It is always very embarrassing to read stories of Nigerians who go abroad to give the county a bad name. Nigeria became known as a country of internet scammers and fraudsters not because all Nigerians deserve to be so labelled, but when a few bad eggs behave wrongly in other countries, it is every Nigerian that suffers from the profiling that results and the reputational damage to the country. It got so bad at a point that the Nigerian green passport became a badge of dishonour at many international airports where special attention was always paid to any flight from Nigeria. And yet this is a country of very talented and distinguished persons who have excelled in virtually every field of human endeavour. Those who bring disgrace unto the nation may get sanctioned for their offences or crimes, but that is hardly ever where the matter ends. 

The latest story in this regard is that of a certain John Nwankwo Noko who was deported from Kenya on Saturday, May 4 by the Kenyan authorities, for beating his partner, identified as Ms. Pauline who happens to be a Kenyan. The story is all over the media in Kenya with the headline: “Nigerian man captured on CCTV assaulting Kenyan woman on wheel deported.”  The Nigerian was caught on a surveillance camera assaulting a woman sitting in a wheelchair. Two ladies were shown trying to restrain him, but he refused. The footage has since gone viral, generating outrage. The woman looked helpless. It was later revealed that John Nwankwo Noko even threatened to kill her and her domestic servants if any word about his actions got out, and in the event of a court case, if they dared testify against him. It was not the first time that Ms. Pauline would be subjected to such violence by her partner. She has children for the Nigerian who has been living in Kenya for years, and has a work permit.

Somehow, the video got out to the public. The matter was taken up by Senator Gloria Orwoba who reported it at the Karen Police Station. Kenyan policemen are like Nigerian policemen. They tried to slow down the case, quoting technicalities. Many would be familiar with what happens in Nigerian police stations. There is that story, probably apocryphal about a woman who had gone to a police station to lodge a complaint against her husband. 

The uniformed man at the counter listened carefully to her, only to ask her: “Madam, did you say this man is your husband?” The woman answered in the affirmative. 

The question was repeated. The woman again affirmed. 

“This your husband, he paid your dowry?” 

“Yes”, the woman replied. 

The policeman reportedly drew himself to full length and said: “Madam, this is a police station, we don’t inquire into husband-and-wife matters here. Go back home and settle with your husband, or call your in-laws make dey settle your quarrel. Person don pay dowry, put you for house, you dey come report am for station.” 

Kenyan policemen are probably like that too. But for the tenacity of Senator Orwoba who took up the matter with higher authorities. The matter went to court. The Ministry of Gender got involved. The Ministry of Interior too. 

However, the Kenyan authorities didn’t bother to spend too much time on the case. John Nwankwo Noko was treated with the utmost contempt that he deserves. Assault and threat to inflict bodily harm or kill, as well as domestic violence are serious offences in Kenya as they are in Nigeria. Section 251 at Chapter 63 of the Penal Code of Kenya prescribes a penalty of five years imprisonment for “assault causing bodily harm”. Section 74 of the 2010 Constitution of Kenya explicitly protects both men and women from any form of inhuman treatment. Taking Nwankwo through a court process would have meant using the Kenyan taxpayer’s money to engage lawyers and the court system, and having to battle with “technicalities”.  A quick decision was taken to expel him from the country. He was thus sent away as a persona non grata, in the fashion of a good riddance. But there are questions: what then happens to the innocent children he has left behind, and the woman in a wheelchair that he has traumatized? He has also given his home country, a bad name. Nigerians are not particularly popular in Kenya. Quite a number of our compatriots have been implicated in money laundering and drug trafficking cases in that country. From Central. Africa to the South, Nigerian men are also not popular with the male folk: they are accused of competing for the attention of local women and acting superior towards their hosts. Whatever may be the legitimate reason for this, the very picture of a man assaulting a woman in a wheelchair is horrendous. Violent behaviour of any sort is unacceptable. Hitting a defenceless person is clearly animalistic. Even animals sometimes behave better.    

This is why I think the wife-beater of Kenya should not just slip into Nigeria and feel relieved that he has escaped the wrath of the law in Kenya. He may have escaped lightly also because as in Nigeria, women in Kenya in a marital situation may refuse to testify against their husband in court. Women often imagine that the man will turn a new leaf, and may generally not want the marriage to end. See for example, Piah Njpoki Kagwai vs. Jackson Kagwai, High Court of Kenya, Civil Case No 1897 of 1986 where a husband gorged out his wife’s eye. Church teachings and local traditions have also not helped. But I think here in Nigeria, anybody that disgraces the country and misbehaves in diaspora should upon return to Nigeria either by deportation or relocation be made to face sanctions. The rule about double jeopardy should not apply to such persons. Our laws should be amended where necessary to make sure that any Nigerian in diaspora who becomes a persona non grata in his or her place of domicile abroad, also gets sanctioned in Nigeria for bad conduct. This is perhaps the only way we can send a strong message to those Nigerians abroad who give the entire country a bad image. We are quick to celebrate Nigerians who do well abroad, including those who may have taken up the citizenship of their host countries, in any case, the Nigerian Constitution allows dual nationality. By the same token, Nigeria must begin to name and shame those who bring shame to the country abroad. 

Thirty-four states in Nigeria have domesticated the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Act of 2015. Two states, Lagos and Ekiti have domestic violence registers where they list the names of those who have been found guilty of gender-based or domestic violence.  I don’t know John Nwankwo Noko’s state of origin but here at home, his name should be in the black book containing the names of wife-beaters in states where such exists. Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Chair of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) interacts regularly with Nigerians in Diaspora across the world and whenever she holds one of her interactive sessions, she always tells her audience that Nigerians have an obligation to respect the laws of the countries where they live. And of course, she always cautions against illegal migration. But there are persons in diaspora who will never listen or accept that they are Nigerian ambassadors abroad. The way to address the matter is to ensure that anybody that breaks the law abroad also faces the full wrath of the law in Nigeria. 

John Nwankwo Noko was deported from Kenya on Saturday. He is probably walking free in a part of Nigeria today. There is no way the Kenyan authorities would not have contacted the Nigerian Embassy in Nairobi to report his conduct before taking a decision to deport him. We have various desks at our embassies abroad: Immigration, Nigeria Intelligence Agency (NIA) etc. On arrival in Nigeria, Nwankwo Noko must have passed through a Nigerian airport. He should have been detained at the Nigerian end, and subjected to serious interrogation. Kenya sends away a violent man, and he would just walk into Nigeria like that? His name should be at every immigration post in Nigeria. Persons like him must never be allowed to go out of this country again. In some other countries, he will be closely monitored. There is the argument about the freedom of movement and how Nigerians are free to choose wherever they want to live in the world, but if anybody is found to have shown a tendency to disgrace this country abroad, such persons must also enjoy the status of a persona non grata inside Nigeria.  Whoever finds himself or herself in such circumstances may go to court to seek enforcement of fundamental human rights, and that is why we need to firm up our laws. Rights under the law are not absolute. We must strengthen our sanctions to re-build the national ethos and value system. 

The big problem we face however is the enforcement of laws. Nigerian state officials choose which laws to enforce and the ones that they would rather ignore. Our law enforcement officials routinely break the law. It is not that they do not know what is right, or their job, but there is an established culture of impunity that creates a crisis of moral turpitude. This is why civil servants will break the law and have the temerity to boast about it in the media; it is also why all kinds of men and women flaunting dubious wealth are among some of the most influential persons in society. The people of Kenya are happy that the problematic Nigerian who battered a Kenyan woman has been expelled from their country. They see the case as a milestone in their country’s fight against gender-based violence. Senator Orwoba who fought for the enforcement of Ms. Pauline’s right to dignity has been praised deservedly for her    intervention: a good case of a woman supporting another woman in distress, and a parliamentarian standing up for one of her constituents. Nigerian women in general have lessons to learn from her example, and all those SUV-riding lawmakers in Abuja and the states who only remember their constituents when they need votes should see what it means to be a lawmaker.     

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has described as unusual the absence of President Bola Tinubu and his deputy, Kashim Shettima, from the country at the same time, especially now that the nation is faced with daunting challenges.

Atiku said he has been inundated by reports of the absence of the President and Vice President from the country.

In a post on his X handle on Monday, Atiku said one might be right to assume that the country is on autopilot. 

He said: “I have been inundated by reports of the absence of the president and vice president from the country. It is unprecedented that the two leaders will be absent from the country at the same time, especially now that the nation is faced with daunting challenges. The question that readily comes to mind is who is in charge of government at this point, or is it right to assume that we are on autopilot?”.

DAILY POST reports that the visit by Shettima to the United States of America, for the US-Africa Business Summit, has created a sort of leadership vacuum at the nation’s seat of power as Tinubu is yet to arrive Nigeria, six days after attending the Special World Economic Forum WEF meeting.

The Federal Government has disclosed plans to delist the Naira from all peer-to-peer, P2P, platforms.

The Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Emomotimi Agama, disclosed this during a virtual meeting with blockchain stakeholders on Monday.

This decision aims to tackle the manipulation of the local currency’s value in the foreign exchange market.

The country’s regulatory authorities have been investigating and scrutinising cryptocurrency exchanges in recent months.

On March 8, the biggest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, stopped its Naira services.

In a heartbreaking turn of events, a Nigerian father mourns the loss of his 9-year-old daughter allegedly due to the malfunctioning of the Access Bank mobile app.

The tragic incident, reported by an individual identified as PIDOMNIGERIA, underscored the devastating consequences of technological failures in critical moments.

According to the distraught father, whose identity remained undisclosed, the inability to transfer funds using the Access Bank mobile app directly contributed to his daughter’s demise. The child, who was in urgent need of medical attention, was admitted to an emergency unit at a local hospital. Tragically, she was left unattended as her parent grappled with the financial constraints imposed by the malfunctioning app.

The father, described as a single dad working offshore, recounted his harrowing experience, stating, “Failure of Access Bank @myaccessbank app to function since yesterday has caused him to lose his 9-year-old daughter in a medical emergency.” His anguish and frustration were palpable, echoing the sentiments of many who have faced similar challenges with the bank’s app reliability.

Expressing his grief, the father lamented the recurrent issues plaguing the Access Bank mobile app, condemning the institution’s lack of accountability and explanation for the frequent disruptions. “Access Bank is a complete shit bank. They always have issues with their bank app without any explanation every now and then,” he asserted.

As the family mourns the loss of their beloved daughter, questions linger about the accountability of financial institutions in ensuring the seamless functioning of essential services, especially during emergencies.

Access Bank was yet to respond to the allegations or provide clarification regarding the reported app malfunction at press time, meanwhile, the grieving father and his family grapple with the devastating aftermath of this preventable tragedy.

One of the displaced squatters of the 86 apartments under the Dolphin Estate Bridge, Ikoyi, Lagos, Usman Hassan, has spoken about his time in the squalid environment.

Daily Trust reports that the Lagos State Government had on Wednesday blown a cover of the under-bridge apartments where tenants reportedly paid N250,000 annual rent.

The state’s Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, disclosed this in a video post via his social media account.

Wahab revealed that the 86 partitioned rooms, sized “10×10 and 12×10”. He added that the enforcement team of Lagos State’s Ministry of Environment and Water Resources had successfully removed all structures, including a container utilised for various illegal activities, from beneath the Dolphin Estate Bridge.

Sharing videos, the commissioner wrote, “18 individuals squatting illegally under the bridge leading from Dolphin Estate were arrested yesterday 30th of April, 2024 by the officials from the Lagos State Environmental Sanitation Corps. A total number of 86 rooms, partitioned into 10×10 and 12×10, and a container used for different illegal activities were discovered under the Dolphin Estate Bridge.

One of the displaced squatters, Hassan, a 75-year-old Ghanaian, said he was a teacher at Remo Divisional High School, Ogun State, before relocating to Lagos.

Also known as Baba Baraka, the Ghanaian said he was not around during the ‘attack’ by the Lagos officials and as such, he lost some of his belongings to the onslaught.

Telling a story behind the apartment, he told Daily Trust that “The man who owned the place doesn’t force people, the engineers working in this company (referring to a company around) begged him for their workers to stay nearby and when they need them for work, they’ll enter the place.

“I don’t know exactly how much he collects from them, but personally, he didn’t collect anything from me.

“For people paying, whether it’s N250,000 or not, I don’t know.”

He explained that people found a solace in the under-bridge apartments because “town is hard and they could not afford a rent within Lagos.”

Hassan said “You see, conditions are hard for people in the country and not everyone can afford houses in the town.

“I have been in this country since 1981 in Ogun State. I was a teacher at Remo Divisional High School for about 11 years before I came to Lagos.

“No work in town to survive on. This man pitied my condition and gave me space here (under the bridge). So, when this thing happened, I took my belongings and I am going again.”

Asked what is the hope for the future, he responded “well, everything is in the hand of God. Sleeping under the bridge is dangerous, but the condition of the country made people resort to this.

“As you are seeing me, I don’t have a dime in my pocket.”

Usena, a 12-year-old girl, from Kogi State, said her elder sister brought her from the village.

“She is paying but I don’t know the amount.

“I don’t really enjoy the place. I want a new house where I can stay with my parents in peace and enjoy ourselves. We had to stay under this bridge with my sister so we could raise money for a new house,” she told our correspondent.

Saheed Yusuf, a farmer, admitted that he paid an initial N40,000 and subsequently N20,000 quarterly to stay in the apartment.

My husband and I have been married for 16years and are blessed with 5children. I lost my job about 3years ago. Since then, I have been helping out my husband with his phone case and charger business, I now work at his stores so that we can make ends meet. But since all this economic crisis started when fuel price went up, business has not been so good. We hardly feed talk-less of being able to afford luxuries.

There is a man whose house is not so far from one of the four branches of my husband’s store. The man has been disturbing me for about 5years now. One day, we could not sell a single thing in our store, so on my way home, I thought to call this man to see if he could help with something. He sent me 50,000naira. I was so happy and felt indebted to this man. So a week after, I decided to go thank him at home. His family stay abroad. Omajuwa, I honestly was not planning anything than to thank him o but one thing led to another and we had sex. Since then, this man sends me money randomly. 500k today, 200k tomorrow, 300k next and has since been asking for when next we can see.

I have tried to tell him to stop because what happened was just a mistake. When I told my brother, he said I should just ignore the man and find a way to invest the money and better our lives. I am scared and confused. I have not touched the ones he sent after the 50k, should I ask for his account and send back his money? Should I keep it? Where will I tell my husband I got the money from? Should I tell my husband everything? Hope this man would not run to my husband and ruin my marriage in retaliation? What do I do? Please advise me.

A man, Babatunde Olaoluwa, who specialises in stealing of phones from worship centers has been apprehended by the men of the Ekiti State Police Command.

Olaoluwa was arrested on Saturday after he allegedly stole seven different phones belonging to members of Christ Apostolic Church, Ayegbaju-Ekiti in Oye local government area of the state.

The suspect, it was gathered, had gone to the church pretending to be one of their members and made away with the seven phones while the worshippers were in praises euphoria.

Ekiti Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Sunday Abutu, in a statement said that the suspect has during interrogation, confessed to have been operating around Oye and Ayegbaju-Ekiti with churches as his targets.

Abutu said that the suspect further confessed to have stolen a lot of phones from the Redeemed Christian Church of God and New Reality Christian Center, all in Oye-Ekiti.

“Investigation revealed that the suspect, after meeting his victims, normally send the stolen phones through motor park to Lagos where his friend will assist him to sell them and send the proceeds back to him through online transfer,” the police spokesman said.

Meanwhile, the seven stolen phones during his last operation have been recovered from him and some of victims of his atrocities have showed up to identify the suspect and their phones.

He said that the suspect will be arraigned immediately after the conclusion of investigation.

A pure water seller, Ugwu Augustus, has reportedly secured a full scholarship into the university after scoring 309 in the 2024 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination.

According to Alex Onyia, the founder of Educare, an organisation that prepares candidates for UTME, Augustus left school two years ago.

However, he was challenged to join the preparatory class and score above 300 to get a full scholarship.

“This youngster from my village, Ugwu Chibuzo Augustus, scored 309 in JAMB.

“He left school two years ago and has been selling pure water in the streets. We convinced him to join the JAMB prep programme with a promise that he would get a scholarship if he scored above 300,” Onyia shared on social media on Sunday.

Determined, Augustus picked up the challenge and began attending classes while still hawking his pure water after classes.

His handwork was rewarded when UTME results were released and he had an aggregate score of 309.

“During the monthly assessments, he has been consistent with good scores, and right now, he made it. He has now been enrolled in our full scholarship programme.

“He will be rewriting his WAEC from next week because he feels he is prepared enough to do it because of the intense training he gained since September.

“Interestingly, some of the students who did well in science said that Chibuzo usually stays back to explain further to them what was taught in class before he leaves for the day to sell pure water.”

Onyia added that Augustus has created a study group with his classmates where he coaches them on weekends, and all of them scored high.

“The group comprised of those who were desperately determined to score above 300 and get the scholarship. They became close friends and studied together always,” Onyia concluded.

Augustus’ story is one of the several success stories of this year’s UTME despite the poor overall numbers recorded.

According to figures released by the Joint Admission Examination Board, 77 percent of the 1,842,464 candidates whose results were released scored less than 200.

Just like Augustus, 15-year-old, Olukayode Olusola, caught the attention of many as he reportedly scored 95 marks in Mathematics.

The student of Government Secondary School, Omu Aran, Kwara State, scored a total of 362 marks, making him one of the top contenders for the highest scores in the examination.

A breakdown of his results showed that Olusola scored 95 marks each in Mathematics, Physics, and Chemistry and 77 in the English Language.

He hopes to study Electrical Electronics at the University of Ilorin, Kwara State.

The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) is set to boost electricity supply to domestic customers following its order, mandating a department within the Transmission Company of Nigeria, the System Operator (SO) to start capping power supply to international customers, which includes Benin Republic, Niger and Togo.

NERC’s order, published on Friday, May 3rd was dated April 29, 2024, and effective from May 1, 2024, was jointly signed by the commission’s Chairman, Sanusi Garba, and Vice Chairman, Musiliu Oseni.

The directive, outlined in a document titled ‘Interim Order on Transmission System Dispatch Operations, Cross-border Supply, and Related Matters,’ will be in effect for six months, subject to review.

The document stipulated that power delivery to Nigeria’s neighbours must not exceed six per cent of the total grid electricity at any given time.

The electricity sector regulator expressed concern about sub-optimal grid dispatch practices, which have impacted the ability of Distribution Companies, to meet their service tariff commitments to end-users.

“The reliance on limiting Discos’ load off-take while prioritising international off-takers and Eligible Customers has proven neither efficient nor equitable,” the document states.

Nigeria currently supplies electricity to neighbouring countries, including Benin Republic, Niger Republic, and Togo.

NERC emphasised that the current international and bilateral contracts with Generation Companies often fall short of industry standards.

It stated that many off-takers contracted bilaterally by Gencos exploit this prioritisation, exceeding their contracted levels during peak operations without penalties.

As an interim measure, NERC said the move is aimed at guiding the system operator and TCN in implementing Standard Operating Procedures to enhance transparency and fairness in grid operations.

The order also mandates the system operator to place interim caps on capacities supplied to international customers for the next six months, minimising the impact on domestic supply obligations by Gencos.

The document stated that the system operator must develop and present a pro-rata load-shedding scheme to ensure equitable load allocation to all off-takers (Discos, international customers, and eligible customers) during generation drops or grid imbalances.

“The system operator will log and publish hourly readings, enforcing penalties for violations of grid instructions and contracted nominations. Maximum load allocation to international off-takers in each trading hour shall not exceed six per cent of the total available grid generation.”

It added bilateral transactions between generators and off-takers require express approval from the commission.

The system operator and TCN must install integrated Internet of Things meters at off-take and delivery points to provide real-time visibility of aggregate offtake by grid customers.

Also, TCN announced the commencement of erecting two 132kV transmission towers at the Amukpe substation and restoration work on the Benin-Delta and Delta-Oghara 132kV double circuit transmission lines from May 4 to 17, 2024. During this period, bulk power supply to Benin Disco through specific feeders will be temporarily interrupted.

Part of the document read, “The commission hereby orders as follows: The system operator shall develop and present to the commission for approval within seven days from the issuance of this order a pro-rata load-shedding scheme that ensures equitable adjustment to load allocation to all off-takers — Discos, international customers, and eligible customers — in the event of a drop in generation and other under-frequency related grid imbalances necessitating critical grid management.

“The system operator shall implement a framework to log and publish hourly readings and enforce necessary sanctions for violation of grid instructions and contracted nominations by off-takers in line with the grid code and market.

“The aggregate capacity that can be nominated by a generating plant to service international off-takers shall not be more than 10 per cent of its available generation capacity unless in exceptional circumstances a derogation is granted by the commission.“The system operator shall henceforth cease to recognise any capacity addition in bilateral transactions between a generator and an off-taker without the express approval of the commission,” it added.

It urged “the system operator and TCN to immediately initiate and install integrated Internet of Things (IoT) meters at all off-take and delivery points of eligible customers, bilateral supplies, cross-border trades, and outgoing 33kV feeders of the Discos to provide real-time visibility of aggregate offtake by grid customers.

“The installation of and streaming of data from the IOT meters should be completed within three months from the date of this order.”

Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu, the Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, has said President Bola Tinubu should not be blamed for Nigeria’s current economic hardship.

Kalu stated this on Sunday while celebrating orphans, widows, people living with disabilities, and the aged at his Bende, Abia country home to mark his 53rd birthday.

According to him, Tinubu is working assiduously to fix Nigeria’s current economic ordeals which were occasioned by the errors of the previous administrations in the country.

“The hardship we are passing through was not caused by this man. It’s a piled-up case of previous administrations and how they mismanaged one or two things.

“We cannot continue to live in lies thinking that all is well. Tinubu wants to clean up the place so that we can have a sustainable livelihood. Let’s keep supporting and encouraging him,” he said.

He predicted a brighter future for the country after the current turbulence, urging Nigerians not to give up but to repose confidence in the current leadership of the country.