House summon Foreign Affairs Minister, NIDCOM, NEMA over Nigerians in Sudan
By Tom Okpe
The House of Representatives has invited Geoffrey Onyeama, Minister of Foreign Affairs and officials from the Nigerian in Diaspora Commission, (NIDCOM) and National Emergency Management Agency, (NEMA) to appear before it and give account of status of evacuation of Nigerians stranded in Sudan.
Femi Gbajabiamila, speaker of the House in his welcome remarks at the resumed plenary of the House on Tuesday, said the meeting will be held, in his office, on the scheduled date.
He also, cautioned political actors to learn from ongoing war in Sudan and its dangers, urging them to put aside political interest to ensure unity in the country.
“In the last few weeks, the Republic of Sudan has descended into war. Unfortunately, this rapid descent into carnage of violent conflict has entrapped many Nigerians resident in that country.
“Efforts are underway to ensure that our citizens, resident in the Republic of Sudan, as students, business people and in other vocations, are evacuated quickly and safely.
“The conflict in Sudan reminds us of the fragility of nations. In pursuing our political objectives, we must never lose sight of the fundamental truth that in war, everybody loses; and in peace, we win.
“All our personal, partisan and sectional interests must always succumb to the overarching and overriding interest of ensuring unity and stability of Nigeria.
“If we fail in this regard, nothing else will matter, and none of us will be absolved in the judgment of history.
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“I have requested Chairman, House Committee on Foreign Affairs to invite the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geofrey Onyeama and officials from the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, (NIDCOM); National Emergency Management Agency, (NEMA) to appear before the House to give an account of the status of evacuation efforts.
“The House is aware of ongoing difficulties with the evacuation efforts and the Federal Government’s response to developments in the Republic of Sudan.
“We are mindful that some of these difficulties flow from interagency disagreements arising from overlapping mandates and absence of established operational guidelines for such circumstance,” the speaker stated.
He further noted that while the House priority is to ensure welfare and well-being of citizens caught in this war, they must further revisit the statutory and other frameworks that have left the nation seemingly unprepared to respond promptly and effectively.
