Details of Diezani’s Foreign Diplomatic Passport Revealed in Interview with Dominica Officials

Details of Diezani’s Foreign Diplomatic Passport Revealed in Interview with Dominica Officials

While writing in the Huffington Post, a prominent journalist interviewed two officials from the Commonwealth of Dominica government on the citizenship status of the former Nigeria’s Minister of Petroleum Resources.

Journalist, Till Bruckner, writing in the Huffington Post, interviewed two officials from the Caribbean nation, the Commonwealth of Dominica government on the citizenship status of the former Minister of Petroleum Resources Diezani Alison-Madueke.

The Commonwealth of Dominica, like many small nations, allows for people who invest in the Dominican economy to receive citizenship under the law. This practice, which has been growing in popularity worldwide, is a major source of foreign direct investment into the Dominica, according to the reporting by Mr. Bruckner.

Vince Henderson, Dominica’s permanent representative to the United Nations, and Emmanuel Nanthan, the head of the country’s Citizenship by Investment Unit, were interviewed on questions surrounding Dominica’s Citizenship Programme and its efforts to increase foreign direct investment.

 

The issuance of diplomatic passports to non-citizens is a crucial aspect of the program as it encourages various foreign business leaders to serve as “ambassadors” for the Dominica, according to the Dominican officials.

 

Mr. Bruckner questioned the ethics and practice of granting these passports, citing Mrs. Alison-Madueke as an example of a passport holder who clearly is corrupt.

 

Both Mr. Nanthan and Mr. Henderson argued that the Dominica government followed its due diligence before issuing Mrs. Alison-Madueke her passport.

 

However, the embattled former minister was given her passport only 6 days after meeting with the Dominican Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit in London, leading to questions about how thorough or serious her citizenship process was.

 

The Dominica officials argued that Mrs. Alison-Madueke’s passport approval process was begun long before she met Prime Minister Skerrit.

 

When questioned on the secrecy behind the former minister’s appointment as the Trade and Investment Commissioner for Dominica, Mr. Nanthan and Mr. Henderson admitted that the Dominican government should have been more forthright regarding the appointment.

 

Mrs. Alison-Madueke has been in the UK receiving treatment for cancer since former President Goodluck Jonathan left office in May 2015. In October, she was arrested by agents of the National Crime Agency in the UK accused of money laundering and other financial crimes.

 

It has also been alleged that Mrs. Alison-Madueke was planning to flee the United Kingdom using her diplomatic Dominica passport but that plot was spoiled when the UK authorities arrested her and suspected accomplices.

 

Mrs. Alison-Madueke worked for Shell Petroleum prior to her appointment to the cabinet of former President Umaru Yar’Adua. Upon Mr. Yar’Adua’s death in 2010, President Jonathan appointed Mrs. Alison-Madueke to the Petroleum Ministry. She was widely regarded as one of the most powerful members of Mr. Jonathan’s cabinet.

 

Her tenure was marked by numerous questionable deals, including controversies over billions of dollars of oil revenues that were reportedly not deposited with the Central Bank of Nigeria.

 

Nigerian anti-corruption police investigators told SaharaReporters that serious investigations and collaboration with the UK, and the US would continue to determine the scale of corruption perpetrated by Mrs. Alison-Madueke and her collaborators. Earlier, her husband was arrested by agents of the anti-corruption unit accused of laundering over $600,000 for his wife.

 

Pastor Chris Oyakhilome and his wife, Anita, finalize their divorce

Pastor Chris Oyakhilome and his wife, Anita, finalize their divorce

The divorce proceeding between Chris Oyakhilome, the Senior Pastor of Christ Embassy and his wife, Anita, has been concluded. Anita’s UK based solicitors, Attwatters Jameson Hill, confirmed the dissolution of their marriage on their website. Anita says she is no longer part of Christ Embassy. Anita and Chris Oyakhilome got married in 1991 and have two daughters.

Rampage in Rivers State; 15 Dead, Scores Injured

Rampage in Rivers State; 15 Dead, Scores Injured

About fifteen persons were killed by suspected cultists in Omoku, headquarters of Ogba Egbema Ndoni local government area on Friday night. Community sources who did not want their names in print said some of those killed were beheaded by the assailants. They said the suspected cultists who were heavily armed struck in the community between the hours of 8pm till about 10pm unchallenged.

Ritual-killings The state Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Ahmad Muhammad confirmed the death of six in the sad incident, saying it was largely a battle for supremacy among rival cult groups  in the area. “The incident is reasonably believed to be a battle of supremacy between rival cult groups in the town. As it is now the situation is under control as more anti riot policemen were drafted to reinforce the existing security in the town. As for casualties, six dead bodies of the suspected cultists were recovered “, he said, The shooting created tension and panic in the council headquarters as many residents reportedly ran indoors. ” When we came out this morning we started hearing wailing in several homes. A man and his wife were among those killed. Some were even be headed “, one of the  sources said. This incident came barely twenty four hours a former member of the 5th House of Assembly  representing the local government area and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, Hon Monday Eleanya  was shot dead on Ada George road in Port Harcourt while driving out of his compound.

Ibori: UK police chief faces probe for alleged bribery

James Ibori

A Metropolitan Police chief, Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe, will be grilled by Members of Parliament this week over allegations that Scotland Yard and the Crown Prosecution Service were involved in a ‘‘deliberate cover-up’’ of damning evidence of police corruption.

According to the Daily Mail newspaper, a court was told that the Met and the CPS repeatedly concealed documents suggesting that officers, investigating a former Delta State Governor, James Ibori, for fraud, were paid to leak details of the inquiry that could have helped him evade justice in 2012.

The extraordinary case centres on Scotland Yard’s prosecution of James Ibori, who once worked as a cashier at a branch of Wickes DIY store in West London before becoming Delta State governor.

Ibori is currently serving a 13-year jail term for money laundering in a UK prison as well as his lawyer, who was also jailed for seven years after admitting fraud, although he claimed he was wrongly advised to do so by his then legal team.

One detective was said to have received at least 19 unexplained cash deposits, totalling thousands of pounds, into his bank account after illegally disclosing sensitive information, a judge heard.

But when the corruption allegations were revealed by a whistle-blowing lawyer, Bhadresh Gohil, he was accused of forging the evidence and charged with perverting the course of justice.

Police privately expressed fears that his devastating claims could undermine the £50m fraud trial.
Last month, the charges against the lawyer were dramatically dropped after the CPS was forced to produce crucial papers, which it had always insisted did not exist, that suggest serving Met officers took bribes.

Although the Met insists no corruption took place, the case leaves the Met Commissioner – already under fire for his refusal to apologise for the Yard’s disastrous historical sex abuse investigations – facing difficult questions from the Home Affairs Select Committee this week, as he was personally warned about the potential miscarriage of justice three years ago.

The CPS’s handling of the case, criticised by former police as well as the defendants, will also increase pressure on Director of Public Prosecutions Alison Saunders, who faced calls to quit over her failure to put Lord Janner on trial.

The Daily Mail further reports that a Met Commander, Peter Spindler, who reported directly to Hogan-Howie, told the BBC the corruption claims were bogus without having checked if documents were genuine.
Gohil told The Mail on Sunday, “I uncovered serious corruption, but when I tried to expose this, I was victimised. Astonishingly, the CPS used the might of the state and all its resources to cover up what had happened, and brought trumped-up charges to persecute me. The truth has finally unravelled.”

The chairman of the Home Affairs Committee, Keith Vaz, said, “Members have indicated they will want to ask the Commissioner, when he next appears before the committee, to deal with the latest developments which raise a number of new questions.”

Abia North: Kalu’s Candidature Good For Igbo Race, Says Ohaneze

The Chairman of the Caretaker Committee of the apex Igbo socio-cultural organization, Ohaneze Ndigbo, Chief Ralph Obioha, has cautioned the duo of Chief Igariwey and Dr. Nwaorgu against making comments on behalf of the body, noting that they both lack the official status to make decisions for the group.

He made this declaration while reacting to a counter-statement issued by Dr. Nwaorgu stating that Ohaneze denies endorsing the candidature of the former governor of Abia State, Dr. Orji Kalu.

Obioha explained that the endorsement of the businessman-cum-politician for Abia North Senatorial rerun is not out of place taking into consideration his contributions to the Igbo cause‎ and Nigeria in general.
According to the Chairman, it is unfortunate that Nwaorgu has the effrontery despite the expiration of his tenure as Secretary General of the body, to speak for Ohaneze Ndigbo when he has no official capacity nor moral right to do so.

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Obioha remarked, “considering our objective of repositioning the South East in all ramifications through the Ohaneze Ndigbo platform, we will not allow selfish and money-conscious individuals to distract us from forging ahead.

“The use of the apex Igbo body to meet selfish interests will no longer be tolerated.
“The likes of Gariwey and Nwaorgu are capable of destroying the reputation of the Ohaneze Ndigbo if not curbed immediately.

“Igariye who ceased to be chairman of Ohaneze Ndigbo two years ago…. He has been parading the doors of politicians for one favour or another in the name of Ohaneze”.

Affirming the endorsement of the former governor , Obioha added, ” having carefully reviewed the antecedents of candidates for the Abia North Senatorial District rerun poll, it is in the interest of the Igbo nation to throw their weight behind a strong advocate of the Igbo cause in the person of Orji Kalu.

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“It should be noted that the red chamber is a platform for people with political clout and pedigree. Kalu will use his network of contacts to ensure the correction of the imbalance in the South East.
“The cap fits Kalu”, he concluded.

The Chairman, while appealing to sons and daughters of Abia North to remain steadfast and committed to the candidacy of Kalu , added that the statement issued by Dr. Nwaorgu is misleading and false, noting that Kalu’s contributions to the society have earned him large followers over the years beyond the South East.

BREAKING NEWS!!! Biafra: We’ll Now Carry Arms in Self Defence – IPOB

BREAKING NEWS!!! Biafra: We’ll Now Carry Arms in Self Defence – IPOB


Members of the pro-Biafra group, Indigenous Peoples of Biafra, have resolved to carry arms from Wednesday February 17, 2016, ‘in self-defence’.

The group said in a release yesterday in Umuahia by its spokesperson, Emma Nmezu, that failure to carry arms had exposed its members to attacks and killings by security agents.

“Now, we have come to the painful but irreversible conclusion and determination to take our fate and destiny in our own hands. Starting from Wednesday, February 17, 2016, “Biafrans” will now be in the mode of self defence as enshrined by the relevant acts and declarations of the United Nations.

“Let no country or world leader attempt to tag us as terrorists because we are not terrorists, rather we are fighting for our survival and from being exterminated from the surface of the earth,” the release said.
“We shall defend ourselves with everything and anything necessary to avoid the continual killing of our mothers, fathers, and children. This is the time for all Biafrans to rise and defend themselves. We cannot fold our arms and watch them kill us the second time after killing over two million of us in 1968”.

The release added that in September last year, IPOB catalogued attacks on its members in a statement where it alerted the world on plans to provoke Biafrans into retaliation only for it to be tagged as a terrorist organization and Biafrans as terrorists.

BREAKING NEWS!!! Buhari Sacks Directors-General of NTA, NBC, NOA, 3 Others

BREAKING NEWS!!! Buhari Sacks Directors-General of NTA, NBC, NOA, 3 Others

 

 

The federal government has disengaged the heads of the six information-related parastatals under the ministry of information and culture.

According to Segun Adeyemi, special adviser to Lai Mohammed, minister of information and culture, the minister announced the disengagement during a meeting he held with the chief executives of the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA), Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), Voice of Nigeria (VON), News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Nigerian Broadcasting Commission (NBC) and the National Orientation Agency (NOA) on Monday.

“The minister directed the disengaged chief executives to hand over to the most senior officials in their various establishments,” Adeyemi said.

“He thanked them for their service to the nation and wished them the best of luck in their future endeavours. “The affected chief executives are the director-generals of NTA, Mr. Sola Omole; FRCN, Mr. Ladan Salihu; VON, Mr Sam Worlu; NOA, Mr. Mike Omeri; NBC, Mr. Emeka Mba and the managing director of NAN, Mr. Ima Niboro).”