Social media platforms, particularly Twitter, are ablaze with outrage over unverified reports suggesting that the island nation of Seychelles has implemented a visa restriction on Nigerian passport holders seeking short-term holidays.
The allegations gained traction after a travel content creator, MunafromTravelletter, shared a screenshot of an email purportedly from Seychelles Immigration, stating that Nigerian passport holders were being denied entry for vacation purposes due to immigration regulations.
The content creator shared a screenshot of the mail via Twitter yesterday.
“We regret to inform you that your application has been denied, as per immigration regulation, for now, we are not accepting any NIGERIAN passport holders for holiday purposes. Kindly contact http://www.ics.gov.sc/ (Seychelles Immigration) or call 248 4 293 636 for more information,” the content of the screenshot read.
The travel content creator then said: “It seems Seychelles just placed a ban on Nigerian passport holders. Having a Nigerian passport means you can postpone travel plans until you become Bill Gates, and immigration policies will still be like ‘Dey play.'”
It seems Seychelles just placed a ban on Nigerian passport holders. The thing with having a Nigerian passport is you can be postponing travel plans until you become Bill Gates and immigration policies will be like “ Dey play” pic.twitter.com/UroivUEjGM
— MunafromTravelletters (@Munachimsoooo) July 8, 2023
The alleged visa ban on Nigerian passport holders by Seychelles has surfaced just six months after the two countries signed an agreement for direct flights.
Prior to the ban, Nigeria had a longstanding visa-free arrangement with Seychelles, allowing Nigerian citizens to enter the country without a visa for up to 30 days.
Consequently, Nigerian users on Twitter have expressed their outrage and frustration regarding the ban. Here are a few examples of their comments:
@Mochievous: That’s quite sad and not surprising. When I visited, I was told that their immigration officers are generally quite antagonistic towards Nigerian passport holders. (didn’t happen to me) but my taxi driver shared this with me.
@mrpe2: How can we improve our country’s global image so we all benefit?
@WASalam_01: Seychelles is having a growing drug epidemic and Nigerians are in that triangle as key players. Just this year, over a dozen, have been nabbed. That’s a high number from a single country considering the tiny population of Seychelles. We are the problem!!!
@UrbanBeardy: First Dubai, now this.
@counteymoon This is good. Maybe more countries doing this will force us to engage in honest self-reflection someday.
@Ugo_obioha1: Nigeria is being rejected gradually because we have weak foreign policies
@IK101: “Bali, Mauritius, now Seychelles, yet another place where Nigerian fraudsters have created a bad image for everybody. The discrimination will continue until Nigerians tackle the fraud culture we now have amongst us. We’re too loud when we make Money. It’s disgusting.”
@Nkemsdairy: “Being Nigerian can be challenging at times. Just yesterday, my authorization form to Seychelles was denied at Kotoka airport, while my Ghanaian friend was approved right before my eyes. It’s hard to express how disheartened I felt ”
@Nefo9: “And I really wanted to visit Seychelles after watching the YouTube documentary by @tayoainafilms. This is crazy. These people don’t rate us at all. A whole Giant of Africa.”
@Aogsstout: “Even Mozambique now denies Nigeria Passport Holders. You will need extra documents to visit. Whereas other West African passport holders don’t. Nigerian fraudsters and drug dealers have done grave damage to our reputation as a people.”
The unconfirmed reports swiftly spread across Twitter, triggering emotional reactions and intense discussions.
According to BusinessInsider, the government of Seychelles is yet to issue an official report on the alleged visa ban on Nigerian passport holders.
The integrity of the claims remains unclear, as well as the motivation for the alleged action.
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