TheNewsGuru

Tag: United Kingdom

  • We are solidly behind Ekweremadu – Ohanaeze elders

    We are solidly behind Ekweremadu – Ohanaeze elders

    The Chairman, Council of Elders of  Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu has said the council remains solidly behind former Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, detained in the United Kingdom.

    Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide is the apex socio-cultural organisation of the Igbo people.

    Iwuanyanwu said this in a release which he signed and made available to newsmen in Owerri, on Thursday.

    Ekweremadu and his wife, Beatrice, are facing trial in a Westminster Court, in the United Kingdom for allegedly coercing a minor, identified as David Ukpo, to have his kidney harvested and transferred to the Senator’s daughter, Sonia.

    Iwuanyanwu, an elder statesman said the Ohanaeze Elders Council was determined to defend any honest and patriotic citizen whose right and freedom is being unduly trampled upon anywhere in the world.

    He described Ekweremadu as a very active member of the Organisation, adding that the news about his arrest and that of his wife in far away London was received with shock.

    He urged the Westminster authorities to strive for justice while expressing delight that  the true story about the predicament of the embattled former Deputy Senate President and his wife had began to emerge.

    “We do not have any doubt whatsoever that the truth will soon emerge and our son and his wife will be vindicated.

    “We wish to express our solidarity to a  dear colleague and friend during this trying period,” he said.

    He, however, prayed God to grant divine healing to the ailing daughter of Ekweremadu, Sonia.

  • BREAKING: Boris Johnson finally resigns as British PM

    BREAKING: Boris Johnson finally resigns as British PM

    Embattled Prime Minister Boris Johnson has finally resigned, setting the path for the election of a new British Prime Minister.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports Boris Johnson announced his resignation as British PM on Thursday.

    Johnson confirmed the process to appoint a new leader would begin now, with a timetable set out next week.

    “I want you to know how sad I am to be giving up the best job in the world, but them’s the breaks.

    “No one in politics is remotely indispensable,” Johnson said, speaking from Downing Street.

    He thanked millions of people who voted Conservative at the last election, and gave a reason why he fought so long to remain in office.

    “I thought it was my job, my duty and my obligation to you,” Johnson said.

    TNG reports Boris Johnson became Prime Minister in July 2019.

    He will, however, remain as PM until a successor is in place, expected to be by the time of the Conservative Party conference in October.

    Johnson was weakened by anger about Partygate, in which his administration was accused of hosting parties on government property despite government guidance to avoid social gatherings due to COVID-19.

    Then allegations arose that he had picked Chris Pincher for key party roles in spite of knowing about accusations of sexual misconduct against Pincher.

    Johnson’s resignation came after the prime minister haemorrhaged support among his ministers and member of his Tory party.

    More than 50 lawmakers resigned from government or party roles since Tuesday night when the mass exodus was triggered by the resignations of Rishi Sunak and Sajid Javid from the Cabinet.

    The prime minister had sought to defy his critics and carry on in the office, in spite of warnings from Cabinet colleagues that this was not sustainable.

    But resignations continued and Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi who was only appointed to the role on Tuesday, went public with his call for the prime minister to quit.

    The timetable for the Tory leadership contest would be agreed upon between the 1922 Committee, which ran the parliamentary proceedings to whittle the candidates down to two, and Conservative headquarters.

    But critics of the prime minister suggested he should not be allowed to remain in office until October.

    George Freeman, who quit as science minister on Thursday, said that now Johnson had finally done the decent thing, he should hand in the seals of office, and apologise to her majesty.

    “To allow her to appoint a caretaker under whom ministers can serve, so the Conservative Party can choose a new leader properly.’’

  • About 400 Nigerian criminals in UK prison to continue jail term in Nigeria

    About 400 Nigerian offenders currently serving terms in the United Kingdom, UK, prison would be sent to Nigeria to continue their jail terms following an agreement signed by the two countries.

     

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports that the new laws that came into effect this week empower the British government to deport Nigerian criminals up to a year before the end of their sentences.

     

    The new laws are part of London’s ‘New Plan for Immigration Policy’.

     

    Its first victims, 21 Nigerians and Ghanaians, were sent home on Thursday.

     

    According to media reports, thirteen of the deported people are Nigerians who had no right to be in the country, and those with combined sentences of more than 64 years, for crimes such as rape and sexual offenses against children.

     

    Britain’s Home Secretary, Witham Priti Patel, said yesterday that the new agreement with Nigeria would deter illegal migration.

    Nigeria

     

    Irregular migrants, according to the UK authorities, include persons who entered the country without authorization, with false documents, and who have overstayed their visas.

     

    Also categorized as illegal migrants are people who work or study on a tourist visa or non-immigrant visa waiver, enter into force or fraudulent marriages, or have their marriages terminated or annulled.

     

    The agreement between Nigeria and Britain allows them to issue emergency travel certificates or temporary passports within five days in order to speed up removal of people with no right to be in the UK.

     

    Patel said: “Our new landmark agreement with Nigeria will increase the deportation of dangerous foreign criminals to make our streets and country safer.

     

    “The deal will mean that operational teams in both countries will share their expertise to take the fight to criminal people smugglers who are responsible for a wider range of criminality and put profit before people while undermining the security of our two countries.”

     

    The deal is different to the recent one signed with Rwanda where migrants who enter the UK illegally are sent on a one-way ticket to Kigali where they can claim asylum.

     

    The Rwanda deal, which will reportedly cost an initial £120 million, follows three years of promises by Patel to outsource asylum processing to third countries and failures to strike deals with Albania and Ghana.

  • War: Ukraine appeals to US, NATO not to neglect them in battle against Russia

    Amid the ongoing war with Russia ,the Ukrainian government has appealed to the United States of America, the United Kingdom and other NATO nations of being complacent and not really assisting in the war.

    Ukraine stated clearly that the weapons they have been suppled so far cannot defeat Russia in the ongoing war.

    The spokesperson for the Ukrainian military’s international legion derided the country’s partners, saying they needed far more support if it is to defeat Russia’s invasion.

    “There’s a certain sense of complacency that seems to have fallen over our western partners that the arms deliveries that Ukraine has been already provided with are somehow enough to win the war,” Damien Magrou said, according to CNN.

    “They are not! They do not come near anything that would be close to enabling us to defeat the Russians on the battlefield.”

    The spokesperson said his country is lacking in long-range artillery capability, asking the west to keep sending heavy artillery and other heavy weapons to Ukraine.

    According to him, his nation needs long-distance rockets, and anti-ship rockets on the battlefield as fast as possible.

    He warned that the longer there is a delay in supply, the more casualties Ukraine would be recording.

  • 12 Nigerians win regional awards on research and innovations

    12 Nigerians win regional awards on research and innovations

    No fewer than 12 budding Nigerian researchers, innovators and scientists have won regional awards in a competition sponsored by the Royal Academy of Engineering, Northumbria University, Newcastle, United Kingdom.

    Thenewsguru reports that the awards were based on innovations in four thematic areas, namely, Green Materials, Renewable Energy, Sustainable Agriculture, and Waste to Energy.

    The Vice-Chancellor, Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT), Prof. Charles Eze, presented certificates of the awards to the awardees on Saturday at the arm of the British Academy in the institution .

    Eze said that it was gratifying that the arm of the academy was domiciled in the institution’s Innovation and Sustainable Development Centre.

    The vice-chancellor said that the position of ESUT as the foremost university of science and technology in Nigeria, necessitated the location of the centre in the school.

    He said that ESUT had, over the years, pioneered innovations in the areas of science and technology.

    “It is a courtesy of the Royal Academy of Engineering that we have in ESUT an arm of the academy,” he said.

    The vice chancellor congratulated the winners of the awards which, he said, was designed to produce technologies for sustainable rural development and community service.

    “We are happy that ESUT is used as a hub by the academy and we are here to witness the awards to those who distinguished themselves as researchers in those four thematic areas.

    “The competition was carried out in such a transparent manner that it cannot be faulted. The whole process of assessment were done online by the Royal Academy of Engineering,” he said.

    Eze congratulated the awardees and urged them to do more, while charging the unsuccessful competitors to learn from the process.

    Earlier, the Director, Innovation and Sustainable Development Centre, Prof. Paul Nnamchi, said that the competition was aimed at promoting renewable energy technologies, green materials, waste-to-energy solutions, and sustainable agriculture in rural communities.

    Nnamchi said that these could be achieved through research, training, and entrepreneurship.

    He cited some of the benefits of the project to include economic growth, sustainable communities, and healthy living, for the local population.

    “At various levels, this project will have an impact on a variety of stakeholders. For individuals, it will contribute to a cleaner environment, high quality education, and wellbeing.

    “For organisations, it will initiate new research and development projects and investments in renewable energy, waste utilisation, and sustainable agriculture.

    “For local economies, it will help to contribute to the government’s policy of creating high-standard living conditions in remote populated areas,” Nnamchi said.

    NAN further reports that the winners of the competition in the four categories received N650, 000 each, the first runners up got N400, 000, while the second runners-up got N200, 000.

    Meanwhile , some lecturers and corporate entities have also won prizes in the four thematic areas of Green material Category, Renewal energy, sustainable agriculture and waste to energy.

    In the Green material category, they included Simon Ikechukwu, third position, Prof Samuel Wara and team from Afe Babalola University second position , Victor Ojiugo, University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) first position.

    Renewable Energy: Advanced Engineering Innovation Research Group (corporate entity) from Federal University of Technology, Minna, took the third position, Chiagoziem Ugwu (Government Technical College, Enugu), second position.

    Chinecherem Ozoude (UNN) and Chinwe Udeze (Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka), jointly won the first position.

    In sustainable Agriculture: Dolapo Oladeji (University of Ibadan,) came third, Kingsley Obasi, second position, while Advanced Engineering Innovation Research Group, Minna, placed first.

    Chukwuka Israel placed third in the Waste to Energy category, Mr I. A. Ayoade (University of Ibadan), took the second position and Ifeanyi Aghaulo (Obafemi Awolowo University) emerged the winner.

  • Trending: Fake Oba Elegushi arrested after defrauding UK-based woman of N51m

    Trending: Fake Oba Elegushi arrested after defrauding UK-based woman of N51m

    The police in Lagos State have arrested a 26-year-old painter, Moses Olaitan, who impersonated Oba Elegushi, Saheed Elegushi, to dupe an unnamed United Kingdom (UK)-based woman of N51 million.

    The suspect and 48-year-old Segun Olusola had used the names and pictures of the Oba of Ikateland to collect the money from the woman for a fake marriage proposal and rites.

    Olusola has since been arrested by the police, claiming to have only received N3.5million from the money.

    The prime suspect, Olaitan had posed as Oba Elegushi and proposed marriage to the victim whom she met on Facebook.

    Olaitan said that he was going through the Facebook account when he came across the lady and checked her profile and discovered that she was rich and that he could get money from her.

    The suspect said “before then, I had some pictures of Oba Saheed Elegushi on my Facebook account. I downloaded more and changed my Facebook profile to perfect the purpose of what I wanted to do and I sent a friend request to her and she accepted me and we became friends. We chatted every day.”

    He also continued that “one fateful day, I told her that she was beautiful and I wanted to marry her and that the only thing that would stop me from marrying her is that she would have to perform some traditional rites and it will cost us a lot of money which she agreed to perform.”

    The suspect also stated that he was sleeping when the woman called her to send his account details for the marriage rites.

    “I don’t have an account number, the first person that came to my mind was Mr Segun and I went to him and explained what I wanted to use the account for and I promised to give him some of the money after receiving it,” he added.

    The suspect also continued that “a week after she sent the money into the account I provided and I gave him N2.1 million, while I took the remaining money.”

    The state police boss, Hakeem Odumosu, who paraded the suspects before newsmen on Thursday said that the suspects stopped chatting with the victim after they had collected the money.

    He assured that the suspects would be charged to court as soon as investigations are concluded.

  • See President Buhari jogging in London

    See President Buhari jogging in London

    President Muhammadu Buhari is currently in the United Kingdom (UK) for a routine medical checkup.

    A Photo of him jogging on the streets of London this morning has surfaced online.

    See photo below:

    See President Buhari jogging in London

    Y’all forgot what today is? Happy April Fools Day! Hehe!!!

    And happy new month to you and your family.

  • BREAKING: Niger Delta communities can sue Shell in English Courts, UK S’Court rules

    BREAKING: Niger Delta communities can sue Shell in English Courts, UK S’Court rules

    The United Kingdom Supreme Court has ruled that polluted Nigerian communities can sue oil giant Shell in English Courts.

    According to BBC Africa, this decision overturns a previous Appeal Court ruling and represents a victory after a five-year legal battle.

    The Niger Delta communities say decades of pollution have severely impacted their lives, health, and the local environment.

    Shell in its defence had argued that it was only a holding company for a firm that should be judged under Nigerian law.

    The Supreme Court ruled that the cases brought by the Bille community and the Ogale people of Ogoniland against Royal Dutch Shell were arguable and could proceed in the English courts.

    Royal Dutch Shell did not dispute that pollution had been caused.

    They argued that it could not be held legally responsible for its Nigerian subsidiary and that the pollution was the result of “crude oil theft, pipeline sabotage, and illegal refining”.

    TheNewsGuru.com, TNG reports that a Dutch appeals court had also last month ruled that the Nigerian subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell was responsible for oil pipeline leaks in the Niger Delta and ordered it to pay unspecified damages farmers.

    The decision went a step further than a 2013 ruling by a lower court, saying that Shell’s Nigerian subsidiary was responsible for multiple cases of oil pollution.

     

    More to follow…

  • UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson apologises, takes full responsibility as COVID-19 deaths surpass 100,000

    UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson apologises, takes full responsibility as COVID-19 deaths surpass 100,000

    United Kingdom (UK) Prime Minister Boris Johnson has offered his condolences to families bereaved by Coronavirus and said he took “full responsibility”, after the nation passed the grim milestone of 100,000 COVID-19 deaths.

    “It’s hard to compute the sorrow contained in that grim statistic, the years of life lost, the family gatherings not attended, and, for so many relatives, the missed chance even to say goodbye,” the PM said during a coronavirus news briefing yesterday.

    “I am deeply sorry for every life that has been lost and, of course, as prime minister, I take full responsibility for everything that the government has done.”

    On Tuesday, the UK death toll during the pandemic crept above 100,000 within 28 days of a positive test, as the government reported another 1,631 fatalities. It also registered 20,089 new cases of the virus.

    Labour leader Keir Starmer described the figure of 100,000 deaths as a “national tragedy”, while Liberal Democrat Ed Davey called for an immediate public inquiry.

    The PM was joined at the briefing by England’s Chief Medical Officer, Chris Whitty, who warned the UK would see “quite a lot more deaths over the next few weeks” before the effects of the country’s vaccine rollout would start being felt.

    As of Tuesday, more than 6.8 million people in the UK had received a first dose of one of the country’s three authorised COVID-19 vaccines, while 400,000 have received a second dose.

    Whitty also stressed that the new, more infectious B117 strain of the virus discovered in the UK last year had “changed the situation we’re in very substantially”.

    The variant has rapidly replaced old forms of the virus in the UK, and the government’s Chief Scientific Adviser, Patrick Vallance, said last week it may be 30 per cent more transmissible.

    The numbers of new Covid-19 infections in the UK are falling, but the country’s healthcare system remains strained, with more than 37,000 people hospitalised with the virus, according to the latest government data, published on Sunday.

    The UK’s COVID-19 death toll is the worst in Europe and the fifth-worst in the world after the U.S., Brazil, India and Mexico, according to data from Johns Hopkins University, in the United States.

  • COVID-19: NCAA issues protocol for passengers travelling from UK, South Africa

    COVID-19: NCAA issues protocol for passengers travelling from UK, South Africa

    The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has given out protocol for all passengers originating from the United Kingdom and South Africa effective from Dec.28.

    The NCAA Director General, Mr Musa Nuhu, issued the protocol in a letter to all Nigerian operators and foreign operators flying into Nigeria with a reference NCC/DG/AIR/11/16/286 on Sunday in Abuja.

    According to Nuhu, the move affected all airlines with passengers originating from the United Kingdom and South Africa regardless of transit arrangements.

    He said the Federal Government, through Presidential Task Force, had reviewed quarantine protocol due to the recent spike in cases of COVID-19 in Nigeria and reported highly transmissible new variant of the virus in the United Kingdom and South Africa.

    “For the two countries, passengers must present the following documents in order to be allowed to board their flight to Nigeria.

    “Pre-departure “PERMIT TO FLY/QR code“ generated from the Nigeria International Travel Portal (https://nitp.ncdc.gov.ng) showing evidence of payment for the post-arrival day 7 COVID-19 PCR test and;

    “Documentary evidence of a “NEGATIVE COVID-19“ PCR result done within 96 hours (4 days) of boarding from a verifiable laboratory or health facility,” he said.

    He said passengers would be received and processed separately by Public Health Authority on arrival in Nigeria.

    He further said that all passengers would be required to self-isolate for seven days after arrival followed by a COVID-19 PCR test.

    He stated that a dedicated register of arriving passengers from the United Kingdom and South Africa would be opened for enhanced surveillance and active enforcement of the protocols.

    “This shall be applicable to scheduled and non-scheduled flights conveying passengers originating from United Kingdom and South Africa.

    “The earlier quarantine protocol which became effective on Sept.18, 2020 shall continue to subsist for flight originating from other countries except for the validity of the Pre- departure PCR test result which now be 96 hours (4 days) from date of departure.

    “The effective date is Monday Dec. 28, 2020 Local Time (2301UTC), “ he said.

    The director general said punitive measure would be taken against who would fail to comply with the content of the letter.

    According to him, any airlines fail to comply will be fined three thousand five hundred dollars ($3,500).

    “Airlines may be required to return non-Nigerian defaulting passengers to point of embarkation. Repeated non-compliance by any airline will lead to the suspension of the Airline`s Approval/Permit to fly into the country,” he said.