SAN FRANCISCO, June 24, (THEWILL) – The Federal Government has warned that unprovoked attacks on Nigerians living legitimately abroad by the host countries would not be tolerated.
The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Diaspora Commission, Mrs. Abike Dabiri-Erewa spoke for the Federal Government at the State House after meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja.
According to her, only Nigerians who indulge in crime should be made to face the wrath of the law, noting that Nigeria and its law-abiding citizens should not be penalised.
“But right now we are dealing with the issue of attacking Nigerian traders in Ghana. We have the assurances of the President of Ghana through the High Commission here and ours in Ghana that Nigerian traders will be protected.
“So, we are also going to be emphasizing that the life of one Nigerian means a lot to us anywhere in the world.
“Of course, we have the issue of Ghana, the professor whose appointment was terminated by his university because of the tape he released. Well, it turned out that he didn’t actually record, I mean that was a private meeting with Nigerians in Ghana, it was like a private discussion.
“And he also claimed that part of the tape was actually doctored. The matter is been looked into by the Nigeria High Commission in Ghana and I believed those matters will be resolved subsequently.”
Speaking on the incident in Togo, she said: “On the issues happening around neighbouring countries like Togo, we have Nigerians attacked. One woman alleged that she was raped and she turned out to be the accused girlfriend.
“We have also seen the Togolese Ambassador and made it clear that the lives of Nigerians must be protected anywhere they are because we take care of others here and we deserve to be taken care of.
“If a Nigerian commits a crime, let him pay the penalty for it as a punishment, but you cannot penalise a nation and its citizens.
“So, we will be working more on that as we appealed to Nigerians to be good ambassadors wherever they find themselves.”
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