48 hours after The Daily Times exclusive story: NIS storms telecom firm, ZTE

.Arrests over 30 foreign nationals for questioning, releases five

.Action by NIS last resort – Inside source

Barely 48 hours after the exclusive story carried by The Daily Times on the abuse of Nigeria’ s immigration laws by a Telecommunications company, ZTE Nigeria Limited, the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) has reacted with visit and arrest of some foreign nationals at the company’s corporate office in Lagos.

The Daily Times Nigeria on Wednesday, May 30, 2017 reported that the company was alleged to, among others, have on their employ, foreign nationals who entered the country with questionable business visas and neither qualified to take up employment nor have permits to work in Nigeria.

The expatriates working within this organisation were alleged to be on business visas issued by the Nigerian government.

However, approximately 60 percent of these visas were understood to have expired and these foreign nationals since their arrival in the country, started working without valid work permits, a source alleged.

The company was further alleged to have over 70 per cent foreign nationals from Asia on its payroll. The foreigners who have no permit to work in Nigeria, certainly are not subjected to ancillary taxes (P.A.Y.E etal) being paid to the government of Nigeria, hence the company is not subjected to full disclosure by either the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

Laws of Nigeria relating to employment of foreign nationals clearly prohibit employment of foreigners in the country without valid work permits.

However, following the report by The Daily Times, the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) on Thursday, stormed ZTE Nigeria Limited office in Osborne Offshore Estate Ikoyi, Lagos and made arrests of over 30 foreign nationals who were taken away in two buses, of which investigations are still ongoing.

It was gathered that five of the arrested foreigners were later released, while others were still being interrogated as at the time of filing this report.

It was further gathered that before the raid, the NIS, had earlier paid visits to the company, urging them to comply with all necessary immigration laws of the country, hence the raid was seen as the last resort.

Though the NIS was not forthcoming in divulging information to the journalists when a team of reporters visited its Ikoyi, Lagos office, reliable source revealed the retiree of the NIS (names withheld) made frantic effort to stop the raid on ZTE, and subsequent arrest.

The raid on the telecommunications company, The Daily Times gathered, took place in the morning hours, about 10.50 am and activities continued through the day.

Effort to obtain reactions from the NIS was frustrated, as the organisation’s Public Relations Officer, Mr. Ogungbe, who uses an Airtel line, refused to grant an interview or give an update on the development.

Mr. Ogungbe, who first assured The Daily Times that he needs to get clearance from his boss, the Comptroller General, before granting any interview on the subject matter, later called The Daily Times to dismiss the request for an interview on the ZTE Nigeria immigration laws violations.

He, however, said that any inquiry on the evolving matter should be directed to the NIS Zonal Headquarters in Ikeja, Old Secretariat.

This was followed with several attempts to reach the comptroller general on phone which proved abortive. The Comptroller General’s phone rang repeatedly without response, return call or any form of text message.

It would be recalled that Mr. Akindobe Oluwafemi, the company’s Public Relation Officer who spoke to The Daily Times on telephone on Wednesday before the raid on Thursday, refused to react to the issues. He termed the issue a mere speculation without any basis and needed verification. “It is a mere allegation,” he had said.