Nigerian students trapped in desert.
Ejes Gist News Nigeria reports that buses transporting Nigerian students stranded in war-torn Sudan were stopped in the middle of the Sahara desert because the transporters demanded payment.
Recall that the chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Mrs. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, stated on Monday that the federal government provided N150 million to hire 40 buses to evacuate the stranded students to Cairo, Egypt.
Nigerian students trapped in desert
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On Wednesday, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffery Onyeama, told State House correspondents that the government had spent $1.2 million to evacuate Nigerians who were stranded in Sudan.
Air Peace, which promised to airlift those evacuated to Egypt back to Nigeria stated yesterday that the stranded students may have to wait a little longer in Cairo because the Egyptian government denied its landing permit and demanded diplomatic approval from the Nigerian Government.
When contacted, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson, Mrs. Francisca Omayuli, simply stated, ”I will respond when I am less busy.
As a result, she did not respond to or return a number of calls that came through her mobile phone.
Yesterday, however, some of the evacuated students were seen in a video that went viral, protesting their ordeal at the hands of the transport company that asked its drivers to stop the trip halfway and only pay them 30%..
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Under the condition of anonymity, one of the protesting Nigerians expressed disappointment with the method of payment to the bus drivers.
He stated, “Why do our children always go through painful experiences? We have no idea where we are.” There is no food or water here.
Yesterday, at a press briefing in Abuja, Dabiri-Erewa responded to the video by stating that the evacuation process was arduous and that difficulties were expected.
She stated that the government was in contact with the students and that the situation would be resolved as soon as possible.
She stated, “I’m seeing reports on Twitter, but don’t believe everything you read on social media – -but I’m seeing reports that they’re stranded somewhere because the bus driver is demanding full payment, but whatever is going on will be resolved by NEMA and the Nigerian mission in Sudan and Ethiopia.
There will be obstacles along the journey. It is a highly complicated and fluid situation. In light of this, I am confident that relevant organisations will overcome any current obstacles.
“We’re in contact with some of the students, and we try to relay their concerns to the appropriate agencies, and we’ve resolved quite a few.
“Whatever they are experiencing right now, two hours away from where they are, will be resolved, and please understand that the situation is extremely fluid. And ultimately, we believe Nigeria will be one of the nations that rescues the majority of its citizens in Sudan.”
In a separate interview with Channels Television, Dabiri-Erewa disclosed that a greater number of Nigerians who were documented for the evacuation from Sudan to Egypt opted to be returned to Nigeria.
She disclosed that 13 buses had left for the Sudanese evacuation process, adding that there could be more.
However, there are a few minor obstacles. Yes, 3500 students. Now, however, some Nigerians are arriving without proper documentation; they claim they wish to return. Sudan is home to our largest diaspora community.
‘’As a result, the mission is now being inundated by individuals who never registered or demonstrated their readiness to come, but are now expressing a desire to return home.
“There is considerable tension. Those who had never shown interest wanted to board the bus through the window, but they were told to maintain order and were separated into several groups.
“Let us simply pray that the ceasefire will turn into a permanent cessation of hostilities. There have been numerous discussions between the AU and the two factions. In this situation, nothing is more desirable than peace, she stated.
That is all the latest Nigerian news on: Nigerian students trapped in desert
