Diplomatic tension is building between Nigeria and Mozambique following the deportation of 13 Nigerians without any known offence, with 29 others still reportedly detained in Maputo.
This is because the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) demands justice and fair treatment for the affected citizens.
According to the director of the Media, Public Relations and Protocols Unit of NiDCOM, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, thirteen out of the 42 Nigerians earlier arrested in Mozambique have now been deported despite no formal charges or offences being brought against them.
While Mozambican authorities claimed the Nigerians lacked proper documentation, findings showed that all the deportees, except one whose visa had expired just a day before the deportation, had valid and complete travel and residency documents.
Receiving the deportees at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos on behalf of NiDCOM Chairman/CEO Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Mr Dipo Odebowale said the treatment meted out to the Nigerians was unfair, expressing hope that Nigeria’s minister of foreign affairs would formally engage his Mozambican counterpart on the matter.
The returnees were welcomed back into the country, with NiDCOM expressing sympathy over their experience and encouraging them to remain hopeful despite the ordeal.
The deportees who arrived via South African Airways flight SA60 reported that they were arrested at their respective business premises in Maputo and detained without committing any offence, despite holding valid documents permitting their continued residence in Mozambique.
They further indicated that 29 Nigerians remain incarcerated in Maputo and appealed for urgent intervention on their behalf.
Among the deportees were all adult males, who sought the Commission’s assistance in securing justice and redress for the injustices they endured.
Dabiri-Erewa, while appealing to Nigerians to obey the laws of the countries they reside in, emphasised that no Nigerian should be punished for an offence they did not commit.













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