Over 500 Nigerians were reportedly deported from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) at the request of Bola Tinubu.
According to multiple sources cited by West Africa Weekly, the group, which included men, women—some of whom were pregnant—and children, was flown back to Nigeria on a Boeing 787 aircraft provided by the Nigerian government.
Upon arrival at Abuja’s Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport on Wednesday, September 14, the deportees were received by a government team that included officials from the Office of the National Security Adviser.
The team worked alongside the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants, and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI), the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), and other key stakeholders. After being held in a camp for two days, each deportee was sent home with N50,000 in assistance.
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A source disclosed that many of the deported individuals were legal immigrants with valid Emirates IDs, employed or running legitimate businesses in the UAE.
The source claimed that UAE authorities arrested the deportees while they were going about their daily routines—on the streets, at their workplaces, or in their homes.
When questioned about the arrests despite holding valid documents, the detainees were reportedly told by UAE authorities that the Nigerian government had requested their return.
Another source that spoke to West Africa Weekly said he was taken along with his friend, who works in an oil company when he came to visit.
He said upon their arrest, they were tied and detained in a cell for 13 days with their phones confiscated.
Another source alleged that UAE authorities drugged the deportees during their detention. “I’m very sick from the treatment we received in the cell. They even put drugs in our food to make us weak. We couldn’t bathe properly,” she said, describing the experience as terrible.
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