Tag Archives: Abike Dabiri-Erewa

“Postpone travel plans to US unless urgent”, FG warns Nigerians.

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Abike Dabiri-Erewa, senior special assistant to the president on foreign affairs and diaspora, has advised Nigerians who have no urgent reason to travel to the US to reschedule.

A statement signed by Abdurrahman Balogun, Dabiri-Erewa’s media aide, said it became important to issue the warning due to the reports of Nigerians being denied entry into the US.

“In the last few weeks, the office has received a few cases of Nigerians with valid multiple-entry US visas being denied entry and sent back to the Nigeria,” the statement said.

“In such cases reported to the office, such affected persons were sent back immediately on the next available flight and their visas were cancelled.”

Dabiri-Erewa said that “no reasons were given for the decision by the US immigration authorities” and said postponements should last until the Donald Trump administration’s policy on immigration is clear.

She said that the statement “is only to advise Nigerians without any compelling or essential reasons to visit the US to consider rescheduling their trip until there is clarity on the new immigration policy”.

Dabiri-Erewa urged Nigerians in the diaspora to abide by the rules and regulations of their host countries and be good ambassadors of the country.

There has been uncertainty around the world since Donald Trump announced a travel ban few weeks after his inauguration.

The travel ban, which affected predominantly Muslim nations, has since been suspended by a court order.

Trump is expected to roll out a revised immigration policy this week.

 

Source: The Cable

Why most Nigerians are corrupt – Abike Dabiri-Erewa

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The Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Diaspora Affairs, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, has said that contrary to the common belief that greed and poverty are to blame for the indulgence of most Nigerians in acts of corruption, lack of adequate sanctions is the reason corruption continues to thrive in the country.

She stated this while making her remarks at the flag-off of South-West Women Against Corruption (WAC) project in Lagos.

Dabiri-Erewa said that many young Nigerians are inspired to engage in acts of corruption when the society celebrates those who have been handed light sanctions for looting large sums of money from the national treasury.

She urged members of the public to rise against corruption and impunity in Nigeria; adding that the recession the country is currently facing was a direct product of corruption in the country.

The presidential aide called on women from the South-West geo-political zone to support President Muhammadu Buhari and Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) chairman, Ibrahim Magu, in their efforts to tackle the malaise of corruption in Nigeria.

Dabiri-Erewa further enjoined women to inculcate the qualities of contentment, integrity, value, virtue, and valour on their children, stressing that as mothers of the nation, women can be agents of change.

She said: “The reason there is so much corruption in Nigeria is not greed but lack of adequate sanctions.

“As long as we see corrupt people go to jail, come out and we celebrate, we worship, we clap for them; corruption will continue to thrive.

“I think we are at a point where we need to say ‘enough is enough! Never again should we go back to the days where we are coming from. Never again should we have anybody steal our commonwealth, live with impunity and get away with it.’

“That is why I want to appeal to you; let us support President Muhammadu Buhari’s fight against corruption. For the first time, we are having a president who is fighting corruption headlong. We need to support him.

“I am ashamed that at a function today, when I said ‘women against corruption’, people shouted me down. But I say ‘one bad apple should not spoils the whole bunch’

“We, as Nigerian women, are people of integrity, value, virtue, and valour. Most importantly, if we have contentment we have everything. If there’s no contentment we will keep stealing until we steal our on hearts out. We need to raise our children with the virtues of contentment.

“As women and mothers of a nation, we can be agents of change. We can do it.

“Let us also support the EFCC chairman, Ibrahim Magu because; we love what he is doing. We hope the Senate confirms him because we know that he will earnestly fight corruption.

“Let us all support the WAC project. If we get it right, the nation gets it right.

“Let’s support the fight against corruption and be determined that we will take Nigeria out of this recession, and this recession is corruption.”

“Further xenophobic attacks on Nigerians may have dire consequences”, Presidency warns South Africa.

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Abike Dabiri-Erewa, senior special assistant to the president on foreign affairs and the diaspora, says further attacks on Nigerians resident in South Africa may have dire consequences.

The Nigerian community in South Africa experienced two major attacks in the last one week.

Ikechukwu Anyene, president of Nigeria Union in South Africa, had raised the alarm over the attacks and looting of Nigerian-owned businesses in Pretoria West.

“As we speak, five buildings with Nigerian businesses, including a church have been looted and burned by South Africans,”  he had told NAN.

In a statement issued in Abuja, on Monday, Dabiri-Erewa called on the South African government to take decisive and definitive measures to protect Nigerian citizens and other Africans within its borders.

She advised Nigerians to be cautious as “it looks like South African government seems to have no control over these attacks”.

Dabiri-Erewa also called on the African Union (AU) to intervene in the renewed xenophobic attacks on Nigerians and other Africans in the country.

She said the attention of the AU was called because information had it that there would be more xenophobic attacks on foreigners on Wednesday and Thursday.

“These attacks should not be allowed to continue because it is a big setback,” she said.

Two weeks ago, Dabiri-Erewa met with Lulu Aaron-Mnguni, South African high commissioner in Nigeria, on the killing of Nigerians in his country.

Aaron-Mnguni had promised that the South African government was investigating the matter.

“We have lost about 116 Nigerians in the last two years. And in 2016 alone, about 20 were killed. This is unacceptable to the people and government of Nigeria,” Dabiri-Erewa had said.

 

Source: The Cable