Arrested before payday, deported without paperwork, and now stonewalled by their former employers, hundreds of African migrants booted out of Abu Dhabi are attempting to restart their lives without essential documentation and funds.
The UAE claimed detention and deportation of over 400 persons in early September for offences such as human trafficking, assault and extortion — a claim that both migrants and human rights organisations have dismissed as false.
In the UAE, mass deportations of migrant workers regularly result in “wage theft”, with workers returning home without weeks, if not months, of unpaid wages.
Daniel Ojo, a 31-year-old maintenance worker, said his former employer owed him two months’ salary by the time he was deported to Nigeria.
“They owe me around AED 4,500 (N502,544). I chatted to my boss, then he stopped responding to my messages,” Ojo said. “He’s ready to not pay me because I’m not there anymore.”
Workers must be paid regardless of whether they were deported or had a criminal record, according to Saeed Alhebsi, director of the UAE’s foreign affairs ministry’s human rights department.
“Termination of residency rights would not preclude employees from pursuing complaints against employers for the non-payment of wages through legal channels. Complaints must, however, be filed within one year,” Alhebsi said in written comments.
The UAE has a population of almost 10 million, with over 80 per cent of them being expatriates who send money home.
Nigerians have taken to social media to react to a viral photo of veteran Nollywood actor, Chiwetalu Agu donning his Biafra regalia once again.
A Twitter user, @Ozii-baba shared the picture claiming that the movie star stepped out over the weekend wearing the same outfit that got him into trouble with the Nigerian Amy and DSS.
He captioned; ”Chiwetalu Agu no dey hear word. His ears na for fancy
As Egedege dey trend, Mazi made sure he wore his cloth of the rising son.”
Massive reactions trailed the post as some netizens hailed Chiwetalu Agu for his courage, while others advised him to thread with caution.
See some comments below..
@papalolo2123; They encouraged him the more .. If something never happens to you , you will be more afraid of it .. but when it finally happen and goes away , the fear dies . The fear of military and dss no dey chiwetaluagu mind again , he don overcome that stage.. same thing for sowore
@Iraborchijioke; Passion and Compassion is what drives him.. He is a great Man.
@sgdavo; A Man must stand for something or fall for anything
@ellissmenia; Nice one. it’s not a crime to wear clothe
@okwudilionoh; This is a fabric of many colour without description of the meaning of the colour. Any interpretation you get it is left for you.
@ezeghiee; All this our Legends, even Queen Theresa Onuoha should also put on the rising son. I love her so much. Legendary.
@Anayo_Ella; Exactly Hundred points symbol They have given him licence to wear it without fear.
@beyondkhaleb; The reason why the state has lost its monopoly of violence is that it has gone after soft targets and hardened them. What fear can a man who has seen the peak of embarrassment from security agents have again?
@great_onuoha; u didnt listen to his interview wt bbc wen he said next time in d dss ell he would try nd see nnamdi kalu …..Anu la ta echi bu nta ……..he is a true nd fearless elder
Chairman, Southern Governors Forum and Governor of Ondo State, Rotimi Akeredolu has said security agencies are scared of shooting herders wielding AK-47 because of who they are and where they come from in disobedience to President Muhammadu Buhari’s order.
Governor Akeredolu stated this on Monday, at the 27th Nigerian Economic Summit held in Abuja with the theme: “Securing Our Future: The Fierce Urgency of Now.”
Speaking on the contentious issue of grazing, the Governor blew hot, asking, “Grazing routes? Grazing routes to where? It is not going to work. There are things we had in the past.
“Don’t let us imagine it now. Time changes. Grazing with AK-47 is an assault. Ban on open grazing; we are doing it effectively in Ondo State,” he said.
According to him, “Nomadic pastoralist is not a new thing. There were nomadic farmers all over the world. I know of people, high ranking who have ranches today. They can showcase their cows.
“Why are we pushing these people out? It is a culture that must be discouraged in the interest of those who are involve
“Even with the President order that anyone with AK-47 should be arrested, how many have been arrested?” he queried.
He also warned against using semantics to romanticise terrorism, noting that the various criminal activities of kidnapping, bombing and assault on the people in some parts of the country which are being referred to as banditry must be appropriately addressed as terrorism
Governor Akeredolu and his Kaduna state counterpart, Malam Nasir el-Rufai, and others were among the panelists at the summit which centred on addressing the security challenges in the country.
Akeredolu said: “In Ondo State, we don’t have terrorism. Our problem is farmer/herder clashes and kidnap for ransom.
“We have drug abuse and agitation for self determination. We have always preached the multi-level policing in Ondo State. We believe in layers of security”.
The governor, who explained that although there are criminal trespasses which can be treated by the state, stressed that before the Amotekun corps was established, the Police were not always ready to make arrest.
“Today, if you trespass on other people’s land, the Amotekun will go after you and arrest you.
“They pay compensations to the farmers and when they fail they are in court. It is the only way you can send signals to the people.
“When you commit a crime and the hands of law doesn’t catch up with you, another person will repeat it.
“I can assure you that when you do not have an effective policing system, there is little or nothing a Governor can do.
“And the criminal trial is taking too long,” Governor Akeredolu said.
The Minister of Youths and Sports Development, Sunday Dare, called on security agencies to be on alert over threats made by former World Boxing Champion, Bashiru Ali popularly known as Bash Ali.
Ali at the weekend had released a video accusing the minister of extorting ‘millions of naira’ from him as part of the process to organise a world boxing title fight for him.
Ali in his video had alleged that the fight was allegedly directed by President Muhammadu Buhari.
However, Dare in a statement signed by his Special Assistant on Multimedia Toyin Ibitoye described Ali’s claims as defamatory, false, and unsubstantiated.
The minister said he would go ahead with the N5 billion suit against Bash Ali for defamatory allegations made in the past
The statement said, “This recent video is irrespective and in disregard of a pending libel suit initiated by the minister claiming damages to the sum of N5 billion against Bash Ali for defamatory allegations made in the past.
“Apart from aggravating the previous defamatory acts, in the present video, Bash Ali has threatened violence and disruptive acts against a functional unit of the Federal Government of Nigeria.”
The statement added that “as a responsible public office holder, the minister will not sit back and allow the threats materialize. If Bash Ali could have the effrontery to make and publicize a video where he not only made allegations against the person of the minister but also threatened to halt the operations of the Ministry of Youth and Sports development, then, it is compelling that the security agencies are put on alert so as to avoid a future situation of regret where things are taken for granted.”
Dare said he would, “on a personal note, diligently press his libel claims against Bash Ali and will also seek further remedies that the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria avail him.
“To this end, he has briefed Bode Olanipekun (SAN) of the law firm of Wole Olanipekun & Co to continue with the prosecution of the case.”
He said the statement became “necessary so to as inform discerning members of the public to disregard this latest antics, which is in continuation of a pattern from Bash Ali against two past Ministers of Youth and Sports Development and the current one. We also alert media outlets about the risks and consequences of disseminating such false and malicious stories.”
Islamic Cleric Sheikh Ahmad Gumi on Sunday warned that declaring bandits as terrorists will mark the end of Nigeria as a sovereign and united entity.
Mr Gumi, a retired army military officer and mufti, admitted that the devastation inflicted by rampaging bandits in Nigeria’s northwest amounts to terrorism, but President Muhammadu Buhari’s labelling them as such will invite additional consequences that will consume the entire country.
“The acts the bandits are committing now in NW have gradually over time become tantamount to terrorism because wherever innocent people are fatal victims it’s pure terrorism,” Mr Gumi said in a Facebook post on Sunday night.
The cleric warned that the moment bandits are designated as terrorists, “Islamic for that matter, the direct foreign Jihadist movements will set in in force.”
“Many teaming unemployed youths may find it palatable and attractive. Shouting ‘Allahu Akbar’ plus AK47 against a ‘secular’ immoral society where impunity reigns are the magnet for extremists and downtrodden – the majority of our youth. Already these deadly terrorist groups are fighting for the soul of these bandits,” he said. “This will give criminality a spiritual cover and remove the stigma of discrediting them with such crimes since now they are fighting a ‘Jihad’ as they will claim.”
Mr Gumi said, since Boko Haram has already gripped the North-East, separatist agitators in the South-East and South-West will easily seize on the lawlessness sweeping the northern regions.
“NE is already and is still devastated by this madness for over 12 years. If we allow, terror, to set in into these raw naïve unexposed bandits, NW will be in ruins sooner than later.
“Already IPOB are destroying SE, and Igboho has set the ball of confusion rolling in SW. For those who want to destroy the NW, it’s a good recipe.
“Turn bandits into religious zealots. Tell me, what then remains of Nigeria?” Mr Gumi said.
The mufti also dismissed his critics as “illiterates” for their failure to see his position since he started holding talks with bandits in their hideouts and publicly advocating for a civil resolution to their deadly exploits.
Presidential spokesman Femi Adesina recently smalled Mr Gumi as a “terrorist lover” for his open association with bandits killing and abducting civilians across the North-West.
The bandits carried out abductions of schoolchildren that forced school closures in Kaduna, Katsina, Kebbi, Niger and Zamfara. The Nigerian National Assembly also urged Mr Buhari to declare them terrorists.
In July, the bandits shut down a Nigerian Air Force jet in Zamfara and also raided Nigerians Defence Academy Kaduna the following month.
Although Mr Buhari acknowledged bandits have been terrorising the country, his administration has been reluctant to declare bandits as terrorists because they have yet to declare a political or religious goal, a key requisite in designating a movement as terrorists under international regulations.
See Mr Gumi’s full statement below:
Nobody doubts that sentimentalism today overrides sensibility in our polity. For the sake of posterity, some people will have to speak out. The acts the Bandits are committing now in NW have gradually over time become tantamount to terrorism because wherever innocent people are fatal victims it’s pure terrorism.
Yet, innocence these days is relative. We agreed if their children and women are also killed, they are guilty by association or collateral damage, so also the bandits may think the same way. It’s right for vigilantes to lynch Fulanis herdsmen or anyone that looks like them by profiling but wrong for the herdsmen to ransack villages in retribution. They are pushed to believe it is an existential war and in war, ethics are thrown to the winds.
Yet again, the only helpful part that is against Bandits is that no other than them are attracted to join them in the NW because of its ethnic tinge and coloration. However, the moment they are termed Terrorist – Islamic for that matter, the direct foreign Jihadist movements will set in in force. And many teaming unemployed youths may find it palatable and attractive.
Shouting ‘Allahu Akbar’ plus AK47 against a ‘secular’ immoral society where impunity reigns are the magnet for extremists and downtrodden – the majority of our youth. Already these deadly terrorist groups are fighting for the soul of these bandits. This will give criminality a spiritual cover and remove the stigma of discrediting them with such crimes since now they are fighting a ‘Jihad’ as they will claim. In such a situation, does the larger society -as it is- has the moral high ground to fight back? This is the most probable consequence, the price of which is not worth it. Nothing stops the kinetic actions from going on without the controversy of semantics.
NE is already and is still devastated by this madness for over 12 years. If we allow, terror, to set in into these raw naïve unexposed bandits, NW will be in ruins sooner than later. Already IPOB are destroying SE, and Igboho has set the ball of confusion rolling in SW. For those who want to destroy the NW, it’s a good recipe. Turn bandits into religious zealots. Tell me, what then remains of Nigeria?
I have started to get these raw bandits out of their misadventure but unfortunately, I have few helpers and a mountain of antagonists. The psychology in fighting natives is to induce a motive for their struggle if they don’t have one already, a motive that is manageable, and it is so managed. Unfortunately, reactions to threat in our nation is always slow and incoherent.
I hope another Igbo clergy goes into the IPOB militants likewise and talk sense into them, and another Pastor of Oduduwa land talks against the Igboho secessionist tribal movement by way of sensitizing people to the values of a cohesive nationalism that will guaranty freedom, equality, and justice for all. Religious forces can permeate hardened hearts where secular forces cannot.
Regrettably, people just sit down in the comfort of their rooms or parlors and make useless passing comments that only add fuel to the inferno of ethnic jingoism and bigotry. In the 21st century, Nigeria is hijacked by semi-illiterates and half-baked tribal heroes that have nothing to offer besides promoting tribal xenophobia.
Nigeria has over 250 ethnic groupings, it’s not possible to divide such a nation into tribal enclaves. Nigeria is multi-religious, even with one same religion or sect there is no harmony and understanding that can build a prosperous unified nation where tranquility and development will flourish. We are tired of these bogus destructive fruitless slogans!
Nigerians are in a daydream so long they act by Nerval impulses not by the dictates of their cerebral cortex.
A former Minister of Aviation in Nigeria, Femi Fani-Kayode has claimed that some external forces are bent on causing a war between citizens in Nigeria.
A Civil War happened in Nigeria, between 1967 and 1970. The war was between the government of Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra, a secessionist state which had declared its independence from the West African nation in 1967.
During the two and half years of the war, there were about 100,000 overall military casualties, while between 500,000 and 2 million Biafran civilians died of starvation.
‘FFK’ as Fani-Kayode is fondly called, warns against a repeat of the civil war in Nigeria.
“The day Nigerians appreciate the fact that there are foreign powers and forces that seek to divide us and spark off a second civil war in our country will be the day that they would have taken their first step to national redemption. May God help us,” Fani-Kayode wrote on his verified Twitter handle on Monday morning.
Since officially moving from the All Progressives Congress (APC) in September, the former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) politician has been preaching unity, and has lessen his criticism of the Muhammadu Buhari administration.
The World Bank has blacklisted 18 Nigerian individuals and firms for engaging in corrupt practices, fraud and collusive practices in its 2021 fiscal year report titled World Bank Group Sanctions System FY21.
The debarments were made by the World Bank Sanctions Board, World Bank Chief Suspension and Debarment Officer and the African Development Bank.
The debarments made by AfDB were recognised by World Bank, making the affected firms to be barred under cross-debarment policy.
Based on the World Bank Sanctions Board’s decision, Mr. Elie Abou Ghazaleh and Mr. Fadi Abou Ghazaleh, alongside their firm, Abou Ghazaleh Contracting Nigeria Limited, were debarred for six months for collusive practices.
Based on the decision of the World Bank Chief Suspension and Debarment Officer, a Nigerian firm, Swansea Tools Resources, was debarred for fraudulent practices for two years and 10 months.
Referred to under Sanctions Case No 651, it was disclosed that the firm misrepresented its past experience in its bid for a road maintenance contract.
The report read in part, “The SDO determined that the respondent, a Nigerian firm, engaged in a fraudulent practice by misrepresenting its past experience in its bid for a road maintenance contract under a state employment and expenditure project in Nigeria. The SDO imposed on the respondent a debarment with conditional release for a minimum period of two years and 10 months. As a mitigating factor, the SDO considered the respondent’s limited cooperation with investigators, noting that the respondent produced documents and agreed to be interviewed but did not accept responsibility for the misconduct.”
Another Nigerian firm, Juckon Construction and Allied Services Nigeria Limited, was debarred for corrupt practices for three years. Referred to under Sanctions Case No 649, it was disclosed that the firm made improper payment to a public official.
The report read, “The SDO determined that the respondent, a Nigerian firm, engaged in a corrupt practice by making an improper payment to a public official in connection with the award and/or execution of two waste management and refuse collection contracts under a state employment and expenditure project in Nigeria. The SDO imposed on the respondent a debarment with conditional release for a minimum period of four years.”
A Nigerian, Ms. Okafor Glory, was debarred for fraudulent practices for four years, while the firm involved, Unique Concept Enterprises, was debarred for five years for same reason.
Another Nigerian firm, Asbeco Nigeria Limited, was debarred for five years for corrupt practices.
The matter which involved Ms. Glory and the firm, Unique Concept Enterprises, was presented under Sanctions Case No 691.
It read in part, “The SDO determined that the respondents, a Nigerian firm and a Nigerian citizen, engaged in fraudulent practices by submitting false documents in connection with two refuse collection and disposal contracts under a state employment and expenditure project in Nigeria. In particular, the SDO found that: (i) the corporate respondent submitted a falsified income tax clearance certificate in its bids for the contracts; and (ii) both respondents submitted a falsified advance payment guarantee in connection with the execution of one of the contracts.
“The SDO imposed on the corporate respondent a debarment with conditional release for a minimum period of five years. On the individual respondent, the SDO imposed a debarment with conditional release for a minimum period of four years. As aggravating factors, the SDO considered that (i) the corporate respondent engaged in a repeated pattern of misconduct, and (ii) the individual respondent was the managing director of the corporate respondent.”
The matter which involved Asbeco Nigeria was presented under Sanctions Case No 675.
It read in part, “The SDO determined that the respondent, a Nigerian firm, engaged in corrupt practices in connection with an erosion control contract under an erosion and watershed management project in Nigeria. Specifically, the SDO found that the respondent (i) made a payment of N2m (approximately $12,000) to the project’s engineer to influence his actions in connection with the procurement and/or execution of the contract, and (ii) made a facilitation payment of N50,000 (approximately $160) to the project’s cashier to influence her actions in connection with the execution of the same contract.
“The SDO imposed on the respondent a debarment with conditional release for a minimum period of five years. In determining this sanction, the SDO considered as aggravating factors the respondent’s (i) engagement in a repeated pattern of corrupt activity and (ii) interference with INT’s investigation, noting in particular that the respondent engaged in acts intended to materially impede the exercise of the Bank’s contractual audit rights.”
Based on the World Bank’s Sanctions Board Decision, A.G. Vision Construction Nigeria Limited, was debarred for fraudulent practices and collusive practices for four years and six months.
Not included in the report is a recent debarment of a Nigerian consultant, Mr Salihu Tijani, who is a consultant for the National Social Safety Nets Project, a project designed to ensure cash transfers to poor and vulnerable households in Nigeria.
Tijani was barred for 38 months for engaging in corrupt practices.
Aside from the firms mentioned so far, there are some firms that were debarred by other multilateral organisations under cross-debarment, which makes them debarred by the World Bank.
Sangtech International Services Limited, Sangar & Associates (Nigeria) Limited, Mashad Integrated And Investment Co Limited, and Medniza Global Merchants Limited were debarred by the AfDB two years under cross-debarment recognised by the World Bank.
ALG Global Concept Nigeria Limited, Abuharaira Labaran Gero, Qualitrends Global Solutions Nigeria Limited, and Maxicare Company Nigeria Limited were debarred by the AfDB for three years under cross-debarment recognised by the World Bank.
In his opening message in the report, the World Bank Group’s David Malpass, stated that the bank had granted over $157bn to assist developing countries, as he emphasised the need for integrity and transparency standards in public finance.
“Since the beginning of the global pandemic, the World Bank Group has deployed more than $157bn in critical assistance to developing countries. The crisis has required us to be rapid and innovative in mobilising this historic support.
“Yet, for these resources to have the needed development impact on the hundreds of millions of people who live in extreme poverty, we must ensure that resources are used efficiently, effectively, and for their intended purposes. And that means remaining vigilant to the scourge of corruption and ensuring that we promote the highest integrity and transparency standards in public finance,” he said.
He further highlighted some of the consequences of corruption, which he said could be devastating.
Malpass said, “The negative impacts of corruption on lives and livelihoods are well known. Corruption diverts scarce development dollars from the people who need them most and corrodes the systems and services that are integral for reducing extreme poverty.
“Entrenched corruption also comes with greater economic costs for countries, as it distorts public expenditures and leads to inefficient allocations of financing away from productive investments toward rent-seeking activities. And corruption increases the costs of doing business and deters foreign investors from entering new markets.
“As the world moves toward recovering from the pandemic’s damaging impacts, these costs can also restrict the private sector, which plays an important role in revitalizing economic growth and development in our client countries,” he added.
A soldier whose name cannot be confirmed from the 22 Armoured Brigade of the Nigeria Army, Sobi Cantonment, Ilorin, Kwara State has reportedly beaten a female nurse to the extent of breaking one of her legs.
The incident, it was gathered, happened over the weekend when the soldier took his pregnant wife to the hospital for delivery.
Sources told Daily Trust that trouble started when the nurse asked them to buy delivery packs upon admitting the soldier’s wife into the labour room.
“Instead of looking for the delivery packs, the soldier rejected the demand arguing that the state government has provided such items for pregnant women that might have come for their delivery at the hospital.
“But the nurse told the soldier that he misconstrued the information, therefore, he needed to provide the delivery packs for his wife to assist her to make use of the delivery packs for his wife’s delivery at the labour room”, a source added.
“But, the statement got the soldier angry and beat the nurse to the extent that one of her legs was broken”, another source added.
The development led to the admission of the nurse who is currently receiving medical attention at the hospital.
Contacted on the development, a Public Relations Officer of the 22 Brigade Armoured Nigeria Army Sobi Cantonment, Ilorin, St. Sgt Wasiri confirmed the incident.
He said that the authority of the Cantonment has detained the Army officer in the guard room for further interrogation on the matter.
The Nigeria Correctional Service, Oyo State Command, says 837 awaiting trial inmates escaped from the Abolongo Correctional Centre in Oyo Town, when suspected gunmen attacked the facility.
Its Public Relations Officer, Olanrewaju Anjorin, made this known in a statement on Saturday in Ibadan.
Unknown gunmen invaded the facility on Friday at about 9.30 p.m after they used dynamite to blast the wall.
Anjorin said all the 837 awaiting trial inmates were freed by the attackers, pointing out that the cell housing the convicts and the inmates were not vandalised.
He said that a total of 262 escaped inmates had been recaptured, while 575 were still at large.
“The invaders arrived at the centre heavily armed with sophisticated weapons and after a fierce encounter with the officers on guard, they gained entrance into the yard, using dynamite to blast the wall.
“All the awaiting trial detainees were forced out of custody, the cells housing the convicts and the female inmates were not vandalised.
“Meanwhile, a total of 262 of the escapees have been recaptured leaving 575 still at large.
“Following the directives of the Controller-General of Corrections, Haliru Nababa, the State Controller, Noel Ailewon, has commenced the process of search and recapture after visiting the scene of the incident,” Anjorin said.
He said the state controller had assured the public that no effort would be spared to recapture the fleeing inmates.
According to him, the controller-general has solicited for credible intelligence to assist the security agencies in tracking down the fleeing inmates.
He said that the Oyo Custodial Centre was established in 2007 with a capacity of 160 inmates, but had a total population of 907 at the time of attack.
“Of this number, awaiting trial persons were 837 representing 92 per cent with just 64 convicts,” Anjorin said.
Hired Fulani mercenaries have been fingered as being responsible for Friday night’s attack on Abolongo correctional facility, Oyo town in Oyo State, Southwest Nigeria.
It was earlier reported today that prisoners have escaped from the Abolongo facility in Oyo town after some gunmen attacked the correctional centre and freed many inmates.
The gunmen arrived in their numbers around 11pm and started shooting sporadically. They then released inmates who fled to their various destinations.
It is understood that there was a bit of panic around the prison vicinity, as residents thought it was a robbery attempt.
The Nigeria Correctional Services (NCS), Oyo state Command, on Saturday morning confirmed the attack on the prison, stating that it is assessing the situation.
Now, fresh information coming in says the attack was planned and carried out by invading bandits.
According to Sahara Reporters, the gunmen carried out the attack specifically to free Iskilu Wakili, a prominent Fulani man accused of being among those behind most kidnappings and mindless killings in Ibarapa axis of Oyo State. Wakili, who has sight problem, was arrested by the Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC) in March. He was immediately handed over to the Police, and has since been in custody.
Information has it that gunmen struck on Wednesday on Oyo-Ogbomosho Road. And these invaders who attacked Abolongo prison are believed to be same terrorists who struck three days ago on Oyo-Ogbomosho road.
