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US Embassy, Abuja To Waive Interview For Select Visa Renewals

us embassy

The United States Embassy, Abuja has announced that it has begun the process of visa renewals for non-immigrants without requiring an interview.

The embassy made this known in a statement issued by her Public Affairs Section on Wednesday, March 30, 2022. The embassy says the policy commences immediately and the interview waiver would only be applicable under the following conditions;

  • The visa is B1/B2, F, M, J (academic only), H, L, or C1/D (combined only
  • The applicant previously received a U.S. non-immigrant visa that expired within the last 24 months, or will expire in the next three months from the date of application.
  • The previous visa was issued in Nigeria
  • The previous visa was a full validity, multiple entry visa
  • The applicant is applying for the same visa classification as the prior approved visa
  • The applicant has never been arrested or convicted of any crime in the United States (even if they later received a pardon or waiver)
  • The applicant has never worked without authorization or overstayed in the United States; and
  • The applicant has not had any significant life changes.

The embassy clarifies that “a parent’s qualifications cannot extend to a child. The child must independently meet each requirement.”

Though it did not put a limit to the number of applicants who may utilize the interview waiver, the US embassy said that the number of accepted applicants would be limited.

The embassy encouraged applicants qualified for the interview waiver to seek to apply only via official online sources as third parties might be out to defraud applicants with bogous claims.

Read Also: MultiChoice Announce Increased Prices For All DSTV and GOTV Bouquets

The US Embassy gave the following links as the only credible sources where applicants should seek information – travel.state.gov, ng.usembassy.gov/visas/, and ustraveldocs.com/ng.

Applicants are to set an appointment for document review throught the link – ustraveldocs.com/ng and follow the instructions given thereafter.

The embassy states that it would take about 2 months to complete the visa renewal without interview, however, it adds that the processing time could vary, and during this period, the applicant would have no access to their passport.

Application fees for visa application remain unchanged – $160 USD for non-petition-based non-immigrant visas, and $190 USD for petition-based non-immigrant visa categories.

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Entertainment

Asake’s ‘Mr Money With the Vibe’ Is Charting Top 50 On Spotify

Three years after its release, Asake’s Mr Money With the Vibe is still doing numbers. At the time of press, the track ‘Nzaza’ currently ranks 23rd on Spotify Nigeria’s Top 50 songs, that’s 148 weeks and counting, nearly three years of nonstop streaming for a debut project.

For most artists, a first album fades after its moment. For Asake, it’s really that moment that refuses to fade.

Released September 8, 2022, through YBNL Nation and Empire, Mr Money With the Vibe arrived when the streets already knew Asake’s name. He had already spent months turning singles like Sungba into hits. This 12-track debut built on that momentum, and he managed to do even more.

The project blends Afrobeats, Amapiano, and Fuji influences, creating a sound that can be global yet deeply Nigerian. Songs like Joha, Terminator, and Organise became instant hits, setting the tone for Asake’s larger-than-life run that would define Afrobeats in the mid-2020s.

From its first day out, Mr Money With the Vibe shattered expectations and redefined what a Nigerian debut could do.

Apple Music Africa: The album broke records for the most first-day and most opening three-day streams ever by an African project.Apple Music Nigeria Top 100: For a brief, almost unbelievable stretch, every single track on the album occupied the first 12 spots on the chart. Global Reach: The project reached #1 on Apple Music Album Charts in 26 countries, including six across Europe.

Albums fade, trends change, and new stars rise every quarter. Yet Mr Money With the Vibe remains glued to the top. That consistency says something about both Asake and his audience. For one, the project captured a moment in time, the rise of a new street-pop generation that blurred the lines between amapiano and Yoruba-rooted rhythm. Every track carried Asake’s trademark vocals and a hypnotic tempo that became instantly recognizable across countries.

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Wizkid’s Son Enters the Spotlight with Debut EP ‘Champion’s Arrival’

Boluwatife Balogun, the 14-year-old son of Afrobeats titan Wizkid, has finally launched his own music career. Now known by the stage name “Champz”, the young star has just unveiled his first-ever project. The much-anticipated five-track EP, titled Champion’s Arrival, dropped on Tuesday, November 11, instantly sparking fresh buzz on the internet.

Champz himself took to his social media channels to confirm the news via a post that read: “11/11: The Champion has arrived. My debut EP ‘Champion’s Arrival’ is Out Now on all streaming platforms!”

The debut project serves nothing near his father’s iconic Afropop sound as Bolu’s sound is strictly a heavy dose of Rap, Afroswing, and Trap. Early snippets, which went viral weeks ago, showcased a lyrical flow and a smooth, polished composure that belies his tender age.

Fans can now stream the full project across all major digital platforms, including Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music, and Audiomack. Champz is signalling his readiness to step into the fiercely competitive Nigerian music scene. The game has a new player.

This is not merely a son following his father; it is a destiny playing out in real time.

Wizkid also began his journey at a tender age, starting in a church choir and later releasing his first collaborative album at just 11 years old under the name ‘Lil Prinz

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Incumbent Anambra Governor Charles Soludo Wins Anambra Election

Charles Soludo

Governor Chukwuma Soludo has secured a return to office after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared him the winner of the November 8, 2025, Anambra State governorship election. The results announced by the electoral umpire showed that the incumbent governor recorded a landslide victory, sweeping all the 21 local government areas of the South-East State. In the early hours of Sunday, November 9, the State Returning Officer and Vice Chancellor of the University of Benin, Professor Omoregie Edoba, declared Soludo the winner of the exercise after collating results from the state’s local government areas.

“I hereby declare that Soludo Chukwuma Charles of the APGA, having satisfied the requirements of the law, is hereby declared the winner and is returned elected,” Edoba said.

The final tally showed that the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) candidate garnered 422,664 votes, pulverising his closest challenger, the All Progressives Congress (APC) flag-bearer, Nicholas Ukachukwu, who polled 99,445 votes.

Paul Chukwuma of the Young Progressives Party (YPP) came a distant third with 37,753 votes, while John Nwosu of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) scored 8,208 votes.

Labour Party’s George Moghalu and his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) counterpart, Jude Ezenwafor, scored 10,576 votes and 1,401 votes, respectively. Peter Obi, a former Governor of the State and Labour Party’s presidential candidate in 2023, couldn’t bring his popularity to bear in the election.

Obi, who had spearheaded Moghalu’s campaign, not only failed to secure a victory for his preferred candidate at his polling unit, but the Labour Party’s total votes of 10,576 also fell way short of expectations.

Results from Polling Unit 019, Umudimakasi, Amatutu village, where Obi voted, showed that the APC recorded 73 votes, defeating the Labour Party, which polled 57 votes.

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