Youth parliament calls for evacuation of Nigerians from Russia, Ukraine

Rt. Hon. Dr. Azeezat Yishawu

Nigerian Youth Parliament has called on the Federal government to evacuate all Nigerians living in Ukraine, Russia, and other neighbouring countries where the spill over of attacks may spread to.

This was contained in a statement signed by the Speaker, Rt. Hon. Dr. Azeezat Yishawu on Thursday in Abuja.

The Parliament however stated that the call for the evacuation of Nigerians is to safeguard them from harm that may occur as a result of the attacks by both Ukraine and Russia.

The statement was in response to Russian forces firing missiles at several cities in Ukraine and landing troops on its coast after President Vladimir Putin authorised what he called a special military operation in the east.

Also, Russia has demanded an end to NATO’s eastward expansion and Putin repeated his position that Ukrainian membership of the U.S.-led Atlantic military alliance was unacceptable, with attacks on border units, border detachments and checkpoints carried out with the use of artillery, heavy equipment and small arms

Hon. Yishawu spoke on the need to bring all Nigerians in these troubled areas back to the Nigeria.

Speaking, Hon. Yishawu said that every Nigerian deserves, not just to feel safe, but to be safe regardless of where they are. She advised the federal government to speed up its arrangements to bring all Nigerians back home safely.

She also advised that the measures adopted by the federal government when evacuating Nigerians from different countries after the outbreak of Covid-19 could also be adopted in this case.

Hon. Yishawu also said that the Parliament is willing to offer its helping hand where needed to successfully actualise the evacuation of all Nigerians back home safely.

The statement partly reads, ‘The recent invasion of Ukraine by Russia a few hours ago constitutes major concerns for us as parliamentarians especially for students in these zones of war.

As the conflicts further escalate with recent attacks within the region, governments of counties across the world are prioritising the evacuation of their citizens from the area, to forestall harm to their citizens.

Currently, a number of Nigerians have fled the region due to the growing rate of insecurity and fear among them.

This call is to ensure the safety of all Nigerians who dwell in these countries for the reasons of education, business, tourism, etc.

Nigerian Youth Parliament is concerned about the safety of Nigerians in these troubled areas, and willing to give its assistance, where needed, to ensure the speedy evacuation of all Nigerians back home by the Federal Government.

We believe that the model use for the evacuation of Nigerians from other counties at the peak of Covid-19 pandemic could be adopted in this instance as well.

Thus, asking for the evacuation of Nigerians from these areas which are the nucleus of the conflict as these areas now pose an overall hostile environment to Nigerians there.

Meanwhile, many Nigerian are in these areas whose borders have now been shut-down, their airspaces are also being monitored, so, it calls for concern and it is important for the Nigerian Government to quickly conclude its arrangements to evacuate its citizens’.