3,000 Nigerians still stranded in Libya

Posted by admin Africa & World Politics, Headlines Sunday, March 6th, 2011

Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Odein Ajumogobia, represented by the Director North and Horn of Africa Division, Mr Timloh Nkem, disclosed yesterday that about 3,000 additional Nigerians have registered with the embassy officials in Libya indicating their desire to be evacuated. This was as two distressed Nigerians delivered babies at Tripoli International Airport while awaiting the arrival of the Nigerian aircraft.

Yesterday, about 1, 242 Nigerians who had been stranded in Tripoli, arrived the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on three chartered aircraft.

Receiving the returnees, the Director General of National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Muhammad Sani-Sidi said President Goodluck Jonathan had directed Nigerians who were distressed and willing to return to the country be evacuated as soon as possible.
He said the operation had witnessed the deployment of four chartered planes with the capacity to accommodate 500 passengers each as well as a commercial aircrafts that could accommodate about 200 passengers.

Sani-Sidi said so far, the total number of Nigerians that have been evacuated was 2,278.
The agency which initially targeted 2,000 Nigerians had discovered that more stranded Nigerians had continued to troop out from the remote areas of Libya to the Tripoli Airport, seeking to be evacuated to the country.
Most of the returnees who appeared exhausted and tired from the stress in Libya, commended President Goodluck Jonathan for initiating the move for their evacuation.

Speaking after the evacuation, another pregnant returnee who simply gave her name as Mary said: “If not for the evacuation I wonder how I could deliver in that hard condition in a crowded open camp. I am happy that the government provided food and medications to us on our arrival here in Nigeria.”

NEMA and the Civil Defence Ambulance with medic were on hand to provide urgent medical service at the Abuja International Airport and the designated camps for the returnees. Most of them had since travelled to their states of origin through vehicles provided by government after taking their records.

-Sunwp_posts