•••AS GRIEVING MOTHER PETITIONS FG OVER DISAPPEARANCE OF HER ONLY CHILD
A Nigerian student studying in Northern Cyprus, has been declared missing by his family days after the release of the names of Nigerians killed in Northern Cyprus by the Federal Government.
The Federal Government had issued a warning and repeated advisory through the management of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) to those seeking educational succour outside the country to avoid Northern Cyprus.
Head of Media, Public Relations and Protocols Unit NiDCOM, Abuja, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, in a statement on Friday, said the mother of another Nigerian student, Abdulsamad Abubakar, has reported that her son is missing in the country.
The mother of the student, Mrs Dije Ibraheem, has cried to the NIDCOM management on Friday pleading for the Commission’s intervention in locating her 28 year old student.
Abdulsamad is her only child.
According to him, the 54 year-old trader, who hails from Kogi State, said she last spoke with her son on August 2, through another person’s phone number, where the son raised an alarm that ” they have come to pick me up to a detention camp”
According to Ibrahim, AbdulSamad was a 300-Level International Relations student of Cyprus Science University (CSU) and was living off campus.
“She said since that last call on August 2, 2022, from an unknown number, with her son wailing and asking for help, she has not known his whereabout or heard any news from him or the school authorities.
“She stated that she had tried reaching out to the agent who secured the admission and travelling documents for her son but he was not forthcoming too.
“I was advised to write a petition to Consular and Legal Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which i did before someone hinted me that Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa advised Nigerians to be wary of Northern Cyprus, hence reaching out to her to help me out.
“So I am here today at NIDCOM to beg you in the name of God to help me bring back my son alive, as am scared of hearing any bad news about my only child. Please help me , i am a single mother . He is my only child . I havent slept well nor fed well since August 2nd that i last spoke with him”. The statement said.
“The Secretary of the Commission, Engr. Dr Sule Yakubu Bassi, while receiving the petition on behalf of Hon. (Dr) Abike Dabiri-Erewa, assured Ms Ibraheem that everything possible would be done to help locate her son and bring him back to the country.
However, he reminded her that diplomatic services are difficult because Nigeria and the UN have no diplomatic relations with Northern Cyprus
“Here at NIDCOM, we are concerned about the welfare of Nigerians abroad as well as encouraging them to invest back home for national development.”
Bassi pleaded with Ms Ibraheem to take care of her health, and reassured her that further investigation would be carried out by the Commission in conjuction with the Nigeria Embassy in Ankara, Turkey
He reiterated the earlier advisory given by the Commission in sending students to Northern Cyprus due to the negative reports received from there especially from the students.
“His Excellency Hidayet BAYRAKTAR, the Ambassador of the Republic of Turkey to Nigeria had on Thursday described the advisory by the Commission as exaggerated before the Commission’s gave out list of Nigerians murdered in Northern Cyprus within three years.” The statement said.