‘I’m shocked Nigerian girls rescued from Mali went back’ —Abike Dabiri

Chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM), Abike Dabiri-Erewa, has expressed shock and surprise at how some Nigerian girls who were rescued from a sex trafficking syndicate in Mali and repatriated back to Nigeria, managed to return to that country.

Dabiri-Erewa was reacting to a trending video of some ladies who claimed to be Nigerians in a prison in the West African country pleading to be rescued.

She expressed disbelief at the situation and wondered how the girls managed to return to the country after their repatriation.

Speaking in a video posted on her X handle on Tuesday, the NIDCOM Chairperson lamented that despite President Bola Tinubu’s directive to ensure the return of stranded nationals in foreign countries, Nigerians should be cautious not to engage in criminal activities or irregular migration.

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“I want to address once again a viral video showing some girls shouting from a prison in Mali, asking to be brought back home,” Dabiri-Erewa said in the video titled “Addressing the video circulating on Nigerian girls in a prison in Mali.”

“Some time ago, the Chief of Defence Staff helped us to repatriate about 40 girls. We have identified that some of those girls who were brought back at that time have shockingly found their way back to Mali.

“So, while President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has instructed that wherever Nigerians are stranded, we must ensure their return, it is also wrong to commit crimes and engage in criminal behaviour.

“The Office of the National Security Adviser is responsible for the multi-agency team handling evacuations, and the NSA’s office has been repatriating people.

“We want to appeal to Nigerians to obey the laws of other countries. Crime, criminality, and irregular migration are extremely dangerous. Where you are running to might be worse than where you are running from,” she cautioned.

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