Nigerians on Monday staged a protest at the Nigerian High Commission in Pretoria, South Africa, over delays in the repatriation of citizens who had registered to return home.
On June 18, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, minister of foreign
affairs, assured Nigerians living in South Africa that no citizen willing to
return home would be abandoned as a June 30 deadline set by anti-migrant groups
for undocumented foreigners to leave the country draws near.
Her remarks followed the repatriation of 258 Nigerians from
South Africa, the first government-led evacuation amid rising xenophobic
attacks in the country.
The federal government had said four more repatriation
flights would return Nigerians from South Africa.
However, the second batch, initially scheduled for June 15,
was later postponed.
During the protesters, many Nigerians expressed frustration
over the slow pace of the evacuation process.
The protesters said many of them had been left stranded
after responding to the federal government’s call for voluntary return.
Speaking during the protest, Smart Nwobu, president of the
Nigerian community in South Africa, appealed to the federal government and
relevant authorities to expedite the evacuation of stranded Nigerians.
“As you know, only one flight left. The question is, when is
the second batch? When is the third batch? When is the fourth batch?” Nwobu
asked.
“We were promised that the second batch will be here on the
15th of June. The 15th has come and left. People were made destitute and their
conditions worsened.
“Nigerians are now sleeping on the street, and their
documents have been cancelled as a result of that registration.”
He said the protesters gathered at the high commission to
express their dissatisfaction with the situation and urge the government to
complete the evacuation process before the end of June.
“We are appealing to the government. That is why they are
here; to show their frustration and that they are not happy with the
situation,” he added.
“Nigerians are gathered here, calling on the government to
expedite the process and airlift them on or before June 30.”
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com