Citizens should avoid traveling on dangerous routes, according to Mercy Oluwagbenga, a young Nigerian who was saved from Libya.
After a viral video of her crying out for help, Miss Oluwagbenga recently received a viral rescue from Libya.
She narrated her ordeal to the Nigerians in the Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) and said, “No matter what your situation, do not travel through dangerous routes.”
She claimed to have been lured to Libya with the promise of greener pastures to enable her to raise money to care for her sick mother and that she had dropped out of school at the age of 20 and had been told by NiDCOM boss Abike Dabiri-Erewa.
Instead, the returnee claimed to have found herself enslaved today.
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I worked without a kobo for a year and six months because I had to pay the agent who took me to Libya about two and a half million naira. She recalled movingly as she was maltreated, changed jobs, and was once locked up in a house where her blood was allegedly drawn without my knowledge.
She lamented that Nigerians in her situation were “treated like animals,” referring to her experience as a Kabba in Kogi State, and that she was fortunate to have escaped into a camp.
She thanked Dabiri-Erewa, NIDCOM, and Trinity Foundation Dr. Segun Abraham for ensuring her safe return.
“I don’t want any young people to experience what I did.” As she pledged to work with NIDCOM to raise awareness of irregular immigration, Miss Oluwagbenga pleaded, “Please don’t follow this route.”
She lamented the death of her ill mother in Libya and demanded money to help her get back to the 300 Level school she had abandoned.
Dabiri-Erewa praised Miss Oluwagbenga for her bravery and survival, referring to her as “one of the lucky ones,” noting that many others have died in the desert or the Mediterranean Sea and some remain untraceable.
The NIDCOM boss cautioned Nigerian youths to always look for safe and legal ways to travel and reiterated that irregular migration amounts to “voluntary suicide.”
She thanked Dr. Segun Abraham for his financial support, which allowed for the repatriation.
Dabiri-Erewa added that NIDCOM will support her full recovery and continue to work with partners and stakeholders to protect Nigerians, as well as intensifying advocacy to combat the threat of human trafficking and irregular immigration.
