By Opeyemi Adelakun
Thousands of Nigerians remain stranded in South Africa as fresh anti-immigrant protests are expected to begin today, with the Federal Government intensifying efforts to evacuate citizens willing to return home.
Investigations indicate that more than 15,000 Nigerians are still seeking evacuation despite the government’s ongoing repatriation exercise, raising fresh concerns over the safety of citizens who may remain after the protest deadline.
The Federal Government has confirmed that another batch of 271 Nigerians is being flown back to the country under its voluntary evacuation programme, while assuring that the exercise will continue until every willing Nigerian is safely returned.
However, some stranded Nigerians alleged that desperate citizens were being asked to pay money before their names could be added to the evacuation list.
One affected Nigerian claimed that officials handling the exercise were demanding payments from intending returnees, forcing many who could afford it to purchase commercial tickets home while others remained stranded.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs dismissed the allegation, insisting that no official involved in the evacuation exercise was extorting Nigerians.
The ministry confirmed that an Air Peace aircraft had been deployed to transport the latest batch of returnees and disclosed that additional evacuation flights would follow in the coming days as the government continues the operation.
The Federal Government also assured Nigerians that the evacuation exercise would not end with today’s deadline, stressing that no citizen willing to return home would be abandoned.
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, said President Bola Tinubu had directed that evacuation flights should continue beyond the deadline to ensure every interested Nigerian is given the opportunity to return safely.
She explained that the exercise is being coordinated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in collaboration with Air Peace, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), which will receive and process returnees on arrival.
For Nigerians choosing to remain in South Africa, the government advised them to avoid protest locations, limit unnecessary movement and remain in close contact with the Nigerian High Commission for security updates.
Meanwhile, tension heightened further after a Nigerian businessman, popularly known as “Big Joe,” was reportedly shot dead outside his business premises in Witbank, Mpumalanga Province.
The President of the Nigerian Union in South Africa, Smart Nwobi, confirmed the killing, describing it as one of two recent incidents involving Nigerian nationals amid growing hostility towards foreign Africans.
Leave a Reply