FG Protests U.S. Deportation Of 13 Nigerians To Ghana

By TINA TOLUTOPE

THE Federal Government has raised concern over the deportation of 13 Nigerians to Ghana by the United States without prior notification. The deportees, along with one Gambian, were flown on a U.S. military cargo plane and handed to Ghanaian authorities despite having no ties to the country.

Ghana’s Foreign Minister, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, said Accra accepted the deportees “on humanitarian grounds” after other West African nations reportedly declined. He stressed that Ghana refused any financial incentive for the arrangement.

Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs distanced itself from the move, insisting its citizens should be returned directly. Spokesperson Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa said: “There is no reason to send them to another country first.”

While Ghanaian officials claimed the Nigerians had since left for home, lawyers for four deportees said they were still being held in Ghana, contradicting Accra’s position.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Mission in Nigeria reiterated that visa fees remain non-refundable and non-transferable, urging applicants to carefully prepare submissions for better outcomes.