Olusegun Ariyo
Some of the 497 Nigerians repatriated from the Niger Republic on Friday have recounted the harsh experiences they endured while attempting to migrate illegally to Libya in search of better living conditions.
The returnees, who were received by the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, at the Malam Aminu Kano International Airport in Kano around 12:40 p.m., included 174 men, 97 women, 137 boys and 89 girls from states such as Kano, Jigawa, Borno and Kaduna.
One of the returnees, Sani Hamisu from Kano State, said he left Nigeria in search of economic opportunities after struggling financially at home.
According to him, he hoped to improve the welfare of his family and also raise enough money to get married.
“I wanted to support my family as the first son and also get married, so I decided to travel to Libya,” he said.
Hamisu described the journey through the desert as traumatic, saying many migrants lost their lives due to a lack of food and water.
“In the desert, there was no water and no food; many died. Once your water finishes, nobody can help you, even with a cup of water,” he added.
He disclosed that he spent six years in Libya doing menial jobs but eventually returned to Nigeria without achieving his goals.
“IOM rescued us in the desert and took us back to the Niger Republic before we were brought to Nigeria,” he said.
Another returnee, Harira Muhammad, a mother of two from Borno State, said she travelled to Libya eight months ago in a bid to support her husband, who suffered a leg fracture after being hit by a vehicle during a Boko Haram attack.
“My husband was knocked down by a car during a Boko Haram attack and has had a leg fracture since then.
“I travelled to Libya in search of greener pastures, but we were attacked by bandits who collected our money,” she said.
Harira appealed to the government to assist returnees with business support and empowerment programmes to help them rebuild their lives.
Speaking on the exercise, the Head of Operations at NEMA’s Kano Office, Dr. Nura Abdullahi, explained that the repatriation was voluntary and not a forced deportation.
“It is a voluntary repatriation of Nigerians from the Niger Republic. The Federal Government brought back the returnees through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,” he said.
Abdullahi stated that the operation was coordinated through a collaboration involving the Nigerian Mission in the Niger Republic, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the International Organisation for Migration, IOM.
According to him, the arrangement was aimed at ensuring the safe and dignified return of stranded Nigerians.
He added that NEMA and relevant agencies provided support services for the returnees immediately after arrival, while the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons supplied medication to the Nigerian Red Cross medical team for those with health challenges.
Abdullahi noted that most of the migrants embarked on the journey in search of better economic opportunities but later realised the route was unsafe.
He said the agency would provide meals for the returnees before transporting them to their various states after profiling and verification.
The NEMA official also advised Nigerians against embarking on dangerous migration journeys in search of greener pastures abroad.“No country is better than its country of origin,” he said.
