The federal government has said that it is hamstrung to evacuate Nigerians caught in the ongoing military strife in Sudan because the tensed situation in that country “makes it gravely risky and impossible for any flights to operate at this point in time.”
The chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), Mrs. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, disclosed this in a statement in Abuja yesterday.
The release signed by the commission’s spokesman, Mr. Gabriel Odu, reads: “The Chairman/CEO, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, has said while the Nigerian Mission in Sudan and the National Emergency Management Agency have put in place arrangements to evacuate Nigerian students and other Nigerian citizens stranded in Sudan, the tensed situation makes it gravely risky and impossible for any flights at this point in time, noting that aircraft parked at the airport in the country were burnt yesterday (Thursday) morning.
“Dabiri-Erewa noted that humanitarian groups are seeking ways of getting food, water and medical supplies across to people.
“She, therefore, appealed to the fighting parties to consider the Juba Peace Agreement enunciated by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development as a fundamental mechanism for the restoration of peace and tranquility in the country.”
Meanwhile, as all airports and land borders in Sudan are closed and emergency situation in the country becomes unpredictable, the federal government also announced the setting up of a search and rescue committee.
The committee is mandated to come up with the safest way of evacuating Nigerians stranded in Sudan.
The director general of NEMA, Mr. Mustapha Ahmed, revealed this in a statement by the spokesman for the agency, Mr. Manzo Ezekiel.
Ahmed said the agency was working with other agencies and ministries of the federal government to get an appropriate window to evacuate Nigerians trapped in Sudan.
“The attention of the National Emergency Management Agency is drawn to the widespread public concern on the situation in Sudan, especially in regards to the ongoing conflict and the safety as well as well-being of stranded Nigerian citizens, including hundreds of students in various universities of the country.
“It has become necessary to inform the public that NEMA is in constant communication with all relevant partners, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Nigerian Embassy in Khartoum, Sudan, the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission and security agencies, while seeking an appropriate window of opportunity to evacuate all stranded Nigerians back home in a safe and dignified manner.
“The current emergency situation in Sudan is very complex with fighting between warring factions going on and all airports and land borders closed. NEMA is working assiduously with all its partners and is constantly compiling updated information on the situation,” NEMA stated.
The director general also said the committee would seek the safest way to evacuate Nigerian citizens, even if it would be through a neighbouring country to Sudan.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Labour Congress has expressed concern over the war in Sudan, saying Nigerians are becoming victims.
The NLC president, Mr. Joe Ajaero, said in a statement that it is the responsibility of the government of any nation to save lives and property.
He queried why the federal government was yet to evacuate Nigerians from the troubled country adding that there are reasons to be anxious about the safety of Nigerians in the country.
“We believe that it remains the responsibility of any government to ensure the safety of their nationals, which includes making sure that in the event of a war in foreign countries, their citizens are protected in whatever way possible. This is one of the central reasons for governance: the safety of lives and property.”
“If the airports are not safe as suggested by the government, can we not work out a safe corridor to neighbouring countries to allow our citizens safe passage and evacuated through the various land borders?” he said.
Similarly, the Arewa Youth Consultative Forum (AYCF) has expressed disappointment over the federal government’s response to the plight of trapped Nigerians in the Northeast African country.
The national president of AYCF, Mr. Yerima Shettima, said it is “totally unacceptable” that some countries have evacuating their nationals from Sudan while Nigeria is giving excuses.
“As concerned Nigerians who are very uncomfortable about the fate of Nigerians trapped in Sudan due to ongoing war and killings, we feel duty bound to unequivocally state our final stand on this bloodshed and arson.
“We, therefore, wish to state, for the records, as follows: it is totally unacceptable that while several countries were evacuating their citizens from Sudan, ours is the only African nation giving excuses.
“With thousands of Nigerians in Sudan, especially male and female Northern students being the majority, we reject the lame excuse given in a letter by the Nigeria Embassy about the difficulty of evacuating our sons and daughters. No Northerner in this country is at peace since the killings and arson started in Sudan.
“We are aware that the Sudanese government had already warned that the situation would escalate, and gave 72 hours ultimatum for countries whose citizens are either doing business or schooling in that country to be evacuated. We cannot fathom why all we get at the moment is the excuse from our embassy that doing so would be difficult. What held us from taking advantage of the 72 hours ultimatum in the first place?
“It is abundantly clear that lives are now at stake, especially for our Northern brothers and sisters schooling in Sudan, considering the escalation of this war, that involves the use of heavy-duty incendiary.
“As a group, we wish to make it categorically clear that if our innocent Northern brothers and sisters schooling in Sudan get killed in this war, we shall hold the Nigerian Embassy in Sudan accountable.
“We wish to emphasise that on no account should these young and innocent Nigerians be left to their own devices, because they have a fatherland that has the constitutional and legal responsibility to protect the lives of citizens anywhere they are on this plane,” Shettima said in a statement
