The alarming rate at which Nigerians are fleeing the nation in quest of better opportunities overseas has been characterised as concerning by the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS).
Joachim Olumba, the head of NIS in Enugu State, remarked during a Thursday, November 3, awareness programme on the problem of migrant smuggling (SOM) for stakeholders
“Indeed, this program couldn’t have been held at a more appropriate time, considering the alarming rate at which, not only the youth, but older generation of Nigerians exhibit interest to leave the country. This is creating a worrisome phenomenon which has come to be popularly known in local parlance as “Japa”
The Immigration boss stated that the appetite to jet out of the country was usually driven largely by social, economic, and security concerns. He mentioned that Nigerians, especially the youth, were leaving the shores of the country in their droves.
“To many, what is paramount is to achieve the goal of migrating from the country and not the means of reaching their destinations. Whether they are smuggled or trafficked, or they even get to leave the country by means of a stowaway, does not really matter to them. The ultimate interest is to relocate to foreign lands. As far as the vast majority are concerned, the end will eventually justify the means” he said.
Olumba claimed that many migrants had suffered unthinkable and unprintable hardships as a result of their desperation.
