Tardy evacuation of stranded Nigerians from Sudan
With different angles surrounding the evacuation of stranded Nigerians in Sudan, there have been clinical steps adopted to halt the nefarious process of hurting Nigerians in the war-torn country.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, had disclosed that the country has concluded arrangements to evacuate over 5,500 Nigerians stranded in Sudan by road.
Though, different measures have been put to test, but there are still glitches which make the evacuation ‘a tardy as snail movement.’
This arrangement is disturbing when compared with the airlifting evacuation of Americans in Sudan by the Special Forces.
Students, parents and others have clamoured, lamented for a lasting situation that will endanger lives of the dear Nigerian citizens from the internal war which they found themselves.
With about 5,000 Nigerians trapped as a result of fighting between forces loyal to Sudan’s army chief, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and his deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, who commands the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the Federal Government of Nigeria, amidst the ravaging crisis in Sudan, has said it is “risky” to evacuate Nigerian students who have indicated willingness to return to the country from the war-torn country.
According to Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, the tense situation in Sudan makes it difficult for stranded Nigerian citizens to be evacuated from the country.
She therefore appealed to the fighting parties to consider the Juba Peace Agreement enunciated by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development as a fundamental mechanism for the restoration of peace and tranquillity in the country.
A Nigerian student stranded in Sudan had raised the alarm of being surrounded by criminals. Fauziyya Idris Safiyo, a Nigerian student who managed to flee Khartoum to the border town of Gallabat on Sudan-Ethiopian shores, said the situation is getting out of control.
According to her, many countries have started evacuation of their nationals however there’s nothing regarding evacuation of Nigerians in the East African country.
In her words, “It’s only Nigerians left stranded with many women among us. Some neighboring countries like Ethiopia do not allow Nigerians to enter their countries without a visa.”
Speaking about the difficult situation they live in, Muhammad Nura Bello, President of Nigerian Students of Sudan International University, said there is total blackout and even the Sudanese citizens are also fleeing.
Though, the Nigerian government has been making efforts on evacuating Nigerians in Sudan, the hope of the over 2,500 Nigerian students stranded in war-torn Sudan for an early evacuation may have been dashed, as the Federal Government, on Friday said it was practically impossible to airlift them with the current situation in that country.
According to the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), the tense situation in Sudan was making it difficult for stranded Nigerian citizens to be evacuated from the country.
Abike Dabiri-Erewa, said though the Nigerian Mission in Sudan and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) already have arrangements to evacuate the citizens, it was impossible for any flight during this period of war.
A number of Nigerian students studying in Sudan have reportedly made arrangement to evacuate themselves to Ethiopia to flee the vicious fighting that erupted in the country as deaths and destruction have led to the evacuation of foreigners in the country.
According to reports, the students under the auspices of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS)Sudan chapter issued a statement calling on colleagues to assemble at three locations in Gadarif, before evacuation to neighbouring Ethiopia.
Gadarif, is the capital of the state of Al Qadarif in Sudan. It lies on the road that connects Khartoum with Gallabat on the Ethiopian border, about 410 kilometres from the capital.
The situation in Sudan is dire as clashes continued on Sunday between the army led by Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the Rapid Support Force (RSF) led by Mohammed Dalago. About 500 people have killed in over one week of the conflict and the country’s infrastructure has been devastated with hospitals out of service and food shortage threatening civilian lives.
Over 3,500 people have been injured and tens of thousands have fled to neighbouring Chad and facing massive humanitarian crisis.
The development is coming one week after intense fighting broke out between two rival forces in the North Eastern African country, which shares its border with seven namely Libya, Egypt, Chad, the Central African Republic, South Sudan, Ethiopia, and Eritrea.
Yesterday, Saudi Arabia evacuated 91 of its citizens along with 66 nationals from 12 other countries which included Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Tunisia, Pakistan, India, Bulgaria, Bangladesh, the Philippines, Canada, and Burkina Faso from Sudan.
Speaking in a broadcast channel, Onyeama stated that his ministry has been informed that an estimated 5,500 citizens, which included students, workers and others have indicated their readiness for the evacuation.
The Minister stated that the evacuation plan to move by road became imperative following the attack on the flight of the French rescue team in Sudan.
According to him, the three options available to us include the Egyptian border, Port Sudan, and the Ethiopian border.
According to him, “Where we are at the moment is trying to get the authorisation from the Sudanese government to undertake this long journey and for them to provide some security. Now we don’t want to take any risk or risk the lives of any Nigerian. Because from what we saw yesterday, for instance, how the French in trying to evacuate their citizens came under fire. We don’t want to expose our brothers and sisters to that danger as well.”
The Federal Government should ensure smooth and less risky evacuation for Nigerians to earn respect of foreigners and emulation.
