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FG postpones repatriation of Nigerians from South Africa to Wednesday
The Nigerian government has postponed the planned repatriation of its citizens from South Africa until Wednesday due to what officials described as “unforeseen logistical considerations.”
The evacuation flight was originally scheduled to take place on Monday.
In a brief statement issued to journalists, Kimiebi Ebienfa, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, confirmed the change in schedule.
Ebienfa said the flight had been moved to Wednesday but did not provide additional details about the reasons behind the postponement.
It is unclear whether the returnees will land in Abuja or Lagos and how many would comprise the first batch.
Very Nigerian understands that the repatriation flight will be operated by Air Peace.
Ebienfa did not confirm the flight time when asked about Wednesday’s schedule.
A screening exercise for over 1,000 Nigerian citizens in South Africa began last Thursday and was set to conclude on Saturday.
The exercise was part of preparations for their repatriation following an uptick in xenophobic violence.
Nigeria’s high commission in Pretoria said it had “negotiated waivers with host authorities” so that those with “immigration-related offences” would be allowed to leave on the eventual repatriation flights rather than be detained.
The move comes two weeks after Ghana repatriated almost 300 citizens from South Africa, a first batch of the nearly 800 people that registered for repatriation.
Ebienfa noted that Nigeria submitted its list for clearance ahead of Ghana, but Ghana was prioritised.
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