- Nigerians who returned from Libya narrated how their were treated
- They said many Nigerians were getting rich from the trade
- They accused the Nigerians of being worse than the Arabs
Some Libya returnees have narrated sordid tales of how they were kidnapped and sold into slavery by their Nigerian counterparts,
The Punch reports that 150 migrants from mostly Edo and Delta states returned from Libya on the night of Thursday, November 30.
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Most of the returnees narrated that they were sold by their fellow Nigerians in Libya who were getting rich from the inhuman venture.
Odion Saliu who was one of the returnees said she was a hairdresser before venturing into Libya only to be kidnapped by a Nigerian and handed over to another Nigerian.
She said she was forced to call her mother in Benin who was asked to pay N200,000. After the payment, she was again sold for N794, 000.
She said: “When I was kidnapped with others and held for some weeks, the Arabs asked if I wanted to be taken to a Nigerian and I readily said yes. I was very happy that I was going to someone from my country. But it was a lie.
“The Nigerian they took me to locked me in a cell and told me to call my mother and ask for N60, 000. The man said he would sell me to a connection house if my family did not get the money. I called to inform my mother and the trafficker who facilitated my journey from Nigeria.
“But the trafficker spoke with them on the phone and told them the amount they demanded was too small. They increased it to N200, 000. My mother paid into an account after they provided her with the account number over the phone.
“The Nigerian said if I wanted to cross the sea, I had to pay him again. But when we got to the seaside, he sold me again.”
Sunday Anyaegbunam also narrated that he and his wife left Nigeria in April only to be twice sold into slavery.
He said: “We were made to contact our families on the phone and I had to ensure the payment of N400, 000 for my release and N300, 000 for my wife.
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“The Nigerians selling people in Libya are more wicked than many of the Arabs. I have never seen people so heartless as the Nigerians who bought and sold me.
“There are many of them in Agadez and Sabha, who are making so much money from selling their own people. But there are other West Africans doing the business too.
“When you approach them and say, ‘Please, my brother, help me.’ They would tell you, “No brother in the jungle.”
Meanwhile, as the repatriation of Nigerians in Libya continues, Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo state approved the release of 150 hectares of land and N100million seed capital for the 150 Libyan returnees and victims of human trafficking.
Vanguard reports that the money and land were given to those who completed a skills acquisition training at the Edo Agricultural Development Programme (ADP) office in Benin City, the Edo State capital.
The governor announced this at the graduation ceremony of the returnees in Benin city on Friday, December 30.
Nigerians speak on slavery in Libya - on NAIJ.com TV
Source: Naija.ng
ROSY CREST
Saturday, 2 December 2017