ILORIN- The Comptroller of Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) in Kwara, Mr Aminu Shamsuddin, has advised residents of the state to desist from illegal migration to avoid risks associated with such act.
The comptroller gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ilorin on Thursday.
Shamsuddin identified two types of migration; regular migration and irregular migration.
He explained that regular migrants were people that have all the required documents, including international Passport
“It is when you have Passport that you can apply for visa and be given, though, there are conditions attached to getting a visa.
“This conditions includes financial capability, invitation by an individual or organisation abroad, purpose of going, duration of stay and type of visa, whether medical, tourism or work permit by companies abroad,” he explained.
The comptroller however said that irregular migration is illegal, saying that the people involve always lie and refuse to obtain travel documents and sometimes deny their identity.
He noted that the irregular migrants may travel abroad by road, sea, or even smuggle themselves in to the Aeroplane in order not to be caught.
“Some illegal migrants go as far as hiding inside container on the sea, just to travel abroad, in the process, they get tired and weak, thereby die before they reach their destination,” he said.
Shamsuddin said travelling abroad through illegal means has lots of disadvantages and risks, as there was no official knowledge and as such anything that happens during the process would not be known.
He said that there are lots of wicked people waiting to get illegal migrants for their evil plans, such as slavery, organ harvest, trafficking, drug transporters and many unspeakable things.
The comptroller further said that illegal migrants are usually deported, while some are left in the prison without the knowledge of their relatives, depending on where they were caught.
He however said that the deportees were of different categories; while some are deported due to over stay, others as a result of trafficking and would be handed over to the right agencies.
On blacklist of migrants, the comptroller explained that foreign countries blacklist migrants due to various reasons, especially violating the laws of their country, which stopped them from entering the country in future.
Shamsuddin added that those blacklisted would not be able to enter the country for 10 years or forever, depending on the nature of the offence.
The comptroller reiterated that those blacklisted cannot hide, as their travel history is documented and would be revealed as soon as they thumb print on the office machine.
“Once a person thumb print on our machine, his details will appear and it will show that the person has a passport before and the reason for being blacklisted will be revealed.
“This is what we did to curb crimes and protect the country’s image, because years back, Nigerians find it difficult to get foreign visa, as many are assumed to be criminals,” he explained.
Shamsuddin thereby advised Nigerians to always go through the official process of obtaining their travel document, abide by the rules of the country they are going and be a good Nigeria citizen, anywhere they are. (NAN)
