The 43 Nigerians were deported from the UK and arrived in
Lagos on Wednesday. They were brought home in a chartered Airbus 330 aircraft
that landed at the Murtala International Airport at 8am. However, the National Emergency Management Agency, (NEMA)
said that they were deported for alleged immigration offences. NEMA however
said that it had informed that about 83 deportees were being expected, and that
some of them who had not completed their prison sentences in UK would be handed
over to the Nigeria Prison Service to complete the terms.
The deportees were received by Dr Bandele Onimode, Deputy
Director, Search and Rescue, who served as a representative to the NEMA
Director General. The deportees were served breakfast and later interrogated to
determine their states of origin so that they could be assisted to locate their
relatives.
One of the deportees, a 37 year old, Yoruba man said he left
Nigeria about 17 years ago and had lost contact with home. According to him, he
put resources together to travel to UK but could not raise the money to process
stay papers. He then began to engage in illegal activities until he was caught.
On the other hand, an Igbo deportee, said his parents were in Lagos before he
left for greener pastures, said he might not be able to trace the parents
because he learnt they had relocated back home.
An aged woman among the deportee, said she left Nigeria some
decades back, and she had lost touch with her relatives, including her
children. According to investigation, many of the deportees had used fake names
in their documentation as they were ashamed to reveal their identities.
Those who could locate their Nigerian addresses were given
assistance to return home while those who could not were taken to
rehabilitation centers.
The NEMA's information officer, Ibrahim Farinloye said the
agency was yet to ascertain why the number of the deportees was 43 instead of
83. “They told us that 83 were coming but on arrival it was 43. This is
humanitarian evacuation and many things could have happened at the last minute
that may lead to decrease in the number of the people”, he said. When asked why
the deportees’ names were not released, he said, “The Nigeria Immigration
Service did the profiling and the names are not made public because of their security
and social protection”.
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