By Ime Akpan
Lagos
More than 100 Nigerians who went to the Scandinavian countries of Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland for employment opportunity have been deported.
The deportees including men, women, and children, arrived the international wing of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, yesterday aboard a cargo aircraft.
One of the deportees, who gave his name as Isaac Ejiofor, said he was in Greece before relocating to Finland on asylum to enable him get documents to work in that country.
He said, he had no criminal record and wondered why he should have been deported after spending one year in the asylum camp.
“One policeman asked me what I wanted since I did not have any criminal record to warrant my deportation. I told him I wanted to work and live a normal life in Finland; so he (the policeman) told me to seek asylum and I did.
“I was taken to the asylum camp and was there for about one year processing work permit document. There were other African nationals there with four Nigerians. Suddenly, we the Nigerians were brought out and deported,” he said.
He alleged that the Nigerian Embassy in Finland did not come to their aid even after paying some money to the embassy officials.
Another deportee, who gave his name as Jackson, alleged that the Nigerian Embassy officials were collaborating with the Finnish immigration authorities to extort money from asylum seekers in the camp.
A female deportee, who identified herself as Esther, said her husband and their seven-year-old daughter had lived in Finland over 14 years, but was surprised that they were deported.
She, however, said the other Africans in the camp were given the opportunity to stay and work in Finland.
Another female, who also gave her name as Mercy, alleged that the Finnish authorities were hostile to Nigerians and appealed to the federal government to come to the aid of Nigerians living in that country.
