Africa’s Internet penetration rate in December 2011 was estimated at 13.5%. Africa’s mobile subscription rate is now over 50%, with West Africa holding a 30% mobile rate and Central Africa below 20%. In a recent published review, it was stated that 6 out of the 10 fastest growing economies globally are African.South Africa is listed among the top 100 outsourcing countries at 30^th place, with Egypt in 10^th place and Ghana in 26^th, in a report released by Sourcing Line.

In a recent research report, IT outsourcing constituted roughly 40% of the South African IT services market, representing the largest market share of all IT services foundation markets. The market is expected to increase at a compound annual growth rate of 8.7% and to exceed $17 billion (about ZAR 136 billion) in 2015.

Telecom, banking, construction, retail and foreign investment are rapidly growing sectors within Africa. Following the FIFA Soccer World Cup 2010, Africa succeeded in the area of mobile phone subscriptions, reaching 316 million to date. Mobile-broadband subscriptions have grown 45% annually over the last four years.

Large contracts lifted the outsourcing markets of Europe, Africa and the Middle East to record levels in the fourth quarter of 2011, according to data released by the Information Services Group. A recent report noted a 17% surge in the fourth quarter contracting value over the same period in 2010. The October-December period marked a 12% increase over the third quarter of 2011.

The services sector within Africa contributes to more than 60% of the GDP wherein it is developed. In these countries, the services sector accounts for the majority of job creation. Business Process Outsourcing and Off shoring presents Africa as a continent ready for trade in services.

Africa’s highly skilled workforce is making significant improvements in developing its BPO sector through talent development, infrastructure, business environment, incentives and marketing. Changes in broadband connectivity are underway throughout Africa. This will improve not only the quality of telecommunications but also costs of operations and maintenance.

Countries in Africa have woken up to the need for incentives to outsourcing deals. They are now seen as key exhibitors and participants in global BPO conferences, summits and seminars. Each involved in the BPO industry is increasing awareness about its value proposition, demonstrating its readiness to take on outsourcing of off shore work from global clients.

The East Africa Outsourcing (EAO) Summit 2012 will take place at the Intercontinental Hotel in Nairobi, from 5 to 6 June 2012. The event is hosted by international business-to-business conferencing company, Kinetic Events. The summit provides a platform for existing and potential players in outsourcing industries worldwide, looking to reduce costs and efficiency pressures, by outsourcing business processes to East Africa. The event will explore both operational and technological strategic issues shared by leading decision makers globally or seeking to influence market share and profitability.

For more information, to apply to attend, comment or photographs, visit www.eaosummit.com or call +27 21 555 0866 . Follow @ITLeadersAfrica and @KineticEventsSA on Twitter for daily updates and news feeds.

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The 2nd annual IT Infrastructure Africa Summit will be held at the Westin Hotel in Cape Town from 12 to 13 July 2012. The summit will focus on IT Infrastructure challenges and how these challenges can be overcome through innovation, alignment of business with technology and the positive influence of active government participation.

International business-to-business conferencing company and event organisers Kinetic Events, is proud to host Melanie Burke, CEO at MAB and Associates, at this year’s ITI Africa Summit.

MAB and Associates (Pty) Ltd was established by Melanie Burke in 2004 focusing on transformation and innovative technology solutions for social development and business support. Melanie boasts expertise within leadership development, team building, collaboration, innovation and technology, and entrepreneurship.

With over 20 years experience within the financial services and technology industries, Melanie holds an international Master of Business Administration qualification, specialising in Information Technology. Recognised for her talents within the industry, Melanie received the Excellence in Diversity Award and is a two-time finalist in the Technology Top 100 Awards.

In 2008, Melanie was nominated in the social development category for Shoprite/Checkers Women of the Year. Later that year, Melanie was shortlisted for the Nelson Mandela Rhodes Foundation Harvard Fellowship. Melanie was a finalist in 2010 for the Business Women’s Association Regional Achievers Awards in the Social Entrepreneurship category.

At the summit, Melanie will lead a topical discussion exploring important IT infrastructure, operations issues and technological advancements impacting an enterprise with strategic guidance and actionable tactics.

Following the success of last year’s summit, IT executives and senior decision makers have wasted no time in securing their place for this year. The strategic invitation-only 2-day event will enable senior decision makers to discover efficient methods to deliver IT projects and services, resulting in business growth and innovation and successfully leveraging existing resources and investments. Senior executives will discuss goals for operational excellence and powerfully demonstrate the value of IT organisation.

For more information, to apply to attend, comment or photographs, visit www.itinfrastructure.co.za or call +27 21 555 0866 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting +27 21 555 0866 end_of_the_skype_highlighting. Follow @ITLeadersAfrica and @KineticEventsSA on Twitter for daily updates and news feeds.

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The IT Infrastructure Africa Summit will take place from 12 to 13 July 2012 at the Westin Hotel, Cape Town. The summit is hosted by Kinetic Events, an international business-to-business conferencing company.

The development of IT infrastructure in Africa is largely influenced by the economic benefits of IT, IT policy, and its impact on government, society, business, and the security of the state.  The prospect of a technology with such potential impact evolving has produced many successful instances of IT introduction within Africa. The strategic transfer and application of this technology requires some guidelines be set for service providers, distributors of equipment, and end-users alike. It is critical in this time that these policies have positive and active government participation in order to be effective.

Strategic policies should clearly define the industry expectations and acquisition of information technology within the continent and global sectors. Clear and precise evaluation of appropriate use and application of the technology will influence the development of the African IT industry. Human resource development will determine the skill and service delivery methods and management, when outlined in a government issued policy, could potentially assist in improving efficiency challenges and hindrances.

The importance of government policies and legislation to support IT development in Africa will lead to notable improvements in the industry. Informatics policies and management infrastructure is key in developing a world-class infrastructure, placing Africa at the forefront of the globe.

It is vital to understand the establishment of financing mechanisms, with adequate financial analysis, controls and accounting. Active government participation enables Africa to take control of the sector and show improvement in all aspects of policies. Africa will hold a clear position on the level of control, exercised locally with a desired level of dependency on foreign sources.

With improvements already evident, it is clear that the coordination and integration of the needs of the public and private sectors is continuing to influence the economic state of IT.

The event will enable senior decision makers to discover efficient methods to deliver IT projects and services, resulting in business growth and innovation and successfully leveraging existing resources and investments. The summit provides a platform to share experiences with top-level speakers and industry experts, an agenda to address important IT Infrastructure and business related issues, and will exhibit the best practice case studies from industry experts.

For more information, comment or photographs, visit www.itinfrastructure.co.za or contact Shaunei Meintjes on +27 21 555 0866 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting            +27 21 555 0866      end_of_the_skype_highlighting or shaunei@kineticevents.net. Follow @ITLeadersAfrica and @KineticEventsSA on Twitter for daily updates and news feeds.

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By Adetayo Adelaja, Lagos

INDABA is one of the largest tourism marketing events on the African calendar and one of the top three ‘must visit’ events of its kind on the global calendar. It showcases the widest variety of Southern Africa’s best tourism products, and attracts international visitors and media from across the world.

For two years in a row, INDABA has won the award for Africa’s best travel and tourism show. This award was presented by the Association of World Travel Awards. It is a four day trade event that attracts well over 13000 delegates from the travel tourism and related industries.

While technology may have been king, Tourism Minister of South Africa, Marthinus van Schalkwyk summed up the spirit of INDABA best when he said tourism was not only about figures, policies, statistics and objectives – but about people being the key driver for economic development and job creation in the tourism industry.

One of the major INDABA highlights was the teamwork and cohesion displayed by the tourism sector in their collective approach to unpacking and achieving the ambitious National Tourism Sector Strategy’s 2020 targets.

Schalkwyk said the objectives of the industry was now to increase the number of foreign tourist arrivals to South Africa from 7 million in 2009 to 15 million by 2020, tourism’s total contribution to the economy from R189 billion in 2009 to R499 billion by 2020 and to create 225 000 new jobs by 2020.

The over-riding South African Tourism message to the industry at the last year event was “Leave Ordinary Behind” – a clarion call to again emphasize that what set the country’s tourism industry apart was the personal connection and interaction tourists felt with South Africa’s people and its unique attractions.

Africa and the domestic market remains a key SA Tourism priority, backed by a significant R60 million marketing investment in the 2011/12 financial year in ensuring existing trade channels are entrenched, awareness built and the extension of the industry footprint. There will also be a strategic shift towards a focus on ultimately creating regional tourism hubs in East and West Africa, where pooled arrivals signify great potential to match those from Asian markets. Key Africa air markets such as Nigeria, Angola, Kenya and the Democratic Republic of Congo were identified in particular as African markets that hold great potential for tourism arrivals to South Africa. This will be backed by a robust domestic marketing campaign, backed up by all stakeholders in the tourism sector.

It also has raised the bar in terms of digital innovation and industry creativity – proving again emphatically the ability of the South African tourism sector to continuously reinvent itself in line with global trends in destination marketing.

Amongst the feedback from exhibitors last year, the digital competitiveness of the event was highly commended. Poken Technology, introduced to encourage efficient networking, facilitated more than 45 000 ‘pokes’, or exchanges of contact details, proving that INDABA remains the foremost and most innovative networking function in the travel and tourism industry in Africa.

SA Tourism’s TouchTable proved to be one of the biggest talking points at the event, allowing up to eight people to simultaneously explore the various experiences on offer. The ultra-modern table was a first in tourism destination marketing, and is poised to be a continued hit as it travels the world as part of SA Tourism’s marketing collateral.

“The type of interaction demonstrated by the TouchTable is indicative of the level of engagement required to make an impact on the travel trade and consumer landscape of today. Initial feedback from exhibitors strongly supports our quality over quantity objective. Initial report show that meetings arranged during Indaba 2011 were of a high quality, with greater outcomes and enhanced partnership building,” said SA Tourism CEO, Thandiwe January-McLean.

Figures after last year event show that 11,205 people passed through the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre’s doors over the four exhibition days, with 1610 exhibitors and over 7210 exhibition personnel across all imaginable tourism-related business categories showcasing their products, and 661 local and international media registering to cover INDABA. The top five exhibitor categories included Accommodation, Tour Operators, Game Lodges / Nature Reserves, Tourist Attractions and Transport businesses, which accounted for 83% of the total exhibitor presence. National Tourism Authorities, Online Travel representatives and Conferencing Facilities also showed an impressive increase in presence this year.

The attendance figures included nearly 3,000 international buyers and visitors, an impressive increase of 11% on the number of international delegates attending INDABA in 2010, as Africa’s top travel and tourism trade show continues to deliver ongoing trade and awareness to local and international suppliers and generates millions of Rands of potential tourism revenue. Of the international delegates and buyers from 98 different countries that attended INDABA 2011, the highest number of delegates per country came from the United Kingdom (267), the United States (166), Germany (138), Zimbabwe (102) and the Netherlands (97).

“The promising mix of international representation from our traditional markets, such as those countries within the European region, together with an impressive increase in visitors from African countries such as Nigeria and Ghana, give a good indication that our identified strategies going forward have been matched with a good response from our global travel markets,” continues January-McLean.

SA Tourism’s Regional Director: Africa, Phumi Dhlomo, gave a compelling rundown of the strategy, resources and budgets which will ensure SA Tourism does not simply pay lip-service to African prospects, but backs it up with achievable targets and resources which will see measurable results in tourist arrivals to South Africa from the African continent.

With the Africa region maintaining strong growth of 10% in arrivals to South Africa over the last seven years, the intense focus on Africa’s potential has been mandated as a priority in the National Department of Tourism’s National Tourism Sector Strategy (NTSS).

“SA Tourism’s commitment into fully developing the African market is backed by a more than R60 million investments in marketing efforts on the continent,” says Dhlomo. “Our most recent research has given us a key indication of areas that require strategic shifts in mindsets in the approach to attracting African travelers and we look forward to leading industry efforts in ensuring we take full advantage of the huge potential on our doorstep.”

SA Tourism’s research presentation encompasses an overview of the organization’s growth strategy across four key markets, namely Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Kenya and Nigeria. Key aspects of the presentation show the attractiveness of each market in terms of volume, spend and market potential, including insight into consumer travel behaviours. The ability of each market to act as launch pads to develop regional hubs is also further explored, with Kenya and Nigeria proving significant potential to centralised tourism functions within East and West Africa respectively. Nigeria remains the leading African market in terms of developmental characteristics; a key aspect when anticipating growth in tourism arrivals. Their large population characterised by high economic growth has demonstrated consistent growth of 7, 8% in arrivals over the past three years.

Angola, on the other hand, has the smallest population out of the four countries included in the report, but demonstrates a huge tourism potential given the average GDP growth rate of the country and the relatively high ratio of travelers that have visited South Africa previously (39,557 in 2010). Total spend by Angolans visiting South Africa is also a contributing factor to the market’s importance, accounting for the highest spend of the four countries in 2009 (in excess of R729 million). According to the report, Kenya’s high technology usage trends and great potential to act as a hub for the East Africa region, together with a stable increase of volume and growth between 2007 and 2010 necessitate continued efforts in the region, supported extensively by growth strategies that will counteract the relatively small size of the country as a standalone market.

A similar focus will be put on the DRC; whose unprecedented growth in average spends is indicative of the rapid growth of the middle class market within the country. Visitors from the DRC have shown the greatest growth in total spend in South Africa, with an impressive 42% increase reported between 2003 and 2009.

“Each country within our focus over the next few years has its own unique nuances and opportunities,” continues Dhlomo. “Perhaps the most significant conclusion we have reached with our report is that Africa still represents a holistic untapped potential, and that our current arrivals figures stand to grow exponentially as the African travel market emerges from purely purpose-based travel into a true leisure-drive tourism market.

“Going forward, a phased approach is required, using the market insights gained in the report together with a strategic look at the unique consumer demands, media channels and tactical opportunities which exist to fully develop our offering to the African traveller.”

As part of the research conducted, much work was completed with regards to identifying high growth consumer groups within each market. This direction will allow marketing activities within each region to have maximum effect on consumers, with minimal resource wastage and higher conversion. In addition, the report outlines consumer groups to maintain or defend, as well as messages, channels and product offerings required per market to deliver on growth potential.

SA Tourism has already shown their commitment to growing the African markets through extensive groundwork over the last few years with the opening of an Angolan office as well as a permanent placement of a trade relations manager in Angola in April this year. A fully-fledged Nigerian office planned within over the next few years.

“With the projected increase in focus on our Africa air markets, we will continue increasing our efforts in Africa land markets, maximising our efforts to ensure that the South African offering remains entrenched in countries such as Botswana and Mozambique. Holistically, the value that Africa brings to the South African economy goes far beyond tourism and has major benefits for other sectors such as manufacturing, trade and investment and therefore we need to look at inclusive strategies across the region. In turn, our commitment to Africa is further demonstrated in the job creation opportunities made available with the extension of the SA Tourism footprint across Africa. We are proud to be a part of Africa’s continued growth and we look forward to driving mutually beneficial successes going forward,” concludes Dhlomo

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Africa-focused private equity firm Emerging Capital Partners is planning to deploy a “significant amount” of capital in fast-growing east Africa and plans to open an office in Kenya later this year, a senior executive said on Tuesday.

Alex-Handra Aime, a Johannesburg-based director at the firm, also told the Reuters Africa Investment Summit that ECP would be announcing a deal in the east African consumer sector as early as next month.

“We really see Kenya leading the path, being an entry point or a gateway into the rest of east Africa, and quite a compelling one,” she said in an interview at Reuters offices in Johannesburg.

“We hope to be announcing a deal in the next month or so in east Africa in the consumer space,” she said.
The firm could deploy a “significant amount” of capital from its $613 million third fund in east Africa over the next 18-24 months, said Aime, a Harvard graduate who also holds a law degree and MBA from Stanford.

Private equity firms are increasingly looking for deals in Africa, with many of them focused on Nigeria, the continent’s most populous country and an oil producer.

But Aime said the broader east Africa region, which includes Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi and Rwanda, was also attractive given its robust demographics, GDP growth and economies that were not reliant on oil to fuel their growth.

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The IMF on Tuesday approved the disbursement of $110.9 million to Kenya under the country’s three-year loan program and warned the authorities to keep an eye on risks posed by the euro zone debt crisis and possibility of higher oil prices.

In approving the disbursement, the International Monetary Fund warned that an uncertain global environment could dampen growth, forecast by the IMF to rise this year, and widen the external current account deficit.

“Thus, policies should continue to aim at ensuring that domestic demand grows in line with supply to reduce the external imbalance and keep inflationary pressures in check,” the IMF said in a statement.

It said Kenya’s economic reform program had started to yield results: inflation was lower, international reserves are up and the Kenyan shilling stronger. The government had also made progress on improving public financial management and tax reforms, the Fund added.

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Kenya struck oil for the first time after exploratory drilling by Anglo-Irish firm Tullow Oil. The discovery was made in the country’s northwestern Turkana region. Calling it a “major breakthrough”, Kenya President Mwai Kibaki said, “It is the beginning of a long journey to make our country an oil producer, which typically takes in excess of three years. We shall be giving the nation more information as the oil exploration process continues.” However, Kibaki cautioned that commercial viability of the oil find in the northwest Turkana region is still uncertain.

Some analysts and economic experts, reacting to the development, opined there would be a lot of expectations if the oil discovered becomes commercially viable, and firms in various other sectors such as construction, power and manufacturing would be the initial beneficiaries.

The exploration well has encountered in excess of 20 metres of net oil pay. It was drilled to an intermediate depth of 1,041 metres and has been successfully logged and sampled. Moveable oil with an API greater than 30 degrees has been recovered to surface. This oil has similar properties to the light waxy crude discovered in Uganda, according to Tullow Oil.

Tullow’s exploration director Angus McCoss, said, “This is an excellent start to our major exploration campaign in the East African rift basins of Kenya and Ethiopia. To make a good oil discovery in our first well is beyond our expectations and bodes well for the material programme ahead of us.”

“Tullow is working closely with the Government and people of Kenya as a committed long term partner to unlock the oil potential of the region. We look forward to further success as seismic and drilling activities continue to gather pace,” McCoss added.

Tullow has discovered oil in a number of African countries, including Ghana and Sierra Leone.

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Mr. Sunday Atam

“I Thought Life would be better in the United States”- Sunday Atam.

Most people leave their countries for different reasons to live abroad. Some for greener pastures, some to study, and some were displaced because of war and crises in their country. Mr. Sunday Atam’s was not that of studying abroad neither was it about looking for greener pasture. He was a member of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) who fled Nigeria after the execution of their leader Ken Saro Wiwa. Saro Wiwa was executed by the then General Abacha’s military government in 1995. After the death of Saro Wiwa and 8 other MOSOP members; the Abacha government began the raid of Ogoni land looking remaining activist of Ogoni land. Sunday Atam, the Youth President was among those who escaped. He left with his wife Joy and two children Junebari and Hannah. Junebari was 4 years old while Hannah was just a year old then. Like the dream of many displaced people, relocation to a new environment, like United States of America signified turning a new page and starting a new life. Sunday Atam hoped for the best and was eager to leave the horrible experience of torture, persecution and government harassment behind. Unfortunately Sunday’s hope was chattered no sooner than a year he got to the US. His perfect marriage began to fall apart thanks to the members of the Grace United Methodist Church who were supposed to help the young couple adjust to their new lives in America.

Larry Olayiwola, a fellow Nigerian, as Sunday and many others took advantage of Sunday and Joy Atam’s lack of formal education. They took over the relationship and within two years, a happy home became a house of sorrow. The once happy couple became sworn enemies. Most times, Sunday will sleep on the couch while some church members sleep with his wife on their bed.

For trying to stand for himself and fight against the external influences, Sunday got arrested, picked up by US immigration and dumped at the border of US and Mexico. He hired a lawyer to file for divorce, mysteriously, Sunday the petitioner became the defendant, not only that, he was in Maryland when an agreement was signed in Dallas, Texas. Sunday’s signature mysteriously appeared on the agreement. The divorce according to Sunday Atam was kangaroo and he has filed an appeal to challenge the divorce. “I am appealing not because I want Joy back but to right some of the wrongs in the Divorce decree, “he explained to Africaninterest.com. He disclosed to Africaninterest.com that the signature on the agreement was not his; he alleged that his signature was forged.  He did not even know that the divorce had been granted since 2003 until 2005. Though his petition to the Texas Bar Association against his Lawyer Mr. Bruce Alford was dismissed initially because he filed fours late and appeal denied because according to the Appeal Board, the alleged conduct by the lawyer “does not allege a violation of the Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct;” Sunday has vowed to fight on. He is planning a civil suit against his lawyer now.

Since 2002, Sunday Atam was denied access to his children, was not allowed to talk to them yet he pays child support on the children. Junebari is now 19 years old; Hannah is now 16 years and the youngest that was born at the Benin Republic UNCHR Camp now 13 last saw their Dad in 2005. He has been fighting and still fighting to have access to his children.

In this exclusive interview, Sunday Atam told Oluwaseyi Oduyela in Baltimore, Maryland USA, the story of his life, excerpts:

Q: Tell us your name and where are you from?

Sunday Atam's wife with another man on the matrimonial bed

A: I am Sunday Atam, I am from Tal in Ogoni land, Rivers State of Nigeria.

Q: Are you married and when?

A: I got married to Joy David in 1992 and we have two children boy and girl.

Q: What are their names?

A: Dunebari is the oldest, he was born in 1993 and the girl Hannah was born in 1996.

Q: How and when did you come to the United States?

A: As you know, my people faced persecution from Nigeria government which eventually led to the execution of our leader Ken Saro Wiwa by late Sanni Abacha. Most Ogoni men who are members of Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People (MOSOP) were targeted. The Military government then, came to our land, arrested the men, raped our wives and destroyed our farms.

Q: Why was this?

A: We were protesting the treatment we were getting from the foreign oil companies who messed our land with oil spillage. You know we are mainly farmers and fishermen. The oil spillage destroyed our farmlands and waters that we lost our means of livelihood. So the Movement for the Survival for the Ogoni People was formed to address this issue. The Nigerian government saw it as confrontation and felt that the only way to respond was by arresting and maiming our people. Remember it was a military government, a dictatorship that does not take kindly to opposing views. As a result of our resistance to the degradation caused by Shell, Mobil and others, our government sided with foreign companies against us and saw us as rebels.

Q: Did you hold any position in MOSOP?

A: I was the Youth President. We mobilize the people.

Q: How did you leave Nigeria and when?

A: When Saro Wiwa was executed by the Military government of Sani Abacha, we went to Benin Republic and sought Asylum from the United Nations; we were kept in the Refugee Camp in Benin Republic. From 1996, I was at the Refugee Camp till 1999.

Q: Did you escape with your family?

A: I escaped with our children and I arranged for my wife to join us later.

Q: What happened to them? Were you worried at all leaving your family behind?

A: I was worried, but I did not plan to leave there. I later sent for her and she came to join me at the Refugee camp.

Q: How did you do that?

A: I worked at the camp and used the proceeds of my job there to pay for my wife to join us at the Refugee camp.

Q: How long were you there?

A: We left Benin Republic for the US in 1999. By this time, my wife had our third child.

Q: In the Camp?

A: Yes.

Q: So what happened when you got to the United States?

A: We were initially in Chicago from July 1999 and later flown to Dallas Texas. We were introduced to officials of Grace United Methodist Church, South Dallas, Texas. This was the beginning of my problem.

Q: What do you mean?

A: I thought that I had escaped terror and horror when I left Nigeria but on getting to the US, I realized that my struggle just began. I began to have problem with some officials of the church.

Q: How do you mean?

A: They were getting involved in my family affairs to the point that they were having sex with my wife.

Q: Can you explain that area?

A: These men kept forcing me to give my wife money even when I was the only one working, paying rent, and all bills. When they helped me to get a job, I was making $6.00 per hour, working as a dish washer at Balour Hospital, Dallas. We were paying rent for $675.00 for two bedroom apartment. I was told that the US law mandates that I give her at least $50 weekly.  It was so difficult for me to keep up with the bill and rent. That was not all. One day, On Monday, March 6, 2000.  I came home from work and met one of the church officials one Larry, a fellow Nigerian. I caught him on top of my wife; I held his genitals and called the Police. The police asked my wife if she was forced she said no the guy did not force her. The police told me he could not arrest the man that the only thing I can do is to file for divorce.

Q: Was this the first time?

A: No. There are several times they make me sleep on the couch in my own house while they sleep on the bed with my wife. I have pictures.

Q:  They are more than one?

A: yes, there was one Hispanic guy too.

Q: How long did this happen?

A: She has been doing before I caught her with Larry Olayiwola on March 6, 2000.

Q: What did you do?

A: I went to report in the church, but no one listened to me. The church elders told me that it is a crime for another man to sleep with my wife on my bed.

Q: who are these elders?

A: Mr. Dan Hammack, Mr. McCleskey, Mrs. Laurie Hammack and Mrs. Nevada Jefferson.

Q: What about the Church Pastor?

A: The church did not help me; instead, they turned against me.

Q: How do you mean?

A: The men sleeping with my wife with other men in the church ganged up against me. For about three days my wife did not sleep at home. So I went to the Police station, the Police told me to go home and call the nearest police station. By the time I got home, they had called the police and accused me of beating my wife. I was arrested and taken to custody. The day of my court hearing, my wife and the people who filed the charges were not where to be found, the Judge then dropped the charges. The pastor hired a lawyer for me, William Cox. It was this lawyer how defended me and bailed me out. When I was in detention, the Pastor came to ask for where I will go to after my release, I told him I had nowhere to go and he led some men into my house to pack all my belongings to the church.

Q: Did they give them back to you?

A: No. I didn’t see the Church Pastor but my ex-wife told me it was the Pastor who took all my belongings.

Q: What’s the name of the Pastor?

A: Charles Cox.

Q: How did you get what to wear?

A: Jehovah Witness people provided me with clothing.

Q: Who got you a lawyer?

A: The Church Pastor then got me his cousin. That was not all. Just as I was being released from the court, on bail, the Immigration came to arrest that I entered the US illegally even when I showed them my I-94 and they know too that have asylum status.

Q: Where did they take you to?

A: I don’t know. I was in immigration detention for almost 3 months. They later put me in a van with some Mexicans and dropped me at the border of Texas and Mexico.

Q: How did you get back home?

A: Home? I had been displaced. I had not home, a lady saw me and picked me up, and one of my fellow Nigerian living in Dallas then helped me out. The church people had taken all my belongings away. The woman called my friend Israel Eyi who confirmed and the woman waited until Israel came to pick me.

Q: what was your next step then?

A: Someone, my supervisor at work advised me to call a group and they gave me group Alford. I decided to file for divorce. In January 9, 2002, I met Mr. Bruce Alford and explained your situation to him. I also showed him pictures of where they were having sex with my wife. Mr. Alford charged me $1,300.00 in which I paid $500.00 on the first date –January 9, 2002. I paid him fully for the $1,300.00.

Mr. Bruce told me that before the end of January 2002, my case would be in court. In my presence, he called my ex-wife. We agreed that I should be paying him $250.00 every court appearance.

I asked for a copy of the petition he filed on my behalf but he did not give me.

All through 2002, I did not hear anything on my divorce petition; all he tells me is that the case has not been scheduled. In December 2002, I spoke to a friend, John Newbold who visited Mr. Alford to inquire on my petition.

In July 2003, before I relocated to Maryland I visited my Alford in his office to inform him of my relocation and give him my contact information.

In Maryland I tried to contact Mr. Alford to know the status of my case and he kept telling me the he was waiting for the Judge to schedule date (I have the recorded messages Mr. Alford left for me on my answering machine).

In 2005, I spoke to my church pastor, Kevin at Lutheran Church in Baltimore Maryland. He now Pastors a church in Arlington, Texas. It was Pastor Kevin who called my Alford and he mailed the divorce decree to Pastor Kevin and not to me.

In April 2007, I went to the court in Texas, 256^th District Court, Dallas. I was able to get a copy of the decree from the court.

Q: But you said he told you he was waiting for the Judge to schedule hearing?

A: Yes.

Q: How come he did not inform you of the date?

A: I don’t know. I saw the copy of my divorce decree through my pastor not from my lawyer. What surprised me was that in the decree I was the defendant and my ex-wife was the petitioner.

Q: But you said you were the one who filed the divorce?

A: In the divorce decree on page two, I saw that “the court finds that the parties have entered into a written agreement as contained in this decree as to both form and substance to the extent permitted by law, the parties stipulate the agreement is enforceable as a contract.” I want to state unequivocally that I was not present at any meeting to agree on anything, and my lawyer, Mr.  Alford never informed or notified me of any meeting or any agreement. The said meeting was held in October 2003 and I was already living in Maryland.

Secondly, I did not sign any agreement and I do not know how my signature got to the agreement. I am alleging that the signature on the agreement was not mine. I am suspecting that someone appeared as me in court in November 2003.

Q: Do you have access to your children?

A: No. from the 1999 till now I do not have access to my children yet I pay child support. In 2005, my ex-wife came to Maryland to visit family friend, someone told me and I went to see my children. It was my ex-wife who told me that there had final judgment on the divorce. This shows that I was not aware of the agreement and final divorce judgment.  She told me that it was because she saw my signature on the paper that that was why she signed.

Q: Did you get in touch with your lawyer?

A: Yes, I did but he refused to neither answer my calls nor return my calls.

Q: What steps have you taken to address all these issues?

A: I tried to file for appeal to the final divorce decision and the appeal is pending. Even in the divorce decree, my children names were wrongly written. I have also attempted to file petition against my lawyer to the Texas Bar Association.

Q: what was the outcome?

A: Initially they denied and I appealed but few days ago, I got a response from them dismissing my petition.

Q: Why?

A: They dismissed the petition because they said that my lawyer’s conduct did not violate Texas Disciplinary Rules of Professional Conduct. Initially they dismissed my petition because, according to them, I filed the petition fours after the incident and when I filed an appeal, they the alleged conduct did not violate Disciplinary Rules.

Q: How did all these affect your immigration status?

A: originally I was supposed to have gotten my permanent resident card in 2000 but I did not get it until 2008.

Q: Why

A: The immigration said that my application to become permanent resident was denied because they did not get response from me when they invited for my biometrics. I didn’t buy that. I believe it was still part of the conspiracy against me. In 2002 John Newbold went with me to the Immigration to re-open my application. Since then, they did not call me. It was Pastor Kevin also went with me to the Immigration and one day I just got my green card in the mail, in 2008.

The question is that if we call this country as a land of freedom but I have not seen the freedom. I pay child support and denied access to my children. My oldest son is now 18 years, the second one is 15 and the last one is 13. The last time I saw them was 2005. Any time I call their mother will not let me see them. My children have been denied access to their father for 12 years. They lied to them about that I drink and I am violent.

It is very hard for me to believe that this country is a land of freedom. In Nigeria, I had access to my children but here I pay for them and I cannot see them. They have made my life worthless for the last 13 years. It would have been better if I had remained in Benin Republic. There is no fairness here. I petitioned Texas Bar Association that my lawyer forged my signature yet they said that is not a violation of Texas Disciplinary Rules and they are quick at condemning other countries for violation of Human Rights. I see this as double standard. What type of system will not be fair and listen to both sides before giving judgment. I am also surprised that people we call men of God will also be involved in making lives of people miserable.

I have never beaten Joy in my life, never raised my hands up against her even when I caught her in bed with men. Yet they lied against me in court that I am violent and denied me access to my children. It has been very difficult for me to move on in my life without my children. Life has been very very miserable for me in the last 13 years. All I want is access to my children. I want to be their father and play the role of father to them.

This is not over; I will continue to fight until I gain access to and custody of my children.

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Adekunle Olufemi Adetiloye

Nigerian Man Sentenced to 17 years 10months for Large Credit Card Fraud Scheme

On Monday, January 23 2012, Adekunle Olufemi Adetiloye, a citizen of Nigeria and resident of Canada, was sentenced by U.S. District Chief Judge Ralph R. Erickson to 17 years and 10 months in federal prison for one of the largest and most complex credit card schemes in North Dakota banking history.

In Bismarck, U.S. Attorney Timothy Q. Purdon said, “The sentence imposed today should send a strong message to those who would seek to scam the citizens and businesses of North Dakota and the United States. We take the growing problem of foreign financial fraud seriously here and seeking justice for the victims of such crimes is a priority for our office.”

Adetiloye, 40, pleaded guilty on February 16, 2011, to participating in a scheme to defraud financial institutions and individuals out of money. Adetiloye was living in Toronto, Canada, from before January of 2005 to May of 2010, when he was extradited to the United States. During that time, Adetiloye funded a lavish lifestyle by conducting, with others, a massive fraud scheme accomplished by executing tens of thousands of fraudulent acts against individual people, financial institutions, commercial data providers, merchants, commercial mailbox companies, and state agencies. Adetiloye’s scheme compromised the personal and private information of approximately 38,000 American citizens.

According to US Department of Justice, the scheme involved tens of thousands of acts of illegal conduct throughout the United States, as well as in Canada and England. Adetiloye and his co-conspirators fraudulently obtained the personal identification information from commercial data providers, such as LexisNexis and ChoicePoint, and with that information assumed the identities of those unsuspecting people to open credit card and other bank accounts at U.S. Bank and twenty other banks across the United States. Adetiloye used well over 100
different mail box addresses throughout the United States as well as approximately 100 different phone numbers with area codes representing all parts of the United States. Many of the 38,000 people whose identities were compromised filed statements with the Court detailing the awful disruption and chaos they experienced as a result of this fraud.

U.S. Attorney Purdon added, “This defendant was not easy to find and his scheme was not easy to investigate. I want to recognize the outstanding efforts of Postal Inspector Matthew Hoffman. Without Inspector Hoffman’s hard work and dedication to seeing justice done for the victims in this case, today’s sentence would never have been imposed. I also want to recognize our Canadian and British law enforcement counterparts. This case was conducted primarily from Toronto and to a lesser extent London. We could not have done this case without incredible cooperation from the Ontario Provincial Police and the City of London Police. Finally, I want to recognize the outstanding efforts by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nick Chase and his team in our office. The dedicated men and women of the North Dakota U.S. Attorney’s Office continue to work hard and produce great results for the people of North Dakota and the United States.”

Along with the prison term, Adetiloye will be on supervised release for three years. A hearing regarding restitution and forfeiture has been scheduled for Feb. 15, 2012, in U.S. District Court in Fargo, at 9:00 a.m.

Sources disclosed to Africaninterest.com that most Nigerians wanted by the US government for Identity theft and Credit card fraud now found safe haven in Canada.  Africaninterest.com relaibly gathered that One Taiye who escaped arrest in the arrest of over 40 Nigerians in 2008 in New York fled to Canada. Another  source disclosed that even some of these fraudsters live in Maryland, US.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nick Chase prosecuted the case.

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Press Statement on the State of the Nigerian Nation

It was with a sense of déjà vu that Nigerians resident in the Netherlands, like our compatriots all over the world, received the news of the removal of subsidy on PMS in Nigeria. While the furore resulting from the said removal of subsidy and the subsequent unilateral reduction of the pump price by the Presidency is yet to abate, we side with the millions of downtrodden Nigerians and ask that the price be returned to status quo while efforts are made to address the immediate effect of such removal.

The Nigerian Community in The Netherlands wishes to state that the Nigerian Government has never been honest and loyal in its intentions vis-à-vis previous removal of subsidy in the past. We join our people at home and abroad to say that “removal of the subsidy on fuel translates to another subsidy for the corrupt political and elite group in the country”.

We honestly see the subsidy as the only benefit that Nigerians get from the country’s oil wealth and remained assured that the money saved by ending the subsidy will only end up in individual pockets of our self-serving and corrupt leaders.

We implore the government of President Goodluck Jonathan to take a serious look at the size of his government and show honesty of intentions by first, reducing the size and openly begin to manage the “wastage in government”. The lack of trust of the people on the promises of the government cannot be condemned in any way considering Nigeria’s rating on the list of corrupt nations.

In the same breath, the NCN condemns the wanton attacks on life and properties by the Boko Haram terrorist group. We ask that the government takes its responsibility in the area of security of lives seriously and move proactively to address the issue before it becomes another divisive tool. We strongly believe that the financiers and backers of this monstrous group are not unknown to the government considering the arrest of a member of the senate and the pronouncement of the President that there are members of the group in government.

While commiserating with the families of those who lost lives and properties in the Kano attacks as well as all other previous attacks, we resolutely call on the security agents of the nation state, Nigeria, to rid itself of the corrupt elements and ensure the safety of our people.

The NCN is constituted for the betterment of sons and daughters of Nigeria living in the Netherlands within the context of the Diaspora and more importantly the overall wellbeing of Nigeria as a viable and prosperous nation. Our country Nigeria is in turmoil and has been in this state for a considerable period of time. Corruption, weak governance and abject cluelessness have contributed to a situation which is completely unacceptable to our people.

It should not come as a shock to the current government that Nigerian citizens require practical and concrete solutions to the problems facing the country now. We demand competence and credibility from our government officials of all genres. All aspects of government including security, management of oil and gas resources, education, financial management and planning need to be overhauled and recalibrated. Our populace deserves nothing less.

To this end, NCN will be organizing a seminar to discuss the situation in Nigeria at RCCG House, Hettenheuvelweg 18, 1101 BN Amsterdam Zuidoost, The Netherlands on Saturday, 28 January 2012 starting at 17:00 CET. Nigerians and other interested parties are welcome to attend.

Further mobilization activities will be communicated as the situation in Nigeria develops.

God bless Nigeria.

Signed:

The Steering Committee

Nigerian Community in the Netherlands

Amsterdam,

The Netherlands

January 24, 2012

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