JIFORM Calls for State of Emergency over Human Trafficking in Nigeria

Matilda Omonaiye/

The Journalists International Forum For Migration (JIFORM) on Thursday urged the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency over human trafficking in Nigeria.

The call was made as the body appealed to the government to defer the evacuation mission beyond the August 25, 2020 deadline to accommodate fresh 435 trafficked Nigerian women stranded in Oman and Saudi Arabia having 190 and 235 ladies respectively on separate lists compiled by JIFORM, Synergy Rescue Initiative (Rescue Mission), Rescue Africans in Slavery (RAIS) foundation and the Nigerian Community in Diaspora.

JIFORM in a statement signed by its President, Ajibola Abayomi said that a letter detailing names, state of origin, location, phone numbers and other information about the stranded migrants had been forwarded to the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs, National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), National Commission For Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI), Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Nigerians In Diaspora Commissions (NiDCOM), International Organization for Migration (IOM) and others for further actions.

While commending Governor Makinde of Oyo State for paying for some 55 Oyo State indigenes stranded in Lebanon recently, JIFORM admonished the media to always double-check overseas job vacancy adverts by seeking clarifications from NAPTIP and other security agencies where necessary, to curb some of the strategies being deployed by human trafficking agents to lure the youths to slavery abroad.

The statement says although NAPTIP is the lead agency on the matter, there is need for collaborative efforts to salvage the situation that needed urgent attention as the Nigerian women were being subjected to various inhuman treatments and various unsubstantiated criminal proceedings that had excluded them from linking up the Nigerian mission abroad.

Letter addressed to the ministry of foreign affairs, NAPTIP and others became imperative according to Ajibola in order to rescue, rehabilitate and thoroughly investigate those behind the human trafficking business in the country.

 “This is time for President Muhammad Buhari to further show love to Nigerians in pains abroad largely due to their own faults. We understand the rescue operation gulping huge resources will be terminated by August 25, however, for the sake of humanity, we are pleading for an extension.

“We categorically stated that there was need to declare state of emergency on human traffickers in order to save the youths. While we empathised with the victims, we are not unmindful of their ignorance to jump into the offer they paid through their nose and are now regretting.

“The act is condemnable but for the sake of humanity, the nation should not turn deaf ears to the wailing of her citizens abroad, having been fed up with the ill-treatments meted to them ranging from forced labour, sexual harassment and unpaid wages, the ladies had to escape to different locations while their hosts, mistresses and employers in return initiated various criminal proceedings against them in order to stop them from applying for lawful evacuation,” Abayomi stated.

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