The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Foreigners

  • US, UK say Boko Haram wants to kidnap foreigners in Nigeria

    US, UK say Boko Haram wants to kidnap foreigners in Nigeria

    Terror sect Boko Haram is said to be planning to kidnap foreigners in the northeast.

    The extremists, according to the United States and Britain, are targeting Western foreign workers in the Bama area of Borno State, close to the Cameroon border.

    Both countries said in separate travel advice that the affected area was “along the Banki-Kumshe axis”, which is near the border with Cameroon.

    The US embassy in Abuja said in a message to its nationals that the report was ‘credible’.

    Boko Haram has kidnapped thousands of women and children, including more than 200 Chibok school girls.

    At least 20,000 people have been killed since 2009, but abductions of foreigners have been rare.

    There was a spate of kidnappings of foreign workers in the wider north from 2011 to 2013, claimed by a Boko Haram splinter group, Ansaru, which was more ideologically aligned to Al-Qaeda.

    The leader of Ansaru, Khalid al-Barnawi, has been charged with the abduction and murder of foreign workers, among them an Italian, a Briton, a German, Greek, Lebanese and Syrians.

    Most were engineers or construction workers. International aid workers now account for the majority of foreign nationals in the northeast, with most of them based in the Borno State.

    Hundreds of thousands of people in the Lake Chad region require urgent food aid as a result of the conflict, which has made more than 2.6 million people homeless and ravaged farmland.

    Boko Haram has been pushed out of strongholds by military efforts but continues to control parts of the northeast.

    That has challenged aid groups’ efforts to address a hunger crisis that the United Nations says has left 4.7 million people in urgent need of food aid.

    Nigeria is part of what the U.N. has called the largest humanitarian crisis since the world body was founded in 1945. The World Food Program has warned of aid cuts if more help doesn’t arrive.

  • Youth council decries foreigners’ illegal activities

    The National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) has asked the Ministry of Interior, the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) and other law enforcement agencies to look into the atrocities of foreign nationals visiting the country.

    NYCN said many foreigners were taking advantage of the nation’s porous security network to get away with illegal activities.

    Its Acting President, Comrade Yussuf Kelani, said while Nigerians were being deported from foreign lands, many foreigners especially South Africans travel into the country with non-immigrant visas and take up contracts and employment without proper documentation process.

    With their visitors’ visas, they take up jobs without a work permit or even a permit to live in the country, Kelani said, adding: “It is painful and demoralising. While this is going on unnoticed and unattended to by appropriate law enforcement agencies, Nigerians with legitimate stay and proper documentations in these countries are being persecuted and harassed daily.

    “This is illegal, breach of international laws and constant abuse of our immigration laws. The growth in our economy is as a result of years of hard work, dedication and perseverance. Our government has made open the economy to businesses from all over the world in line with our brotherly gesture and diplomatic ties with other nations. It will then be unfair for foreign businesses to break the laws and engage in illegal activities in contravention of bilateral agreements.”

    NYCN urged the ministry and others to take pro-active steps in checking the status of foreign nationals and their papers.

    “While we (Nigerians) especially the youths that often visit or reside in other foreign countries do abide by the laid down principles and documentations of host countries, it is pertinent they do same in our country.

    “We are therefore demanding that the Nigeria Immigration declare a state of emergency on the documentation of foreign experts and workers in the country. A moratorium of one month should be declared for every person of such status to perfect their papers. Officers at the port of entries should be alert to their responsibilities and ensure proper screening at the air and sea ports,” Kelani added.

  • 39 insurgents, 40 foreigners arrested in Gombe

    The Army has confirmed the arrest of 40 foreigners, 39 Boko Haram suspects and over 42 Kalare boys in Gombe, Gombe State.

    Commander of 301 Artillery Regiment in Gombe, Brig.-Gen. Zakari Abubakar, spoke at the weekend at the end of the 2016 West African Social Activity (WASA) at the Army Barracks.

    He said: “The Army you used to know has gone hi-tech and revolutionised. This is what helped us defeat Boko Haram to the extent we have.”

    Gen. Abubakar urged the people to come up with information to help the Army defeat insurgency.

    “The only problem we have is the communities; the people have not accepted the Army the way they should. A lot of people do not volunteer information to us and we cannot do it alone.

    “So, we are call on the people around us to volunteer information to enable us perform even better.

    “When they see any undesirable element, they should tell us. But if you collaborate with insurgents and hide them, that will make our jobs difficult,” he added.

    Deputy Governor Charles Iliya noted that people staying till the end of the event showed their interest in the armed forces. This, according to him, called for gratitude to the military.

    “Gratitude for so many reasons. We would not be standing here like this but here we are today because peace has returned to the Northeast and Gombe State in particular.

    “That is why we are gathered here today, relaxed and enjoying ourselves.

    “We thank God, the Army and other security outfits for ensuring that we can sleep with our eyes closed these days.

    “We wish you more successes in the Northeast and other parts of Nigeria,” Iliya said.

  • 25 foreigners rescued as Navy foils hijack of ship

    25 foreigners rescued as Navy foils hijack of ship

    Twenty five foreigners including Britons, South Africans, Indians, Filipinos and Thais were rescued as the Nigerian Navy foiled an attempt by suspected sea pirates to hijack and abduct the 25 foreign nationals aboard a Maersk merchant ship.

    At the time of the attack, the Ship was carrying general cargo to Nigeria.

    Executive Officer of the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Pathfinder Navy Capt. Olusegun Soyemi, said yesterday at Onne Port in Rivers State, that the vessel berthed safely with the rescued crew members unharmed.

    Capt Soyemi said the crew members, including the ship’s captain, were of mixed nationalities consisting of eight Philippines, eight South Africans, five Indians, two Britons and two from Thailand.

    According to him, Safmarine Kuramo, a Maersk merchant ship registered in Singapore, was transporting general cargo from Port-Noire, Congo, to Onne Sea Port in Rivers.

    “On Jan. 5 at about 08:00 hours; Sufmarine Kuramo was attacked by sea pirates about 60 nautical miles off the coast of Bonny Island (in Rivers) Fairway Bouy.

    “We got may-day distress call that the ship was boarded by unconfirmed number of sea pirates after entering the nation’s territorial waters.

    “We immediately dispatched a warship (NNS Centenary) and attack gunboats led by Navy Capt. Chiedozie Okehie of the Eastern Naval Command to rescue the situation.

    “The sea pirates apparently on sighting advancing naval troops fled the scene for fear of being arrested by our operatives.

    “The operation was largely successful as all 25 foreign crew members, including the captain, are safe and unhurt, while cargo onboard the ship is intact,” he said.

    Capt. Soyemi said the pirates had fired several gunshots at the ships control room apparently to scare and subdue any resistance from the captain and crew members.

    Also, the Commanding Officer of NNS Centenary, Capt. Chiedozie Okehie, who led the operation, said the crew members locked and hid themselves in the ship’s citadel (engine room).

    He said the rescue was successful partly due to the courage and bravery exhibited by the ship’s captain – a woman.

    According to him, in spite all odds, she covertly gave navy operatives briefs while pirates on board the ship made several attempt to break into the citadel.

    “Immediately we got to the ship, we carried out thorough searches of the compartments and cabins to check if any pirate remained onboard.

    “Investigations are ongoing to ascertain what happened and who carried out the attack,” he assured.

    Capt. Okehie said the navy under the command of Vice Adm. Ibok-Ete Ibas remained fully committed to safety of the nation’s waterways and maritime environment.

    Speaking, the Captain of Safamarine Kuramo, Ms Zetta Gous-Conradie, a South African, described the experience as horrific.

    Gous-Conradie hailed the Nigerian Navy for its prompt response to her distress call.

    “We are very grateful when the navy came onboard because at some point we had thought the pirates would take us hostage.

    “The heat was stifling because the temperature was very hot at the citadel, and at some point my crew members and I had thought we would suffocate and die,” she said.

  • Navy foils hijack of merchant ship, rescues 25 foreigners

    Navy foils hijack of merchant ship, rescues 25 foreigners

    The Nigerian Navy has foiled an attempt by suspected sea pirates to hijack and abduct 25 foreign nationals aboard a Maersk merchant ship carrying general cargo to Nigeria.

    Briefing journalists on Sunday at Onne Sea Port, Rivers, Capt. Olusegun Soyemi, the Executive Officer of the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Pathfinder, said that the vessel berth safely with the rescued crew members unharmed.

    Soyemi said the crew members, including the ship’s captain, were of mixed nationalities consisting of eight Philippines, eight South Africans, five Indians, two Britons and two from Thailand.

    According to him, Safmarine Kuramo, a Maersk merchant ship registered in Singapore, was transporting general cargo from Port-Noire, Congo, to Onne Sea Port in Rivers.

    “On Jan. 5 at about 08:00 hours; Sufmarine Kuramo was attacked by sea pirates about 60 nautical miles off the coast of Bonny Island (in Rivers) Fairway Bouy.

    “We got may-day distress call that the ship was boarded by unconfirmed number of sea pirates after entering the nation’s territorial waters.

    “We immediately dispatched a warship (NNS Centenary) and attack gunboats led by Navy Capt. Chiedozie Okehie of the Eastern Naval Command to rescue the situation.

    “The sea pirates apparently on sighting advancing naval troops fled the scene for fear of being arrested by our operatives.

    “The operation was largely successful as all 25 foreign crew members, including the captain, are safe and unhurt, while cargo onboard the ship is intact,” he said.

    Soyemi said the pirates had fired several gunshots at the ships control room apparently to scare and subdue any resistance from the captain and crew members.

    Also, the Commanding Officer of NNS Centenary, Capt. Chiedozie Okehie, who led the operation, said the crew members locked and hid themselves in the ship’s citadel (engine room).

    He said the rescue was successful partly due to the courage and bravery exhibited by the ship’s captain – a woman.

    According to him, in spite all odds, she covertly gave navy operatives briefs while pirates on board the ship made several attempt to break into the citadel.

    “Immediately we got to the ship, we carried out thorough searches of the compartments and cabins to check if any pirate had remained onboard.

    “Investigations are ongoing to ascertain what happened and who carried out the attack,” he assured.

    Okehie said the navy under the command of Vice Adm. Ibok-Ete Ibas remained fully committed to safety of the nation’s waterways and maritime environment.

    Speaking, the Captain of Safamarine Kuramo, Ms Zetta Gous-Conradie, a South African, described the experience as horrific.

    Gous-Conradie hailed the Nigerian Navy for its prompt response to her distress call.

    “We are very grateful when the navy came onboard because at some point we had thought the pirates would take us hostage.

    “The heat was stifling because the temperature was very hot at the citadel, and at some point my crew members and I had thought we would suffocate and die,” she said.

  • Foreigners, BDCs abuse forex transactions, says CBN

    Foreigners, BDCs abuse forex transactions, says CBN

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said because of the ease of accessing foreign exchange (forex) in Nigeria, foreign businessmen particularly Ghanaian businessmen who access forex from Bureau De Chnages (BDCs) abuse the system.

    Speaking at the 20th Seminar for Finance Correspondents and Business Editors  on the impact of crude oil prices on external reserves and exchange rate management in Nigeria yesterday in Calabar, Cross River State, its Director, Monetary Policy, Mr. Moses Tule said the CBN has discovered that “Ghanaian businessmen come to Nigeria to source for forex because they believe it is easy to get it in Nigeria. As much as $1 million can be demanded by these foreign businessmen from BDCs.”

    He warned that the “private sector must not be predatory in their activities and should be patriotic for the economy to grow.”

    Tule noted that Nigeria is the only country in the world that funds BDCs and advised that since “achieving its objectives, the CBN should have withdrawn from funding the BDCs” and left them to source for their forex as other countries around the world do.

    Tule cautioned: “If we do not control our consumption pattern, we will not have a naira, because you cannot plan on the volatility of the price of crude oil alone. We need to change our structure of production to avoid a further forex crisis, and we need to be very careful how we share money from Excess Crude Account (ECA).”

    The CBN director also expressed concern that as the country approaches the end of the year, there has not been any implementation of capital projects across the country noting that “when a government does not execute capital projects, there is no future for the country. Execution of capital projects such as hospitals, roads and bridges help to reflate the economy with the jobs they create and the opportunities they provide.”

     Tule also said for the first time, the CBN contributed N2 billion for the rebasing of the economy last year. This amount he said is different from what the Federal Government and other agencies contributed to the exercise.

    In spite of these contributions, he said the economy is living on the illusion of being strong as some sectors considered informal were not captured in the rebasing exercise yet the country brags of being the largest economy in Africa.

    When asked to comment on what was responsible for the growth of the external reserve since the advent of the Buhari administration, Tule said: “The increased is because of Buhari’s directive, and the fact that he stood his ground, that all revenue collecting agencies must remit all revenue into the Federation Account with the CBN and close all other accounts. We cannot build reserves in a culture of impunity.”

    In his presentation, the Chief Executive Office, Financial Derivatives ,  Mr. Bismarck Rewane said Nigeria’s external reserve and foreign exchange rate crisis is tied to both resource and management problems as “resources are dwindling and management of these is not improving.”

    He said N2 trillion was spent on subsidy over time till 2012 for the importation of between 12 and 15 million litres of petroleum products, which did not make sense.

    The naira he said is “technically undervalued” and one way to address this crisis is to “get rid of subsidy.”

    The country he said “must align spending with earnings and the right people should be put in place to execute this. If subsidies are not removed, it will make the adjustment more painful.”

    The CBN he said has to be independent and autonomous, and if faced with difficult situations that goes against the grains of sound monetary policy, the best thing for the CBN governor to do if his advise is not accepted is to quit, because the policy environment has to be consistent.

  • Two foreigners charged with $8.8m fraud

    The Lagos State Government has preferred a four-count charge of $8.8million fraud against an Indian-Briton, Deepak Khilnani and an Indian, Dr Sushil Chandra, before an Ikeja High Court in Lagos.

    They were alleged to have duped a firm, Green Fuels Limited, the money in 2008.

     Khilnani, a chartered accountant, who was not in court was represented by his counsel, Kayode Ajekiigbe.

    The prosecutor, Akin George, alleged that the defendants “fraudulently tricked Green Fuels Limited to pay greater sum for a machinery purchased from Gentec Limited than it would have paid for such machinery.”

    The defendants were also accused of making false statement to the Corporate Affairs Commission “knowing same to be false, with intent to defraud the shareholders and members of Green Fuels Limited.”

    The offences, according to the prosecution, contravened Sections 390(6), 421, 422 and 436 of the Criminal Code Law, Cap C17, Vol.2, Laws of Lagos State, 2003.

    Khilnani’s counsel, Ajekiigbe told Justice Oluwatoyin Ipaye that his client was absent because he had not been served formally. Ajikiigbe said he was in court because of  a publication he read in a newspaper.

    George replied that the defendants’ counsel was in court because they were aware of the charge.

    Justice Ipaye adjourned the matter till August 12.

  • Chad to round up beggars, foreigners after Boko Haram attack

    Chad to round up beggars, foreigners after Boko Haram attack

    Chad plans  to round up beggars and some foreigners as part of a security clamp-down, days after two suicide attacks on its capital blamed on Boko Haram .

    The apparently coordinated blasts at two police stations  on Monday killed 34 people and injured dozens in the largest attack of its kind in the country.

    Chad’s Prime Minister Kalzeube Pahimi Deubet said yesterday that  the detained beggars and foreigners would be held in a centre in Baga Sola, a town near Lake Chad, close to the Nigerian border.

    He gave no details  on how the round-up would improve security or the nationality of the foreigners.

    Deubet also said that boating and fishing would be banned on parts of the River Chari that flows into the Lake Chad. Boko Haram militants have launched several deadly attacks around the lake, often arriving in motorised canoes from Nigeria.

    Chad is a member of the multi- national forces battling Boko Haram.

    Its capital,N’Djamena  is a command centre for the  regional anti-Boko Haram task force.

    It banned religious head-to-toe burqas earlier this week on the grounds that they might be used as camouflage by militants, though residents say people on the streets of N’Djamena have continued wearing them.

  • Foreigners contest court’s power to try them

    Foreigners contest court’s power to try them

    Fourteen foreigners charged with illegal dealing in petroleum products have challenged the Federal High Court’s jurisdiction to try them.

    The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on June 10 preferred a four-count charge of conspiracy, dealing in and storage of petroleum products without lawful authority against them.

    They are three Russians- Arthur Pakhladzhian, Vasaliy Shkundich, Kretov Andrey; a Japanese, Sergio Abgarian; and three Ukrainians-Vitalis Biluos, Laguta Olesksiy and Chepikov Oleksan.

    Others are seven Britons- Hilarion Teofilo Regipor Jr, Cadavis Gerardo, Baduria Benjamin, Naranjo Allian Antero Jr, Patro Christian, Alcayde Joel and Carantiquit Micheal Bryan.

    Three vessels-MT Anukt Emerald, Monjasa DMCC, and Glencore Energy UK Ltd were charged along with them.

    The commission said they committed the offence on February 27 by storing 1,500 metric tons of Automated Gas Oil (AGO) popularly known as diesel inside the MT Anuket Emerald’s Cargo tank.

    They also stored 3,035 metric tons of Low Pour Fuel Oil (LPFO) in other tanks.

    The offence contravenes Sections 4, 17, 19(6) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act and the Petroleum Act, Laws of the Federation.

    Yesterday, their lawyer, Mr Babajide Koku (SAN), said the court lacked jurisdiction to try them because they were not carrying out any illegal activities within Nigeria’s territorial waters.

    He said the accused were carrying out their activities within the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

    Koku argued that they were charged under the Miscellaneous Offences Act, which has no effect within the EEZ where the accused were arrested.

    “The Miscellaneous Offences Act under which the accused were charged doesn’t cover the jurisdiction in which the accused were arrested.

    “These are foreign nationals, the Miscellaneous Offences Act cannot apply to them and does not apply within the EEZ because it is oustide the sovereignty of Nigeria,” Koku said.

    The senior advocate urged the court to decline jurisdiction and strike out the suit, adding that the fiat of the Attorney-General of the Federation was not sought before the accused were brought to court.

    He cited Sections 31 and 34 of the Territorial Waters Act, which state: “A Nigerian court cannot try a person who is not a citizen of Nigeria for an offence committed in an open sea, and the consent of the AGF must be provided before such trial could commence.”.

    EFCC’s lawyer Mr Rotimi Oyedepo, urged the court to discontenance Koku’s arguments.

    He said the accused had been arraigned and their plea taken, pointing out that if the court’s jurisdiction is being questioned at this stage, it should be considered along with the substantive suit.

    Oyedepo said: “It is late for the accused after taken their plea to challenge the prosecutorial powers of the EFCC.”

    The AGF, he said, does not have the monopoly of prosecuting such matters, adding that the EFCC is vested with the powers to prosecute any economic crime whether it occurs at sea or land.

    Justice Ibrahim Buba reserved ruling till June 18.

  • Saudi to open stock market to foreigners

    Saudi Arabia said it’s on track to open the Arab world’s biggest stock market to foreigners in the first half of the year, confirming no change of policy since a new monarch ascended to the throne following King Abdullah’s death.

    The Capital Markets Authority has issued draft laws and is assessing investor feedback before it approves the regulations and sets an official date for the lessening of restrictions on the $484 trillion exchange, governor Mohammed Al-Sheikh said at a conference in Riyadh today. King Salman pledged on Friday to maintain the oil-rich nation’s current policies and asserted all ministers will stay in their posts.

    Abdullah, who on January 23 passed away aged about 90, helped drive a 27 percent stock rally in the past four years with a $130 billion spending plan. The market regulator’s comments today underscore the kingdom’s commitment to its economic plans as it seeks to boost non-oil industries amid plunging crude prices. The Tadawul All Share Index rose 0.7 percent in its first day of trading following the late king’s death, the largest increase among Persian Gulf stock markets.

    Bloomberg reported that the feedback process “indicates that there is genuine and significant demand and interest in the Saudi market,” Al-Sheikh said at the Riyadh conference.

    Investors from outside the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (BGCC200) aren’t allowed to invest directly in stocks and have to get access to the market through equity swaps and exchange-traded funds. Saudis accounted for 95.05 percent of the value of Saudi shares traded in December, with other GCC nations at 2.08 percent and others 2.87 percent, according to bourse data.

    “Markets can hence expect continuity from Saudi Arabia in the near term,” VTB Capital said in an e-mailed note on Jan. 23. “King Salman is thought to be more conservative than his predecessor, but also has a reputation of being a consensus builder in the royal family.”