Video - President Tinubu Address At The 78th Session Of The UN General Assembly

Bola Ahmed Tinubu, President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, addresses the general debate of the 78th Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations (New York, 19 - 26 September 2023). 

The UN General Assembly (UNGA) is the main policy-making organ of the Organization. Comprising all Member States, it provides a unique forum for multilateral discussion of the full spectrum of international issues covered by the Charter of the United Nations. 

Each of the 193 Member States of the United Nations has an equal vote. The United Nations is an international organization founded in 1945. Currently made up of 193 Member States, the UN and its work are guided by the purposes and principles contained in its founding Charter. 

The UN has evolved over the years to keep pace with a rapidly changing world. But one thing has stayed the same: it remains the one place on Earth where all the world’s nations can gather together, discuss common problems, and find shared solutions that benefit all of humanity.

Nigeria’s Ambassador to Spain, Demola Seriki, passes away at 63

 

 

 

 

 

The Nigerian ambassador to Spain, Demola Seriki has died at the age of 63.

The news of his death was made public in a statement signed by his children, the former minister was said to have passed away “surrounded by his family” on Thursday, December 15.

“It is with heavy hearts and profound gratitude to Almighty Allah that we announce the loss of our much loved and admired patriarch, husband, father, grandfather, brother, uncle, and friend,” the statement reads.

Born on November 30, 1959, Seriki was a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State, and a one-time Minister of State for Defence.

As Nigeria’s Ambassador to Spain, he had concurrent accreditation as a permanent representative of Nigeria to the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).

Vanguard

UAE 'bans entry' to all Nigerian citizens

The UAE has reportedly banned Nigerian citizens from entering the country, according to trading partners.

Immigration authorities in Dubai announced on Friday that new visa applications for Nigerian citizens will be rejected and current applications will be refused without refunding applicants.

A notice has been allegedly issued to its trading partners in Nigeria which includes travel agents

"All Dubai applications submitted are now rejected. It is general for Nigerians and approvals are on hold at the moment," the notice read, according to Nigerian media.

"Kindly advise your clients to resubmit C2=A0 applications when the issue is resolved between both governments."

"Kindly advise your clients to resubmit applications when the issue is resolved between both governments," the alleged notice reads.

The reports added that the UAE will keep this decision until diplomatic issues between Abu Dhabi and Abuja are resolved.

Last month, the UAE reportedly stopped issuing tourist visas to people aged under-40 from a number of countries, including Nigeria.

The New Arab has contacted the Nigerian Embassy in Abu Dhabi and UAE embassy in London for comment about the claims.

The New Arab

 

Nigeria receives China-made armed reconnaissance drones

The Nigerian air force has reportedly received a batch of China's Wing Loong II armed reconnaissance drones, once again showcasing China's advantages in the international drone market, including mature technologies, combat-proven results and reasonable prices, analysts said.

Citing a senior Nigerian Air Force official on Tuesday, Janes Defense Weekly reported on the same day that Nigeria has received a pair of Wing Loong II drones developed by Chinese state-owned arms firm Aviation Industry Corporation of China.

Air Commodore Ibikunle Daramola, the Director of Public Relations and Information of the Nigerian Air Force Headquarters, was quoted by the report as saying that Nigeria has joined China and the UAE as the only countries operating the Wing Loong II unmanned combat aerial vehicle.

The two Nigerian Air Force Wing Loong IIs, which can stay airborne for 31 hours in intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance mode and 26 hours in offensive roles, will add significant value to counter-insurgency and anti-banditry operations, the official said.

A Chinese military expert told the Global Times on condition of anonymity that the arms sale will further open up the global military drone market for Chinese defense firms, particularly in Africa.

China's drones have unique advantages on the international arms market, due to mature drone technologies, complete systems for setups, a variety of types and sizes of drones, much lower prices compared to Western products, and complete service chains including training and maintenance, the expert said.

Wang Ya'nan, a military aviation expert and chief editor of Beijing-based Aerospace Knowledge magazine, told the Global Times on Wednesday that China's armed reconnaissance drones have seen real combat in regional conflict.

In small scale conflicts, Chinese drones have carried out accurate reconnaissance and precision strikes on targets even in complicated terrain and weather conditions, Wang said, noting that this makes Chinese drones combat-proven.

Users of Chinese drones can rapidly boost their combat capabilities in domestic security issues and in regional conflicts, Wang said.

Developed by AVIC's Chengdu Aircraft Design & Research Institute, the Wing Loong II drone is a long endurance armed reconnaissance unmanned aerial system capable of firing dozens of weapons including missiles and bombs, the Xinhua News Agency reported. It is often compared to the US-made MQ-9 Reaper drone.

The Wing Long series also includes the original Wing Loong I and the upgraded Wing Loong I-D. As of December 2018, AVIC has exported 100 Wing Loong series drones since 2010, Xinhua said in a separate report at that time. More drones are believed to have been exported over the past two years.

By Liu Xuanzun 

Global Times

Nigerian Foreign Affairs minister Geoffrey Onyeama recovers from COVID-19

The Nigerian Minister for Foreign Affairs Geoffrey Onyeama recovered from the coronavirus after three weeks of isolation, the ministry said on Wednesday.

Onyeama had announced on July 19 that he had contracted the virus thereby becoming the first member of President Muhammadu Buhari’s cabinet to test positive for COVID-19.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs tweeted a video showing Onyeama being welcomed back by staff to his office as he resumed his duties.

“The Honourable Minister of Foreign Affairs, H.E. Geoffrey Onyeama resumes duty after testing negative for COVID-19. Welcome back Your Excellency!”

Onyeama took to social media to thank all those who wished him well during his recovery period.

“By the very special grace of God my latest COVID-19 test result came back NEGATIVE after three weeks isolation. I am eternally grateful to my family, the C-in-C and VP, the medical team, relations, friends, colleagues, religious leaders and numerous well-wishers, who through their care, prayers, fasting, messages of support and encouragement never let me walk alone,” Onyeama tweeted.

The news of Onyeama’s recovery will be welcomed as he has been instrumental in overseeing the evacuation of Nigerians abroad during the COVID-19 pandemic and working tirelessly to address Nigeria’s diplomatic matters.

CGTN

Dubai Crown Prince pays hospital bills of Nigerian mother stranded with quadruplets following CNN report

Dubai's Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has paid the hospital expenses of a Nigerian mother and her quadruplets stranded in the city with mounting medical bills, according to the hospital.

Suliyat Adulkareem, 29, gave birth to the babies, two boys, and two girls, at the Latifa Hospital for Women and Children on July 1.

They were born prematurely at nearly 31 weeks through an emergency C-section and placed on ventilators at the neonatal intensive care unit, the hospital said in a statement.

However, the family had no medical insurance and racked up more than AED 400,000 (about $108,000) in medical expenses since the quadruplets were born, their father Tijani Abdulkareem told CNN.

The Nigerian community and other nationals in Dubai rallied around them to help raise AED 42,000 (around $11,500) to pay part of the bills.
The Crown Prince stepped in to pay the bills after he came across the initial CNN report highlighting the family's story.
He was moved by their plight and informed his office to assist the family, the hospital said.

'A huge favor'
 
Abdulkareem told CNN he was shocked by the ruler's generosity, and the couple have decided to name two of their babies after him.

One of the girls will also be called Latifa after the hospital, he said.

"It's just a huge favor, and we are still in shock because we didn't even know how to get the money. I had been sleepless wondering how to pay the bill," Abdulkareem said.

Abdulkareem, a chef at a restaurant in the city, said he was distressed when he discovered his wife was going to have quadruplets.

Latifa hospital CEO Muna Tahlak said the hospital staff are "overwhelmed" that the country's ruler has pledged to cover the full medical bills of the quadruplets who are still being cared for at the health facility.

The babies, two boys and two girls, have gradually been taken off ventilators and two of them now weigh 1.8 kilograms. Doctors expect they will soon be strong enough to go home.

'Unbelievable support'
 
The couple, who live in Dubai, had planned to have the babies in Nigeria because they could not afford medical insurance but were unable to travel because of the coronavirus air restrictions that prevented commercial flights between the two countries.

Abdulkareem said his wife gave birth nearly two months earlier than her delivery date.

The elated father said the family has received "unbelievable" support from the Nigerian community, and various nationalities which has helped them pay for two months rent for a bigger place to accommodate the quadruplets.

"We have been getting calls from Portuguese and Brazilian nationals in Dubai. People have been trying to reach us. The Nigerian community has been following us every step of the way," Abdulkareem said.

This report has been updated to correct that Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum will pay the couple's medical bills.

By Bukola Adebayo

CNN

Video - Nigerian Foreign Minister denies allegations Africans are being mistreated in China

The Nigerian Foreign Minister has denied allegations Africans are being mistreated in southern China's Guangzhou. Geoffrey Onyeama says the city's control measures are not targeting Nigerians.

'Unacceptable' - Nigeria condemns treatment of citizens in China

Nigeria has condemned the "extremely distressing" and "unacceptable" footage appearing to show its citizens in China maltreated because of the coronavirus pandemic.

In a meeting with Chinese Ambassador Zhou Pingjian in his office in Abuja on Tuesday, Nigeria's Foreign Minister Geoffrey Onyeama said: "There were videos circulating on social media of very disturbing scenes and incidents involving Nigerians in the city of Guangzhou."

Onyeama said it appeared that Nigerians were being discriminated against at hotels and restaurants and being stigmatised as supposed carriers of COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus.

"We saw images of Nigerians in the streets with their possessions and this was, of course, extremely distressing for us at home," he said.

He said the situation was "unacceptable" to the Nigerian government and its people, and needed "immediate action" from the Chinese authorities.

The Chinese ambassador said Beijing was taking the issues the minister raised "very seriously" and said China would continue to foster cordial ties with Nigeria.

The conversation followed accusations of discrimination in the southern city of Guangzhou linked to the coronavirus pandemic.

Having brought under control the original outbreak centred on the city of Wuhan, Beijing is now concerned about imported cases and is stepping up scrutiny of foreigners coming into the country and tightening border controls.

And while Beijing has denied discrimination, Africans in China say they have become targets of suspicion and subjected to forced evictions, arbitrary quarantines and mass coronavirus testing.

Earlier on Tuesday, US fast-food chain McDonald's apologised for a sign in one of its restaurants in Guangzhou telling black people they were banned from entering.

On Saturday, the African Union expressed "extreme concern" about the situation in Guangzhou and called on the Chinese government to take immediate corrective measures.

Al Jazeera