Nigerians residing in Northern Cyprus have faulted a statement credited to the chairman, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, Mrs Abike Dabiri- Erewa that the country was not safe.
Dabiri-Erewa had at a press briefing recently cautioned Nigerian students against going to Northern Cyprus. She had said the region was not recognised by the United Nations (UN), saying that many students had been killed there.
But the president of the Nigerian Community in Northern Cyprus, comrade Isaac Ifetoluwa Ajayi, in a statement he made available to journalists in Abuja yesterday, told Nigerian parents whose sons and daughters reside in the country not to entertain any fear, adding that they are safe.
Ajayi also said there is no killing of Nigerians ongoing in Northern Cyprus, saying that the host country has no culture of taking lives.
He said, “We also use this opportunity to tell all our parents and sponsors that we are safe in Northern Cyprus. There is no killing of Nigerians ongoing in Northern Cyprus. Our host country has no culture of taking lives.
“Every living thing in Northern Cyprus are safe from Kidnapping, harassment, terrorism, or killing. Our problems are the high cost of accommodation, consistent inflation, and the admission of unwilling students who act unpatriotic here in Cyprus.”
“We have lost some students to natural death, accident, and self-inflicted abuse in the past while some Nigerians have also attacked each other in the past but our host country, who are Cypriots and Turkish, are neither violent nor destructive in nature.
Diaspora Commission Warns Nigerians Against Visit To Northern Cyprus
“We are convinced that the chairman of Nigerians in Diaspora, Mrs. Abike Dabiri, has been misinformed by unfair students. Our certificates are recognised everywhere in the world, just as the Turkish Government is recognised and accepted everywhere in the world. We plead with the office of the Chairman to kindly protect Nigerians, hence by desisting from making false publications which are not facts henceforth.”
Also, the coordinator of Nigerian community in northern Cyprus, comrade Daniel Oyelaja, demanded that Dabiri–Erewa should apologize to Nigerians in Cyprus for the misinformation.
He said, “The misinformation about the Turkish of Northern Cyprus is uncalled-for from the Chairman of Nigerians in the Diaspora Commission, Mrs. Abike Dabiri. We are glad to tell the whole world that Northern Cyprus is safe. Northern Cyprus is safer than any part of our country, Nigeria. Northern Cyprus is safer than Northern Nigeria. We are in safe hands here in Northern Cyprus.
“The people of this country are lovely, kind, understanding and accommodating. I think this country, and all Nigerians in Northern Cyprus, deserve an apology from Abike Dabiri for the misinformation that put our friends and families into unrest and worry. The major problem here is the high cost of living, which is a global challenge.”
