Latest news with #Igbo
Yahoo
a day ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Video of drug crackdown in Ghana misrepresented as xenophobic attack on Nigerian shops
A video shared on social media claims to show Ghanaians destroying shops allegedly owned by Nigerians of Igbo descent, fueling tensions surrounding the presence of Igbos in Ghana. However, the claim is false. AFP Fact Check found that local youths destroyed the stalls during a drug crackdown targeting shops allegedly involved in selling illicit drugs in Ghana's capital, Accra. 'Ghanaians destroying Igbo shops saying Igbo must leave their country,' reads the caption of a Facebook reel published on July 14, 2025 and shared in Nigeria. Screenshot showing the false post, taken July 21, 2025 The Igbo people are primarily from southeastern Nigeria (archived here). Shared more than 6,000 times, the video shows men pulling down stalls in a market. The post was published by an account called 'Efos Blog', which appears to share anti-Igbo content regularly. The video was also posted on X with a similar claim here. Igbos in Ghana In recent weeks, Igbo people in Ghana have come under public scrutiny following the activities of Eze Chukwudi Jude Ihenetu, a self-styled monarch. Ihenetu has referred to himself as the 'Igbo King' and reportedly claimed to have acquired land near the country's capital to build a cultural settlement — a development that triggered sharp backlash from youth groups and the traditional authorities in the West African country, particularly the Ga Traditional Council, which oversees the Greater Accra Region (archived here and here). In a response, the traditional leader of Ga state, King Tackie Teiko Tsuru II, said the council did not recognise any foreign royal claim within their domain and ordered Ihenetu and his appointed chiefs to stop presenting themselves as traditional rulers (archived here). While the incident drew widespread attention on social media, there were no reports of violence or targeted attacks on Nigerians of Igbo extraction or their properties as portrayed in the Facebook video reel. Anti-drug abuse campaign Using Google Lens to conduct reverse image searches on keyframes from the video, AFP Fact Check was led to a Facebook post dated April 20, 2025 (archived here). The post, with the caption 'Massive Destruction At Zongo Market', was published by an account in Ghana. Using the word combinations from the caption to conduct a Google search, AFP Fact Check found a news report by a local website Citi Newsroom, published on the same day as the Facebook video (archived here). In the piece, the media reported that a group called 'No Drugs in Zongo Movement' launched a major crackdown at the Zongo market in Accra, which resulted in the closure of over 20 shops suspected of selling illicit substances. The report also stated that the campaigners seized several sacks containing marijuana, codeine, Tramadol, and other illegal drugs. AFP Fact Check reached out to Manuel Ayamah, the Citi Newsroom journalist who reported the piece. He confirmed that the 'crackdown was not targeted at any Nigerian community'. 'It was a general exercise in the Zongo,' Ayamah added. The anti-drug abuse movement, in a statement sent to AFP on July 17, 2025, clarified that 'the structures being destroyed [in the video] were makeshift wooden stalls that had been illegally erected by individuals who used them to sell drugs. 'This exercise was conducted in collaboration with local authorities to sanitise the area and protect the well-being of the community.'
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Video of drug crackdown in Ghana misrepresented as xenophobic attack on Nigerian shops
A video shared on social media claims to show Ghanaians destroying shops allegedly owned by Nigerians of Igbo descent, fueling tensions surrounding the presence of Igbos in Ghana. However, the claim is false. AFP Fact Check found that local youths destroyed the stalls during a drug crackdown targeting shops allegedly involved in selling illicit drugs in Ghana's capital, Accra. 'Ghanaians destroying Igbo shops saying Igbo must leave their country,' reads the caption of a Facebook reel published on July 14, 2025 and shared in Nigeria. The Igbo people are primarily from southeastern Nigeria (archived here). Shared more than 6,000 times, the video shows men pulling down stalls in a market. The post was published by an account called 'Efos Blog', which appears to share anti-Igbo content regularly. The video was also posted on X with a similar claim here. Igbos in Ghana In recent weeks, Igbo people in Ghana have come under public scrutiny following the activities of Eze Chukwudi Jude Ihenetu, a self-styled monarch. Ihenetu has referred to himself as the 'Igbo King' and reportedly claimed to have acquired land near the country's capital to build a cultural settlement — a development that triggered sharp backlash from youth groups and the traditional authorities in the West African country, particularly the Ga Traditional Council, which oversees the Greater Accra Region (archived here and here). In a response, the traditional leader of Ga state, King Tackie Teiko Tsuru II, said the council did not recognise any foreign royal claim within their domain and ordered Ihenetu and his appointed chiefs to stop presenting themselves as traditional rulers (archived here). While the incident drew widespread attention on social media, there were no reports of violence or targeted attacks on Nigerians of Igbo extraction or their properties as portrayed in the Facebook video reel. Anti-drug abuse campaign Using Google Lens to conduct reverse image searches on keyframes from the video, AFP Fact Check was led to a Facebook post dated April 20, 2025 (archived here). The post, with the caption 'Massive Destruction At Zongo Market', was published by an account in Ghana. Using the word combinations from the caption to conduct a Google search, AFP Fact Check found a news report by a local website Citi Newsroom, published on the same day as the Facebook video (archived here). In the piece, the media reported that a group called 'No Drugs in Zongo Movement' launched a major crackdown at the Zongo market in Accra, which resulted in the closure of over 20 shops suspected of selling illicit substances. The report also stated that the campaigners seized several sacks containing marijuana, codeine, Tramadol, and other illegal drugs. AFP Fact Check reached out to Manuel Ayamah, the Citi Newsroom journalist who reported the piece. He confirmed that the 'crackdown was not targeted at any Nigerian community'. 'It was a general exercise in the Zongo,' Ayamah added. The anti-drug abuse movement, in a statement sent to AFP on July 17, 2025, clarified that 'the structures being destroyed [in the video] were makeshift wooden stalls that had been illegally erected by individuals who used them to sell drugs. 'This exercise was conducted in collaboration with local authorities to sanitise the area and protect the well-being of the community.'
Newsweek
2 days ago
- Politics
- Newsweek
Green Card Applicant Who Fled Human Traffickers Fears Deportation
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A married couple in Maryland is afraid they may be forced to leave the United States after immigration officials said they plan to deny the husband's green card application, even though he once worked to rescue human trafficking victims in North Africa. Emmanuel Unegbu, 51, entered the United States in June 2019 on a B2 visa after leaving his post at the Nigerian Embassy in Libya, where he worked for nearly two decades as a protocol assistant and humanitarian coordinator. During his time at the embassy, Unegbu helped rescue victims of human trafficking and coordinated efforts to return them safely to Nigeria, a role he says made him a target of crime syndicates. Despite having filed for asylum in June 2020 and later marrying a U.S. citizen, Unegbu fears deportation to Nigeria, a country his wife says "he won't even last a week" in. "I am concerned because I was in fear for my life, which is why I left Nigeria in the first place. My own government could not protect me," Emmanuel Unegbu told Newsweek. His wife, Melody Unegbu, 44, a special educator at a non-profit school for trauma-affected youth, described him as "the kind of man that women only dream about." "I'm very concerned about deportation. My husband is my whole life. I could not make it without him. He is the one that keeps me going when I feel like the weight of the world is just too much," she told Newsweek. Emmanuel Unegbu pictured here with his wife, Melody Unegbu. Emmanuel Unegbu pictured here with his wife, Melody Unegbu. Supplied The two met at a 7-Eleven in Maryland and married on August 25, 2023, in a civil ceremony in Annapolis. They submitted a range of documents to USCIS to prove the legitimacy of their marriage, including their marriage certificate, joint lease, shared bank accounts, letters from friends and family, photos, and tribal documentation. But USCIS questioned the legality of Emmanuel's prior marriage in Nigeria, an Igbo tribal union that was not documented in court, and concluded there wasn't sufficient proof that the marriage was legally dissolved before he married Melody. The couple received a Notice of Intent to Deny (NOID) from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). In their NOID letter, USCIS cited inconsistencies, including a claim that Emmanuel declared himself married as of May 15, 2019, during the visa process. Melody disputes this. "He never even had an interview for his visa while he was overseas," she said. "He has documentation that says his visa application had been submitted and completed by April 25, 2019. He never spoke with anyone in the office that day or had any type of interview." Newsweek has reached out to USCIS for comment via email. The couple insists Emmanuel's tribal divorce took place on January 1, 2017, when his family visited his former in-laws and collected the traditional bride price, the customary method of ending a marriage under Igbo tradition. "Both the wedding and divorce were witnessed by his family and an elder from the village, and we have sent letters from several of his family members and the elder to USCIS along with our other documentation," Melody said. The couple noted what they believe are factual errors in the NOID itself. "They said that he arrived here on June 14, 2019, when the stamp on his passport very clearly says admitted June 13, 2019, and all his documentation of that date has been correct," Melody said. "They made a mistake on his case by writing the wrong date on this letter, so couldn't they have made a mistake by saying that he said he was still married on May 15, 2019, when he never had an interview in which to state that? Their inconsistencies just don't add up; they are trying to make up reasons to deny good people," she added. The couple says they have struggled to afford legal representation and have set up a GoFundMe to help raise money for legal costs. They have consulted with three attorneys. One demanded a $5,000 retainer, another was unable to assist outside of asylum law, and the third pressured them for payment during the initial consultation. Emmanuel, the son of a pastor, currently works as a school bus driver in a public school system, transporting children, including those with special needs. Melody says he is beloved among the community. "All of his students love him and their parents appreciate him always being on time and taking great care to transport their children safely," she said. Melody has five children from a previous marriage, and Emmanuel has four children who remain in Nigeria. Most of Melody's children are now grown, but her youngest son lives with the couple in Maryland, where Emmanuel has played a central role in raising him. The couple is currently fostering a child, bringing the total number of children in their care to 10. The situation has taken an emotional toll on the family. "I can't focus on anything else anymore. All I do is research to try to help my case and worry about what comes next. I can't bear to be separated from my family. They are all I have and all I care about," Emmanuel said. "We were meant to be together, and my husband is a wonderful, kind, and loving man. He is not the kind they need to be trying to get rid of; he's the kind they need more of," Melody said. The couple maintains that Emmanuel does not have a criminal record With their future uncertain, the Unegbus continue to plead their case, hoping for understanding, clarity, and a chance to stay together in the country they call home. "If they decide to deport him, then they will have to deport me too. My home is wherever my husband is," Melody said.
Daily Mirror
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Daniel Dubois trainer Don Charles on war, florist life and how Chisora made him a coach
Daniel Dubois trainer Don Charles is a character of many careers but now finally at the top of the heavyweight division as a leading coach of the IBF champion Don Charles has lived a few lives. A child in a war zone, a florist, working in fashion retail and now a boxing trainer to a world heavyweight champion to name just a few. The latter is thanks to a chance meeting with Derek Chisora at a petrol station. Charles, 63, will be in the corner this weekend when Daniel Dubois takes on Oleksandr Usyk in an undisputed showdown at Wembley. But if his father didn't get out of Nigeria in 1974 then the crazy path he has taken may never have happened. 'I was in a civilian conflict,' said Charles. 'My country is called Biafra. We were in conflict, a three-year conflict with Nigeria. 'I was six years old when that war started and I was nine years old when it finished. And then my father was a bank worker who moved to England and was allowed to bring his family with him. So I came to England after that war.' Charles is asked about the conflict, it is uncomfortable for him. 'It's still something I probably need to get counselling for, because when I start talking about it, if I start expanding it, I'll start, I always break down,' he said. 'I saw a lot of horrible things where, forever running away from planes, shooting indiscriminately, they're not, they weren't just fighting the soldiers, they were targeting civilians. I lost close family members, I'm lucky to be alive, me personally.' Charles settled in London, boxed as a teen and he would, over time, find his way through various careers after dismissing his father's pleas to return to Nigeria to go to university. After being homeless, he lived with another family for a time to stay in England. Odd in itself but even stranger when it was the 1970s and the family was white. 'Where I come from, my tribe is called Igbo,' he said. 'We are known for making something, creating something out of nothing. I've done various things, I run a security company, my own security company. I opened a flower shop, I'm not a florist by trade, but I learnt about it. Did really well with it. 'I've done fashion retail, no matter what I turn my hand to, I always seem to make good of it. And boxing happens to be something I've excelled in as a coach.' Charles had set up a fitness class for paying customers and brought some boxing into the classes but it wasn't until he met Chisora that he really turned his hand to training fighters. 'I went to put petrol in my car and my late friend Des started talking to Derek and Des told him that the man, me, putting petrol in my car, that I'm a boxing coach, that if he wants to get better, he needs to see me,' said Charles. 'I went to pay for my petrol, at the same time he went to paid for his petrol in the shop. I said, so you're a boxer? 'He said, yeah. And I gave him my number. I'd just got the keys 10 days prior to meeting him for my first gym. It wasn't built, it was an underground, disused car park. Really horrible smelly car park, but we made good of it. And that's where Derek was born. That's where I was born, in a sense, as a boxing coach.' Charles worked with Chisora until 2019 and they split. They rekindled their relationship before he lost to Tyson Fury for a third time in 2022 in his second world title shot. He teamed up with Dubois before his first fight with Usyk in 2023. That was a defeat but since then they've been on a run of three huge wins including knocking out Anthony Joshua at Wembley to defend the IBF belt. He seems at home at Dubois' 'The Farm' gym in Borehamwood. He sometimes feeds the horses that are in the adjacent stables. Given Charles' history you wouldn't rule out an equine career.
Forbes
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
How Flavour Chose Highlife Over Afrobeats — And Won Africa's Heart
Flavour, Nigerian Highlife artist, known for modernizing the genre while honoring his Igbo roots. While his contemporaries chased Afrobeats, Flavour chose to modernize Highlife for a new generation. Now, with a Warner Music deal and a worldwide fanbase, he's proving there's power in staying true to what you love. Last year, I had the pleasure of dialoguing with Nigerian Highlife music legend Flavour N'abania while he was in the middle of his African Royalty European Tour taking on stages in France, Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom, a run that not only highlighted his staying power in Nigeria and West Africa, but also his global appeal. Born Chinedu Okoli, Flavour performed, and often does, in front of audiences that range across generations, continents, and cultures. An Igbo native, his reach has extended far beyond ethnic ciphers. He doesn't just appeal to Nigerians in the diaspora, he speaks to the larger African apparatus and those who admire it. When we spoke, Flavour was gearing up to perform at the OVO Arena Wembley, the biggest solo UK show of his career. He had performed in Britain many times, but this concert was different. 'I've been performing in the UK for quite some time,' he told me. 'But this should be the biggest venue I'm ever headlining. That would be my own concert.' Flavour stands as a dominant force in modern Highlife music, and genre that is not new to the African music scene. It is a genre that predates Afrobeats and its founding precursor, Afrobeat (yes, there is a difference). Highlife arose in the Fante coast of Ghana in the 19th century, where natives curated infectious polyrhythms through primarily brass instruments, local drums, guitars, the Akan Seprewa—some which derived from Caribbean soldiers and British military brass bands. From Ghana's Kwame Asare and E.T. Mensah to Nigeria's Bobby Benson, Victor Olaiya, and Rex Jim Lawson, by the 1950s Highlife was the staple sound of West Africa. With subsectors of the genre coming to fruition, mainly due to ethnic lines, Igbo Highlife arose in the 1960s with the likes of the Oriental Brothers International Band, Osita Osadebe, and Celestine Ukwu. Fast forward to the millennium, where Flavour is not only dominant in the ethnic sector of the genre, but the greater Highlife music genre across the continent of Nigerian Highlife star, has captivated audiences across Africa, Europe, and the diaspora. We talked about his decision to remain a torchbearer for Highlife, even as Afrobeats exploded globally. In 2008, it was the primetime for 2Baba, 9nice, D'banj, MI Abaga, P-Square, Timaya, Wande Coal, some of them already veterans. 2Baba was already on his third album (post his 2004 hit 'African Queen'). 9nice put Yoruba incented Afropop on the map with 'Gongo Aso,' and P-Square was already a decade in the game and dominating the waves with their hit 'Do Me.' And it wasn't that Flavour couldn't make an Afrobeats hit. He was simply on another wave and desired to stick and preserve the foundational West African art form of Highlife, in his own way. When he dropped his debut album that year, N'abania, it was a hit among Igbos and the SouthEast region and fairly translated into outer regions. Flavour reflected on the state of Highlife when he entered the Nigerian music scene, explaining, 'Before I came in, it's been kind of a big fire because, you know, everybody was moving into Afrobeats and all,' he said. 'But like I always tell them, Africa is rich in music. And now Afrobeats is popping, it is now left for us to showcase other genres in full, so we don't get people stuck listening just to Afrobeats. Because African music has different genres, which Highlife is one of them.' Though he was trained as a versatile, professional musician capable of many styles, Flavour made a deliberate decision to devote himself to Highlife, saying, 'When I was coming on, a proper musician, I could do so many kinds of music. But I chose Highlife because of its resonance with me.' Flavour and Highlife legend Bright Chimezie pictured together at London's OVO Arena during his ... More 'African Royalty European Tour.' As he stepped into his solo career, he wrestled with how to position himself, recalling, 'Coming out as an artist, I was like telling myself, which way do I go? I don't want to, you know, join everyone, look like, you know, I want to be different. I want to interpret my music differently. I want to be seen differently.' Over the years, Flavour has remained committed to evolving the genre. As he put it, 'That's what I've been doing over the years, trying to modernize Highlife, trying to recreate it and give it some kind of modern sound that everybody can vibe to, not just the old, young, middle class, and of course other continents, not just Africa.' And he surely did manage to reach beyond Nigeria. It is easy to make an post hoc ergo propter hoc assumption about Flavour's reach, and think he made it in Nigeria before he made it elsewhere within the continent. However, the 'Ada Ada' singer was rather popular in Eastern Nigeria, where the Igbo ethnic group is stationed. 'I was lucky enough to not just because initially, my fame didn't start from the East, it didn't go to Lagos, it didn't go to the West, it didn't go to the rest of Nigeria,' Flavour recalled. 'From the Eastern part of Nigeria, it went straight into the other African countries. From the Afrikaner, Sierra Leone, I was already doing shows there before I even came to Lagos. They were like, 'ah, there's this Nigerian guy.' Some Lagosians were like, 'Oh, wow, we've not heard of him.' Instead of that popularity translating to the West or North of the country, it became a sensation in South Africa, Sierra Leone, and Tanzania. It was his 2011 song, 'Nwa Baby (Ashawo Remix)'—also a remake of Rex Jim Lawson's (also known as Cardinal Rex) 1960 hit 'Sawale,' in what became a continental hit, easily disseminating through the ears of diasporians and enthusiasts alike, that caused the regional virality. 'When we landed in South Africa, all the immigration officers spotted me and they came to me. They didn't even know who the other guys were,' he said. 'The guys that were so big in Lagos and all, they didn't know them. I wasn't even dressed like a star. I didn't know what it's all about. I was just fresh from the East. So when I got to South Africa, one guy came to me and was like, 'you're a big star over here. I hope you know that.' Flavour, Nigerian Highlife star, has captivated audiences across Africa, Europe, and the diaspora. According to Flavour, he 'never' felt like a star in Nigeria. Only in sectors of the east. Well, such reach goes under denied as of today and goes so far. Last November, Flavour signed a deal with Warner Music Africa and Africori. He will now be subjected to refined A&R and marketing forces, which are bound to attract profound opportunities for the Highlife artist. Flavour's career is a message to those who don't dare to be different. Dare to be different. The expected outcome may go astray, but the unexpected holds the possibility to be a grandeur.
