The federal government has reacted to the ordeal of Nigerians who travelled to United Arab Emirates recently.
On Wednesday, a viral video of Nigerians reportedly stranded at the Dubai international airport surfaced on social media, with a Twitter user, @dunchichi, saying at least 20 Nigerians were stuck at the airport and their passports seized.
The development sparked outrage on social media platforms, with Nigerians criticising the treatment of the travellers.
Reacting to the development, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, chairperson of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), said despite being warned on the new UAE visa rules for certain age categories, some Nigerians tried to “circumvent” the regulations.
Speaking on the development, the federal ministry of foreign affairs, in a statement by Francisca Omayuli, its spokesperson, said Nigerians need to respect the immigration laws of other countries to avoid “unwarranted treatment”.
She noted that Nigerians who were stranded in Dubai were issued family visas, but arrived the UAE without any family member in the country.
“Consequently, they were denied entry and advised to return to their country and apply for the appropriate visas,” Omayuli said.
“However, those persons allowed entry into the country have their family members in the UAE, while those who claimed their family members were on another flight were told to wait at the airport pending their arrival.
“The general public is invited to note and be guided that the Government of the UAE has introduced a new visa regime and has stopped issuing tourist visas to persons under the age of 40 years, except for those applying for family visas.
“It is, therefore, instructive for prospective visa applicants to indicate clearly their visa preferences without any ambiguity and also respect the immigration laws of other countries so as to avoid unwarranted treatments.”