Tag: US

  • US imposes visa ban on individuals involved in election rigging in Some Nigerian states

    US imposes visa ban on individuals involved in election rigging in Some Nigerian states

    The United States has imposed a visa ban on individuals for their actions in the November 2019 Kogi and Bayelsa State elections and in the run-up to the September and October 2020 Edo and Ondo State elections.

    US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, said the visa restriction will also include individuals involved in negative practices in the run-up to the September and October 2020 Edo and Ondo State elections due to their conduct in the run-up to the poll.

    The US didn’t reveal names of the individuals banned.

    A statement signed by the spokesperson for the Department of State, Morgan Ortagus, on Monday, September 14 reads;

    “In July 2019, we announced the imposition of visa restrictions on Nigerians who undermined the February and March 2019 elections. Today, the Secretary of State is imposing additional visa restrictions on individuals for their actions surrounding the November 2019 Kogi and Bayelsa State elections and in the run up to the September and October 2020 Edo and Ondo State elections.

    “These individuals have so far operated with impunity at the expense of the Nigerian people and have undermined democratic principles,” the statement read in part.

    “The Department of State emphasises that the actions announced today are specific to certain individuals and not directed at the Nigerian people. This decision reflects the Department of State’s commitment to working with the Nigerian government to realise its expressed commitment to end corruption and strengthen democracy, accountability, and respect for human rights,” the statement read.

    The US said it remained a steadfast supporter of Nigerian democracy and condemned all acts of electoral violence, intimidation, or corruption that undermined the democratic process.

    “As the Edo and Ondo State off-cycle elections near, we urge all stakeholders, including the Independent National Electoral Commission, the political parties, and the security services, to uphold the tenets of democracy and facilitate genuinely free and fair elections, conducted in an appropriately transparent and non-violent manner,” the US stated.

  • Ghanaian pastor Shoots wife dead in the US

    A popular US-based Ghanaian pastor identified as Sylvester Ofori has been arrested after he shot his wife Barbara Tommey dead.

    Popular Ghanaian pastor shoots wife dead in the US

    The incident took place outside the 27-year-old woman’s workplace at the Navy Federal Credit Union, near the Mall at Millenia in Orlando, on Tuesday 8th September 2020.

    Barbara was shot by Sylvester, near the business’ front doors on the 4600 block of Gardens Park Boulevard just before 9 a.m., an Orlando Police Department spokesperson said.

    Tommey was pronounced dead at Orlando Regional Medical Center shortly after she was rushed there for medical attention.

    Popular Ghanaian pastor shoots wife dead in the US

    Ofori, 35, was taken into custody at his apartment Tuesday evening, the OPD spokesperson said. He is being held at the Orange County Jail without bond on a charge of first-degree murder with a firearm.

    During a press conference Tuesday morning, Chief Orlando Rolón said the shooting was captured on CCTV.

    “You can tell that she was surprised by what was happening,” he said.

    The Navy Federal Credit Union released a statement on the shooting.

    The statement reads: “This morning, a team member was fatally injured during an act of violence outside our Millenia branch, by a man she knew, according to the police.

    “Our thoughts are with our team member’s family. Our number one priority is keeping both our members and team members safe. We will ensure all team members at the branch are provided with the support they need during this time. Any further information can be provided by the Orlando Police Department.”

    Pastor Sylvester has reportedly been abusing his wife for a long time. Due to the abuse, Barbara was persuaded by her family to leave him. But Sylvester tracked her to her workplace yesterday and shot her 7 times.

    A woman named Lisa, who witnessed the shooting, said: “I’m shaken up right now, I’m still shaken up.”

    She said she saw Barbara come outside to move her car before she was shot.

    “The next thing I knew, he raised his hand with the gun in it, and he shot her,” she said.

    Read: Ghanaian Pastor Who Shot His Wife Dead Charged With First Degree Murder

    “The guy was walking behind her. I don’t know if she knew he was there or not. I started running and as I’m running, I hear three or four more shots.”

    Lisa spoke highly of the deceased woman. She said: “She was always very nice when I came into the bank. She’s very nice, very nice.”

  • US’s biggest rival is itself

    By Qin Hong
    Since 2018, the U.S. has issued several reports painting China as its biggest strategic rival. In practice, some American politicians have been unscrupulously suppressing China on every front and provoking it over its core interests. As a result, the China-U.S. relationship is now facing its most severe challenge since the establishment of diplomatic ties.
    However, the U.S. fails to realize who its biggest rival actually is.
    The U.S. has been plagued by serious problems over the past decade. Economically, the gap between rich and poor has continued to expand. Due to the lack of internal driving forces for growth, it has sought temporary relief through excessive fiscal and financial stimulus policies, with little regard of the consequences.
    Politically, democracy has become a tool of ferocious partisan struggle and a profit-making system for various interest groups.
    The country is hitting a bottleneck in its development, with shrinking benefits and rising anxiety.
    How did the U.S. get here? The reason lies in the problems of the design and operation of its political and economic systems. It’s also the inevitable result of the shortsighted pursuit of profits.
    The U.S. cannot make itself great again by suppressing China. The U.S. instigated trade frictions, but this did not result in its trade deficit being significantly reduced, and it also failed to bring the manufacturing sector back home. In contrast, Americans paid an additional $50 billion in tariffs in 2019 alone.
    The US’ scapegoating of China for the COVID-19 pandemic can do nothing to change its disastrous failure to curb the spread of the virus in the country. The pandemic has led to the biggest economic decline in the U.S. since World War II, along with soaring national debts, and the dollar is losing its status as the world’s reserve currency.
    Despite trying to bring about an ideological struggle and provoking confrontation between the Chinese and American people, some U.S. politicians cannot change the reality of their country’s ineffective governance and intensified social conflicts. Meanwhile, waves of protest continue over the death of U.S. citizen George Floyd in Minneapolis.
    Some U.S. politicians are unwilling to see others performing better than them. Disregarding any principles of freedom and fairness, the U.S.’ groundless and unjust suppression, and even looting of Chinese enterprises will not only threaten the sources of profits of American companies, but also find little support from other countries. Decoupling from China also means decoupling from the world.
    The U.S. should be aware that it is its own biggest rival. Its attempt to turn China into an adversary is a strategic miscalculation, and it will end up digging itself into a hole in the international arena just as the country is forced to solve its own increasingly serious issues at home. This means that the U.S. is channeling its strategic resources into the wrong area and resolving one while neglecting the other, thus making the situation more complex.
    The development of China-U.S. relations has clearly shown that both sides stand to gain from cooperation and lose from confrontation. After the normalization of bilateral relations, bilateral cooperation has brought tangible benefits to the U.S. and made tremendous contributions to the country’s stability and development.
    China-US business ties support 2.6 million American jobs, and trade with China helps each American family save $850 every year.
    After successfully overcoming COVID-19, China has become a refuge for U.S. companies, as the country’s rebounding consumer economy has helped offset the damage done by tumbling sales back home, the Wall Street Journal recently reported.
    Meanwhile, the wheels of history continue to turn. While China-U.S. relations cannot return to their past, it doesn’t mean that the two countries must descend into confrontation. As countries with global influence, China and the U.S. can, in a constructive and creative manner, respect each other, seek common ground while resolving our differences, and promote mutually beneficial cooperation to elevate bilateral relations.
    Source: People’s Daily Online

  • Nigeria resolving visa restrictions with US – Buhari

    Nigeria resolving visa restrictions with US – Buhari

    President Muhmmadu Buhari has assured Nigeria has made considerable progress in effort to sort out the conditions that led to the suspension of the issuance of the United States of America’s (USA) “immigrant visas” to Nigerian passport holders.

    The President disclosed this on Thursday while receiving the report of the committee on Citizen Data Management and Harmonisation chaired by the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola.

    According to a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, Buhari expressed delight that two out of the six areas of concern raised by the United States had been fully addressed.

    The Nation recalled the committee was set up in February to address issues that led to the US temporary visa restrictions on Nigerian passport holders.

    The suspension, which came into effect on February 21, 2020, does not apply to other US visas such as those for official, business, tourism and student travel.

    Commending the committee for its patriotic diligence in carrying out the assignment, Buhari assured Nigerians and the international community of the timely implementation of the committee’s recommendations after due consideration.

    ‘‘I also note the progress made by Nigeria towards the removal of the visa restrictions as two out of the six areas of concern raised by the United States had been fully addressed, two are substantially satisfied while some progress is being made on the remaining two.

    ‘‘I am delighted that this progress, especially the uploading of Lost and Stolen Passport and Travel Documents has been acknowledged by the United States Government,’’ the President said.

    The committee had, among other things, recommended establishment of a National Criminal Information Management, fashioned after the INTERPOL model, and a National Criminal DNA Laboratory, to aid criminal investigation, administration of criminal justice as well as sharing of relevant information.

    Buhari noted implementation of these and other far-reaching recommendations as articulated in the Report will fully address all outstanding issues that led to the visa restrictions.

    The President also pledged commitment to sustaining the follow-up for removal of the visa restrictions by the United States and developing a credible harmonised National Identity Data Management System.

    He recalled that the Federal Government’s response to the temporary visa restrictions placed on Nigerian citizens by the United States in January this year, led to the setting up of the Committee to review the restrictions and develop systems and processes that would address the security concerns raised.

  • US donates over 200 ventilators to Nigeria FG

    US donates over 200 ventilators to Nigeria FG

    The United States has handed over 200 ventilators to the Federal Government on Tuesday.

    This is in fulfillment of the promise made by the US President Donald Trump during a telephone conversation with President Muhammadu Buhari in April 2020.

    The medical equipment was handed over to the Minister of Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire, by the US Ambassador to Nigeria, Mary Leonard, at a ceremony in Abuja this morning.

    Details later…

  • Reggae legend, Majek Fashek to be buried in US

    Reggae legend, Majek Fashek to be buried in US

    Late Reggae musician, Majekodunmi Fasheke, popularly known as Majek Fashek’s son, Randy, has announced that his father will will be buried in New York, United States where he died.

    Randy disclosed this in a video he posted on social media today, 10th of August. Although no date has been announced for the burial yet.

    This is coming few weeks after Majek Fashek’s family called on the public to assist financially in order to fly his body back home for burial.

    According to Majek’s family, Majek as a legend and Africa’s pride and thus cannot be allowed to be buried like an ordinary mortal.

  • It’s legitimate for China to order closure of US Consulate General in Chengdu

    It’s legitimate for China to order closure of US Consulate General in Chengdu

    By Zhong Sheng

    The US on July 21 launched a unilateral provocation by abruptly demanding that China close its Consulate General in Houston. The US move seriously breached international law, the basic norms of international relations, and the terms of the China-US Consular Convention. It gravely harmed China-US relations.

    It’s impolite not to make a return for what one receives. On the morning of July 24, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China informed the US Embassy in China of its decision to withdraw its consent for the establishment and operation of the US Consulate General in Chengdu. The Ministry also made specific requirements on the ceasing of all operations and events by the Consulate General. The measure taken by China is a legitimate and necessary response to the unjustified act by the US. It conforms with international law, the basic norms of international relations, and customary diplomatic practices.

    The crazy McCarthyism acted by the U.S. has led the country farther and farther on the wrong path of seeking confrontation. For some time, the US government has been shifting the blame to China with stigmatization and unwarranted attacks against China’s social system, harassing Chinese diplomatic and consular staff in the US, intimidating and interrogating Chinese students and seizing their personal electronic devices, even detaining them without cause. The unilateral closure of China’s consulate general in Houston on short notice is an unprecedented escalation of its recent actions against China. The international community believes that the U.S. practices to worsen its relationship with China will bring serious impacts on world politics and economy.

    China is committed to the principle of non-interference in other countries’ domestic affairs. Infiltration and interference is never in the genes and tradition of China’s foreign policy. Chinese diplomatic missions in the US are dedicated to advancing the two peoples’ mutual understanding and friendship. Pursuant to the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, China provides convenience for US diplomatic missions and personnel in China. The U.S. accusations on China are totally groundless.

    However, the US has imposed restrictions on Chinese diplomatic personnel in the US twice without cause, in last October and this June respectively. It opened without permission Chinese diplomatic pouches multiple times, and seized Chinese items for official use. As the US flagrantly drums up stigmatization and fans hatred against China, the Chinese Embassy in the US recently has even received bomb and death threats on Chinese diplomatic missions and personnel in the US. And the US embassy constantly publishes on its website articles smearing China. If we compare the two, it is only too evident which is engaged in interference, infiltration and confrontation.

    The US claims lack of reciprocity in relations with China. This is just its old ploy that’s completely unjustified. As a matter of fact, the US far outnumbers China when it comes to diplomatic missions and staff in each other’s country.

    The current situation in China-US relations is not what China desires to see, and the US is responsible for all this. Any provocation that runs counter to justice is doomed to come to an ugly end. The US shall immediately retract its wrong decision and create necessary conditions for bringing the bilateral relationship back on track.

  • U.S.politicians slandering China goes against civilization

    U.S.politicians slandering China goes against civilization

    By Zhong Sheng

    For a while, some U.S. officials seem to have formed a team of rumor mongers to stigmatize China.

    U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Robert O’Brien, Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, Christopher Wray, Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)and U.S. Attorney General William Barr have successively cooked up lies and put on shows on the world stage to slander China.

    By defaming China in an organized manner, these politicians have greatly violated civilization and disgraced the diplomatic history of the U.S.

    As some U.S. politicians are reluctant to face the situation in their own country and have failed to find solutions to the problems related to governance, they have adopted a narrow and distorted mindset to treat the achievements other countries have made through hard work.

    Out of evil intentions, some American officials have continuously spread the “China threat theory”.

    William Barr, for one,alleged on July 16 local time that China is engaged in an “economic blitzkrieg” to replace the U.S. as the world’ preeminent superpower, which is absolutely absurd.

    It is in fact the U.S. that has gone out of its ways to suppress and threaten other countries, as has been acknowledged by the international society.

    Some American politicians have recently started a series of rumors against China, the Communist Party of China (CPC), strategic intention and future development of the country, which has seriously disobeyed the basic norms of international relations and fully exposed their deep-rooted Cold War thinking and ideological bias.

    The most important national condition of China is the leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC).

    The CPC has been chosen by history and people as the ruling party of the country and firmly supported by about 1.4 billion Chinese people.

    More than 93 percent of Chinese people support and are satisfied with the rule of the government under the leadership of the CPC,according to a survey conducted by the Harvard Kennedy School that lasted for 13 years. It fully demonstrates that any attempt to separate the CPC from the Chinese people is doomed to fail.

    Some U.S. politicians, however, determine to remake China based on their political schemes when they should really have listened to former U.S. President Richard Nixon, who pointed out that a system that works for the U.S. may not work for others with different experiences.

    “We believe in our values, but a basic tenet of these values is not to impose them on others,” the former president said.

    It should be noted that the mutually beneficial and cooperative relationship established by China and America over the past 40 years suits the interests of the two sides, people in the two countries and even the entire world.

    Many governments in the history of America have actively promoted the cooperation with China and win-win results for the two countries.

    SomeAmerican politicians have claimed that “win-win in China means China wins twice” and accused China of taking advantage of the U.S., which are barefaced lies with no grounds at all.

    Even when the bilateral relations are encountering unprecedented difficulties, the fact remains that the two countries have secured mutually beneficial cooperation.

    The bilateral trade volume between China and the U.S. increased to $41.2 billion in April and China once again became the largest trading partner of the U.S. The number rose to $46.5 billion in May.

    84 percent of American enterprises are unwilling to withdraw from the Chinese market and 38 percent of them will maintain or increase their investment in China, according to a recent survey conducted by the American Chamber of Commerce in China.

    Decoupling countries with complex economic relations is like carrying out a difficult surgical operation, said an article titled The Folly of Decoupling from China published on Foreign Affairs, an American magazine of international relations and U.S. foreign policy.

    Chinese economy is not a discrete organism that can easily be separated from the global economy but rater a Siamese twin, connected by nervous tissue, common organs, and a shared circulatory system, the article added.

    Lu Xun, a deceased Chinese write, once referred to rumors as “weapons that kill without leaving a trace of blood”and warned that rumor mongers could both kill and get themselves killed.

    It seems that some American politicians determine to be trapped in confrontation with China and get stuck in a self-fulfilling prophecy by defaming China.

    One thing is for sure—the harder they try to attack and discredit China, the faster they will ruin their own reputation and the less likely they will pull the U.S. out of the predicament.

    They could neither address the problems in the U.S. and bring development and prosperity to the country nor block the progress of China by starting and spreading rumors.

    (Zhong Sheng is a pen name often used by People’s Daily to express its views on foreign policy.)

  • U.S. warns world telecom industry against Huawei

    U.S. warns world telecom industry against Huawei

    The U.S. on Wednesday warned telecom companies around the world against doing business with the embattled Chinese technology giant, Huawei.

    The Department of State in a statement, said those doing business with the firm should consider themselves fraternising with “human rights abusers”.

    “Telecommunications companies around the world should consider themselves on notice.

    “If they are doing business with Huawei, they are doing business with human rights abusers,” the statement said.

    It announced visa restrictions on some employees of Hauwei and other unidentified Chinese tech firms for allegedly facilitating human right violations.

    It alleged that certain Huawei employees “provide material support” to the Chinese government “that commits human rights abuses”.

    The administration of President Donald Trump has been pressuring allies to cut Huawei off their 5G networks over cyber security concerns.

    Trump accuses the Chinese government of using the company to conduct cyber espionage, an accusation Huawei denied.

    In 2019, the U.S. government threatened to severe intelligence sharing ties with allies that patronise Huawei 5G products.

    Wednesday’s visa restriction announcement came barely 24 hours after the United Kingdom banned the company from its 5G networks.

    Welcoming the ban, Pompeo said the UK had joined “a growing list of countries from around the world that are standing up for their national security”.

    In June, Pompeo declared that “the tide is turning against Huawei as citizens around the world are waking up to the danger of the Chinese Communist Party’s surveillance state.” (NAN)

  • Foreign students fear deportation over Trump visa threat

    Foreign students fear deportation over Trump visa threat

    Pakistani student Taimoor Ahmed is one of hundreds of thousands of foreigners enrolled in American universities now fearing for their future after Donald Trump’s administration threatened to revoke their visas.
    The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced this week that foreign students whose entire courses have moved online because of the coronavirus pandemic must return to their home country.

    “I might be affected if they don’t offer any sort of in-person class,” said Taimoor Ahmed, an information technology student at Cal State University in Los Angeles.

    “I’m concerned. This can potentially change my future and plans,” the 25-year-old told AFP.

    Harvard and MIT launched a lawsuit Wednesday, asking the court to revoke the order that Harvard President Lawrence Bacow said had thrown higher education in the US “into chaos.”

    But the action has done little to alleviate the worries of foreign students, of which there were more than one million in the United States in 2019, a doubling in 20 years, according to the Institute of International Education (IEE).

    “I’m kind of scared actually,” said an Indian graduate student at a major Texas university, who asked not to be named.

    He planned to continue with online classes in the fall but is now obliged to return to the campus — in a state where COVID-19 cases are soaring — or face deportation.

    “I’m talking to a lot of people that are really scared, (they are) alone in a different country.

    “I don’t have anyone to take care of me if I get ill. The cost of the medical treatment in the US is far, far more than the country which I come from,” the 25-year-old added.

    The students see themselves as collateral damage in Trump’s aggressive push to force universities and schools to reopen fully in September amid his reelection campaign.

    An Indian graduate studying electrical engineering at one of the top universities in Arizona, where the virus is also surging, fears having to risk her health to continue her research and tutoring of younger students.

    “The rule is really, really cruel,” she told AFP.

    More than 4,000 foreign students attend California’s public universities, and another nearly 5,000 at Harvard in Massachusetts, establishments that plan to offer online-only education this fall.

    Some 84 percent of universities are planning to offer a hybrid system of in-person and online classes, according to the Chronicle of Higher Education website, which would save students from deportation.

    ‘Unfair’
    Many students fear a resurgence of the pandemic later this year, though, which could see all classes moved online, forcing them to leave the country.

    “I think it’s really hard to control the spread of the virus in such a densely populated campus,” said the Arizona student, who asked not to be named.

    “It just seems really unfair to me that the virus getting bad would be something that international students, who didn’t necessarily have any part to play in spreading the virus, would have to suffer from,” she added.

    She says she will live in a “permanent state of anxiety” until her work and thesis defense ends in November.

    “If my visa gets invalidated, I have invested three years of my life of hard work to earn this degree, so it would be so bad.”

    Students are not the only ones concerned: the universities themselves are worried that Trump’s immigration policies are making their institutions less attractive.

    They fear losing foreign students to cheaper colleges in Europe.

    “These decisions risk damaging one of the United States’ strongest assets, which is our top-rate, best-in-the-world international education system,” said Aaron Reichlin-Melnick of the American Immigration Council.

    The policies appear already to be having an effect.

    The Indian engineer in Arizona is no longer sure whether she will stay in America after she completes her Master’s degree.

    “Given the trend of how the US administration deals with immigrants and people here on temporary visas, I’m still hesitant,” she said.