Celplus Media

Seven  men, three of whom are Nigerians, have been jailed in the United Kingdom for counterfeiting the British passport and allied identity documents to help immigration offenders live illegally in the country. The jailed Nigerians are Abdul Azeeza, Alfred Adekoya and Victor Ariyo. Abdul Azeeza,58, who claimed to be  an ex-professional footballer  was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment by the Woolwich Crown Court which heard  that “it was at his address” that the factory producing the false documents was found. He was found with a false passport in his back pocket, a residency card in his wallet and “all the implements of making them on the kitchen table.” Alfred Adekoya of Kingslake Street, London was sentenced to 40 months and two weeks in custody after pleading guilty to conspiracy to manufacture a fake document. Adekoya, 47, had been seen frequenting Azeeza’s address and was found with three counterfeit British passports on his arrest. Victor...

Gov. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State has urged electorates in the state to take the ongoing Continuous Voters Registration seriously to enable them vote in their choice candidates during elections. Ugwuanyi made the appeal in Enugu on Sunday during a solidarity visit by Awgu South Constituency Solidarity Movement led by Mr Kingsley Ogbonna. The governor said that massive participation of the electorate in the exercise as well as in the choice of their leaders was the only panacea for good governance. He said that residents of the state needed to be mobilised to fully participate in the CVR in order to make their voices heard at the appropriate time. Ugwuanyi commended members of the constituency for the support they had shown to his administration, adding that he was comfortable with the calibre of the representatives of the people from the area. He appealed to them to take the message to all corners of their constituency to ensure that they create awareness and made...

The influx of thousands of Cameroonians from Southern Cameroon into the country is raising serious humanitarian concerns in Cross River State. No fewer than 36, 000 refugees are seeking asylum in the state, especially in the Northern Senatorial District, in the wake of the crisis rocking that part of the country. Food and health crisis is already threatening over 4, 000 refugees and their host communities in Boki Local Council of state, where residents fear that unless urgent steps are taken, Nigeria may witness a huge loss of lives in the affected areas. When The Guardian visited some of the communities recently, the women and children were looking haggard, malnourished and frustrated. Recounting their ordeals, they said they were not finding life easy since they became refugees in Bashu Okpambe/Bokim, Bashu Kaku, Abo Bonabe, Obisu, Danare and Okwangwo. One of the refugees from Kajivo Village in Southwest region of Cameroon, who is taking refuge alongside his family...

Former  Minister of Finance, Dr. Kalu Idika Kal, believes that the international community has reasons to be shocked that Nigeria, which has been playing leadership roles in Africa and beyond, has been unable to manage her own conflicts. Among other issues, he particularly condemned the spate of violence and killings in various parts of the country. He spoke to   WILLY EYA. How do you feel about the state of affairs in the country today especially with regard to the spate of killings in several parts of Nigeria by herdsmen? For a society and economy of our size and history and for what Nigeria should represent not just in the ECOWAS region but in the African continent as well, and above all, what it should represent as the largest black nation on earth, it is very important that we show example and that we maintain a certain level of decency and decorum. This we should do in contrast to the very sordid image of unimaginable barbarism and bloodletting that we have witnes...

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has signed an agreement with Swedish football coach, Thomas Dennerby, to join the Super Falcons as Head Coach. Ademola Olajire, NFF’s Director of Communications, said in a statement that the contract also enables Dennerby to come into the job with an assistant, Jorgen Petersson. “The assistant is another highly-experienced Swedish coach nominated by Dennerby himself. “Dennerby, who spent nine years with Hammarby IF of Allsvesnkan and played in the European Cup in 1983 and 1985, won 34 caps for Swedish junior teams between 1975 and 1981,’’ he said. Olajire said further that Dennerby coached the Swedish Women’s Senior Team between 2005 and 2012, during which the team played at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics. “His team also played at the 2007 and 2011 FIFA World Cup finals, winning bronze at the latter tournament. “He also served time as youth coach for Stockholm FA and worked in various capacities for former club Hammarby between 1...

The All Progressives Congress (APC) Committee on restructuring has recommended state police, amendment to Land Use Act, merger of some states and states’ control of minerals. Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir El-rufai, unveiled some of the recommendations when he submitted the committee´s report to the APC National Working Committee (NWC) on Thursday in Abuja. El-Rufai, Chairman of the committee, said that the committee also proposed the amendment to Petroleum Act to allow states to control their mineral resources “except when it affects offshore oil”. The committee was constituted by the APC to collate the views of Nigerians on restructuring. ´´Local government autonomy is a very interesting subject in which we were surprised at the outcome; there were divergent opinions on this issue. ´´We recommend that the current system of local government administration provided for by the Constitution should be amended. ´´States should be allowed to develop and enact laws to...

There has been an outpouring of grief following the sudden death on Thursday of Deji Tinubu, Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Commerce and Industry. The 54 year-old soccer enthusiast, reportedly slumped around 7.30pm during a five-a-side novelty football match in Epe on Thursday, on the sideline of a retreat for Lagos cabinet members, permanent secretaries, directors of ministries. After the application of first aid by the Lagos State Emergency Service failed to revive him, he was rushed to the Epe General Hospital, where he was confirmed dead. Mr. Kehinde Bamigbetan, Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy confirmed the death, expressing deep shock. “I spoke with him just one hour before the match and he was asking me how I was settling down to the new assignment as information commissioner. He never showed any sign of illness. He was even adjudged to be the fittest around during a compulsory routine medical check for everyone attending the...