The Canadian High Commission has remained silent on the refusal to grant a visa to Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa.
In a terse statement, the High Commission cited privacy concerns as the reason for not addressing the issue.
“The High Commission of Canada in Nigeria is aware of media reports related to planned travel by senior officials. However, for privacy reasons, we are unable to comment on the status of visa applications of specific individuals,” the statement read.
General Musa disclosed that he and several senior military officers were denied visas, leaving some stranded. Expressing disappointment, he described the incident as a “wake-up call” for Nigeria to reinforce its sovereignty and avoid being taken for granted by foreign nations.
Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, in his reaction, said there was no justification for the denial.
The Head of Financial Crime Compliance at cryptocurrency firm, Binance, Tigran Gambaryan, who spent eight months in a Nigerian detention facility over alleged corruption, has identified three Nigerian lawmakers who allegedly demanded a bribe of $150m from him.
Nigerian authorities detained Gambaryan and his colleague, Nadeem Anjarwalla, a 37-year-old British Kenyan who serves as the regional manager for Africa at Binance.
Both were charged with money laundering involving $35 million, as initiated by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
Anjarwalla managed to escape from custody on March 22, 2024.
However, Gambaryan was released following the intervention of the United States government.
While in detention, the Binance boss said some lawmakers in the House of Representatives demanded bribes from him.
Taking to his verified X handle, Gambaryan named Philip Agbese, Ginger Onwusibe and Peter Akpanke, all members of the House, as the men who allegedly demanded the huge sum from him.
Gambaryan’s post on X read in part, “The DSS was involved in the House of Representatives matter. We met with them at their office on Friday, January 5, 2024, as a prerequisite to our meeting with the House of Representatives. They alluded to the fact that we had to comply with whatever the House members instructed us to do.
“At the House meeting, there were three members present. Two of them were Peter Akpanke and Philip Agbese, both working under the leadership of Ginger Obinna Onwusibe. There was a third House member, but I don’t recall his name.
“They set up fake cameras and media to make the meeting appear official, but the cameras weren’t even plugged in. As you may already know, this ended with them asking for a $150m bribe, paid in cryptocurrency into their personal wallets. A Micky Mouse operation at its best.”
Reacting to the development, however, Agbese, who doubles as the Deputy Spokesman of the House, has called on the Binance boss to support his claims with evidence or face the consequences of his actions.
Speaking with PUNCH Online, the Benue lawmaker said, “I am outraged by the false allegations made by Tigran Gambaryan, an executive of the controversial crypto firm Binance, claiming that I was among those who demanded a $150m bribe from him.
“These allegations are false. I was not part of any meeting with any Binance executive regarding money for any purpose. The leadership of the committee took the matter to court, and Binance has already apologised.
Tunji-Ojo, who appeared as a guest on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Friday, said the action by the Canadian embassy is condemnable and shows a lack of respect for Nigeria.
“Without knowing the full facts, I think even for us it is a policy, the issue of reciprocity as I always say, has to be given due consideration.
“As much as we are not ready to dabble into the sovereignty of other nations, the issue of visas, issue of migration management is a sovereign issue.
“As much as we don’t want to dabble into that, it is not a disrespect to the Chief of Defence Staff, to me, without knowing the facts, it is disrespectful to the country, and it is disrespectful to us as a people. If that can happen to the chief of defence staff, then I am worried for an average Nigerian.”
The Minister said that he was struggling to find justification for the action by Canada, noting that even if there were questions the embassy needed, there were diplomatic back channels in which that could have been done.
He said he was confident the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would take the necessary steps to resolve the issue diplomatically and ensure mutual respect between the two nations.
