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… ‘72 hrs To Evacuate Over One Million Nigerians’ – Source
Sodiq Mojibola
The Chairman/CEO of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM), Abike Dabiri-Erewa, has announced that the evacuation of Nigerian citizens stranded in Sudan has been delayed due to the high level of insecurity in the country
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According to Gabriel Odu, the spokesman of NIDCOM, Dabiri-Erewa revealed that the ongoing conflict has led to several aircraft being burnt by the fighting troops.
In addition to the security concerns, Dabiri-Erewa pointed out that even humanitarian groups are finding it difficult to provide basic necessities such as food, water, and medical supplies to the people in Sudan.
She stated that while the Nigerian Mission in Sudan and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) have made arrangements for the evacuation of Nigerian students and citizens, the current situation makes it impossible for any flights to take off.
She said: “While the Nigerian Mission in Sudan and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) have put in place arrangements to evacuate Nigerian students and other Nigerian citizens stranded in Sudan, the tensed situation makes it gravely risky and impossible for any flights at this point in time.”
However, the NIDCOM chairman urged Nigerians in Sudan to remain calm and patient as efforts are being made to ensure their safe return to Nigeria.
She assured them that the Nigerian government is working tirelessly to resolve the crisis in Sudan and provide assistance to those affected by the conflict.
“We are making arrangements to evacuate students and citizens Sudan,” she assured
In response to the situation, the Sudanese military leader, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, confirmed yesterday that he was open to the evacuation of citizens and diplomatic representatives from the embattled country.
In contrast to the assurance from Al-Burhan, the situation on the ground remains unpredictable, and the safety of citizens and aircraft cannot be guaranteed.
… ‘Over One Million Nigerians Trapped In Sudan, 72hrs To Evacuate
With over one Million Nigerians, including 4,000 students trapped in the war devasted Sudan, a source close to the Federal Government evacuation plan has disclosed that “the window for evacuation for now is 72hrs.”
In order to facilitate the return of Nigerians stranded in the warring country (Sudan), the FG has set the pace for the evacuation committee.
PLATFORM TIMES gathered that over 1 million Nigerians reside permanently in Sudan with about 4,000 Nigerian students.
The unrest which has engulfed the country over the last few weeks took a different turn when bloody confrontations between loyalists of the de facto president and commander-in-chief of the army, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and those of his rival and former deputy Mohammed Hamdan Daglo, have claimed at least 418 lives in the last one week.
According to reports, the Nigerian Embassy in Khartoum has begun gathering the names of people ready to leave the unstable nation.
The formation of a committee to figure out how to evacuate Nigerians has also been announced by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).
It was assumed that the government would decide what kind of plane to dispatch for the operation based on the compilation of the names.
Due to the violence, nearly every airport has been closed.
“One thing about evacuation is the fact that not everybody would want to leave, and that is why dedicated phone numbers were given for contact,” a source knowledgeable about the evacuation plan said.
“But I can tell you that the process is already on and people have started submitting names for evacuation.”
The source said the current window for evacuation for now is 72 hours.
“However, the government is exploring every way to ensure the safety of Nigerians in Sudan,” the source said.
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