The House of Representatives on Tuesday urged the Federal Government to explore all diplomatic means of rescuing the student arrested by the Turkish Gvernment and resolve the issue.
The House also mandated its committees on Foreign Affairs, Diaspora Matters, Interior and Tertiary Institutions to investigate the matter and report back to the House in one week for further legislative duties.
The resolution of the House was sequel to the passage of a motion sponsored by a member Hon. Solomon Bulus Maren under matter of urgent national Importance.
Maren while moving the motion noted that 50 Nigerian students were illegally arrested and detained on October 1st 2016 at the Instanbul Airport on arrival to pursue their education.
He noted he continuous humiliation of Nigerian Students and nationals in various countries of the world without any diplomatic intervention by the Nigerian Government.
“Recall the murder of a Nigerian student in Dubai who was thrown from a multi- storey building, the case of our dear sister Julie who is bedridden in a rehabilitation home for the elderly and mentally ill in Italy due to doctors torture and maltreatment . The death of a Nigerian students and Nationals around the globe on flimsy excuses.
The lawmaker recalled the July 15th failed Coup in Turkey and the clampdown on 2099 schools, dormitories and Universities and the allegations that they were terrorist institutions due to,their links with Islamic scholar Fetullar Gulten “whom the Turkish Government has accused of being the mastermind of the failed coup in Turkey.”
Maren expressed concern that some of the arrested students are being humiliated and abused, while some are sick and are being held in dark rooms.
“Of the 102 countries that have students in that university, only Nigerian students are being treated in this manner, whereas other countries have sorted out their’s diplomatically,” the lawmaker said.
The Chairperson of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Hon. Nnena Elendu- Ukeje while speaking on the matter said Nigeria will not normally interfere in the internal workings of any country especially when its in a situation that seem to threaten their democracy.
“As a country we also owe a responsibility to our citizens to know exactly where they are or how their doing in their host country. But we would draw the line when it comes to that number of our citizens who have been arrested in a foreign country and especially charged with treason.
“It is pretty heavy, and any responsible country and parliament would want to find out exactly what the true status is,mand that’s what we intend to do, moving forward.”
Also, the Chairman of the House Committee on Diaspora Matters Hon. Rita Orji described the arrest of the students as an assault on Nigerians.
She said that the fact that’s were taken from the airport to detention is an insult on the sovereignty of Nigeria as a whole. According to her, it is not enough to allege that the student may be linked to schools that are supposedly linked with terrorism.
She said it would have been better if the government of Nigeria had been informed on the suspicion of the Turkish government, rather than clamping innocent Nigerian into detention.
“I have to let Nigerians know that it is high time we rose up to this challenge. So that people will know that the life of every Nigerian student abroad matter.” Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
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When political leaders of a country fail to do the right thing and make curruption their companinons that is the kind of treatment theit citizens get in other country. In the first place are our children suppose to go abroad and study if our leaders do think? I assure you all your children studying in America, Canada, Uk and so on will soo receive such gorry treatments by God's grace and you shall start to think like humans. Wasteful legislators. I pray the recession you have brough to the already impoverished masses affect your own children massively too.
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