Nigerian and Ghanian migrants targeted by rebels in Libya

A Nigerian migrant Godspower Wilfred,living in Libya has taken

shelter in a makeshift camp in the south of Tripoli. He is afraid for
his life; not only is he in the middle of a deadly and bloody conflict,
Wilfred is a target to Libyan rebel forces.
"If you go out in the streets, people will hold you and say you are fighting for Gaddafi. I am not a fighter," Wilfred said.

He is one of the many migrants from sub-saharan Africa suspected for being pro-Gaddafi forces and hunted down as such.
During his reign, embattled Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi had employed nationals from other African countries as part of a special protection forces.
Now the special forces are left without the protection of Gaddafi
and with the battle taking off in Tripoli, the migrants say "skin
colour alone is enough to mark them out as Gaddafi supporters."
Hassan Abdallah, a migrant from Ghana, finds himself in much the same situation as his Nigerian counterpart, Wilfred.
"Some people are saying that it's the blacks who co-operated with Libyan
soldiers to shoot them or whatever," Abdallah said.
"But we are not among them," he added.
According to reports, the bodies of at least 20 black African men were found outside Gaddafi's compound after rebels captured Tripoli, with their hands tied and a gun shot wound to the head.
With the hunt still on, Abdallah and Wilfred, alongside about 200 migrants, mostly from Nigeria and Ghana, make do with the
harsh conditions of their refugee camp in the south of Tripoli.

Nigerian immigrants clash with local residents in Spain

SPAIN- A group of Nigerians accused local residents Roma in Majorca of pushing a Nigerian, who fell from a balcony and died. Police, however, said the man had probably fallen accidentally when trying to cross from one balcony to another.

The incidence sparked of a fight between the Nigerian immigrants and the locals in a multi-ethnic neighbourhood in Palma, capital of the Spanish tourist island of Majorca thereby giving police time to patrol the area.

Five people were in custody, police sources said.

Two police officers were slightly injured in the violence that broke out on Monday, according to the daily El Pais.

Angry Nigerians accused police for failing to arrest the person responsible for the death and rioted for more than three hours, setting dozens of cars on fire and destroying property. Police fired rubber bullets to disperse the rioters.

The unrest occurred in the Son Gotleu neighbourhood, where nearly 40 per cent of the residents are foreign nationals. There was violence between Nigerians and Roma in 2009.

Pastor Adeboye (Daddy G.O) Blames Marriage Break-Ups On Sin

The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) in Lagos, Pastor E. A. Adeboye(Daddy G.O) says the increasing marital challenges in Nigeria is caused by people’s sinful lifestyles.

He said in his statement on Wednesday, signed by Pastor Goke Aniyeloye, that a lot of men and women were unmarried mainly because of sin.

Adeboye said that many Christians were unmarried today because they deviated from the word of God.
According to him, God’s unchanging nature and His steadfastness guarantee deliverance for his children and saves them from destruction by the devil.

He said that the most important thing in life was not the intensity of a person’s troubles but his ability to locate God in his crisis.
The pastor said that as God did it for the people of old, he would still do it for the present day Christians, adding that he never goes on break.

Adeboye said that God was willing to heal all the sicknesses of his people but stressed that sin could create a barrier to God’s desire to heal his children sometimes.
“God can do all things and God heals all kinds of marital sicknesses.’’

He disclosed that the RCCG would hold a prayer session for the singles and single parents who are hoping unto God for their spouses on 4 September.

Deportation flight of Nigerian woman canceled

The international community and human rights organisation should investigate this pathetic case involving a Nigerian woman who had earlier suffered miscarriage and the Irish authorities still went ahead with deportation plans despite a doctor's advice that she was unfit to fly.

Now Irish police insisted that the Nigerian who was bleeding as a result of a miscarriage in recent weeks was medically assessed as being fit to be deported.
However, controversy was to come following the manner in which Olayinka Ijaware, a mother of two, was being prepared for deportation to Nigeria on Tuesday night. The flight was later canceled without explanation.

Ijaware was brought to the Rotunda Hospital on Tuesday afternoon after suffering bleeding linked to an apparent miscarriage.

Supporters of the the Nigerian woman had said on Tuesday that the miscarriage occurred just hours before she was due to be deported. However, the woman said yesterday the miscarriage had occurred last month after almost eight weeks of pregnancy, but she had suffered bleeding and complications over recent weeks.

After being treated in the Rotunda on Tuesday, the doctor who dealt with her wrote a letter advising caution over her condition. “To whom it concerns, the above named patient is unfit for air travel if she is actively bleeding per vagina. If you have queries, please do not hesitate to contact us,” the letter said.

A spokeswoman for the immigration said that while she did not wish to comment on Ijaware’s case, she said it was the police's policy to ensure that anyone facing deportation was in a fit condition to fly.

“We would not place anyone on a flight that is not certified as fit to travel,” she said.

In this case, it is understood that the Garda National Immigration Bureau had a doctor at the airport who assessed Ijaware as fit to travel, as reported yesterday.

Ijaware, who has two children aged four and seven, has been living in Tramore, Co Waterford, for about four years.

While her application for asylum was refused, she is considering taking judicial review proceedings against her deportation.

Groups representing asylum seekers yesterday criticised the circumstances of the way she was deported.

Samuel Eto'o close to being highest paid footballer

Inter Milan will certainly reach a deal that will

send Samuel Eto’o to Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala, a transfer that could make the Cameroon striker the highest paid footballer in the world.

Anzhi is expected to give Eto’o a three-year contract worth €20 million ($29 million) per season, eclipsing the estimated €12 million ($17.4 million) that Cristiano Ronaldo earns at Real Madrid and the €10.5 million ($15.2 million) that Lionel Messi is paid by Barcelona.

Inter was negotiating with Anzhi officials in Milan for a transfer fee between €20 and €30 million ($29 and $43 million) for the 30-year-old Eto’o.

“We’re very close. We could close today, tomorrow or next week,” Anzhi representative German Tkachenko said late Wednesday, according to the ANSA news agency.

Eto’o also met with Anzhi officials in Milan on Wednesday.

Anzhi, from the troubled southern Russian province of Dagestan, is owned by billionaire oil tycoon Suleiman Kerimov.

Anzhi’s captain is 38-year-old Roberto Carlos, once the standout left back for Brazil.

The transfer fee would also make it one of the most expensive deals this season, near the €29 million ($42 million) Barcelona paid Arsenal on Monday to bring Cesc Fabregas back to his boyhood club.

The biggest deal during this transfer window was the 38 million pounds ($62 million) Manchester City paid Atletico Madrid for Sergio Aguero last month. Also, Paris Saint-Germain paid €42 million ($60 million) to Palermo for Javier Pastore.

Okonjo-Iweala sworn in as Nigeria's finance minister

Respected former World Bank managing director was sworn in as finance minister in an appointment that has raised hopes for reforms in Africa's largest oil producer.

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala resigned her position at the World Bank to take up the post in Nigeria, where the hopes of her turning the fortunes is enormously high.
Her appointment was among those announced by President Goodluck Jonathan af

ter he won April elections on a pledge to transform the continent's most populous nation.

However, many other cabinet appointments by Jonathan were criticised as lacklustre, and some analysts have questioned whether Okonjo-Iweala will receive the full backing she will need to push ahead with major reforms.

"The expectation, not just for Nigerians but for the whole world, is quite high," Jonathan said at her swearing in.

"People expect so much from you. Some feel that you have the magic wand to change everything. I believe with your level of experience and the support we will give you and the cooperation of your colleagues, all of you collectively, will help to change our own country."

Okonjo-Iweala previously served as Nigeria's finance minister between 2003 and 2006 and was lauded for having negotiated the cancellation of 18 billion dollars of Nigeria's debt. She also served briefly as foreign minister.

She will take over the finances of a country where two-thirds of government revenue and more than 90 percent of export earnings result from the oil-and-gas industry.

Nigerian GDP growth estimates have been put at more than seven percent for 2011, but most of the population lives on less than $2 a day and the oil industry provides few meaningful jobs for locals.

The previous finance minister, Olusegun Aganga, has remained in the cabinet and is now in charge of the ministry of trade and investment, but Okonjo-Iweala's role will include "coordinating minister for the economy."

Father of John Mikel Obi goes missing in Jos

Nigerian International and Chelsea of England midfielder John Mikel Obi's father has gone missing in Jos. The 50-something yr old man who runs an interstate transport company did not return home from work on Friday evening August 12th and has not been heard from or seen since.

Nobody knows where Mr Obi is or what happened to him and his phone has since been switched off. If it's a kidnap, the kidnappers haven't contacted anyone for demands.

Mikel is under a lot of stress, but he showed a lot of character and mental strength to play in Chelsea's first premiership game against Stoke on Sunday.

If it is abduction, it will be the second time a major Nigerian footballer has been affected after national team captain Joseph Yobo’s younger brother Norum was held hostage for 12 days in 2008.

Libyan rebels arrests a Nigerian

A Nigerian was amongst eight African men arrested by Libyan rebels engaged in a battle with troops loyal to Muammar Gaddafi in Zawiya on Sunday.
The Nigerian, Paul Joseph, with seven Africa men were arrested by the rebels and taken to the local intelligence building.
Residents in Zawiya shouted "mercenaries" at them as they were driven across the city to the building. The eight men were handcuffed and looked frigthened as they sat inside the building.
Nigeria's Paul Joseph said he was a worker in Zawiya and that

he was arrested by rebels at his aprtment.
"I left my seven month old pregnant wife behind in the flat, we've been trying to get out of Zawiya but could not."

Libyan rebels and loyalist to Muammar Gaddafi have been engaged in intensive fight for the control of Zawiya on Sunday, a day after opposition forces pushed from the western mountains into the strategic city in their most dramatic advance in months. The city of 200,000 just 50 kilometers west of Tripoli attempted to rise against Gaddafi months ago, near the start of Libya''s civil war, but was crushed. Zawiya has been a key target for rebels waging a new offensive from the mountains in Libya''s far west, near Tunisia''s border.

Three Nigerians Jailed Over London Riots

THREE Nigerians were handed a six-month jail term for ransacking an Argos store during last week's riots in London, United Kingdom.

They include two models of the same parents, who wept profusely as they were handed the jail term and the third, a law student, who got a heavier sentence, as he was handed a full year in jail.

Shonola Smith, 22, described as a bright student, who was scheduled to restart a university course next month and her sister, Alicia, had joined about 100 rioters, who stormed a Croydon shop on Monday, tearing apart display cases and looting the stock. She was arrested with her sister and their 22-year-old friend, Donness Bissessar, when police stormed the building on Monday night.

When Alicia was arrested she was carrying 10 packs of chewing gum, which she had stolen from a nearby Kwik Stop convenience store on the same day. She admitted stealing the items.

All three, who had no previous convictions, received the same sentence on Friday after pleading guilty to entering the store with intent to steal, at the Croydon magistrate's court.

They broke down in tears as they were led to the cells.

District Judge Robert Hunter said: 'The tragedy is that you are all of previous good character, each of you well educated. 'However, I can't ignore the context in which these offences were committed. You have played your part in a wider act where devastation was caused to businesses and local residents.

'In my view, although I'm retaining jurisdiction, the matter is so serious that only a custodial sentence will suffice. That, I hope, will serve as a deterrent to others.'

Clad in identical prison issue clothes, all convicts looked downcast in the dock as they exchanged glances with their parents in the public gallery.

Their lawyer told the court: 'I was taken by surprise. Talking to them and recently talking to their families, they come across as perfectly ordinary, reasonable, dare I say it, civilised young women.

'Their parents have found it really very hard to fathom what's going on. They have accepted their guilt, there's no doubt that they are remorseful.

'They all work. If it all kicked off again tonight I don't for one second think you would find these ladies anywhere near.'

The girls' stunned parents clutched hands as Hunter imposed the sentences and the girls were led to the cells at Croydon Magistrate's Court.

He told the defendants: 'The tragedy is that you are all of previous good character, each of you well educated. You have jobs. You have plans for future education. You have shown remorse and pleaded guilty. However, I can't ignore the context in which these offences were committed.' He added that he hoped the harsh sentence would 'serve as a deterrent to others.'

In another case, a teenage Nigerian law student, Akintunde Amosu, was among three university students jailed for a year each for 'scavenging' £4,500 worth of electronic gear and clothes during the riots.

Amosu, 19, a business and marketing student; Xavier Techie-Afful, 19, and his younger brother Javier, 18, were told at Camberwell Green Magistrates Court they had 'blighted their lives by a moment of madness.'

Magistrates worked round the clock to deliver swift justice to hordes of captured hooligans.

Ministry of Justice officials said 2,033 arrests had been made and 1,043 people had already been charged.

A boy of 13 who went into riot-hit Manchester with a hammer strapped to his leg was hauled before the city's magistrate's court. He was given a nine- month referral order after admitting possessing an offensive weapon without lawful excuse.

District Judge Khalid Qureshi said: 'If you had been 15, you would be going straight to the cells.'

Similarly, a girl of 14 was bailed after her mum admitted she had not seen her for two weeks.

The teen was accused of stealing clothes, CDs and perfume in Tottenham, North London. Neither of her parents was in London's City of Westminster Magistrate's Court to take her home and frantic calls were made to track them down.
Dozens were brought before the courts, accused of trying to rally the mobs online. Jamie Counsell, 24, allegedly used Facebook to organise an event in Cardiff called: 'Rioting, looting, robbing and burgling.' He was remanded in custody for a week by magistrates.

Insurance salesman Aidan Curwen, 18, was accused at Northampton Magistrate's Court of using a BlackBerry to urge 140 people to arm themselves with 'bats and weapons.'

A girl of 11 got a police warning for her involvement with a Facebook page inviting 400 to gather at a Poundland store in Plymouth, Devon, just as jobless Amed Pelle, 18, is bound for prison after he admitted using Facebook to encourage the 'killing of a million police officers' in Nottingham.

100,000 Nigerians apply for US visa weekly

The United States Ambassador to Nigeria, Terrence McCulley recently said over over 100,000 Nigerians apply weekly to visit the United States for various reasons resulting in a backlog of visa applications.

He said the US mission was open to discussions with the Nigerian government on whether or not to extend the validity of the visa. He also said that the embassy was working assiduously to finish up the accumulated backlog of applications which it already has.

The US ambassador has also assured that Nigerians who apply for visas would be treated with dignity and respect and there would be no unnecessary delays. And when in some cases, the visas are denied, it would be done in a dignified manner so that there would be no hard feelings on both sides.

The Ikemba Nnewi, Ojukwu is dead!

Ikemba Nnewi, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu,the fiery former Biafran leader wish of dying on January 13 was cut short today as he passed on at the age 0f 78 after months battling with a stroke in a United Kingdom hospital.

Ojukwu was born on November 4, 1933 in Zungeru, Niger State to Louis Odumegwu Ojukwu.

He had his early education in Lagos, before he left the country at 13 for the United Kingdom to study at Epsom College, England. He left Epsom at 18 for Lincoln College, Oxford.
At Oxford University, he obtained a bachelor's degree in modern history. He returned to Nigeria in 1956.
He later earned a masters degree in history at Lincoln College, Oxford University. Ojukwu joined the Eastern Nigeria Civil Service as an Administrative Officer at Udi.
In 1957, within months of working with the colonial civil service, he left to join the Army as one of the few university graduates taken as a recruit.
He rose to the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel and became the military governor of the then Eastern Nigeria until he announced the secession of Biafra from Nigeria.

A civil war broke out during which he installed himself as head of state of the People's Army. The war lasted for two and half years, ending on January 12, 1970. He went on self exile in Cote d' Ivoire until he was pardoned by former President Shehu Shagari.

Zimbabwe's Mugabe blasts Britain

Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe tells Britain "to put out your fires" and to stop interfering in his Southern African nation.

Mugabe spoke on Tuesday at a military parade the country's armed forces. He said " London is burning", referring to the three days of arson, crime and looting in the capital of its form er colonial master. He also refereed to recent financial upheavals in the United States as "problems" the country should attend to.
He said sanctions on Zimbabwe have stalled military trainings and modernization.


Mugabe said, "we don't have any fires here.please leave us alone."

Don't deport Nigerians from UK

It was with a shock believe to know that the Senate Leader Victor Ndoma-Egba proposed a bill that will compel the federal government of Nigeria to repatriate about 16,400 Nigerian in various UK prisons back to Nigeria and other convicted Nigerian prisoners serving various jail terms in other Commonwealth countries.
According to Senator Ndoma-Egba and his minds alike they are concerned that the government of the UK spends about 1.6 million pounds in a day to feed the Nigerian prisoners which they considered to be too much.

Please what interest has Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba and his supporters got on how much the UK spends in feeding Nigerian prisoners in the UK?
Can the federal government of Nigeria afford to spend about 1.6 million pounds on feeding only the assumed number of prisoners from the UK to talk less of about 3 times double of the UK number of Nigerian prisoners that you will be shocked to discover from other Common Wealth countries if repatriated?
Are Nigerian prisons better than the prisons in the UK that made Senator Ndoma-Egba think of bringing these prisoners home against their will? How patriotic is this bill? I hope that Senator Ndoma-Egba or other senators have not compromised their conscience with the UK government by proposing to include or to amend the constitution in pity to the UK government without consideration of Nigerian citizens. When did the Nigerian government become richer than the UK government? Why is this bill targeting only the UK government and Common Wealth countries, if it is for the general welfare of Nigerians?
Senator Ndoma-Egba, have you made a research to know how many Nigerians you are forcefully planning to deport back to Nigeria with this your bill? And is the federal government of Nigeria ready for the consequence?

People like us don’t accept this madness in the name of bill proposal. Please Senator Ndoma-Egba, did you consider the dangerous health implication the bad state of Nigerian prisons will pose for your planned deportees?
Did you consider that most people living in the western world do take preventive injections and tablets against malaria, typhoid, meningitis etc. before coming home because of Nigeria climate? Are you going to provide standard drinkable water or bottled water when you take them to that your disgusting prisons?
Did you consider that most of those Nigerian prisoners have contributed immensely to the development of the economy in the UK? Are you going to pay them part of the pension money they have worked for while in the UK when you and your fellow leaders are too busy increasing your allowances and salaries questionably and have refused to pay Nigerian pensioners their gratuity and entitlement as at when due?
Did you know that most of them may have been victims of racial discrimination and because people like you don’t care to help them get justice that is why they are in prison? Do you know that no sane person would like to exchange under any circumstance from a UK prison to that stinky, uncared environment with many untrained Nigerian warders in any Nigerian prison. Do you know that most of those people imprisoned in the UK and other western countries do work in the prisons and earn money?
Do you also know that most of them are equally learning handworks in the prisons? Do you have such corrective measure in that stinky corrupt country? Do you know that they are well feed? Have you been able to feed the prisoners in Nigeria satisfactorily? Do you know that when the UK prisoners are sick that doctors do attend to them, unlike self medication in your Nigerian prisons where a prisoner gives warders money to buy medicine for him or her like PR, Phensic, Panadol, Paracetamol or Choroquine etc. when sick? But when you are sick Senator you will run to the UK for treatment and yet you want to forcefully take those that have been opportune to enjoy such privilege like you. Why don’t you propose a bill that will make you not to run to the UK for medical check-ups? If you don’t have any bill to propose please sit down because you must not propose.

I have a better bill to propose than this bill. I propose henceforth that all our elected leaders from the President to the Local Government Chairmen, from the ministers to the commissioners and all the political appointees and all Personal Assistances are hereby banned from traveling out of Nigeria for medicall check-ups or treatment including past Presidents or head of States, Governors, senators, ministers and commissioners. Anybody that contravenes this is liabe to five years imprisonment without option of fine. This is a better proposal that will make our hospitals well equipped and I throw your bill and my bill to the public court.

Mr Senator Sir, since you want to be the minister for prisoners who cares so much about their welfare, why don’t you look into the situation where female prisoners in Nigeria are conceiving and bearing children under the watchful eyes of the warders? Why don’t you look at the situation that leads to so many people dying as a result of cholera or malaria etc. in Nigerian prisons? A prison to a large extent is supposed to be a corrective measure as I understood. In consideration to this, why don’t you make sure that Nigerian prisoners are reasonably engaged while still in custody so that when they come out they will be useful to the society and turn new leaves from what led them to prison? What we have in Nigerian prisons today is that either a prisoner comes out of prison with an infectious disease or worst than what she or he was before going to prison because of the “I don’t care attitude” of our so-called leaders who don’t care about the consequence of their actions on the citizens like the bill you are proposing. If you care so much why don’t you make a bill specifically that will make it compulsory for the federal government to try to bring home all Nigerians that are condemned prisoners in various countries like Thailand, Malaysia, China or Indonesia etc. waiting to be hanged because they are the ones that need help? Why not use this money that may be used in bringing these Nigerians home to improve the standard of Nigerians in other areas or Nigerian prisons if the money must be spent in prison related issues? Why is this bill more important and urgent now amongst all the problems facing Nigerians?

How are we sure that this is not another means of siphoning money through nepotism of giving the contracts of bringing these Nigerians home? Please Senator Ndoma-Egba, kindly take care of the prisoners in Nigeria first before bringing people that are in heaven in UK prisons in comparison to the hell fire called Nigerian prisons. Provide jobs for out of prison Nigerians like it would be in the UK before this abracadabra proposal. Are you trying to prove that you care so much about the welfare of the prisoners when you don’t care how and why they went to prison? Please, your help is absolutely not needed here and save yourself this energy. Mr Senator Sir, can you please explain to many concerned citizens how this your bill will improve the economy of Nigeria or will advance positively the lives of those affected Nigerians? Can you please Mr Senator make a letter written by any of these Nigerians in the UK prisons seeking your intervention of facilitating their repatriation back to Nigeria public and I will publish hundreds of mails and letters from Nigerians in Asia and Europe sent most times through failed Nigerian ambassadors to the federal government of Nigeria crying for assistance to get justice but people like you in power and their cohorts abandoned them.

In the words of Napoleon Hill “An educated man is that man who has learnt how to get what he wants without violating the right of his fellow man.” Whereas I agree that Senator Ndoma-Egba is exercising his legitimate right and wants to be counted as one of the vibrant senators in the senate, I do not agree that it should be done to the detriment of the masses who voted for him to better their living with qualitative bills and debates. While I congratulate the senators who are opposed to this bill I want to equally remind promoting senators that irrespective of how they lobby to legitimize this bill, that this bill as proposed by Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba violates the right of any affected citizen, and that the bill is sufficient enough to put many homes in Nigeria in sorrow and pains for too long if passed. I also want to inform the senators that this bill if passed, will make the injustice against Nigerians in the UK worst because so many more will be unjustly jailed. Knowing that it would be the easiest way to deport Nigerians the UK government will use this bill discriminatorily against Nigerians with kangaroo courts, and more miscarriage of justice against Nigerians should be expected. Therefore, I do hope and pray that the Nigerian senators will critically analyze the implications of this proposal and make sure that it does not pass the next reading.

While I pray for the death of this bill, I urge fellow Nigerians especially our press men and women to please help to unplug this root before it grows because we are all involved.

Uzoma Ahamefule writing from Vienna, Austria.

Farouk Abdulmutallab wants trial moved out of Michigan

Nigerian Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab charged with trying to blow up a plane near Detroit in 2009 accused US agents on Friday of failing to read him his Miranda rights and interrogating him while he was sedated and recovering from major burns soon after his arrest.

The Nigerian wants a judge to throw out statements made at University of Michigan hospital. He also asked that his October trial be moved out of Michigan because of the public's "overall hostility" toward him.

Last Friday was the deadline to challenge the government's evidence ahead of the October 4 trial in Detroit. Abdulmutallab insists on acting as his own lawyer, but he's being assisted by standby counsel Anthony Chambers, who signed the latest court filings.

At the hospital after his arrest at Detroit Metropolitan Airport, Abdulmutallab was sedated by medical staff but still interrogated by federal agents without waiving any right against self-incrimination, Chambers said.

The medication "literally rendered him incapable of voluntarily submitting a statement. ... The agents could have easily waited four to six hours as the hospital staff advised, but they knew at that moment the defendant was confused and unable to think clearly, therefore they seized the opportunity, violating all constitutional rights that one in the United States of America is afforded," Chambers wrote.

"During the entire interrogation the defendant feared for his life and was scared to even move around on his hospital bed," the attorney said.

US Attorney Barbara McQuade declined to comment and said the government would respond in court. In 1984, in a case from New York state, the US Supreme Court said there are circumstances where an immediate concern for public safety can trump someone's Miranda rights.

Separately, Abdulmutallab wants his trial moved to federal court in another state. He believes the jury pool is poisoned, partly because of widespread news reports of the Christmas incident.

"Many of the residents in the state are enraged that such an alleged incident occurred, not just in their country but in their home state, near their home city, at the airport that they frequent. ... It is without question that there is an inflamed public community atmosphere in Michigan toward defendant Abdulmutallab," Chambers wrote.

Suspected Nigerian drug trafficker dies on flight to Malaysia

Nigeria's National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) say a 25-year-old Nigerian man smuggling methaphetamine on a Malaysia-bound flight died from ingesting a kilogram (2.2 pounds) of it.

The NDLEA released a statement on Saturday which says Chilaka Ogbonna Emmanuel's death forced the flight from Doha, Qatar, to make an emergency landing in India, where an autopsy was performed on Friday.

The NDLEA said Emmanuel had begun his journey at Lagos' Murtala Muhammed International Airport on Tuesday.

Drug traffickers often use Nigerians as mules to carry drugs from to Europe, the United States and other locations, though the drugs typically ingested are cocaine and heroin.

14 year old girl electrocuted in Bayelsa

It was an unfortunate end to the life of a 14 year old girl, Loveth Chisom who was electrocuted as she plugged a domestic boiling ring to boil water.

The incident, which occurred at Amarata suburb of Yenagoa, saw neighbours trooping out to the scene of the incident to sympathise with the family.

Family sources said that Chisom was in the house with her little cousin, who witnessed the incident and ran out to shout for help as Chisom fell after the shock.

The little cousin, a six- year old girl whose name could not be confirmed, said

that her sister attempted to unplugged the electric boiler which she had put on to boil water for their food.

“I was with her when she plugged the water and went out to buy garri. So, when she came back, she tried to remove the boiling ring which shocked her and she fell down. So, I rushed outside and shouted for help.”

The step-mother, Mrs Kate Ani who was said to be away at the time of the incident, was in tears and refused to speak with newsmen over the incident.

Nigerian amongst war criminals living in Canada

The Canadian government recently released photos and information of 30 suspected war criminals thought to be living in Canada.

The alleged war criminals are from Africa- Somalia, Ghana and Nigeria — South Asia, Yugoslavia and Iraq. According to the Canadian government, they were “involved in activities that relate them to war crimes, crimes against humanity or genocide.”
Analysts say that Canada is taking a tougher line against illegal immigration and refugee applications. Canadian immigration officials have indicated plans to revoke citizenship of 1,800 people who obtained their status through fraud, the Wall Street Journal reported.

In asking for help rounding up the suspects, Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said: “Those who have been involved in war crimes or crimes against humanity will find no haven on our shores.”

Canada takes pride in its open immigration policies and has been criticized — by its own citizens and the United States — for being too lax in some respects. There is a move to align Washington and Ottawa’s border policies.

How the suspects entered the country is key to determine whether procedures are failing. As one government spokesperson said, “no system is foolproof.”

There is nothing wrong with being open to immigrants. That reflects Canada’s outlook on the world. But keeping out dangerous war criminals, terrorists and people capable of doing harm to society should be part of the policy, too.

Qatari riches transforms PSG

After years of underachievement, Paris Saint-Germain is making its mark on French football once again, with its new Qatari owners livening up a quiet summer in Ligue 1.

Qatar Sports Investments (QSI) strode into Paris in the close season and bought a 70 percent controlling stake in PSG, with their president Nasser Al-Khelaifi promising "to make PSG a great team and a strong brand on the international scene."

QSI is controlled by the Qatari Crown Prince Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, but he has placed Al-Khelaifi in charge at the Parc des Princes, as president of the club's supervisory board, and Al-Khelaifi appears so far to have made all the right moves.

Brazilian former Inter Milan coach Leonardo has been appointed as sporting director, while former club president Robin Leproux has been removed from his position and Antoine Kombouare has been retained as coach.

These decisions should go down well with PSG supporters already excited by the new financial muscle being flexed by their club.

Leonardo spent the 1996-97 season with PSG and he admitted to feeling proud on his return to the Parc, saying: "I'm really happy because I was chosen by people who really want to do something special.

"I'm happy to be part of this project. I had 14 very intense months here as a player and it was difficult to leave Paris. Today, being here makes me very happy."

Fans are pleased to see him back, and many will be pleased to see the back of Leproux.

If Leonardo wanted Leproux out for fear that the pair would step on each others' toes in transfer dealings, PSG's hardcore fans wanted rid of him because of the work he had done to repair the club's off-field image in his nearly two years at the helm.

It was he who blocked the renewal of 13,000 season-tickets in an effort to end a turf war between rival supporter groups that had reached a nadir with the murder of a fan before a game against Marseille in February 2010.

Crowds naturally declined as a result, and the ultras who were targeted will be placated by Leproux's departure.

Fans will also be pleased to see that Kombouare remains in charge, even if it remains to be seen how much patience QSI are prepared to show if the team starts slowly.

QSI may well have doubts about Kombouare's international appeal, but he is a cult hero at PSG, having won a league title, two French Cups and a League Cup during a five-year stint as a player in the capital in the 1990s.

And, while PSG's more recent history is one of underachievement, the signs are there that things are improving under Kombouare after he led the team to fourth place in Ligue 1 last season.

Leonardo's appointment was not finalised until mid-July, but no time has been wasted in terms of squad rebuilding.

Rennes goalkeeper Nicolas Douchez and Lorient striker Kevin Gameiro were recruited before Leonardo's arrival, while the deals to sign Valenciennes' defender Milan Bisevac, Blaise Matuidi from Saint-Etienne and Jeremy Menez from Roma had reportedly been instigated by Leproux before his departure.

Leonardo then moved swiftly to add Juventus midfielder Mohamed Sissoko and another goalkeeper, Salvatore Sirigu, from Palermo.

While publicly playing down his side's prospects, Kombouare is reported to have told his players that the title is the objective, and Paris must have a great chance, especially as more major signings are expected before the transfer window shuts.

Next up is set to be Argentine international Javier Pastore, after PSG agreed to pay his club Palermo a fee that could reach 43 million euros, a French record.

The City of Lights has long lacked a football team to match its own exalted stature on the European scene, but that could all be about to change, and French football, which has seen several top stars move abroad in the close season, will be all the better for it.

Bureau de change operators condemns circulation of fake currency

BUREAU de Change operators at the Murtala Mohammed International airport Ikeja, Lagos have condemned the circulation of fake foreign currencies in the country.

Recently, luck ran out of two ladies in their late 20s caught with fake US$2000 at the Hajj camp of the Bureau de change office while trying to exchange fake dollars for naira.

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BUREAU de Change operators have called for improved security from the police as well as improved surveillance among members. The association also said millions of naira have been lost to fraudsters as a result of fake foreign currencies warning that anyone caught will be handed over to the law enforcement agents for prosecution.

This is just as the body advised members of the public to refrain from peddling fake currency especially around the airport, stating that if caught any violator would be handed over to the police.

An official of the association was quoted to have said “We do need the police to do more and we have also improved on our surveillance. We know that over 300 members are registered with us and they have guarantors and we know them so they are dismissed or handed over to the police for any crime. In fact, we have rules and regulations which they abide to.”

The official recalled how some of their members were killed by fraudsters after inviting them to hotels to exchange money and vowed that none of their members will be do any transaction in hotels, eateries and other public places.