Nigerians in Italy have refuted the recent claim by a former commissioner in Edo State, Mr Osaze Osemwengie-Ero, concerning Nigerians residing in Italy, whom he said were being maltreated by the Italian government.
Ero, a former Commissioner for Arts, Culture, Tourism and Diaspora Affairs in Edo State, who returned to Nigeria in June this year, after two years in detention in Italy, had claimed that over 300 Nigerians were being unlawfully detained in that country.
He, while narrating his ordeals in the European country, had claimed further that he too was wrongly detained by the Italian government, saying he was a “victim of racial discrimination and manipulation of a very corrupt prosecutor of the Italian justice system,” and that many Nigerians were in his shoe over there in Italy.
Reacting to Ero’s claim, the Welfare Officer, National Union of Nigerian Associations in Italy (NUNAI), Oputteh Ifeoluwa Michael, described Ero’s claim as false, stressing that Italian authorities had never targeted Nigerians for any harassment nor racial discrimination.
Oputteh, in a statement issued in Benin over the weekend, added that if the Italian Government and judiciary were corrupt and discriminate against race as claimed by Ero, the Italian judiciary would not have freed the former commissioner from detention for lack of enough evidence on the allegations levelled against him (Ero).
While noting that no fewer than 100,000 Nigerians lives in Italy and that the two countries had inter-married, Oputteh said if Nigerians were the target of racial discrimination as claimed by Ero, this wouldn’t have happened, and that they wouldn’t have given the over 100,000 Nigerians living there abode.
“Italian authorities have never targeted Nigerians for any harassment nor are they engaged in racial discrimination. Precisely, we have more than 100,000 Nigerians living legally in Italy. These people are engaged in lawful businesses and some have even integrated into the Italian society and married Italians, while Italians also married Nigerians.
“Some have also acquired their
citizenship. Definitely, if Nigerians are targeted by the Italian authorities, how come the same Italy gave Nigerians a good abode in Italy. Why are these over 100,000 thousand Nigerians not arrested and put in prisons?
“It is also surprising that Mr Ero is accusing the Italian Judiciary of corruption and manipulation. The same corrupt judiciary tried him and set him free for lack of enough evidence. It means the judiciary is very fair and transparent,” he said.
The NUNAI Welfare Officer who warned Ero not to use his political ambition to jeopardise the good relationship Nigerians have with Italians noted that the former commissioner’s claim could lead to disharmony between Nigeria and Italy.
“Italy is a Sovereign state and I wonder whether he wants Nigeria to go to war with Italy just because of his political
ambition,” Oputteh added.
He, therefore, appealed to Ero to leave Nigerians in Italy in peace and should not use his political ambition to cause problems for them over there, adding, “The lives of Nigerians in Italy is greater than his political ambition.”
Ero, it would be recalled, was arrested by the Italian authorities in 2019, on sundry offences, but was released in June 2021, due to lack of enough convincing evidence to commit him to prison.
While in detention in Italy, the Goodwin Obaseki administration, under which he was serving as a commissioner, maintained that he was being held for personal infractions in Italy and had him replaced by Larry Ogieva, as Commissioner for Arts, Culture, Tourism and Diaspora Affairs.
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