FG rescues another 151 Nigerians from Libya
*7000 deported from Libya since 2001
The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) in collaboration with Nigeria Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) again assisted in facilitating the return of 155 Nigerians from Tripoli, Libya.
The returnees arrived the cargo wing of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos yesterday at 6.20 pm aboard a chartered aircraft.
Most of them were crest fallen, lamenting what had befallen them. But some of them expressed joy that they arrived home safely.
The returnees, mainly in their 20s and 30s, were picked and negotiated for from various prisons and detention camps in Libya courtesy IOM.
Deputy Director, Search and Rescue, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Dr. Bandele Onimode, said among the returnees were three medical cases.
One of the returnees had paralysis, the other psychiatric case, while the last was a minor ailment. All were being catered for by a team of IOM and Port Authority’s doctors shortly after arrival.
Onimode said that the returnees all voluntarily chose to return to Nigeria after they were rescued for harsh and inhuman conditions in Libya.
He added that it was NEMA’s duty to receive them on behalf of the Federal Government, and connect the returnees with various state governments for proper integration.
Public Information Officer of IOM, Julia Burpee, said theirs were cases of people stranded in Libya and unable to proceed as economic migrants to Europe.
Burpee said that till date over 7000 Nigerians have been repatriated since 2001.
A top official of IOM who spoke to Woleshadare.net under condition of anonymity said it is a confounding paradox to observe the influx of Nigerians into foreign countries, despite the incessant deportation of their compatriots from the same locations.
The craze amongst Nigerians for migration records larger figures in countries in the Western hemisphere as well as the Southern African belt, with South Africa as the preferred destination point due to its strong economy.
He noted that quite surprisingly, most of the migrants are even seeking asylum in their host countries, a development which suggests that the Nigerian environment is wholly unstable and not conducive for the citizens to eke out existence and live a good life. It is an unfortunate scenario.
For instance, about 12, 000 Nigerians are currently seeking asylum in Germany, as recently disclosed by the Federal Government. Incidentally, half of that number is also seeking protection in Switzerland, which, together with Germany, is likely to deny them asylum,
This fresh deportation from Libya brings to 794 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 maltreating the Nigerians who were in the country for the proverbial Golden Fleece.
Some of the returnees gave 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 Blessing 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.
The Federal Government had initially disclosed that the evacuation programme from Libya, being the eight in about 14 months, will not continue endlessly, but would soon be wrapped up.
