The humanitarian intervention of chairman of Air Peace, Mr Allen Onyema, by offering to freely evacuate stranded Nigerians following xenophobic attacks in South Africa, has drawn unpredicted commendations from the House of Representatives and other Nigerians. JOSHUA EGBODO writes on the gesture.
Reps immediate reaction
In the wake of the latest xenophobic attacks in South Africa, indications that the development had received a unique attention of the House of Representatives was Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila’s decision to cut short his trip to the 50th Commonwealth Parliamentary Association’s Conference, holding then in Tanzania. The speaker on his twitter handle announced that the house, which was still on recess then, may reconvened for the purpose of addressing the issue as it affects Nigerians in South Africa.
A world press conference
However, instead of reconvening the house as initially mulled by the Speaker, the leadership opted for a world press conference during which the position of the house was reeled out by Gbajabiamila, who led other principal officers to condemn attempts at justifying the attacks on the premise that the casualties were criminals.
“We do not intend to speak many words here today. The time for speaking has long passed, and the time for action has arrived upon us with a fierce urgency demanding nothing less than our total commitment to revoking the old arrangements that have made such abominations against our people possible.
“Nigerians have long travelled far and wide in search of knowledge, of experience and prosperity. As we have travelled, we have opened also our borders to those who will seek their greener pastures here.
“In Africa, we have demonstrated our commitment to the brotherhood of nations, sacrificing life, labour and wealth to achieve peace and restore freedom from Sierra Leone to Liberia, Sao Tome to South Africa. We have sought nothing in return, we have made no claims to the land and resources of our brothers.
“Our commitment has always has been to the advancement of Africa, to freedom in all our lands and prosperity for all our peoples. Yet today and too many a time, we are called to stand as pallbearers, bringing home to burial the bodies of our brothers and sisters, fathers and mothers, our children, savaged and decimated. What is their offence? That they dared to dream of glory and profit beyond our borders, and having dreamt, they endeavoured to make real the visions of their heart.
“We did not provoke, nor do we deserve the violence that has been visited on our people in South Africa. We reject entirely the obvious attempt to change the true narrative of events by casting the recently organised acts of violence as merely internecine conflict between gangs fighting for turf.
“Unless it is the position of South African government that all Nigerians living in South Africa are gangsters and criminals, we demand that they reject these claims without equivocation”, he stated during the press conference.
Onyema’s intervention
Following the attacks, and reports of how Nigerians have been rendered stranded, after their sources of livelihood were destroyed through looting and arson, the Air Peace boss, Allen Onyema, immediately volunteered to use his airline in evacuating willing Nigerians back home, without any form of charges. In spite of attempts at frustrating the evacuation by South African authorities, the businessman kept his words.
Reps impressed
The action of Mr Onyema got official attention of the house last Tuesday, when it passed a resolution, calling on the government to confer a national honour on the businessman.
A member, Hon Dachung Bagos had at the resumption of plenary last Tuesday, brought a motion on the development under matters of urgent public importance, praying the house to mandate relevant committees to interface with the executive arm, with an urgent view to reviewing Nigeria’s treaties with South Africa and other countries, as well as investigate the remote and immediate causes of the renewed attacks. An additional prayer was later added to the effect that Onyema be recommended for a national honours award, and it got unanimous adoption of members.
Invitation to plenary
Speaker of the house, Gbajabiamila, who on behalf of his colleagues expressed appreciation for Onyema, disclosed that the leadership of the house would invite the businessman as a way of showing members’ appreciation of his gesture. The following day, a second batch of over 300 returnees touched down in Lagos.
Foreign Affairs Minister slammed
The speaker during the discussion expressed displeasure with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Geoffrey Onyeama, who he accused of failing to honour the house’s committee invitation for information on the recent attacks.
“This is a nagging problem over which so many questions have been asked, but it is only when the facts are seen that we can address the problem. The minister (Onyeama) has not responded to the chairman’s invitation. I want to use this platform to send a message to the minister that he is very important in this….Respect is reciprocal, and I think I would be speaking to the President on this matter”, Gbajabiamila said
Onyema at plenary
True to Gbajabiamila’s pledge the day earlier, the Air Peace boss was at plenary of the house last Wednesday, during which more encomiums were poured on him. In his address, Gbajabiamila hailed Onyeama for the selflessness demonstrated in ensuring the safety of Nigerians, adding that the gesture was a rare show of patriotism that should be commended.
“We hereby commend Mr Allen Onyeama for his kind gesture and recommend him to the federal government for higher honours in Nigeria”, the speaker concluded.
What Onyema said
Full of emotions, the Air Peace boss submitted that “I’ve never been so honoured in life”. He thanked the house for recognizing his gesture and deeming him fit for the honour, which according to him, is the greatest in his life.
He explained that his decision to carry out the evacuation was necessitated by the dangers Nigerians in South Africa faced, adding that he wasn’t concerned about the financial burden the exercise will have on his business as long as Nigerians were safe and the dignity of Nigeria maintained.
His words; “The decision to evacuate was not taken spontaneously, neither did I do it for publicity. I had to mortgage my landing right in south Africa, because I just got the landing right before the crisis. I have never been so honoured in my life. You have brought tears to my eyes”.
Onyema also commended President Muhammadu Buhari for the diplomatic manner with which he managed the unfortunate crisis, even in the face of the provocation, noting that his intervention would not have been possible without the permission of the federal government.
He said the government of South Africa did not want the evacuation of foreign nationals as it was not a good thing for any county’s image, adding that xenophobia will soon be a thing of the past as it’s impacting negativity on the economy of South Africa.
Nigerians react
Many saw the gesture by the Air Peace boss acting in line with the call for being your brother’s keeper. The initial feeling that the action may not be unconnected with feelings that majority of the affected were from a region of the country where Onyema hails from was later dampened by statistics made public to the effect that the reverse was the case.
While many commended the gesture, it was the opinion of several others that the man took over the responsibilities expected of the sitting government of Muhammadu Buhari. They, therefore, saw it as failure on the part of the government, which is constitutionally required to guarantee the safety of lives and property of citizens as the primary purpose of its existence in the first place.
More demanded on lawmakers
Flowing from Onyema’s gesture and resultant accolades, a member of the House of Representatives, Hon Ajibola Muraina, last Thursday urged his colleagues in the house and the Senate, to take further steps towards helping the returnees and as well as rewarding the cabin crew of the Air Peace flights involved in the evacuation operation, by donating a token from their wages. The lawmaker suggested a minimum of N100,000 each my his colleagues.
Getting such through may however require a resolution supported by majority of members, and in the same vein concurred to by the Senate. It is the expectation of many that he may present the prayer by way of a motion on the floor as plenary resumes again this morning.
In the opinion of many who followed last week’s invitation of Onyema by the house, it was a demonstration that the Air Peace boss had made himself a beautiful bride before the parliament, and even to millions of other Nigerians, who believed it was a move worthy of emulation, and the call for award of national honour as well deserved.
