Ireland has deported at least 35 Nigerians, including five children, via a chartered flight that left Dublin Airport on Wednesday night and arrived in Nigeria on Thursday.
According to the Irish Mirror, the group consisted of 21 men, nine women, and five children. Irish Minister for Justice, Jim O’Callaghan, confirmed their arrival, noting there was an unscheduled stopover due to a medical emergency but that all returnees eventually landed in Nigeria.
Although the Irish government did not state the specific grounds for the deportations, O’Callaghan remarked, “Ireland has a rules-based immigration system. It is important that those rules are robust and enforced.”
Meanwhile, the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) said it was unaware of the deportation. NiDCOM spokesperson, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, disclosed this to Punch Diaspora Tales on Thursday.
