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A member of the House of Representatives, representing Oluyole Federal Constituency, Hon. Tolulope Akande-Sadipe, on Tuesday reunited an indigene of Oyo state, repatriated from Oman to Nigeria with her family.
Akande-Sadipe, who is the Chairman, House of Representatives Committee on Diaspora, said the affected person was repatriated to the country through the Murtala Muhammed international airport in Lagos.
According to a statement on Thursday by the lawmaker’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Olamilekan Olusada, the victim, Adunni Nafisat Oseni, who is from Oluyole Federal Constituency, was denied the opportunity to return home by her employers, until the lawmaker’s office intervened.
He said the returnee willingly submitted herself to be repatriated back to Nigeria due to the inhumane treatment she and many others were subjected to in Oman.
Akande-Sadipe decried the inhumane treatment being melted on Nigerians in some Arab countries, and the unfortunate situation they subject them to.
While commending National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) for its good work and synergy with relevant agencies, she called for more funding for NAPTIP- the agency saddled with the responsibility of fighting human trafficking in the country.
“As it stands today, we have over 20, 000 Nigerian girls living in tents in Mali, an African country. Over 40, 000 girls in Lebanon,”she said.
The lawmaker pledged the 9th Assembly’s commitment to a total fight against human trafficking offenders in the country, by enacting stricter laws against them.
“We have a responsive 9th Assembly, under Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila which is putting in place right laws that would guide against this incessant occurrences,” Akande-Sadipe said.
She, however, noted that relevant agencies in collaboration with the Nigeria Police Force must press charges against traffickers in order to serve as deterrent to others.
Speaking on the delay of 35 Nigerians at the Ghanaian border, she said the proper arm of the executive has picked up the responsibility.
Akande-Sadipe called for further collaboration among all relevant government agencies in rehabilitating the girls, who she noted left the country for socio-economic reasons.
“The ugly situation in the country led Nigerians to these unsafe countries, in search of greener pastures. However, they became victims and targets of attack in those countries Nigeria has no bilateral relationship with. This made them to come back home, most times, with nothing,” she lamented.
On Ministry of Labour and Employment’s role, the lawmaker noted that the ministry’s lackadaisical attitude need to be addressed.
“The ministry needs to take charge of its responsibilities and functions in ensuring they check if Nigeria has bilateral relationships with some countries Nigerians are being trafficked to. We should start from there first,” Akande-Sadipe stated.
She also noted that some of the agents who trafficked girls to Arab countries and neighbouri
She also noted that some of the agents who trafficked girls to Arab countries and neighbouring African countries have no license from the Ministry of Labour Employment, saying, “there are certain actions the ministry needs to work on to nip this ugly act in the bud.”
Akande-Sadipe assured Nigerians that the returnee was properly screened by security agencies and health institutions to ascertain her status before being released into the society.
Speaking, the Comptroller, Nigeria Immigration Service, Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Mr. Abdulahi Usman pleaded with Nigerians not to travel without proper guidance, noting that Oseni’s case is one out of many cases of deception.
Recalling her ordeal in Oman, Oseni called on girls and young people not to rush out of the country in search of greener pastures without proper scrutiny of the agent involved.
Thanks for the efforts in reuniting the lady with her family.
The important question which no politician is willing to answer in Nigeria 🇳🇬 is the root cause(s) of the migration of 🇳🇬 people to those hostile countries!
It is hypocritical that the same people in government who failed to protect citizens from savagery of terrorism, failed to provide security, basic amenities, jobs or create a country with equal opportunities for all are now grandstanding and receiving praises for returning Nigerians back to the same horror and hopelessness they had fled. These Nigerians will always look to travel elsewhere if the conditions at home remain the same such as high unemployment, insecurity, lack of infrastructure and corruption.
If those in government could be kind enough to shed their fatty cheques and benefits to invest in basic infrastructure, health care, education Nigerians wouldn’t need to emigrate.
Let common sense prevail, let us focus on meaningful governance, by cutting out humongous benefits, pensions, salaries and emoluments to the ruling class and redirect the resources to the people. We need to stop our current system of politicking and embrace decency, honesty, openness, patriotism and accountability. Let us focus on the poor masses, reduce cost of governance, ensure credible candidates represent us in government and avoid politics of looting or deceit.
Many of our elected officials travel overseas, some of our civil servants have hidden assets around the world with ill-gotten wealth but they don’t hope to replicate the development in those countries in their own nations. The tendency to want to accumulate wealth through public offices is the greatest threat to 🇳🇬 existence.
A child born at 🇳🇬 independence is 60 yrs old but we are still not crawling nevermind walking
Shame on those who had the opportunities to change the course of our people suffering but chose not to instead took advantage of their offices for self-enrichment.