Nigerians can be found anywhere in the world; from the Far East Asia to the icy parts of Europe and Australia not leaving out the Caribbean as well as other African countries. Many Nigerians look forward and grab any opportunity to leave the country for other countries.
Recently, 74 Nigerians in the US were arrested for cases of fraud. In Saudi Arabia, 23 others involved in drug-related offences are to be executed, while in South Africa many more were involved in series of Xenophobic attack. These occurrences and several others has led to the question, “why are Nigerians always on the run?”
Nigeria is blessed and endowed with mineral resources – if you say a land flowing with milk and honey – you are not out of point. We were called the ‘Giant of Africa’ but it seems a ‘dwarf’ perfectly suits our status.
A larger percentage of Nigerians living a better life are the ones who left the shores of the country. Our leaders are not left out as they seek medical help abroad while their children also reside and study outside the country. The foreign embassies in Nigeria are filled with our citizens knocking the door of other countries.
Why do we always run? Why is our land not enough to explore? Where have we gone wrong that we always seek opportunities to leave our home?
All these questions made me ask fellow Nigerians the question. Below are their responses:
Nigerians run away because of the challenges we are facing as a nation. The economy isn’t favorable. There is poverty, unemployment and insecurity in the land. None of our sector is working; education, agriculture, health etc. In a nutshell, Nigeria as a nation has lost her value due to bad leadership, corruption, lack of structure, and so on.
A country that has lost its pride will have its people end up leaving. Nigerians therefore find pleasure in seeking for greener pastures when they find no fulfillment in their home. They believe that they will survive and be better in any country they get to and it has been working for them.
90% of those who left the country has been successful. Their earnings over there is ten times the Nigerian currency which has lost value in the foreign exchange market. These are the reasons why we are always on the run.
Mr. Mentor, Akure
Nigerians are always on the run to other countries because of reasons such as flexible working environment, sane government, educational benefits, good insurance policies, and so on.
Over there, you could manage two jobs and also have time for other things which come with vocations, health benefits etc. The government in other countries is sane in the sense that they are held accountable and they know what each citizen wants or needs. Insurance policy is also real outside the country unlike Nigeria where one hardly gets it.
Miracle, Benin City
Poverty, bad governance, poor educational system, and lack of hope are few of the reasons we are being pushed away from our land.
Dr. Omotoba, OAU
The economic situation is the main reason why we are always on the run. If people have good jobs, or just a job and comfortably take care of themselves, many will stay. If you have a well-paying job in Nigeria, why would you want to risk your life on the Atlantic.
Mr. Owaduge, Lagos
We are always on the run for better life and employment. We can’t argue the fact that there is hardship in the land. Things come with ease over there; better health care services, food, house mortgages, accessible loans and all.
Aderinsola, Ibadan
Many Nigerians has been hit badly in their attempts to leave the country. One Mrs. Onorodion, who took monthly contribution from nine other women which amounts to over 600,000 to seek greener pasture was scammed by a fake travel agency. This is one of the several stories of people been duped by fellow Nigerians all in the name of getting out of the country.
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Equally, we have heard of Nigerians who perished in the Sahara Desert or the Atlantic oceans while attempting to illegally cross to European countries such as Spain, through African territories like Libya, Algeria and Morocco on overfilled boats or through the desert.
In fact, we have heard about a young Nigerian who attempted to fly outside by hiding in an aircraft’s part. This is just the craze about Nigerians trying to leave the country. According to the National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies (NANTA), over $4 billion is spent yearly on travel by Nigerians.
No, we cannot blame Nigerians, the terrible conditions in the country is enough to make extreme choices palatable. One of our major problem is bad governance. Our leaders and public officials are so corrupt. Those who stole huge amount enough to make a budget for other countries are celebrated. Corrupt politicians are bailed with less than a percent of what they have embezzled. There are enough promises and fail despite that fact we are very rich.
Unemployment is on the rise as many graduates roam about in the streets in search of unavailable opportunities while the available ones are reserved for ghost workers.
Government officials and lawmakers earn huge amount of money for allowances while the masses find it hard to eat. The world has been declared as the World poverty capital; a larger percentage of the citizens live on less than $2 a day.
Insecurity is another problem in the country. Boko Haram, Fulani Herdsmen, kidnapers and so on are making life unbearable for the citizens.
The educational and health sector can’t be left out; many Nigerians seek for study abroad as the system is in shambles. The health sector is so bad that the first citizen can’t even do a medical-checkup in the country. There are many other factors which are the reasons why we have been on the run.
A study of data released by the US Department of State has revealed a high reduction in the number of Nigerians that received the US non-immigrant visas in the last three years.
Recently, the US increased its visa fee for Nigerians as we have turned their land to a refuge. All these are as a result of what our government has led us into. Nigerians would still find a way to leave the country no matter what other countries are doing to prevent us from entering their land until things turn out for good.
Do share your opinions on this topic in the comments section. Thanks for taking your time in reading this piece.