Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) Abike Dabiri-Erewa has stated that Nigerians claiming to be stranded in United Arab Emirates (UAE) are ex-convicts.
According to her, many of those affected have not been totally cooperative as they refused to follow the laid down procedures.
Besides, she revealed that the ex- convicts had just served out their various jail sentences.
Mrs. Dabiri-Erewa stated this in a statement issued yesterday by the commission’s Head of Media, Public Relations and Protocols, Abdur-Rahman Balogun.
The statement reads: “The Chairman/CEO, NIDCOM has advised Nigerians who illegally travelled to the UAE and are stranded there not to make an already bad case worse by resorting to media blackmail.
“Apparently responding to a post that ‘300 Nigerians abandoned in Dubai as NIDCOM, NAPTIP, Foreign Affairs relax evacuation effort’ on some social media blogs on Wednesday, the NIDCOM boss said despite several warnings by the Federal Government through its relevant agencies on consequences of illegal migration to the UAE and other countries, it was regrettable that some Nigerians still found themselves as victims of this irregular act
“In line with its citizens’ diplomacy, the Federal Government had approved the evacuation of over 300 Nigerians stranded in the UAE. Regrettably, many of those affected have not been totally cooperative as they refused to follow the laid down procedures.
“Investigations also revealed that over 100 Nigerians, who had served various jail sentences (ranging from drugs to credit card frauds, robberies etc.) suddenly landed at the holding centres, demanding of the Nigerian Consulate in Dubai to ‘immediately bring them back’. Their voices have been the loudest.
“Dabiri-Erewa said rather than complying with the directives of the Nigerian Consulate in Dubai, some Nigerians were busy pursuing a media blackmail of the Federal Government as well as the UAE government.”
This media blackmail, she said, would make an already bad case worse, noting that rules on such cases would not be circumvented.
