New year.......

Women in Nairobi night clubs conning their way to riches

Cases have been reported of sly women who ensnare flashy-looking male revelers by charming them with killer smiles, before posing as fair game and just when victims think they have landed an easy lay, they wake up the following morning robbed proper, writes SILAS NYANCHWANI

Twice, Dennis Nzioka has lost valuable electronics from his house under circumstances that generated more laughter than pity from his peers. He regularly picks pretty women from clubs and takes them home after a long night of partying.

The 28-year-old, who is an ICT expert with a media outlet, subscribes to the culture of Chips Funga (Nairobi’s version of one night stands) and with that, he has occasionally paid a huge price for his carnal pursuits.

Dennis is not the first — and certainly won’t be the last, to take home a perfect female stranger from a club, only to wake up in the morning to a virtually empty house. These incidents, which are widespread, largely go unreported given the shame that such lustful tendencies bring.

And every weekend, brings to light another horrendous tale for the revelers; and a couple of men go through this unpalatable experience.

Kenyan lady stabbed to death by husband in UK

The Standard. By Joseph Ngugi

A young Kenyan lady has been killed by her husband in Northolt, West London.  The lady, identified as  Shamim Gabriel was stabbed to death by the husband, Richard Otunga in front of their six-year old daughter.

It was the traumatised and crying daughter who called the police for help through the 999 emergency number while the killer dad was still on phone bragging to his father-in-law of how he had killed the woman after a domestic quarrel.

Police arrived at the scene within minutes but the woman was already dead.  The man was arrested and has been detained at a local police station for interrogation.

Kenyan neighbours who are friends to the young couple told the Standard that the house, which is now a scene of crime was still sealed off by the police as forensic experts continued to look for clues.

The obviously physically shaken daughter  who is allegedly still in tears is in the hands of specialists social services officers who have already started giving her counselling.

A statement sent to the Standard by the Metropolitan Police said: “Police were called at approximately 07:00hrs on Sunday, 29 December to a residential address on Taywood Road, Northolt following reports of an injured woman. Officers and London Ambulance Service attended.

The 33-year-old woman was pronounced dead at the scene at 07:25hrs. Next of kin have been informed. We await formal identification.

A post-mortem examination will be held in due course. The Homicide and Major Crime Command is investigating. A 37-year-old man was arrested at the address on suspicion of murder and remains in custody at a west London police station.” 

GIROUD SENDS ARSENAL TOP

Arsenal will go into 2014 top of the Premier League table after Olivier Giroud's second-half header secured a 1-0 win over Newcastle United at St James' Park.

Goalscoring opportunities were scarce throughout a testy encounter on Tyneside, but Giroud's first goal in over a month was enough to hand Arsenal a seventh away win of the season.

The first half was bereft of chances until added time when Mathieu Debuchy's looping header from a corner came back off the underside of the bar after Wojciech Szczesny had acrobatically tipped Moussa Sissoko's shot over.

The breakthrough went Arsenal's way on 65 minutes when Theo Walcott chipped a free-kick into the box and Giroud got ahead of his marker to guide a deft header beyond Tim Krul.

Just four minutes later, the same two players had a chance to double the lead when Walcott's lob from close range was cleared off the line by Debuchy, via the crossbar, but Giroud made a mess of the loose ball.

Arsenal gave themselves a scare with nine minutes to go when Szczesny's clearance smacked Loic Remy flush in the face before rolling wide of goal, but the visitors hung on to go back above Manchester City at the summit.

Newcastle boss Alan Pardew was able to draft Cheick Tiote back into his starting line-up after suspension with Hatem Ben Arfa making way, but opposite number Arsene Wenger was not so fortunate as he lost Mesut Ozil and Aaron Ramsey to injury, and Thomas Vermaelen and Nacho Monreal to illness.

Pardew, just as he had done in the 2-0 win over Chelsea in November, set out to frustrate the Gunners with a five-man midfield, but saw his side concede space and possession in the early stages as they found themselves pinned back.

However, for all they created half-chances, keeper Tim Krul did not have a save of note to make with Tomas Rosicky shooting straight at him from 20 yards with 27 minutes gone.

Santi Cazorla extended the Holland international three minutes later with a deflected effort which dipped nastily in front of him, but Giroud curled harmlessly wide 12 minutes before the break.

The Magpies had a chance to take a 12th-minute lead when Yohan Cabaye, who was a summer target for Arsenal, floated the ball over the top into Debuchy's run, but the defender could not control with just Szczesny to beat.

The Frenchman shot wide from a similar position 13 minutes later after again getting in round the back to collect Cabaye's deep free-kick, but he was to go significantly closer as the half-time whistle approached.

There was barely a minute of added time remaining when Vurnon Anita surged forward and picked out Cabaye, whose long-range strike was blocked by Laurent Koscielny, only for Sissoko to latch on to the rebound and force Szczesny to tip over a piledriver.

From the resulting corner, Debuchy headed against the underside of the crossbar and the Gunners managed to smuggle the loose ball away as referee Lee Probert blew for half-time.

After a tentative start to the second half, Anita caused panic in the Gunners' defence when he clipped a cross towards lone striker Remy, although between them Szczesny and his colleagues managed to keep the Frenchman at bay, if at full stretch.

Pardew made his move with 28 minutes remaining when he sent on Ben Arfa for the tiring Yoan Gouffran and charged him with the task of running at Arsenal.

But it was the visitors who went ahead three minutes later when Walcott floated a free-kick into the box and Giroud got ahead of Mike Williamson to glance it past Krul.

He should have doubled his tally within four minutes when, after Walcott saw his initial effort blocked by Krul and his follow-up headed off the line by Debuchy, the ball fell to him with the goal at his mercy, but he could not hit the target.

Newcastle pushed for a late equaliser and came close when Szczesny hammered the ball at Remy and looked on helplessly as it ran just wide.

Uhuru extends Gen Karangi’s term by a year

PHOTO | FILE Chief of Defence Forces Gen Julius Karangi (left) and Defence Cabinet Secretary Raychelle Omamo (2nd left) being welcomed at Defence Headquarters in Nairobi. President Kenyatta has quietly extended the contract of Kenya’s top military general by a year.   NATION MEDIA GROUP

In Summary

• General whose soldiers bungled the Westgate siege and were accused of looting shopping mall after terrorist attack to serve for at least 12 more months as President buys time to pick successor.
• Kenya Defence Forces Chief Julius Karangi, 62, was due to retire this month after serving a one-year extension to his contract given by then President Mwai Kibaki last year so that the transition in the military would not coincide with the General Election.
• Senior officers in the rank of Lieutenant-General and Major-General retire at the age of 58 and 56 respectively if they are not promoted to the next rank, according to the rules.

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By MUGUMO MUNENE
More by this Author

President Kenyatta has quietly extended the contract of Kenya’s top military general by a year.

Kenya Defence Forces Chief Julius Karangi, 62, was due to retire this month after serving a one-year extension to his contract given by then President Mwai Kibaki last year so that the transition in the military would not coincide with the General Election.

Mr Kibaki gave Gen Karangi a two-year contract split into two terms of one year each so as not to tie the hands of his successor in picking the top general after the March General Election.

But President Kenyatta chose to keep Gen Karangi for 12 more months – perhaps to buy time as he assesses who among the ranking generals to promote.

Ideally, and should the President stick to tradition, the next KDF boss will be picked from the Vice-Chief of KDF, Lt-Gen Samson Mwathethe, the Army Commander, Lt-Gen Joseph Kasaon and Lt-Gen Jackson Waweru who heads the National Defence College.

Kenya Air Force Commander, Maj-Gen Joff Otieno, and Kenya Navy Commander Maj-Gen Ngewa Mukala are not in the ranking to immediately succeed Gen Karangi as they are two ranks below the top position. However, the pair and other Maj-Generals are in line for serving in more senior positions if they don’t clock the retirement age first.

BOOST MORALE

By delaying a reshuffle in the military, President Kenyatta is following in the footsteps of his predecessors, Mr Kibaki and Mr Daniel arap Moi, who did not always make changes when time was due.

The delays have ended up disrupting a tradition set by former military boss Daudi Tonje to professionalise the military, boost morale and ensure smooth succession.

Among other things, the so-called Tonje Rules demanded that officers were either retired or promoted when they attained a certain age.

The Chief of Defence Forces is to retire at 62 years or on serving one term of four years or whichever comes first. Gen Karangi will be 63 in April next year.

Senior officers in the rank of Lieutenant-General and Major-General retire at the age of 58 and 56 respectively if they are not promoted to the next rank, according to the rules.

The rules are applicable to the Chief of Kenya Defence Forces, the Kenya Army Commander, the Kenya Air Force Commander and the Kenya Navy Commander.

But an officer can be retired at a younger age if he has been a service commander for four years, or at the pleasure of the President.

The appointment of key military officers is an elaborate process which begins from the lower ranks all the way to the National Defence Council, which advises the President on the top appointments. The National Defence Council is normally chaired by the Cabinet Secretary for Defence, Ms Raychelle Omamo.

Gen Karangi’s new term coincided with the creation of a third KDF command, the Nairobi Metropolitan Command, early this month. The KDF was previously divided into Eastern and Western commands.

The announcement came with a number of promotions and retirements. President Kenyatta appointed Maj-Gen L.M. Ngondi the Force Commander, UN Mission in Liberia, while Maj-Gen JM Ondieki was appointed the Deputy Army Commander.

Maj-Gen FK Nthenge was made the Amisom Deputy Force Commander and Maj-Gen MO Oyugi Assistant Chief of the Defence Forces.

Nthenge and Oyugi replaced Maj-Gen S. Karanja and Maj-Gen (Dr) G.O. Kihalangwa who retired. Also promoted were Brigadier CM Kahariri to Deputy Navy Commander, Brigadier D.C. Bartonjo to Commander 4th Brigade, Brigadier A.G. Matiri to Armoured Brigade Commander.

Brigadier C.M. Kang’ethe is the new Deputy Commandant at the Defence Staff College.

In September, the military was accused of bungling the Westgate rescue after terrorists seized the shopping mall and killed at least 67 people.
As police battled the attackers, the military rolled in.

Various accounts have suggested that the military’s entry was hurried and confused the chain of command in the ranks responding to the emergency.

BATTLE THE TERRORISTS

Eventually, the police crack squad called in to battle the terrorists was recalled with the military taking over.

But the crisis rose to a new level after CCTV footage emerged showing soldiers who were supposed to have been battling the attackers looting shops.

In an article published by the Saturday Nation two months ago, Lieutenant-General (rtd) Humphrey Njoroge, one-time Commandant of the National Defence College, said the military lost the plot in the Westgate siege.

Lt-Gen Njoroge cited a broken command structure in responding to the attack, poor screening of people fleeing the mall and outright incompetence, which handed the attackers the upper hand.

An alumnus of the US Army War College, Lt-Gen Njoroge had in the 1980s recommended in an academic paper that the Kenyan police and the military should train together in order to handle situations in urban areas.

But there was a caveat. “The Army must also be trained to be able to live and fight under urban conditions to avoid undue harassment of children, women and the aged and the looting, which comes about when an inexperienced Army is exposed to these things,” he wrote.

CIVILIAN AUTHORITIES

Military insiders who spoke to the Sunday Nation said the Nairobi Metropolitan Command will be framed along the lines suggested by Lt-Gen Njoroge and will be primed to respond to Westgate-type incidents in liaison with police and civilian authorities.

The Westgate saga cast a long shadow on Gen Karangi’s tenure. His profile had previously been on an unprecedented high after his troops successfully pursued al-Shabaab militants – who had repeatedly struck Kenyan targets – to the port of Kismayu in Somalia.

The move to quell al-Shabaab attacks and pursue attackers inside Somalia earned admiration and respect at home and abroad.

KDF troops now run the port under the Amisom auspices as the soldiers pacify residents of the war-torn country.

In June, a UN monitoring mission accused KDF and local allies of exporting charcoal from the port of Kismayu “in flagrant violation of the [UN] Security Council ban”. KDF rejected the report at the time.

Ruto: We’ve laid ground for a better Kenya

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2013

Deputy President William Ruto. PHOTO | DIANA NGILA | FILE 

In Summary

• There is no turning back on this one. In 2014, therefore, we intend to actualise those programmes and strategies that will ensure that the rights of the citizen are optimally realised.
• Our government pledged to be the Trustee of Kenya Vision 2030. I am sure that few Kenyans doubt the sincerity of this pledge given the priority we have assigned to projects connected with the Vision 2030.
• The youth, women, the disabled and the traditionally marginalised now have the space they need, together with appropriate affirmative amenities to play a full part in generating double-digit economic growth.

By William Ruto
More by this Author

In less than a fortnight, the Jubilee administration will be nine months old. In terms of mankind’s cycle of life, such a duration is significant in a familiar, optimistic, affirming way.

For this reason, I have taken this opportunity to share with you my expectations for the New Year.

The work of government centres on three phases: constitutional implementation, Vision 2030 and delivery of the pledges in the Jubilee manifesto. The first entails the discharge of the sovereign mandates of the people of Kenya instituted on August 27, 2010.

It is our duty and honour to have this opportunity as government to serve the people and observe their sovereignty at all times.

We take this solemn duty very seriously, and are keen to see it through in full. The letter as well as the spirit of the constitution is going to be manifest in the programmes and policies of the government.

There is no turning back on this one. In 2014, therefore, we intend to actualise those programmes and strategies that will ensure that the rights of the citizen are optimally realised.

At the same time, it is our desire that devolution takes root and becomes a fully-fledged national culture. I expect to see the full social, economic and political benefits of devolution demonstrated in the coming year.

The confusion surrounding the philosophy and logistics of devolution have nothing to do with its impracticality. Rather, it has everything to do with the fact that devolution is easily the most visionary, potent and transformative innovation in our constitution, requiring a dramatic about-turn in the way we have handled various issues as a country. Therefore, I see the contestations surrounding devolution steadily resolving into seamless governance. We will, therefore, be keen to continue giving devolution the push required to impart a transformative momentum.

Our government pledged to be the Trustee of Kenya Vision 2030. I am sure that few Kenyans doubt the sincerity of this pledge given the priority we have assigned to projects connected with the Vision 2030.

As I have continued to participate in activities touching on Vision 2030, I have become more and more persuaded that as it stands, the development roadmap is our best opportunity to turn our backs on a past of wasted opportunities and head towards a future replete with promise.

Moreover, I am utterly convinced that Kenya can, with discipline and unwavering focus, execute the Vision well before 2030. In fact, I see 2020 as an attainable target.

Naturally, there is quite a bit of political self-interest in accelerating the implementation of the constitution, and of Kenya Vision 2030. First of all, it will do no harm at all if, in a very short time, we are able to offer Kenyans an enriched social, economic and political space to realise their individual and collective aspirations.

Everybody wins in such an outcome. Additionally, we have purposively evaluated the constitutional implementation programme as well as the Kenya Vision 2030 and found plenty of opportunities to execute the Jubilee manifesto and secure “quick wins”.

For this reason, expect us to be dead earnest about the pledges we have made and our stated commitments in terms of the constitution and Vision 2030. I disclose this interest on our part to demonstrate the seriousness of our commitment. For our government, there is no turning back.

There are many challenges to these expectations. We need a stable political environment in which to work. Nothing distracts and enervates as effectively as volatile, high-stakes political contest in the middle of a constitutional term. The President and I have consciously moved to foster a cordial and sedate political environment.

OFFICIAL OPPOSITION

We are reaching out, and are reluctant to engage in the sort of drama solely aimed at demonstrating superiority for its own sake. We want bipartisan, constructive engagement, which does not infringe on the mandates of Official Opposition.

In the midst of all the wrangling, posturing and confrontation, I believe that there is opportunity for leadership to engage in a forward-looking, statesmanlike manner.

Another challenge we face is insecurity. Whilst we are taking comprehensive measures to combat domestic criminality, I want all Kenyans to consider the fact that our external threats increase every day, and to reflect on their role in securing the nation. Terrorists have not hidden their desire to inflict destruction and suffering on our land. We are doing all we can as a government, and as a member of active multilateral coalitions to contain the threats regionally and domestically. This effort will be duly escalated to guarantee national security, which we need to develop.

As we celebrate the pact recently signed in State House, Nairobi, which effectively brings peace to the DRC and bolsters the stability of the Great Lakes, we must lament the threat of relapse into civil war in South Sudan.

Our brothers and sisters should be able to enjoy the respite from conflict afforded by the Comprehensive Peace Agreement. Homemade political solutions are required to restore stability in South Sudan.

A significant worry is the effect of a scramble for the country’s natural resources in catalysing instability. All I can do at this point is to call for all international players to be responsible, and remember the humanitarian gravity posed by a volatile region.

Kenya is involved in a number of infrastructural and other bilateral collaborations with South Sudan. Our development agenda is staked on a stable region. We will stand by our brother state as usual, and do our part in contributing towards its greater progress and stability.

Our economy is looking up. Everything we do now – each one of us – adds to the generation of greater wealth for our nation. I urge all Kenyans to work with the energy and urgency that the President and I share because we are at a unique historical juncture.

We are continuing to lay a foundation for greater growth throughout the country. The youth, women, the disabled and the traditionally marginalised now have the space they need, together with appropriate affirmative amenities to play a full part in generating double-digit economic growth.

With God’s help, therefore, I expect us to generate surplus agricultural production. I also expect that industrial output will bolster our balance of payments.

Our private sector will continue to lead in innovation, production and economic governance. I want, more than anything else, to see significant movement in our economic growth projection, taking us as close to the double-digit promise as possible. I expect less corruption and wastage, and a more robust law enforcement to protect economic activity. I expect Kenya to maintain its exemplary pace in regional integration initiatives, and to be an integral part of an energised Pan African charge.

In 2014, I want Kenyans to be more secure, better fed and healthier.

More children will spend more time in school, and more workers will be engaged in production.

The President and I will do everything we can to put more shillings in each Kenyan’s pocket in 2014.

Happy New Year.

BUSINESS Equity Bank, Safaricom big winners in new matatu rules

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How welcome are Africans in the UK?

The Oboh family believes there are many opportunities in the UKBy Farouk Chothia, BBC Africa

A Nigerian nurse who has built a successful career in the UK, 57-year-old Sophie Oboh, has mixed views about the tighter immigration laws that the government is implementing.Continue reading the main story

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Ms Oboh says she understands the reason for the crackdown but she is also concerned that it may go too far, preventing other Nigerian nurses from moving to the UK.

"If they are given the opportunity tomorrow, they will come," Mrs Oboh told the BBC.

Continue reading the main story

“

Start Quote

Immigration is and has been one of the top five political issues in each election in the UK since 2002”

Kahiye AlimLawyer

"Nigeria is a very big nation. There are qualified nurses who don't have jobs there," she adds, pointing out that there is no risk of her home country experiencing a "brain drain".

When Mrs Oboh first came to the UK in 1988, it was "simple".

"My husband was here as a student. I was allowed to come and join him. Today, it's very difficult to come to Britain."

'Go home'

Now, UK law has split families - a point that South Africa-based immigration lawyer Johannes Breytenbach makes.

He notes that Britons must now earn a minimum of $30,000 (£18,600) a year to bring over a spouse who is a non-European Union (EU) citizen. He says this would disadvantage a British stay-at-home mother who would like to be joined by her spouse, who could be a successful businessman.

"This has been the worst change in law in relation to the impact it has on our clients who are British citizens," he says.

Diversity is celebrated at London's annual Notting Hill Carnival

London-based human rights and immigration lawyer Kahiye Alim agrees, saying that unless you are well off, "you can't fall in love with a foreigner".

Mr Alim notes that the High Court has rejected the new financial rule as "onerous", ruling that they violate respect for family life under the European Human Rights Convention. However, the government has appealed against the judgement and the case is due to be heard next March.

Continue reading the main story

'Hostile reception'

Kiri KankhwendeMalawian immigrant

I first came to the UK in 2001 on a student visa to study Chinese and French at Leeds. It was quite hard to get my visa. The main challenge was getting all the paperwork the authorities needed. And because the post from the UK takes a while to arrive in Malawi, it took some time for me to get my university correspondence.

But you knew where you stood. Now, the system seems to be aimed more at catching you out than facilitating a fair process. The rules keep changing - it's hard to keep up. The situation seems a lot more precarious, especially as you could lose your visa through no fault of your own, like what happened to London Met students when the university lost its licence to sponsor non-EU students last year.

After I completed my studies, I got an internship and a job in London. But I had to go back home first, and re-enter under a different visa. I did not mind because it gave me a chance to visit my family.

I presently work for a charity in London focusing on religious freedom. This is my home now, but I think the UK is slightly less welcoming than when I came - not only from an official standpoint point but also from people.

I get asked whether I am Somali or Eritrean and if you come from that part of Africa, you get a slightly more hostile reception.

"Immigration is and has been one of the top five political issues in each election in the UK since 2002. It is rising on the agenda across Europe and there is a correlation in this rise following the financial crisis," Mr Alim says.

The UK Home Office caused a major outcry in July when its vans drove through racially diverse boroughs in London, displaying a picture of handcuffs with the message: "In the UK illegally? Go home or face arrest."

'Sham marriages'

The government abandoned the scheme after criticism from across the political spectrum, including from the United Kingdom Independence Party (Ukip) - which appeals to voters opposed to immigration. Ukip described the message as being reminiscent of a fascist dictatorship.

The government has now proposed even tougher legislation - including requiring landlords to check the legal status of tenants before renting property; making temporary migrants pay £200 ($324) a year towards the cost of the National Health Service; and getting registrars to inform the Home Office of planned weddings between UK citizens and those from outside Europe, in an attempt to cut down on "sham marriages".

Defending government policy, a Home Office spokesperson said: "Immigration reform is working; we have tightened immigration routes where abuse was rife, while still encouraging the brightest and the best to come to the UK".

But for rights campaigner Lee Jasper of the Movement Against Xenophobia group, the "landlords' provisions in the bill are scandalous and herald a return to the days of the colour bar, where Caribbean and Irish immigrants in the 1960s were confronted with the signs: No Blacks, No Dogs, No Irish".

Mr Alim says the government's latest crackdown on immigration is tied to the fact that Prime Minister David Cameron has pledged to reduce net migration from the "hundreds of thousands" to the "tens of thousands" by the next election in 2015.

"It's a numbers game. They can't reduce migration from European Union countries because they are part of the EU, so they've picked on family migrants and students [from other countries]," he says.

Continue reading the main story

In this year's local elections, Mr Cameron's Conservative party shed support to Ukip, which is campaigning for the UK's withdrawal from the EU.

"Cameron is trying to get voters to come back and the bill is the bait," Mr Alim says.

As part of its crackdown, the Conservatives proposed that visitors from "high-risk" countries, including Nigeria and India, put up a $4,600 (£3,000) "security bond" as a condition for obtaining a tourist visa.

However, it was forced to drop the idea following opposition from its coalition partner, the Liberal Democrats.

The new measures seem to be having some effect, judging by the number of Nigerians who have registered for a National Insurance (NI) number, usually given to legal migrants.

'Adapting to the British way'

Carlos Vargas-Silva, a senior researcher at the UK-based Oxford University's Centre on Migration Policy and Studies (COMPAS), says the number has fallen by 24% - from 10,510 in the 12 months leading up to April 2012 to 13,760 in the following year.

The 2011 census put the number of African-born residents in England and Wales at 1.3 million, compared with 809,000 in 2001 - an increase of 62%.

Mr Vargas-Silva says the main aim of the latest parliamentary bill is to deal with existing migrants, rather than decreasing immigration.

Eastern Europeans are the latest group to face a backlash

"One component is directed at undocumented migrants - these by definition are from non-EU countries, including African countries - and tries to make their stay in the UK more difficult. This should not affect immigration of skilled workers from African countries," he says.

The census shows that the former British colonies of Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya and Zimbabwe are the African countries which account for most migration to England and Wales.

Between 2001-2011, the numbers of Nigerians and Zimbabweans have both risen by more than 100%.

African-born residents in England & Wales: 2001-2011
Country	2001	2011	Increase
Nigeria	86,958	191,183	119.9%
South Africa	132,301	191,023	44.4%
Kenya	127,322	137,492	8%
Zimbabwe	47,157	118,348	151%
Source: England & Wales Census 2001 and 2011, ONS
2011	Employed	Unemployed	Students
Employable Nigerians	99,368 - 76.4%	13,213 - 10.2%	17,542 - 13.5%
Employable South Africans	128,603 - 91.9%	6,079 - 4.3%	5,299 - 3.8%
Source: England & Wales Census 2011, ONS

Mr Vargas-Silva says official statistics show that South Africans in the UK are financially better off than other African communities.

"South Africans are a very established community here and very different in economic terms. Their income is much higher," he says.

Continue reading the main story

“

Start Quote

A bright doctor from Nigeria or Namibia finds it far harder to get in than a rapist and a murderer [from Eastern Europe]”

Tom BursnallUKIP member

Mr Breytenbach says South Africans' "ambition" to relocate to the UK is as strong as ever, but they are finding it increasingly difficult.

"Immigration rules are certainly tougher which has led to many very highly skilled individuals who would like to go to the UK and who no doubt would have contributed to the United Kingdom economy now no longer being able to do so," he adds.

But the government insists its policies will continue to attract "global talent" to the UK.

"The UK is open for business - we are building an immigration system that works in the national interest and supports growth," the Home Office spokesperson said.

For Ukip member Tom Bursnall, the government's main focus should now be on blocking immigration from Eastern Europe.

"At the moment, the system disadvantages our Commonwealth brothers. A bright doctor from Nigeria or Namibia finds it far harder to get in than a rapist and a murderer [from Eastern Europe]," he says.

Mrs Oboh - the Nigerian nurse - works and lives in Slough, about 30km (20 miles) west of London.

Continue reading the main story

No 'milk and honey'

Michael UkhuegbeNigerian immigrant

I am married to a British woman and we have two lovely children - two years old and four years old. I came to the UK in 2004 because I thought it will be the best opportunity for me to escape the harsh economic reality in Nigeria then.

But when you set foot here, the reality hits you that this is not a land flowing with milk and honey. I have worked in a warehouse sorting post, at a construction site and as a parking attendant.

It's not been all rosy, but you do not want to chicken out and go back home. That is how you prove you are a man.

At the end of the day, it is worth moving out of Nigeria. It is very organised here. Things work the way they should. People abide by the rules. You can't jump queues. You can't impose on others.

The town has always had a large population of immigrants, with Eastern Europeans the latest group to settle there following their integration into the EU in the post-Cold War era.

"They are willing to do any job - like cleaning and working in factories," Mrs Oboh says.

Mrs Oboh has certainly succeeded in the UK, working her way up from doing ward duty to co-ordinating a team of nurses at a state-run clinic for mental health patients.

"I've always been passionate about mental health illness. Back home, there is a lack of awareness about it," she says.

Mrs Oboh says she has never experienced racism while working in the UK - and has "adapted to the British way of nursing".

That means speaking more softly, being less abrupt and making eye contact, she says.

"To look away from a patient is rude."

Although she describes Nigeria as home, Mrs Oboh, who has four children - "they correct my English", she quips - also sees herself as "very British".

"I love this country. The light [electricity] is constant, the water is 24 hours, the roads are smooth. It's organised," she says.

"The opportunities are there. If you don't make it here, you're lazy."