The Federal Government has evacuated another 66 Nigerians from South Africa, bringing the ongoing repatriation exercise for citizens affected by recent xenophobic attacks in the country into its second phase.
The returnees arrived at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos at approximately 8:50 p.m. on Wednesday, following the approval of the evacuation operation by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The latest group follows an earlier batch of 258 Nigerians who were flown back to the country on June 11 aboard a chartered Air Peace aircraft.
Speaking on the development, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kimiebi Ebienfa, confirmed that 66 Nigerians were successfully repatriated during the second phase of the exercise.
Also commenting, the Head of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) Lagos Office, Dipo Onabowale, disclosed that the evacuation flight was sponsored by the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of ValueJet, Kunle Soname. He added that officials of the Nigerian High Commission in South Africa accompanied the returnees throughout the journey.
Onabowale, who represented NiDCOM Chairman Abike Dabiri-Erewa, praised President Tinubu for authorising the evacuation and noted that logistical challenges experienced during the first phase were being addressed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
He further stated that the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, had assured Nigerians that every registered citizen willing to return from South Africa would be evacuated.
As part of reintegration support, NiDCOM announced that evacuees from Imo State would receive ₦1 million each from Governor Hope Uzodimma. The commission also revealed that MTN Nigeria provided free SIM cards and data worth ₦50,000, while an additional ₦100,000 was credited into the account of each returnee.
In a separate gesture, the founder of Harvesters International Christian Centre, Pastor Bolaji Idowu, donated ₦100,000 to each evacuee.
The returnees expressed gratitude to President Tinubu and other stakeholders for facilitating their safe return. They also acknowledged the contributions of Kunle Soname, Acting Nigerian High Commissioner to South Africa Ambassador Temitope Ajayi, NiDCOM Chairman Abike Dabiri-Erewa, and others involved in the evacuation process.
Officials from the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons, the Nigeria Immigration Service, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, and other security agencies were present at the airport to receive and document the returnees.
