning of a very impactful life we have lived over the years.Listening to my wife having a first conversation with Norma got me very excited and relieved.
Soon we were able to identify some 3 to 4 west Indian wives who were not only resident in Ikoyi where we were first quartered, but within walking distances from our residence- Mrs. Claire Idowu of blessed memory, the nearest; lived just a stone throw . They were also Lucille Arokodare and Norma Agoro Kessington who were our nearest West Indian Neighbours. In no time, we got to know some others within Ikoyi and Victoria Island axis. Life in Lagos became more meaningful. We were also able to identify a very powerful group of ladies from the Surulere and Yaba axis- Elder aunties like Beryl Ediale and Joan Eze, others were Ferron Okewole, Anne Marie Ojerinola as well as the hardworking Gloria Acquah of blessed Memory.
At the Ikeja axis of Course was the founder and first President of Nigerian West Indian Association (NWIA), Edna Asije, Maizie and Lorna. One feature I discovered among all these ladies- they were all very innovative, industrious and Bonded with each other very well
It is instructive to note that these two bodies – St.Patrick College Alumni and the NWIA have created a very positive impact in our family over the past 45 years. My wife and children made so many more friends and sisters than we ever had. Our evenings and weekends became more exciting and less boring.
A very important advantage in marrying a West Indian wife is in the area of widening your variety of food; when you add your rice and peas, ackee and salt fish, jerk pork and chicken, dumpling and other West Indian cuisines to our Edikang Ikong, Afang, Efo-riro, Amala with Gbegiri, Banga Soup etc, you are having the best of two worlds. All these came in addition to such exotic drinks like gingerbeer, sorrel and occasionally rum punch
The very close bonding of the NWIA came into limelight when they started organising annual carnivals and Carnival Dances at Easter time on the streets of Lagos. Along with their children, they organized themselves into 3 big bands from 3 locations – Surulere, Ikeja and Lagos Islands. Competitions were very keen and received wide support. They managed to commission their husbands to man the gates, an assignment we gladly accepted to lend support. Unfortunately this laudable event got abandoned over the years when it became too large to manage; The ladies were all aging and no longer seemed to have the energy to sustain it.
Still on the social side, there was hardly any weekend without any form of celebration. I remember vividly the benevolence of the Ediales – Uncle John and Aunty Beryl. They were (and still) role models for the wives and their husbands. We always looked forward to their yearly New Year eve parties where they would host and feast all the members and their husbands to an all-night party – good meals, good music – great fun.
Looking back over the years, some pleasant memories come to mind. One of such was when I had the singular honour of travelling to Calabar for a long weekend with five of the wives who have since then been referred to as the five wives of Mr. Fernandez (Ferron, Maizie, Lorna, Norma and of course my wife Pauline was their land lady and senior Prefect).
We had so much fun, the ladies almost refused to come back to Lagos, My only regret was that I could not fulfil my promise of repeating the Journey with their husbands.
I consider myself one of the husbands who has benefitted most from my association with the NWIA. Apart from making good friends with the husbands, my daughter Nicolette found her life partner (or is it the other way round) from one of the five sons of the Okewoles, another NWIA family and to the glory of God they have been enjoying a happy married life. We have set the pace for another round of such unions
The NWIA has achieved quite a lot in its 45 years of existence. Whenever I go through my album, I see nice photographs of young girls of yester years who are now grandmothers – how time flies. It is my sincere hope that their children and grandchildren will take over from them, and continue in the exemplary way their parents have been keeping the NWIA flag flying
There is a seed that lives within me today that is constantly embracing the growth of new layers and paths.
The seed within me has different shades and stories.
Not only has it been blessed with a sense of purpose and a calm specific calling, but the Nigerian and The Jamaican in me has created a story that has given me the vision and the foresight to dance through and overcome many chapters in Life .
So what does Nigerian West Indian Association mean to me ?
In a nutshell, it means my history, my past , the story of my father and my mother and the vivid collection of the very best of celebrating what it means to be Nigerian and Jamaican.
There is something refreshing about standing out from the crowd and over the years people have often said to me “ Tony , I cannot really put you in a box “.
My response has always been the same ” Try not putting me in a box in the first place then “.
Sometimes, I cannot help but think , that to live and act outside a box has a strong spiritual connection to my Nigerian West Indian upbringing.
Nigerian West Indian Association means the world to me . It means the very best of cultures in beautiful layers , it represents the exotic perfection of a fruitcake blessed in strange imperfect layers that are out of this world .
It represents the ease to adapt in a vast world of beautiful thoughts and celebrations.
It represents the fragile fusion of curry goat and “isi-ewu”. It also means a luxurious table of Edika Ikong , Jerk chicken, Jollof rice , Rice and peas, Carrot juice, Afang, Ackee & Saltfish, Roasted Boli, Green Bananas , Odeku and Sorrell .
My loving parents and the amazing families of The Nigerian West Indian Association have always brought me up to believe that I am lucky and blessed by having the best of both cultures, this is something I took for granted for several years until I began to travel through the classrooms of the many lessons of life .
To me Nigerian West Indian Association means emerging from a home blessed with beautiful cultures and to shine my light through the homes and the mysteries of new boundaries, this has helped me to become that change I want to see in society.
It also means the opportunity to make the most of today through the lessons of the past and to embrace the many flags that surround my territory.
But most importantly, it means in Bob Marley’s words , the celebration of ” One Love ” and making the most of our differences.
Thank you to all the families of the Nigerian West Indian Association for making me the person I am today .
And the next time someone tells you they cannot really put you in a box , simply tell them , they will never understand, it’s a NWIA thing .
Jane Oma Onyemenam is a Management Consultant with experience in Executive Coaching, Leadership Development, Business Communication, Business Policy and Strategy, Diversity and Inclusion Management, Organisational Structure as well as Change Management.
With over 17 years of experience in training, consultancy projects and advisory roles covering People and Organization, her work also cuts across the non- profit and social impact sector. She is fondly referred to as “Bridge Builder”.
Born in Nigeria and currently living in Spain, Jane has consulted, mentored, trained and coached business executives in many countries in Europe and Africa.
She is a faculty member of Geneva Business School, where she teaches Business Policy and Strategy, Corporate Social Responsibility and Change Management.
Jane is the founder and President of Upside Africa, an organization which focuses on inspiring, supporting and promoting entrepreneurs and professionals of African descent, women empowerment as well as diaspora engagement.
She is also the founder of The Mother Eagle Mentoring Academy, a platform that provides mentoring and business advisory for African women and youths from all walks of life.
Jane is a Senior Fellow and member of the Advisory Council of The Migrant Changemakers Programme by Ashoka Foundation in Spain.
She is also a member of SIETAR Europa (Society of Intercultural Education, Training and Research), SIETAR Spain and the Special Interest Group – Africa team of SIETAR Global.
Ja ne holds a BA in Business Administration and Management from EU Business School (Barcelona), a certificate in Intercultural Management from ESCP Europe and a certificate in Global Diplomacy from SOAS London. She is fluent in English, Igbo and Spanish.
THE JAMAICA 0121 FESTIVAL takes place at Aston Park, Birmingham from on the 6th and the 7th of August 2022.
This is an amazing annual event you cannot afford to miss as part of JAMAICA INDEPENDENCE.
The two day festival will be featuring some of the very bests of Jamaican artists such as Freddy McGregor , King Yellowman, Dawn Penn, Omar, Janet Kay, K’reema, Wayne Marshall and many more amazing artists
UK are you ready for TMMP AWARDS?? A Christian collaborative award ceremony where artists, musicians and community heroes are recognised and celebrated!! Gospel musical talent in various genres, such as RnB, Electro, Reggae and Hiphop, is discovered and put on a platform to showcase the diversity in Gospel Music.
This awards event will take place in the UK City of Culture Bradford and this is the first of a kind. We are inviting all churches and Gospel musicians across the nation to be a part of this awesome ceremony! This is an event not to be missed. Join the event organisers tomorrow for more information . Thank you
There will be so much to do and see around the WOW Festival site at Clifton Park. From excellent speakers, workshops, and art performances to live music, poetry and joyful dance sessions! All topped off with a beautiful marketplace area filled with female makers and organisations.
Tickets for the Main Stage available here:
Pay as You Can
with a suggested amount of £7.50 DAY | £12.50 WEEKEND
Tickets for the Main Stage available here:
TONY TOKUNBO ETEKA FERNANDEZ 