Agency evacuates Nigerian infants, teenagers from Tunisia

 

 

The returnees with NEMA officials

The International Organisation for Migration, with the cooperation of the Tunisian Government on Tuesday, repatriated 76 Nigerians, mostly youths, who had been living in Tunisia illegally. learnt that the returnees comprised 13 girls and 61 boys as well as two infants.

The youths, who arrived at the country at midnight, told officials of the National Emergency Management Agency that they regretted leaving Nigeria as Tunisia had nothing to offer them.

Some of them also narrated how they had journeyed through the Sahara desert for weeks in search of greener pastures only to be disappointed.

One of the returnees, 17-year-old Emmanuel Oduoba, appealed to youths to avoid temptations of trying to travel out of Nigeria without a feasible plan.

“Most of the stories about good life in other lands are farce and non-existent,” he said.

He urged Nigerian leaders to be positive and focused on uplifting the living conditions of the citizenry.

A 15-year-old female returnee, Success Smart, claimed to have travelled out of Nigeria two years ago through the Libyan route after her parents refused to allow her to learn a trade in Nigeria. She said when things became very hard for her she had no choice but to return to Nigeria, adding that she lived from hand to mouth throughout her stay in the North African country.

Another girl, Blessing Ogbabolo, 17, said she and her brother travelled to Tunisia to seek greener pasture. She said she had wanted to return immediately things became hard but her brother refused to allow her.

Ogbabolo, who claimed to be fatherless, said she finally left Tunisia without her brother.

The Director General, NEMA, Alhaji Muhammad Sani-Sidi, urged youths to have faith in Nigeria rather than resort to fleeing the country anytime things were hard.

He said there was no nation that was not passing through hard times, urging  the citizens to join hands with the government to overcome the difficult times.

Sani-Sidi, who was represented by NEMA Coordinator, South West Zone, Mr. Iyiola Akande, advised the returnees that “instead of exposing your lives on the non-existing opportunities, you should endeavour to use your energy, strength and talents to harness Nigeria’s opportunities.”

It was learnt that officials of National Agency for Protection and Trafficking in Persons had taken the teenagers into custody for reorientation and rehabilitation.

The returnees were received by various agencies such as Nigerian Immigration service that checked their identities to ascertain their nationalities, as well as the police.

“Transport allowances were given to all of them to facilitate their journeys to their respective destinations. NEMA took them out of the airport to their various departure points,” Sani-Sidi said.