James Ibori to complete his prison term in Nigeria

Nigerians serving jail terms in the United Kingdom will soon be transferred to Nigeria to complete their period, following an agreement signed between the Federal Government and the UK government.

According to a top government source, former Governor of Delta State, James Ibori, will be part of those that will be repatriated to complete their jail term in Nigeria.

Ibori still has more than six months to stay in prison.

The British government has also promised to give Nigeria one million pounds (about N280 million) to assist in the comprehensive reformation of Nigerian prisons to ease the stress of the inmates.

Tension in Bayelsa over Alamieyesiegha's planned extradition to UK

Fresh moves to extradite ex- governor, Diepreye Alamieyesiegha to the UK is generating serious tension in Bayelsa State. Already, many socio-political organisations have described the plan as a wrong step in the wrong direction.

 Chairman of the Bayelsa State caucus in the National Assembly, Foster Ogola, condemned the plan in Yenagoa during a function where Bayelsa State governor, Seriake Dickson, was endorsed for a second term by several Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and the civil society organisations.

He raised posers on the rationale for the extradition notice by Britain.

According to him, the latest moves were suspicious, adding that Alamieyesiegha had gone through a legal process, prosecuted by a competent court of jurisdiction, indicted, sentenced and was granted presidential pardon.

Diezani Played God, Even Jonathan Could Not Tame Her – Agbaje

Lagos-based constitutional lawyer, Fred Agbaje has urged the incoming ministers to learn from the ongoing trial of former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke.

Diezani is being tried in the United Kingdom (UK) by Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) for alleged bribery and corruption-related charges.

In an interview with Daily Independent, Agbaje said Diezani’s trial was a manifestation that the war against corruption spearheaded by President Muhammadu Buhari was gaining ground and that looters of the nation’s patrimony would not escape justice.

He lamented how Diezani behaved like “a thin god and was so powerful that even her boss, former President Goodluck Jonathan could not tame her.”

NNPC chiefs who served under Diezani are now singing to the EFCC

Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) are cracking down on a former managing director of one of the subsidiaries of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and three former executive directors of the oil corporation who served under ex-Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, reports The Punch.

The EFCC’s Subsidy Unit (SU) and the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) are taking turns to interrogate these former oil chiefs, according to the newspaper.

'Sahara Reporters suspicious motives for attacking Bukola Saraki' - press statement

This is a press statement from the office of Senate president, Bukola Saraki. Read below...

On Thursday, August 6th, 2015, SaharaReporters published a totally fabricated report entitled: "Nigeria's Senate President Saraki Lied In His Official Election Forms" on its website. In that dubious and utterly false report, SR alleged that the Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, is not a Nigerian citizen. The article went further, based solely on suppositions to infer that Dr. Saraki intentionally avoided question 10 on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) form for candidates contesting National Assembly elections and by so doing must have sworn to an oath of allegiance to another country, such as United Kingdom, the report concluded. 

The article also suggested that the Senate President avoided stating his place of birth on the INEC form, and that he is intentionally concealing his UK citizenship to avoid being disqualified in any way from political office.

Rivers State sponsored students in the U.S also cry out in distress

The Rivers state students in the UK say they have been abandoned. The ones in the US are also complaining. Below is what they wrote in;

Imagine staying in a foreign country where due to visa-type, you are not allowed to work as a student and yet you have had to feed and source for accommodation from strangers or squat with friends for about 4 months during the summer break. So far none of us have had to sleep under a bridge to pass a night, but time has come for us to resume school and we need help as we cannot do much to help our predicament. 

Nigerian man jailed in the UK after he falsely used online photo of a US soldier to dupe 2 women

  

27 year old Nigerian man, Tosin Olasemo has been sentenced to 4 and a half years in prison by a UK court after he was found guilty of using the photo of a US soldier fighting in Afghanistan to dupe two white women he met on a dating site of £250,000.

Tosin, who lives in Cardiff, UK, set up a profile on match.com using the photo of an unidentified US soldier in uniform, to trick his victims into believing he was serving in Afghanistan. He called himself Captain Morgan Travis to his first victim, and Michael Travis to his second victim and claimed to be based at Camp Joyce but he was actually living in Moira Street in the Adams down area of Cardiff.

During online conversations with his first victim, 47-year-old widow Tine Jorgensen, Tosin could see her via her webcam but he refused to show his own face, saying he was not allowed to show his own face because of security issues in Afghanistan, an explanation which looked genuine and acceptable.

Sad news for Nigerians that want to work in the UK with student visa

UK Daily Mail reports 

Foreign students are to be banned from working in Britain under a fresh crackdown on immigration ordered by Home Secretary Theresa May.

When courses finish they will have to leave the country before reapplying to return for a job. Ministers say the new rules, which will apply to all those from outside the European Union, will stop colleges being used as a 'back door to a British work visa'.

Official figures show that 121,000 non-EU students entered the UK in the 12 months to June last year, but only 51,000 left – a net influx of 70,000.

The government estimates that the number of foreign students coming to the UK will rise by more than 6 per cent a year up to 2020. Home Secretary Theresa May has taken action against 870 bogus colleges, banning them from taking foreign students.

But the Conservatives have vowed to go further, without the Lib Dems in power to force the rules to be watered down.

South African stowaway fell to his death from British airways jet as it approached Heathrow

According to a report by The Sun UK, a man believed to be South African fell to his death from a British Airways passenger jet as the plane approached Heathrow airport. The stowaway's body was found on an office block roof of a retail company along a busy road in Richmond, South West London.

Another man, also believed to be South African, survived the 8,000 mile, 11-hour flight from South Africa to London by holding on to the undercarriage of a British Airways Boeing 747. No one knows how the two men got there.

Senate President Bukola Saraki Receives British High Commissioner

Senate President, Bukola Saraki today eulogized the continued bilateral relationship between Nigeria and the UK, assuring that the present administration is determined to fulfill its obligations to the betterment of the nation. The Senate President while hosting the visiting British High Commissioner, Dr. Andrew Pocook in his office today commended him for reinvigorating the mutual understanding that exist between the two countries.

He stressed that Nigeria will always look forward to Britain in areas of infrastructural development and socio-security, "I am very delighted to receive Your Excellency in my office barely 48 hours to my resumption to office. This shows the level of commitment the British government has towards the course of Nigeria. 

14 Foreigners Arrested For Oil Bunkering In Nigeria

14 foreign nationals were arraigned yesterday June 10 before a Federal High Court in Lagos by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, for engaging in oil bunkering in Nigeria. The 

men are from Russia, Ukraine, Japan and the UK.

UK Prime Minister Promise Support For Nigeria Government To Tackle Corruption and Defeat Boko Haram.

Whatever will help the fight against corruption and terrorism in Nigeria is highly welcomed. There is no shame in this.