The National Emergency Management Agency, on Thursday received a fresh batch of 164 Nigerians from Libya.
The 164 people, according to NEMA, were stranded Nigerians, among them 17 people with medical cases, who were assisted back to the country by the International Organisation for Migration.
The Director General of NEMA, Mustapha Maihajja, stated that it had become important for faith and community-based organisations to join the government in its efforts at discouraging irregular migration and the ‘get-rich syndrome’ in the society.
Maihajja, who was represented by the South-West Zonal Coordinator, Yakubu Suleiman, said, “Religious and community-based organisations should lead attitudinal change towards discouraging irregular migration which is impacting negatively on the people. People have so much respect and obey their admonitions.
“When these organisations embrace the governments’ efforts at curbing the menace of irregular emigration that has led to the death of several youths and rendered many incapacitated, the urge towards irregular migration will be minimised.”
He, however, stated that as much as these bodies could cause positive change, which the government was aware of, some of them were also culpable in misleading the youths based on revelations of some of the returnees.
“There is the need for concerted efforts by everyone to discourage irregular emigration,” he said.
The returnees comprised of 61 adult females including seven pregnant women, 96 adult males, two children and five Infants were brought in aboard Libyan Airline and arrived at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos at about 8:50 pm.
