President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio has called on the German government to halt its deportation of 12, 000 illegal migrants into Nigeria.
Akpabio said the move will aggravate security challenges in the country unless the German authorities collaborate with the Nigerian immigration officers to identify genuine Nigerians among the deportees.
The Senate President stated this on Wednesday, February 1, when he received Annette Gunther, the German Ambassador to Nigeria on a courtesy call in Abuja.
He said; “As a result of the current political situation in Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso, almost every black person in Germany, would claim to be a Nigerian because they don’t want to return to crises prone countries. Dumping 12,000 illegal immigrants in Nigeria would lead to the escalation of insecurity in the country.
“There is the need for your country to allow our immigration officers to assess, who exactly is a Nigerian amongst them. If they allow them in here, without any kith and kin and they have to survive, the result would be nothing but militancy or insecurity.”
While urging the German government to assist Nigeria in fighting insecurity and strengthening its economy, Akpabio highlighted the danger of misinformation on social media in affecting the fight against insurgency and terrorism.
“We also have a problem of infiltration from other countries. We require assistance from Germany in the area of security because when we had the Boko Haram issues in the North East, it was very difficult for us to get support from America at that time, maybe due to what they read on social media concerning us,” he noted.
Reacting, Gunther said both countries share several things in common and there was a need for collaboration.
“Both Germany and Nigeria are large economies in Africa and Europe respectively, and as such can partner. Nigeria and Germany being the largest economies and populations in their respective continents, need to come together in their peoples’ interests.
“Nigeria is Germany’s second-largest trading partner in sub-Saharan Africa,” She said.
Meanwhile, speaking during a meeting with President Bola Tinubu in November last year, the German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz disclosed that “nearly 14000 Nigerians” living in the country risk deportation.
“The current spike in Nigerians filing initial asylum claims in 2023 has sparked worries. Nearly 14,000 Nigerians might be deported, and the great majority of them do not have the necessary identification cards,” Scholz stated.