Immigrants to return to Nigeria

2008-05-13 12:10

Abuja - Nigeria is prepared to receive 314 Nigerians detained as illegal immigrants from Libya, Nigerian Foreign Affairs Minister Ojo Maduekwe said on Monday in Abuja.

"The Nigerian mission in Libya has screened and issued emergency travel certificates to them, while pursuing a permit for the Libyan plane to land in Nigeria," he said.

Maduekwe said that the first returnees would arrive on Wednesday, while the second group would land on Thursday in Nigeria.

"This is a fallout of an inter-ministerial body set up by the Nigerian government to look into cases of deportation of Nigerians from Libya," he said.

Many Nigerians who migrated into Libya in the past with the hope of travelling to Europe had been deported by Tripoli after serving jail terms in Libya.

Many were accused of engaging in prostitution or trafficking narcotics.

Personnel from the Nigerian ministries of Interior, Prisons, Immigration and Foreign Affairs have been involved in bringing the Nigerians home, Maduekwe said. Some of those being deported from Libya might already be serving jail terms, requiring the involvement of the Nigerian prison officers.

"Though we cannot ascertain the total number, we want to assure Nigerians that our mission staff are doing everything possible to ensure that only Nigerian nationals involved will be evacuated," Maduekwe said. - Sapa-dpa

- SAPA