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Shocking: The waiting room of the Nigerian Embassy in Vienna, Austria turns to a “Mama put” Joint

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3 years ago

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… A plate Of Food Goes For €10

Fellow Nigerians, the management of the Nigerian Embassy in Vienna, Austria has turned the waiting room of the Embassy into a food joint, popularly known in Nigeria as “Mama-put” – where assorted types of dishes like Jollof rice, beans, fried fish and plantains etc. are served.

When one gets into the embassy for anything, after normal questioning and writing down one’s name at the reception, the sliding door will be opened for the person to go in by the receptionist. And immediately after the step at the right-hand side is the spot mapped out for the business of selling food by the embassy. A plate of food here goes for €10 (around N7,780 currently naira exchange rate equivalent). One could equally purchase take-away.

One needs not to be told that there is delicious food around the corner. Immediately one gets into the embassy the appetizing aroma of sizzling Jollof rice or fried fish etc. welcomes the person. Anyone who is hungry is advised to avoid the downstairs of the embassy because the strong smell of the stew or Jollof rice and fried meat on air keep the stomach of that person extremely uncomfortable and very restless in protest.

I confess that the food there is very delicious. But is the embassy of a country the right place to perceive smell of fried snails and draw soups of Ogbono and Okro?

Whatever that prompted this embarrassment is ridiculously disgraceful. I have never seen nor heard of such ugly news anywhere in the world, where embassies sell food to visitors in their waiting rooms except Nigeria.

Does it mean that the Nigerian government is not paying the staff of the embassy their salary that made them to shamelessly resort into turning the embassy to a restaurant? This is unfortunate.

I tried contacting the ambassador like I had done with some other past ambassadors so that this issue and other complaints from Nigerians could be discussed and settled without the public knowledge, but the response from the embassy was so discouraging, arrogant and provoking. Hence this open letter, and more exposures will come.

This ugly situation is not hidden, and cannot be possible without the consent and the approval of the upper echelons of the embassy, because it has been going on for a very long time now. Nigerians in Austria do nothing than murmur. Therefore, I call on the Hon. Minister of Foreign Affairs Geoffrey Onyeama to please, kindly instruct the ambassador of Nigeria to Austria, His Excellency, Ambassador S. D. Umar to discontinue this shameful exhibition. It is odd and very embarrassing.

The ambassador must please brace up to the reality that that small place at the embassy is not the right place to do any personal business. It is not supposed to be used to compensate anyone or for charity. It is hilariously shameful and should be discontinued with immediate effect.

May God bless Nigeria.

♦ Uzoma Ahamefule, a refined African traditionalist and a patriotic citizen writes from Vienna, Austria. WhatsApp: +436607369050; Email Contact Uzoma >>>>

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Immigration officer charged with accepting bribes from migrants to change legal status

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2 weeks ago

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June 27, 2025

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An immigration officer from Pennsylvania has been charged with accepting bribes in exchange for adjusting immigrants’ legal status over a nearly decadelong period.

Amara Dukuly, 43, of Brookhaven, Pennsylvania, was arrested and charged with bribery of a public official, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania announced Thursday.

Dukuly had allegedly used his status as a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services officer since 2015 to receive payments in exchange for adjustments to some people’s immigration statuses. Those adjustments include receiving a green card, work authorization documents, or visas.

USCIS handles “processing immigration and naturalization applications and establishing policies regarding immigration services.”

“Dukuly did not have the authority to do any of the things he promised these individuals,” the press release says. “After corruptly seeking, receiving, and accepting money in return for being influenced in the performance of an official act, Dukuly converted the monies he obtained from these bribes for his personal benefit.”

The case is being investigated by the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General, Homeland Security Investigations, and the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Anita Eve will lead the prosecution.

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Black History

Bernice King’s Redemption Bank is now the first Black-owned in the West

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2 weeks ago

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June 27, 2025

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In 2023, a group of Black investors based in Atlanta agreed to buy a white-owned bank, Holladay Bank & Trust, and convert it into a Black-owned one. The investors included Dr. Bernice A. King, a daughter of civil rights icon Dr. Martin Luther King Jr; Ashley D. Bell, a former White House policy adviser, and former NFL player Dhani Jones.

They planned to rename the Utah-based institution Redemption Bank and said they wanted to provide financial services to Black communities historically underserved by financial institutions while offering online banking services and small business loans.

The deal, which was awaiting regulatory approval, would mark the first time Black investors purchased a non-Black bank, a statement by Redemption Holding Company said at the time. It would also be the first time in American history that an existing commercial bank would become a Black-owned Minority Depository Institution (“MDI”) through acquisition, the statement added.

After two years, Redemption has finally completed its acquisition of Holladay Bank & Trust. It makes it the first time a bank has been owned by a Black-led investment group in the Western U.S., the AP reported this month.

The acquisition got delayed due to the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank in 2023, Bell, CEO and chairman of Redemption Holding, told the AP.

“This process has undoubtedly taken longer than any of us anticipated,” Bell said. “However, we are grateful for the diligence of the staff at the FDIC, the leadership of the (American Bankers Association), and the renewed sense of urgency from the new administration this year, all of which helped bring everything together.”

While Bell is the CEO, King is expected to be Redemption Bank’s senior vice president for corporate strategy and serve on the company’s advisory board.

With about $65 million in assets, Redemption Bank will be the first Black-owned bank not physically located within an economically vulnerable community and the first in the Rockies, according to the AP.

It will also be the only one located in the Black-banking desert that stretches from Houston to Los Angeles, the AP added.

The company will further become the 24th Black-owned bank in the nation, termed as Minority Depository Institutions (MDI). MDI is a federal designation for banks and unions that are owned or controlled by minority groups. The most recent MDI was Adelphi Bank, launched in January 2023.

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Crockett questions Melania Trump’s reported ‘Einstein visa’: ‘The math ain’t mathin”

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2 weeks ago

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June 27, 2025

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Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) questioned first lady Melania Trump’s reported “Einstein visa” at a House hearing Wednesday.

“Let me remind y’all that Melania, the first lady, a model — and when I say model, I’m not talking about Tyra Banks, Cindy Crawford or Naomi Campbell level — applied for and was given an EB-1 visa, and what that stands for is an Einstein visa. Now y’all that don’t know, let me tell you how you receive an Einstein visa,” Crockett said.

“You’re supposed to have some sort of significant achievement, like being awarded a Nobel Peace Prize or a Pulitzer, being an Olympic medalist, or having other sustained extraordinary abilities and success in sciences, arts, education, business or athletics. Last time I checked, the first lady had none of those accolades under her belt,” the Texas Democrat added. “It doesn’t take an Einstein to see that the math ain’t mathin’ here.”

The Washington Post has reported that Trump in 2001 was given a green card via the elite EB-1 program. The program has been used by people such as academic researchers and multinational business executives, as well as people who have demonstrated “sustained national and international acclaim,” according to the Post.

Crockett’s comments came amid already heightened tensions over immigration in the U.S. as President Trump and his administration pursue an immigration crackdown.

The Trump administration has recently looked to social media more as a national security tool to vet immigrants, raising concerns the action could result in a chilling effect on political speech in the U.S.

The State Department announced earlier this month it was relaunching interviews and processing foreign student visas, with applicants having to make their social media accounts public for vetting or face possible denial.

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