Nigerian, Ibrahim Ibrahim, has been freed in Saudi Arabia of drug trafficking after 3 years in detention.
Freedom came the way of Ibrahim following the efforts of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission and Zamfara State Govt.
“A delegation from Nigerians in Diaspora Commission and Zamfara State Govt arrived in Jeddah with documentary evidence provided by NIDCOM for the trial slated for 18/02/2020,” Chairman, NiDCOM, Abike Dabiri- Erewa tweeted on the issue.
Details shortly…
Nigeria’s government indicated Wednesday it is ready to welcome US rapper Lil Wayne, anytime he decides to come.
In a tweet Wednesday, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, chairperson of the Diaspora Commission said the country is ready to receive Wayne and other African Americans who have traced their roots to Nigeria.
“Our Nigerian brother . Many doing their DNA and identifying their roots. We look forward to welcoming him home someday soon”, she wrote.
Lil Wayne has revealed that his DNA test has shown he is 53% Nigerian.
The multiple Grammy award-winning rapper made the disclosure during his chat with hosts N.O.R.E. and DJ EFN as a guest on the “Drink Champ” show that airs on Revolt TV.
According to him, an ancestry test conducted by a website he shared some of his details on proved that he’s more Nigerian than American.
He gave the explanation when asked why he mentioned Nigeria in the lyrics of one of his hit songs.
He also expressed eagerness to visit Nigeria, saying, “I gat to go to Nigeria…I gat to go see that place,”
This is not the first time Lil Wayne has shown an interest to visit Nigeria. Weeks ago, while playing “Never Ever Have I”, he was asked about the one place in the world that he would love to visit and he mentioned Nigeria and Egypt.
He said, “I have never been to Nigeria. That is the place I would love to go.”
Last month, another American artiste, Cardi B contemplated changing her citizenship to become a Nigerian, after President Trump nearly triggered a war by killing Iranian General Qassem Soleimani.
African-American rapper, Lil Wayne, has revealed that he is 53 percent Nigerian.
The multiple Grammy award-winning rapper made the disclosure during his chat with hosts N.O.R.E. and DJ EFN as a guest on the “Drink Champ” show that airs Revolt TV.
According to him, an ancestry test conducted by a website he shared some of his details on proved that he’s more Nigerian than American.
He gave the explanation when asked why he mentioned Nigeria in the lyrics of one of his hit songs.
“Shout out to Nigeria, I did my 23 and me ancestry dot com and my shit came back like 53% Nigerian. Yea! Me (I) and my mum need to have a talk (Laughter),” he said.
He also expressed eagerness to visit Nigeria, saying, “I gat to go to Nigeria…I gat to go see that place,”
This is not the first time Lil Wayne has shown an interest to visit Nigeria. Weeks ago, while playing “Never Ever Have I”, he was asked about the one place in the world that he would love to visit and he mentioned Nigeria and Egypt.
He said, “I have never been to Nigeria. That is the place I would love to go.”
YouTube on Tuesday appointed Nigerian Alex Okosi as Managing Director of Emerging Markets for YouTube in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) to further drive expansion and fuel growth in these areas.
Okosi will be responsible for running YouTube’s business and partnership teams across emerging markets in EMEA including Russia, the Middle East, North and Sub-Saharan Africa.
The Head, YouTube EMEA, Cecile Frot-Coutaz. based in London office, said Okosi would be responsible for running YouTube business and partnership team across emerging markets in EMEA including Russia, middle East, North and Sub-Saharan Africa.
Frot-Coutaz said that Okosi would resume in April 2020 and will be reporting to her to the London office.
“I look forward to welcoming Okosi to our YouTube EMEA leadership team.
“He brings a wealth of experience in the content industries and has a track record for building businesses and audiences in established and new markets.
“Okosi will be leading our existing teams in Russia, Sub-Saharan Africa, Turkey, the Middle East and North Africa (MEAN) to drive further expansion in these key markets,” she said in a statement.
According to her, Google and YouTube have long invested in growing its business across its EMEA emerging markets with some recent milestones.
She said that the milestone included most recently at the annual Google for Nigeria event in July 2019, YouTube announced its commitment to support emerging talents across Nigeria.
She said throughout the years, YouTube had played an essential role in the discovery and development of African sound and exporting African music to listeners worldwide.
According to her, in fact 70 per cent of the views from the 25 most-watched Sub-Saharan African artists come from outside the continent.
She said that in September 2019, YouTube successfully launched YouTube Music and YouTube Premium in MENA which further exemplified the opportunities offered by this high-growth region.
She said that Russia was one of YouTube EMEA’s highest growth markets with the number of YouTube channels with more than one million subscribers growing by more than 70 per cent in the last year.
‘’Alex’s appointment will only further fuel the development of our creative ecosystem in the region,’’ Frot-Coutaz.
Okosi described YouTube is a game-changing platform that plays an increasingly important role in our lives today.
He said that it was through the dynamic content and innovation that it delivered.
‘’I am very excited to be joining Frot-Coutaz’s leadership team to continue empowering creators and elevating value for viewers and partners across the region,’’ Okosi said.
Prior to joining YouTube, Alex served as a long-time TV Executive.
A Nigerian woman trafficked to Lebanon, Omolola Ajayi, has been rescued and now in the custody of Nigerian embassy in Beirut.
The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM), in a WhatsApp message, said Ms. Ajayi would be return to Nigeria soon.
“Update on the viral video of trafficked Nigerian girl in Lebanon. She is now happily in the hands of the Nigerian Ambassador in Beirut, received warmly and happy to be in safe hands. She will be home soon by God’s grace,” the message read.
Ajayi, 23, a single mother from Osun State, was fraudulently recruited as a teacher but sold as a domestic slave in Lebanon.
Her video, in which she pleaded for assistance to be rescued, went viral on social media. In the video, Ajayi alleged that her employer had tried on several occassions to abuse her without success.
“My plan was to be teaching pupils English Language in Lebanon. On getting here, the person that brought me seized my passport. I was wondering what happened. I later knew I had been sold off to slavery,” she said.
“If I am sick, they won’t take me to hospital. They will only give me drugs. Half of the people whom we came here together have died. I am appealing to Family Life Support to come to my aid. I don’t want to die here. I need help to return home.
“The person I live with wants to rape me but I have been resisting him. He collected my phone and said he would not give me the phone until I accept to have sex with him. It is when he sleeps or goes out that I manage to pick the phone where he keeps it,” she added. Kwara State governor, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, had said he was “horrified” by the video footage.
“I implore citizens to work with us to put an end to such horrific activity by exposing the perpetrators,” the governor wrote on Twitter last week.
The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps said three suspects including two Nigerians and a Lebanese had been arrested in connection with the trafficking of the Kwara-based lady.
Read more: https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/trafficked-nigerian-woman-in-lebanon-rescued.html
American rapper, Cardi B has threatened to file for Nigerian citizenship.
The rapper who visited Nigeria back in December 2019, took to Twitter on Friday to share her thoughts on Trump ordering the killing of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani.
After news of his death broke, the country’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei sparked fears of war after he promised ‘harsh vengeance’. And now Cardi’s weighed in, calling it the Trump’s ‘dumbest move’ yet.
‘Naaaaa these memes are fuckin,’ the Bodak Yellow singer tweeted.
‘But shit ain’t no joke! Specially being from New York. ‘Its sad this man is putting Americans live in danger. Dumbest move Trump did till date.
‘I’m filing for my Nigerian citizenship.’
Naaaaa these memes are fuckin ?? ?but shit ain’t no joke ! Specially being from New York .Its sad this man is putting Americans live in danger.Dumbest move Trump did till date …I’m filing for my Nigerian citizenship.
— iamcardib (@iamcardib) January 3, 2020
In response to the tweet, one fan wrote: ‘Ok BardiGang guess we’re all moving to Nigeria.’
While another pleaded: ‘take me to nigeria with you’. And another similarly suggested: ‘take me with you I’ll start filling out my adoption paper work’.
Ever since Cardi B made the statement, she has been trending in Nigeria.
Read Nigerians reactions below
Ghanaian you’re saying something before…
You see what cardi B tweeted ?????? pic.twitter.com/uOJWwc3V9Q
— ThatSameBoy (@LayconAbubakar) January 3, 2020
Ghanaians try to convince Cardi B on why she should dump Nigeria citizenship for theirs.
Cardi B: pic.twitter.com/kMQyNfBnL7
— MB_rown (@MB_rown) January 3, 2020
Bovi wants japa to America while Cardi B wants to apply for Nigerian citizenship.
One man food is another man’s poison.
PS: Chioma B has officially ended the Nigeria vs Ghana debate! pic.twitter.com/fhRmhjqrbb— Trend Amplifier || Trouble Maker (@queeninghere) January 3, 2020
Ghanaians after reading Cardi B tweet pic.twitter.com/ewVlNLFs3j
— My CrAzy DudE?? (@paulizbeet) January 3, 2020
Cardi b wants to be a Nigerian citizen.
Give her a befitting Nigerian name? pic.twitter.com/dqDwczEKuo— Ɓαвα 4Ɗ gιяℓѕ (@OlawaleSZN) January 3, 2020
A Nigerian, Emmanuel Mong, caught trying to catch a flight home, is in the process of being extradited from Washington to Stamford in California, where he will face charges that he illegally intercepted a $30,000 wire transfer from Purdue Pharma.
According to Port of Seattle Police, 24 year-old Mong of Savannah, Georgia, was trying to catch an Emirates Airlines flight to Nigeria on Dec. 16 at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
Seeing there was a felony warrant in his name, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers detained him until police arrived at Sea-Tac Airport.
According to the report, Stamford police issued a warrant for Mong’s arrest in 2017, charging him with first-degree larceny, conspiracy to commit first-degree computer crime and conspiracy to commit criminal impersonation, with a court-ordered appearance bond of $250,000.
Despite his protests that he has never lived in Georgia and claims that he is not the person wanted in the warrant, Mong is being extradited to Stamford.
His Stamford criminal defense attorney, Allan Friedman, said Mong is eager to clear his name.
“Mr. Mong is looking forward to coming to Stamford and having his day in court and presenting evidence of his innocence,” Friedman said. “We will resolve this matter in court.”
A spokesperson from Purdue Pharma said they had no comment on the matter.
According to Mong’s four-page arrest affidavit, Sean Coughlin, a Stamford police financial crimes investigator, said Purdue Pharma became the victim of what is known as a “man-in-the-email scam,” wherein a corporation, usually with business connections to Africa or Asia, have their email systems hacked by a computer virus or some other malware
A passenger, identified as Chukwuma Anthony Ezeh, on Wednesday slumped and died at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
An official source at the MMIA arrival terminal told the News Agency of Nigeria that the passenger slumped on arrival from China and died while waiting to collect his luggage
Ezeh, according to information on his passport, was 47 years old at the time of the incident.
Spokesperson of the Police MMIA Command, DSP Joseph Alabi, who confirmed the incident to NAN at about 9.25pm on Wednesday, said the passenger came aboard Ethiopian Airlines.
According to him, the incident happened at about 3:15p.m. and the deceased was confirmed dead at the MMIA clinic.
“While walking at the arrival hall, the man slumped and died,” Alabi said.
Alabi added that Ezeh’s body had been deposited at the Air Force Base Hospital mortuary.
Austin Reynold, a South African Police Constable who robbed and killed a Nigerian, Emeka Okoli, was on Monday sentenced to 32 years in prison by a Durban High Court.
The court sentenced the policeman three days after he was found guilty of robbing and killing the late Okoli during an illegal raid in the community where the deceased resided.
The court sentenced Reynold to seven years for counts of robbery and 25 years for the count of murder.
Reacting to the judgment by Justice Shyam Gyanda, the Nigerian community in South Africa welcomed the sentencing/jailing of the South African police officer who shot at close range and killed Okoli.
He was reported to have killed the Nigerian of Anambra extraction on Jan. 18, 2018.
“The Nigerian Union South Africa (NUSA) is vindicated with the sentencing of Constable Austin Reynold.
“We were at the scene of the murder on Jan. 19, 2018 to ensure that our people didn’t take the law in their own hands,’’ NUSA President, Adetola Olubajo said in a statement.
“We later ensured that a murder case was registered at Durban Police Station and the case was charged to court immediately due to the cooperation of the investigating officer at Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPDI).
“I led a delegation of the National Executive of Nigerian Union South Africa from Pretoria to Durban Magistrates’ Court on Jan. 21, 2018 where the bail application was heard.
“And since then we have been following the case, attending the trial with the head of our Legal Desk.’’
He said that the colleague of Reynold, Brinley Pallo, who was with him when he shot and killed Okoli later turned state witness.
“We are delighted and welcomed the outcome of the trial because our labour did not go in vain and this case will serve as a deterrent to rogue elements within the South African Police Service.
“We give special thanks to Mr Omoreige Ogboro, the Legal Adviser of the union, who travelled from Pretoria to Durban on several occasions to watch the brief in court.
“Also, to IPID for their cooperation. NUSA is also keenly following and attending the trial of eight police officers charged with the murder of the late Badmus Olalekan Ibrahim.
“The trial was postponed to April 13, 2020. We are very optimistic that justice will be served in the murder case of Ibrahim and we call on all Nigerians in South Africa to remain law-abiding,’’ Olubajo said.
The Centre for Social Justice, Equity and Transparency (CESJET) has accused the International Committee on Red Cross (ICRC) of a deliberately peddling falsehood to undermine the efforts of the Nigerian military in the North-East.
The Centre believes the international humanitarian organisation is misrepresenting facts in a bid to mislead unsuspecting members of the general public.
This trails a recent report where the Red Cross alleged that nearly 22,000 Nigerians are missing in the North-East.
This figure, according to the ICRC, represented the highest number of missing persons registered in any country.
At a world press conference on Monday in Abuja, CESJET revealed that there is a campaign of calumny by the ICRC against the Military’s counter-insurgency operations in North-East Nigeria.
Speaking on behalf of CESJET, Executive Director, Isaac Ikpa, said that there’s no element of truth in the piece, describing it as a propaganda to dampen the morale of the troops, especially at a time the military recorded massive gains in the fight against terrorism.
The Centre, therefore, advised Red Cross to desist from commenting on issues outside their operational purview and concentrate on providing humanitarian services that it is known for.
While urging Nigerians to always verify such reports, the Centre, however, called on the ICRC to tender an unreserved apology to the military authorities, as well as withdraw the statement credited to it.