A group of Concerned Nigerians, led by ace musician, Charles Oputa (Charly Boy), on Monday, said about 40,000 Nigerians were currently on slave trade and detention for various offences relating to illegal migration to Libya.
They demanded, among other things, that President Muhammadu Buhari should demand emergency meeting of African leaders to tackle the issues.
They also asked the government to tackle economic hardship which had forced many Nigerians out of the country in search of a greener pasture.
According to them, information at their disposal showed that over 40,000 Nigerians were suffering at present in Libya.
Speaking during the protest held in the front of the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in Abuja, the group said majority of Nigerians were in economic chain, a reason they were desperate to leave the country.
Other speakers were Deji Adeyanju, Raphael Adebayo, Ariyo Dare-Atoye and Moses Paul.
They all called on the Federal Government to live up to its responsibilities of securing the lives of its citizenry, not only in Nigeria but in other countries.
According to Adeyanju, “we are aware that the Federal Government was not responsible for the crisis in Libya, but we’ve not seen any positive response from the government.
“So, we are here to ensure that our government is accountable to the people and shows the same value America places on its citizens to Nigerians too,” he added.
Adebayo lamented that the youth were leaving the country because they were hopeless in the leadership, while asking the government to address the trust issue.
According to Dare-Atoye, “there is no governance in Nigeria, if there is, we would have seen the massive and response action from the government. We didn’t elect the president that will be issuing press statement, we elected a president that should be speaking to Nigerians.”
Corroborating their views, Charly Boy said he came in solidarity with others to encourage young Nigerian youths to know that their future lay in their hands.
Responding on behalf of the Federal Government, the Nigerian Head of Mission to Libya and Malta, Ambassador Iliya Danladi Fachano, said the government was proactive and had repatriated about 3,000 Nigerians so far.
“We exist there to serve the interest of Nigerians. I am here now to tell you that the mission repatriates migrant Nigerians, we repatriate 250 every week, we are expecting 250 again tomorrow (today). They are coming around 7.00 p.m.
“We normally visit the detention camp where illegal migrants are detained by Libya authorities, not only Nigerians, there are other nationalities also. So Nigerian Embassy visits that place to identify its own people.
“So far, we’ve registered about 2, 000 Nigerians now, because no plane has the capacity to carry all the detainees at once, NEMA receives them, resettles them in Nigeria.
“So far, we have repatriated 3, 000 Nigerians and we will continue because the main job is this repatriation of Nigerians,” he explained.
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