NEMA Receives 160 Stranded Nigerians in Libya

Chinedu Eze

National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has received another batch of 160 stranded Nigerians from Libya.

The returnees were received by the Coordinator, Lagos Territorial Office of NEMA, Idris Muhammed at the Cargo Wing of MMIA, Ikeja Lagos.

The returnees were brought back by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) with EU’s special intervention on Assisted Voluntary Returnees (AVR) Programme and arrived Nigeria at about 7:50p.m. on Thursday evening aboard Nouvelair Airline of Libya.

The returnees were made up of 68 female adults, one female child and five female infants.

Also, there are 79 male adults, two male children and five male infants, making up 74 females and 86 males, including a psychologically traumatised adult male.

The Coordinator while receiving the returnees urged other Nigerians still aspiring to travel out of the country to desist from irregular migrations which removes the fundamental rights that such migrants could have enjoyed and by that, expose them to avoidable risks.

A returnee, Mrs. Adebisi Komolafe from Osogbo, Osun State while narrating her experience explained, “Nigerians need to be praying fervently for our leaders especially the President. Despite the bad situations in Libya, the people believe in their leaders and are praying fervently for them. They still see hope in their country.

“If Nigerians can avoid blaming government for everything, with faith and sincerity our prayers will be accepted by God.

“God will guide our leaders right if we direct our supplications to Almighty God to guide our leaders right.

“I don’t wish any Nigerian should think of travelling to Libya, I never knew the situation in Libya before I left, if I had known, I wouldn’t have travelled there,” she said.

She also emphasised that Nigeria was far better than Libya, adding that Nigerian citizens need commitment and patriotism.

“We need prayers and sincerity in Nigeria. I worked as a housemaid and had opportunity to make some money but the lack of government is a serious problem there. I cannot send money back home since I left Nigeria in 2016.”

 “The only thing I did was to buy goods that I can sell when I get back to Nigeria and I brought everything back now”

Miss Aisha Ibrahim from Oyo State on her own totally regretted her ordeal, “My sister told me that there are opportunities in Libya, I thought it was an opportunity to travel and make better life like in London or America.  My sister paid for my transportation and after a week on arrival at Libya, I got a housemaid work.

 “You must work and carryout any instructions given by those people. You must do whatever directives given. Failure to comply or obey them will attract punishment or arrest.

 “At times, I will not come back to my sister’s house for three or six months. In Libya, you don’t have freedom, once they hear you are a Nigerian, trouble starts. They don’t like us. You cannot change work.

 “If you have travelling documents and you are caught, those documents will not be returned to you and you will be arrested. They can raid your house and cart away all your savings and property,” she lamented.

Miss Ibrahim explained that she worked for six months without break and when she wanted to visit her sister, she was accosted on the road.

 “I was arrested, all my money were taken away from me and above all, about 400,000 naira were paid to free me by my sister and this made me to come back to Nigeria by going to Nigerian Embassy. No Nigerian should think of going to Libya please. Nigeria is far better than Libya,” she added.