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Tag: Libya

  • How FG can stop Nigerians from going to Libya – Catholic Bishops

    Some Catholic Bishops on Sunday condemned the inhuman treatment meted on Nigerians working and living in Libya, describing the act as horrific.

    Joseph Bagobiri of the Catholic Diocese of Kafanchan, Adewale Martins of Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos, and Alaba Job of Ibadan condemned the modern slavery in separate telephone interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN.

    The clergymen said they were shocked that such act of man’s inhumanity to fellow humans in this age and time was happening in a member- country of the African Union (AU).

    They called on the federal government to initiate and implement measures that would discourage Nigerians from seeking greener pastures in countries where they ended up being sold as slaves.

    NAN recalls that the federal government has repatriated over 6,000 Nigerians from Libya as at end of December 2017.

    Mr. Martins said that such indignity being meted on Africans by fellow Africans was not only repulsive but evil.

    He urged the federal government to declare a state of emergency on the economy so as to rescue the nation and set-up a realistic road map that would stabilise the naira.

    “Our people are going hungry daily, our youths are dying in their quest for better options to life outside our shores and yet our leaders appear more concern with how to clinch to power.

    “I think the time has come for all of us to reason together to resolve and restructure the lopsided political structures we are currently operating and set up realistic goals that would help move us forward,’’ he said.

    Mr. Job, an archbishop emeritus, said that selling of Nigerians into slavery in Libya was “very horrific and really bad’’’ in this age and time.

    He said that there was nothing wrong with people relocating from one country to another but warned such intending emigrants to be sure of happenings where they intended relocating to.

    He decried the ill-treatment meted out to Nigerians that resulted to loss of lives as well as being subjected to slavery in various detention camps in Libya.

    “The Nigerian government should rise up to defend its nationals in Libya not only by repatriating them.

    “The government should make Nigeria conducive to live by providing good job opportunities, security and other necessities of life for its citizens.

    “For Libya to be selling Nigerians as slaves in that country leaves much to be desired,” he said.

    Also speaking on the trend, Julius Adelakun of the Catholic Diocese of Oyo urged the federal government to encourage youth to join in building the Nigeria of their dreams.

    “Many Nigerians are travelling to developed world to enjoy the development put in place by their governments but we have refused to develop our own country.

    “Let us start to develop ours to make it attractive and conducive for living so that foreign nationals will want to come,’’ he said.

    Mr. Adelakun also advised the government to provide job opportunities for the youths, saying that such would discourage them from seeking greener pastures outside Nigeria.

    Mr. Bagobiri condemned the treatments meted on Nigerians in Libya and described the inhuman treatments as “unfortunate’’.

    The cleric wondered why an able-bodied person would waste close to half a million naira in search of elusive greener pastures in Libya.

    “If such individuals had invested these amounts positively and creatively in Nigeria in viable business opportunities, they will have become employers of labour.

    “They would have commanded respect in their father’s land instead of being subjected to slavery and other forms of inhuman treatment by Libyans,’’ he said.

    Mr. Bagobiri said that the federal government should correct the perception being held by intending youths aspiring to travel outside the country in search of the greener pastures.

     

  • IOM, EU evacuate 132 more Nigerians from Libya

    IOM, EU evacuate 132 more Nigerians from Libya

    The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) and the European Union (EU) on Monday evacuated 132 more Nigerians from Libya.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the new batch of returnees arrived at the Cargo Wing of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos at 5.30 p.m..

    The Nigerians returned aboard a chartered Global Africa aircraft with Registration Number LZ MDO.

    The returnees comprised 35 adult females, 88 adult males and nine children and infants.

    They were received by officials of the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS), the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and the Police.

    An official of the IOM, Frantz Célestin, said this was the second chartered flight by IOM in 2018 making it 313 Nigeria returned so far in the new year.

    “Migration is not a problem in itself. It engenders socioceconomic development if properly managed,” he said.

    Mr. Celestin affirmed IOM’s commitment in collaborating with Nigeria in ensuring protection and safe arrival of Nigerian migrants from Libya.

    NAN reports that 6,806 Nigerians have been returned from Libya in 2017 through the efforts of the IOM and EU.

    The Nigerians were stranded in the volatile North African country where they had been stranded enroute Europe and were being subjected to various abuses in the country.

    NAN

  • 560 Nigerian returnees from Libya arrive Port Harcourt

    560 Nigerian returnees from Libya arrive Port Harcourt

    The third batch of 560 Nigerian returnees from Libya have arrived Port Harcourt.

    Mr Martins Ejike, the South-South Zonal Coordinator, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), made this known to newsmen on Sunday in Port Harcourt.

    Ejike said that the returnees, comprising 540 adult and 20 infants, arrived the airport on board Max Air, with registration No: 5N-HMM at about 11:52 p.m.

    However, he expressed dissatisfaction over poor response of some state governments in evacuating the Libyan returnees from the reception centre in the state.

    The zonal coordinator said that the Federal Government gave the states 48 hours to enable them evacuate their returnees from the centre,

    He expressed dismay that some states failed to abide by the directives, noting that South-West states are not responding to the evacuation process.

    Ejike said that the choice of Port Harcourt airport as evacuation route was based on proximity to the most affected states.

    “A graphic showed that Edo state along recorded 309 out of 484 migrants, the record also showed that over 80 per cent of the returnees were indigenes of Edo and Delta states.

    “It is more convenient for the largely affected states to evacuate their returnees from Port Harcourt,” he said.

    Mr Muhammad Dahiru, the Public Relations Officer of Max Air, also said that the airline was competent to convey 1,680 returnees if passengers were cleared without delays.

    Dahiru said that the airline deployed three air crafts with 560 capacity each for the operation, adding that speedy operation can be actualised if passengers documentation and clearance are not delayed.

    One of the returnees, Mr Paul Eke, who thanked the federal government on ensuring smooth return of migrants, said that the measure showed government’s commitment to its citizens.

    Eke also urged the government to continue its rescue process to the hinterland in the Libyan states where some Nigerians were being imprisoned and unjustly tortured.

    “I urge our federal government to do more by rescuing some Nigerians who are still trapped in some interior parts of Libya.

    “I stayed in Zawe Superata, this place is like an exit point to Italy and so many Nigerians are still being imprisoned there,” Eke alleged.

  • ‘I am now ready to remain in Nigeria to start frying Akara’ – Libyan returnee

    A Libyan returnee presently undergoing rehabilitation in Delta state has said he willing now willing and ready to remain in Nigeria after all the ‘awful and animalistic’ he passed through trying to cross into Europe.

    Okafor Abraham, who hails from Umunede in Ika North-East, said he joined the movement to Libya in November 2016 having paid N150,000.00.

    He described his ordeal in the drylands of Kano to Niger republic to Agades and Libya as ‘awful and animalistic,’ and said himself and others in the journey to Europe were fed with addictive foods in Libyan prisons.

    “I am now ready to remain in Nigeria to start frying Akara. Government should give us the capital to start up something. If that fails, I will go into agriculture or catering business. My experience was awful,” Okafor said.

    Meanwhile, special adviser on international affairs, Dr. Genevieve Modi, who received the returnees, said State Governor Ifeanyi Okowa has given directive for the immediate rehabilitation of the returnees.

    The State commissioner for economic planning, Kingsley Emu, during an extraordinary session with the returnees in Asaba, lamented that the youth chairman of his council area in Ika North-East, Chuks Odiase, was among them after the state government spent more than N2 million to train him under the state’s youth empowerment programme.

    Okafor and Chuks are among the 5,500 people rescued by a high-powered delegation led by the Minister of Internal Affairs, Abdulrahman Dambazau, under the auspices of the European Union (EU) in conjunction with the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP).

     

  • Gov. Okowa grants 78 Libyan returnees automatic job placement

    The Governor of Delta State, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, has absorbed at least 78 Libyan returnees, who are indigenes of state, into the state’s job and wealth creation skill acquisition and empowerment programme.

    The returnees, who were between the ages of 18 and 28, described their ordeal in the drylands of Kano to Niger republic to Agades and Libya as ‘awful and animalistic.’

    Special adviser to the Governor on International Affairs, Dr. Genevieve Modi, who received them, said Gov. Okowa had given a directive for immediate rehabilitation of the returnees.

    TheNewsGuru reports the returnees were among the 5,500 people rescued by a high-powered delegation led by the Minister of Internal Affairs, Abdulrahman Dambazau, under the auspices of the European Union (EU) in conjunction with the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP).

    “Governor Okowa provided the transit, food and other logistics in addition to what the federal government made available and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) provided.

    “The state is going to absorb them in batches. They will fill the job creation forms before we can rehabilitate them,” Modi said.

     

  • Again! 100 migrants missing in shipwreck off Libya – Navy

    The Libyan Navy on Wednesday said as many as 100 migrants have gone missing after their boat sank off the coast of Libya.

    The Libyan coastguard rescued 17 people from the boat that sank off the town of al-Khoms east of the Libyan capital Tripoli, the navy said on its Facebook page.

    The survivors clung to the wreckage of the vessel until they were saved.

    “Unfortunately, there are a large number of missing people ranging from 90 to 100 illegal migrants from the boat,’’ the navy said in a statement.

    According to the navy, the Libyan coastguard saved a total of 279 shipwrecked migrants in three incidents, including those from the al-Khoms boat.

    Libya descended into chaos since the 2011 overthrow of long-time dictator Gaddafi in a NATO-supported armed revolt.

    Lawlessness in the North African country has helped it become the main springboard for often deadly migrant journeys bound to Europe across the Mediterranean Sea.

    NAN reports that the International Organisation for Migration estimated that 2,832 migrants died in 2017 trying to reach Italy from North Africa, down from 4,581 in 2016.

    Some 119,310 people made it alive to Italy in 2017 against 181,436 in 2016.

     

  • Delta to rehabilitate 78 returnees from Libya

    Delta to rehabilitate 78 returnees from Libya

    The Delta Government said on Tuesday that it was committed to rehabilitating the 78 returnees from Libya who are from the state.

    The state Commissioner for Special Duties, Mr Ernest Ogwezzy, said this during an interview with newsmen in Asaba.

    Ogwezzy said that the returnees arrived the state on Saturday and that the state government had been taking care of them since then.

    He said that the returnees had learnt from their experiences and urged them to put those experiences behind them and looked forward to a new lease of life.

    He said that details of the returnees had been collected and that the government would enrol them in its various skills’ acquisition programmes.

    One of the returnees, Child Odiase said that he went to Libya in search of greener pasture with the intention to cross to Europe but was arrested in the process.

    Odiase said that many Nigerians had died in the process, while many others were in prison.

    He said that whenever the Nigerian Ambassador to Libya came round to see them, the Libyans would lock them up so that the envoy would not see them.

    He said that if you were brought before the Ambassador and you talked that others were being locked up, your punishment would increase after he must have left.

    He thanked the government for coming to their rescue and prayed that others still in various detentions in Libya would return to Nigeria safely.

    Another returnee, Chico Frankson said that he was taken to several prisons before he was brought back home.

    He said that they were usually served with foods drugged and were being subjected to manual labour by the Libyans.

     

  • FG evacuates 1,030 Nigerians from Libya in two days – Official

    FG evacuates 1,030 Nigerians from Libya in two days – Official

    The federal government on Monday said it evacuated 1,030 stranded Nigerian migrants from Libya between January 7 and January 8, 2018.

    Mustapha Maihaja, the Director-General of National Emergency Management Agency, disclosed this at a joint news conference by the federal government delegation to Libya.

    The Foreign Affairs Minister, Geoffrey Onyeama, had on January 5 led a delegation on fact finding mission to Libya to secure the release of Nigerian migrants stranded in that country.

    The delegation comprised of Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora and Muhammad Babandede, Comptroller General of the Nigerian Immigration Service.

    Others were Julie Okah-Donli, Director General of National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons and Sadiya Umar-Faruq, Federal Commissioner, National Commission for Refugees.

    Mr. Maihaja told journalists that the returnees were 485 people, who came back on Sunday, and 545 others, who came back of Monday. He noted that they were part of the 5,037 stranded Nigerians identified for evacuation back home.

    He stated that a reception centre approved by President Muhammadu Buhari had been set up in Port Harcourt, Rivers for the returnees.

    According to him, the returnees on arrival will be formally received and profiled before being transported to their various states.

    He said that the reception centre was organised in such a way that the Ministry of Health provided facilities to look after those with health-related problems.

    He explained that those who were critically ill were taken to University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital for treatment.

    He added that the returnees would be profiled through the Immigration, State Security Service and other agencies, emphasising that those with criminal tendencies and ISIS inclination would be taken
    care of by relevant agencies.

    Mr. Maihaja said the delegation had 21 days to complete its operation.

    The Foreign Affairs Minister also said the delegation was in Libya to engage with Libyan Government at the highest level to facilitate the evacuation of the stranded Nigerian migrants from the North African country.

    Mr. Onyeama said the Nigerian mission in Libya was coordinating the identification of the Nigerian migrants with the support of International Organisation for Migration (IOM).

    According to him, they are being joined by a technical team comprising representatives from NEMA, Immigration and other relevant Nigerian government agencies.

    The minister said that the political and security challenges in that country made it difficult to secure the evacuation of some Nigerians back home.

    He added that “there are different centres of power in that country. The central government recognised by the UN and AU do not have full control of the territories controlled by rebels.”

    He pointed out that there were over 50 detention camps in Libya, many of them under the control of rebels and militia groups.

    The minister said that the young Nigerians being trafficked were shattered and battered and seen as commodity to be traded for economic gains.

    He said the Libyan Government blamed the criminal elements for the human trafficking business, noting that the president was keen at dissociating the ordinary Libyan people from the narrative.

    He noted that there were complaints about how some migrants in detention camps were being exploited by government officials for economic gains.

    He said Nigerians who were residing in Libya legally complained of harassment by Libyan Government officials who they said destroyed their passports and other residency papers.

    The NAPTIP Director General said the agency would profile the returnees to identify those who were real victims of trafficking.

    Ms. Okah-Donli said “the returnees would be counselled by trained personnel and those with medical condition would be treated at the agency’s facilities.”

    She said the rehabilitation period would last for six months during which the returnees would be trained on different skills acquisition and empowered with tools.

    “We will monitor them for about two years to ensure that they don’t re-embark on the treacherous journey,” she added.

    NAN

  • JUST IN: 490 out of 5027 Nigerian returnees from Libya arrive in PH Airport

    JUST IN: 490 out of 5027 Nigerian returnees from Libya arrive in PH Airport

    No fewer than 490 out of 5,027 Nigerian returnees from Libya arrived in Port Harcourt Airport on Sunday. They arrived at about 4.55 p.m.

    Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, and other government top officials have received the returnees.

     

    Details later.

     

  • FG delegation storms Libya, commences massive evacuation of Nigerians

    A high profile federal government delegation has arrived Libya to commence the process of massive evacuation of Nigerians stranded in the North African country back home.

    This is contained in a statement signed by the spokesman of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Sani Datti, and made available to TheNewsGuru on Thursday.

    TheNewsGuru reports the FG delegation is led by the Minister of Foreign Minister Affairs, Geoffrey Onyema and comprising of the Director General of NEMA, Engr Mustapha Maihaja and other heads of relevant agencies.

    A total of 5, 037 stranded citizens have been identified for the evacuation back home.

    “The delegation arrived Tripoli, Libya on Wednesday ahead of the actual evacuation operation that is expected to commence on Friday (tomorrow) with the airlift of the stranded Nigerians by two indigenous carriers engaged for the exercises,” the statement read.

    A reception centre has been established in Port Harcourt where the returnees on their arrival would be formally received and profiled before being transported to their various states.

    The evacuation exercises is being led by the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs and coordinated by the National Emergency Management Agency with the involvement of all the relevant agencies.