Another 171 Nigerians rescued from Libya, 91 deported from Italy

*IOM, NEMA rescued 643 nationals since Dec 2016

The Nigerian Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) in collaboration International Organisation for Migration (IOM) today brought back 171 Nigerians who were stranded in Libya following the harsh treatment they were subjected to by their host country.

This is coming as 91 Nigerians were deported from Italy.  They were being expected back in the country tonight at 10pm aboard a chartered aircraft from Rome.

This fresh deportation from Libya brings to 643 Nigerians that had been rescued and brought back to the country since December 2016 when the government commenced rescue of the citizen after distress calls that the Libyan authorities were killing and maltreatment the Nigerians who were in the country for the proverbial Golden Fleece.

Some of the returnees gave a chilly narrative of their encounter in the hands of the Libyan authorities whom they said sold them into slavery.

One of the returnees who simply gave her name as Favour said she was lured into the trip by a man in Benin City, adding that her initial destination was Italy but ended up in the most horrific place, adding that she does not know the whereabout of four other ladies that travelled with her.

“One Kingsley came to me and told me about the attractiveness of Italy to me. He said he was ready to take me there to improve my living condition. The picture he painted was very attractive to ignore. We started the journey in September last year.”

“We took a bus from Onitsha to Kano. From there we passed through the desert to Niger Republic boarder. The security people at the Niger boarder collected N1, 000 from us before they allowed us to pass and from there to Agadez. We spent two days there and from there to Sarba which is the last town before Tripoli. We spent two weeks in the desert. Some fainted, others died in the desert.”

Favour stated that when efforts to lure her into prostitution failed, she had to escape from her captors but was eventually captured and taken to a detention camp where they were kept for two months before their deportation.

She stated that at the detention camp, they were maltreated, beaten and starved of food for days. She said they were only fed once a day while they also deprived them of opportunity to have their bath for days.

Another returnee, Ayomide Ajeyibi, an OND graduate from the Polytechnic, Ibadan said her dream had always been to go to Libya in search of work after many years of joblessness.

She disclosed that she paid N1.2 million to a man who took her to Libya. She said she got a job with an Arabian company which paid her N50, 000 monthly.

She however said she was arrested in a bus on her way to work.

“They arrested all the blacks in the bus and said we should go back to our country. They took us like common criminals and whisked us away to detention camps. It was a great torture. We were maltreated and beaten by the police.”

Speaking to journalists at the Hajj Camp of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, Federal Commissioner, National Commission for Refugees,  Saadatu Umar Farouk said they were at the airport to receive the returnees.

According to her, “We are here to receive our nationals from Libya. We call them irregular returnees because not all of them are criminals. They went in search greener pastures. They were there to do legitimate business. They were there to earn a decent living.”

We are embarking on sensitisation and advocacy for them to ensure that they get back their lives and live a normal life again’, she added.

Deputy Director, Search and Rescue, NEMA, Dr. Bandele Onimode who represented the Director-General of NEMA said there is strong collaboration between NEMA and IOM to ensure many Nigerians are rescued from the harsh situation in Libya.

The returnees were however taken in a luxury bus to the Synagogue Church of All Nations (SCOAN) where they would be accommodated, fed and be given money to get to their destinations today aside the 50 Euros given to them on arrival by IOM.

Wole Shadare