It is being reported that at least 60 Nigerians resident in the United Kingdom have been deported because of various criminal offences. While some of the deportees had contravened immigration rules, others were deported for their involvement in crimes such as rape, stealing, smoking and selling of hard drugs. Some were also deported because they used fake visa or engaged in fake marriages.
Some of the deportees at the airport said they had lived in the UK for long but could not get residence permit. They narrated their experiences to PM News and gave reasons for their deportation.
Bathlomew Sunday, an indigene of Anambra State, southeast Nigeria, said that he lived in UK for nine years but could not get residence permit. Sunday said he had to engage in a contract marriage to get the permit but was later caught by the British immigration, which deported him to Nigeria. He said he was not allowed to take any of his possessions before he was deported, adding that it was at the airport that he discovered other Nigerians were also deported. Sunday explained that the British government made it difficult for immigrants, especially Nigerians, to get residence permit, saying that they didn’t plan to stay there illegally.
Another deportee, Daniel Uche, who hails from Enugu State, said that the global economic meltdown has made it difficult to get jobs in the UK, thus many Nigerians are struggling to survive. Uche said there are no jobs for foreigners in UK, and to survive, many engage in shady businesses.
Also, Peter Nkwocha from Delta State said he travelled to UK about seven years ago, but he was arrested and later deported because he was wrongly accused of rape. Though he said he denied the allegation, he was arrested and later deported when the British authorities discovered he had a ‘contract’ marriage during investigation.
From their accounts, it is clear that they knew they had committed some offences – staying in UK illegally without residence permit, having ‘contract’ marriages, engaging in shady businesses and more. Isn’t it sad that Nigerians have to resort to committing such crimes just because they want to live in foreign countries such as the UK.
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