IBADAN, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- Abike Dabiri, the Chairperson of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), is yet to react to reports of Nigerians being detained at the Dubai international airport.
The Nigerians were detained in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) despite having valid documents.
A Twitter user, @dunchichi in
a series of tweets on Wednesday, “l said their passports were seized after being held in a room hours after their arrival in Dubai.
In a 42-second video posted on Wednesday, some persons are seen talking to a man in what seems to be an office, and saying “we have human rights; if I tell the United Nations about this thing, it doesn’t make sense; I got my visa; I used my money to buy a ticket; I came to visit.”
In December 2021, the UAE had placed a ban on passenger flights from Nigeria over efforts to contain the Omicron variant of COVID — the restrictions were, however, lifted in January 2022.
However, the man in the office repeatedly tells the persons in front of him to “go outside”.
“This is the situation happening with Nigerians arriving Dubai today 31st August 2022. Detained and our passports siezed. Help!” @dunchichi tweeted.
“If they are sending us back, then they should send us back instead of holding us here without reason after long flights from different destinations.
“Is it a crime to be Nigerian? How can a visa be issued to you and then you get held at the airport without information. My sister that came to see how she can help is not being given any information either and I have not been able to see her.
“Nigerians should stop visiting Dubai. Cos we cannot be humiliated this way by the same people that issued us visas. Use your money to come and get humiliated. Nah.”
In a later tweet, the Twitter user said she had been released, but other persons were still at the airport.
“My sister had to go through immigration to get me released. It was a tedious process. Others are still there and I don’t know their status. What happens if you have no family here? Nobody knows what is going on,” she wrote.
Hours after the video was posted, Nigerians have reacted with some concerned about their well-being, however, the chairperson of NiDCOM is yet to respond.