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Thursday, 19 February 2015
We pay N300 to enter Nigeria – Illegal immigrant
A suspected illegal immigrant from the Niger
Republic, Shuaib Kaneda, says many illegal
immigrants usually entered Nigeria by paying
between N300 and N500 to unidentified persons.
Shuaib added that he had spent eight years in
Nigeria, but could not acquire valid documents
before he was arrested by officials of the Nigeria
Immigration Service, Lagos State Command.
The 34-year-old was among 82 illegal immigrants
paraded on Wednesday at the command’s office
in Alagbon, Lagos.
The suspects were said to have been arrested at
different parts of the Lagos Island area after an
intelligence report.
Shuaib was arrested along with a relative, Idris,
who had spent barely one year in the country
when he was caught.
Shuaib, who spoke in pidgin, said, “I have been
here for about eight years now. I work as a loader
and make between N1, 000 and N1, 500 a day. I
use the money I make to feed my family in the
Niger Republic. I am married and have two
children and they are in Niger.
“I travel home every six or eight months. The
people at the border see many of us when we
come in. Sometimes, they collect N300 and other
times, we give them N500 before we pass.”
His brother, Idris, also explained that he came
into the country to make money which he usually
sent home to his family of three.
Another suspect, Alimaru Saliade, told PUNCH
Metro that he sneaked into the country by mixing
up with cows being transported into Nigeria.
Saliade, who claimed not to know his age, said in
pidgin, “I followed cows to Lagos. I have been
here for four years now and I have not been able
to get my documents because I don’t have
money.”
For Yaya Ibrahim, coming to Lagos was to avoid
being idle in the village.
“I was in my village and was not doing anything.
So, my uncle asked me to come and work in Lagos
and that was how I found myself here. My
parents live in Ghana but we are from Niger,” he
said.
The Public Relations Officer of the Nigeria
Immigration Service, Lagos State Command,
Muyiwa Odunubi, said the command raided the
suspects based on intelligence report.
He said while some of the suspects were caught
around banks’ branches, others were found
sleeping under the bridge and “constituting
nuisance to residents”.
He said, “We have a surveillance team that keeps
a tab on illegal immigrants in the state. When our
men went out, they got them in all manner of
places. Some were caught around banks, others
were found sleeping under benches. Even fuel
stations were not spared.
“In the Idumota area of the state for instance, we
found that they have a room where they sleep. It
is not clear whether they rented the apartment or
somebody gave them the place. We introduced
ourselves and arrested them; they never
resisted.”
The Comptroller of the state’s command, Mrs.
Justina Ahmadu, commended the officials, adding
that the service would intensify efforts to rid the
state of anything that could constitute security
risk.
She waved away Shuaib’s claim, saying most of
the illegal immigrants came into the country
through unauthorised routes because they did
not have valid documents that could guarantee
their stay.
“This is a continuous exercise and we will continue
to weed out illegal immigrants from the state.
Anyone without a valid passport or resident’s card
will be sent packing.
“We appeal to Lagosians to cooperate with us
during our operations by not harbouring any
illegal immigrant or fighting our men. This is the
only way they can assist us to discharge our
functions efficiently,” she said.
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