The first batch of air-lifting of Nigerian citizens trapped in war-torn Ukraine is now scheduled to take place tomorrow.
The evacuation, earlier planned for Monday (yesterday), was rescheduled for tomorrow to give enough room for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the House of Representatives, and the Nigerian foreign missions in Ukraine, Poland and Russia to complete the formalities of moving Nigerians from inside Ukraine to safe borders with neighbouring countries.
This came as the House said it would give every needed support to the ministry to kick-start the evacuation.
Gbaja meets Foreign Affairs minister
Speaker of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila, gave the reassurance when he met the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffery Onyeama, in his office in Abuja, yesterday, for a meeting on the plight of Nigerians caught in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Gbajabiamila, while commending the ministry for the steps taken so far to ensure the safety of Nigerians, the majority of who were students, however, stated that the country must find ways to quicken its response time to emergencies.
He noted that response mechanisms, including funds, airplanes and other equipment, must readily be on standby to respond to life-threatening situations such as the invasion of Ukraine by Russia and how they affected Nigerians.
“We must be in a state of readiness at all times. We should have our own planes and necessary funding to respond quickly to such emergencies” Gbajabiamila said.
The speaker added that measures National Assembly would take included legislation to address such emergencies and supplementary appropriations, among others.
Responding, Onyeama reassured the speaker that the situation with regards to the safety of Nigerians, was under control in Ukraine, adding that the Federal Government had put necessary arrangements in place to ensure the safe return of Nigerians.
He disclosed that in the last few days, the ministry, in conjunction with the missions, had completed formalities for Nigerians to move to safe border points from where they would be transported in buses to the airports in neighbouring countries.
He listed Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Hungary and even Russia, among the countries to be used as exit points.
The minister, who said there were about 5,600 Nigerian students in Ukraine, added that there were also non-students, some of whom might not have been legally documented.
Vanguard
