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A coalition of Northern groups, including the Arewa Youth Consultative Forum, on Tuesday, gave all Igbos resident in the 19 states of the North a three-month ultimatum to quit or be forced out after the expiration of the October 1, 2017 deadline.

“We are also telling our brothers (northerners) out there in the South-East to get prepared to come back home,” the National President, AYCF, Yerima Shettima, said at a press conference in Kaduna.

The ultimatum followed a successful sit-at-home order enforced by the Nnamdi Kanu-led Indigenous People of Biafra on May 30, 2017 which the five South-East states complied with.

The ultimatum was handed down at a well attended press conference held at the Arewa House, Kaduna, on Tuesday.

The text of the press conference signed by Nastura Ashir Sharif (Arewa Citizens Action for Change); Alhaji Shettima Yerima (Arewa Youth Consultative Forum); Aminu Adam (Arewa Youth Development Foundation); Alfred Solomon, (Arewa Students Forum); Abdul-Azeez Suleiman (Northern Emancipation Network), as well as Joshua Viashman, who signed on behalf of the Northern Youth Vanguard.

The National President of the Northern Emancipation Network, Abdul-Azeez Suleiman, who read the text of the press conference, noted that the Igbo had become a threat to national unity, .

He noted that the action of the North was necessitated by the persistence for the actualisation of Biafra by the Igbo, saying this had led to the impediment of other people’s rights in the South-East by ‘the Indigenous People of Biafra and its overt and covert sponsors’.

Suleiman said, “With the effective date of this declaration, which is today, Tuesday, June 6, 2017, all Igbo currently residing in any part of northern Nigeria are, hereby, served notice to relocate within three months and all northerners residing in the South-East are advised likewise.

“All northern civil societies and pressure groups are, by this declaration, mandated to mobilise for sustained, coordinated campaigns at their respective state Government Houses, state Houses of Assembly, local government council secretariats and traditional palaces.

“Our first major move shall be to reclaim, assume and assert sole ownership and control of these landed resources currently owned, rented or in any way enjoyed by the …Igbo in any part of northern Nigeria.”

Suleiman warned that the failure of the Igbo to heed the relocation order, the group would mobilise the people of region against them (Igbo).

During the question and answer session, the National President of the Arewa Youth Consultative Forum, Alhaji Yerima Shettima, warned that their threat must not be taken with levity by the Federal Government.

When asked whether the Arewa Consultative Forum, Northern Elders Forum and other bodies in the region were contacted, Shettima said they did not need the permission of the elders because according to him, ‘they are part of the decadence in the North’.

“Never again shall we allow any group, (northern) elders to take us back. The ACF was part of the decadence of the region,” he added.

Reacting to the development, the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the apex socio-political body of the Igbo, demanded ‘urgent action’ from the country’s security agencies.

Ohanaeze also urged the Igbo in the North to be ‘vigilant’ while going about their activities.

The Deputy Publicity Secretary of the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Mr. Chuks Ibegbu, who spoke with one of our correspondents in Enugu, said the security agencies, particularly, the Department of State Services and the police, should take immediate steps to forestall any plan to launch attacks against the Igbo in the North.

“The DSS, the police and other security agencies should take note of the statement by the Arewa Youth Consultative Forum and the other Northern groups for issuing this threat against the Igbo.

“It should not be seen as an empty threat; urgent action is needed to foil the plan to attack the Igbo in the North. It happened in the past and we don’t want it to happen again.

“In fact, Yerima Shettima should be arrested by the DSS immediately. We are watching to see what the DSS would do in this situation.

“Shettima’s statement is treasonable; he is inciting one section of the country against another section and we know from experience that this sort of thing could lead to a civil war. His utterances could destroy this country.”

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“Twin Warrior”: Paul Okoye Accuses Peter Of Song Theft, Vows To Release ‘Original Version’

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Paul ‘Rudeboy’ Okoye, the Nigerian singer, has accused Peter ‘Mr P’ Okoye, his twin brother, of alleged intellectual property theft.

Mr P recently released the single ‘Winning’ — just a few months after the brothers confirmed that Psquare, their shared music group, was no longer active.

However, in a recent Instagram post, Rudeboy claimed that the song was his, stating that it was meant to feature on his upcoming album. He further alleged that the producer hijacked the track.

“Written and sang by Rudeboy. Produced by same producer. Now how come? Now am I supposed to release another version? Mr Producer, your case is for another day,” he wrote.

“Just a simple thing, bring 6 songs, let me bring 6 songs. I submitted 6 songs to the so-called management. Why re-singing my own song? word for word. Song that was supposed to be in my album next year June.”

In another post, the singer vowed to release “original versions of any copied songs,” adding that “the days of manipulation are over.”

“The days of manipulation are over. And to the management, make I hear any song wey na only me sing, I go release the original version. Oloriburuku! Music is not that hard,” he wrote.

Psquare split in 2017 following a feud between Peter Okoye and Paul. Though they reunited in November 2021, their reconciliation was short-lived.

Paul recently revealed another fallout, accusing Peter of orchestrating his arrest by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Peter, however, denied the allegations and accused Jude Okoye, their older brother, of diverting millions of dollars from their joint account into a secret company.

Paul also expressed frustration over his past role in the music group. He claimed to have done most of the work while others benefited.

Mr P has yet to respond to his brother’s recent allegations.

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US Court Sends British-Nigerian To Seven Years In Jail Over $5m Cyber Fraud

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Oludayo Adeagbo, a British-Nigerian, has been sentenced to seven years in prison for his role in a multimillion-dollar business email compromise (BEC) scheme.

According to the US Department of Justice, Adeagbo, who also goes by John Edwards and John Dayo, conspired with others to steal over $3 million from various entities in Texas, including local government bodies, construction companies, and a Houston-area college.

Adeagbo and his co-conspirators also defrauded a North Carolina university of more than $1.9 million.

The case began in August 2022 when Adeagbo and two other Nigerian citizens, Donald Echeazu, 42, and Olabanji Egbinola, 44, were extradited from the United Kingdom (UK), where they had been residing, to face charges of conspiracy, wire fraud, and money laundering.

The US Department of Justice stated that the offences were committed in North Carolina, Texas, and Virginia.

On April 8, Adeagbo pleaded guilty in two cases against him in North Carolina and Texas for participating in a business email compromise scheme, which is also referred to as a “cyber-enabled financial fraud” scheme.

A business email compromise scheme can be initiated by scammers creating fake accounts that mimic companies a business regularly deals with.

Court records revealed that Adeagbo and his co-conspirators gathered information about significant construction projects across the United States, including a multi-million-dollar project at a university in North Carolina.

“To execute the scheme, Adeagbo, Echeazu, and others registered a domain name similar to that of the legitimate construction company in charge of the university’s project and created an email address that closely resembled that of an employee of the construction company,” the Department of Justice said.

“Using the fake email address, the fraudsters deceived and directed the university to wire a payment of more than $1.9 million to a bank account controlled by an individual working under the direction of Adeagbo and his co-conspirators.”

Adeagbo and his co-conspirators employed the same tactics in Texas, targeting local government entities and universities by impersonating construction companies. They stole over $3 million from the scheme, bringing their total haul to $5 million.

Adeagbo has been ordered to pay $942,655.03 in restitution and will serve seven years in prison.

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Nigerian-American Oye Owolewa Re-Elected To US Congress

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Oye Owolewa, a Nigerian-American Democrat, has been re-elected as the shadow representative for the District of Columbia (DC).

Owolewa, a PhD graduate from Northeastern University in Boston, made history in November 2020 when he became the first Nigerian-American elected to Congress.

He secured 164,026 votes, or 82.84 percent of the total votes cast in DC.

His role, while not officially recognized by the US government as a full member of Congress, is to advocate for the district’s interests, particularly its bid for statehood.

On Thursday, Owolewa expressed his gratitude to DC voters via a post on X, thanking them for their continued support.

“Thank you DC again for giving me chance to serve. I also want to thank the organizations that have supported, partnered with and endorsed me,” he wrote.

While shadow representatives like Owolewa do not have voting power in the US House of Representatives, they play a key role in pushing for recognition and state-level advocacy for DC residents, who are otherwise disenfranchised at the federal level.

Owolewa has consistently championed the cause of DC statehood, which has become a central focus of his work.

The re-election took place on November 5, the same day as the US presidential election.

In that election, former President Donald Trump defeated Vice-President Kamala Harris, securing over 270 electoral votes to win a second term.

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