The Embassy of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in Lomé, Togo, has reportedly responded to viral videos showing the arrest of some Nigerian travelers from the United States in transit to Lomé via an Ethiopian Airlines flight on Sunday.
According to information relayed by Nigerian media on Sunday, December 19, 2021, Ambassador Julius Adebowale Adesina and his officials had to go to the airport and take up the case until it was resolved.
The same sources said the problems started when Nigerians, who were traveling on Ethiopian Airlines from the United States to Lagos, arrived in Lomé and were told their connecting flight was full and they could not continue the journey.
“The demonstration by some of them was mistreated by Togolese security agents. Worse yet, they handcuffed and seized the phones of Nigerian demonstrators,” The News reported.
Nigerian Foreign Minister Geoffrey Onyeama, who was far away in Istanbul, Turkey, as part of the Turkey-Africa Partnership Summit hosted by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, reportedly contacted Adesina in Togo.
“Ambassador Debo Adesina immediately rushed to the airport when I called him and oversaw the evacuation of everyone to Nigeria,” the minister responded in an email to globalpatriotnews.
In Nigeria, the journalist Richard Akinnola to assert:
“Kudos to Debo Adesina, Nigeria’s Ambassador to Togo. Following the viral videos of how the Ethiopian airline maltreated some Nigerian passengers in Togo, he, in conjunction with our foreign affairs minister, worked tirelessly to deal with the situation by arranging two flights to evacuate the stranded Nigerian passengers home. Well done, Debo.”
The Embassy’s reaction to the Togolese authorities
According to a press release from the Nigerian embassy quoted by the media, all passengers were evacuated on two flights, following the intervention of the embassy and with the cooperation of the Togolese authorities.
However, representatives of Nigeria have informed the Togolese authorities that “the mistreatment of Nigerian travelers” is totally unacceptable and not in line with international best practices.
“Thanks to the Mission’s concerted efforts in its engagement with the relevant Togolese officials, this problem has been resolved. In the meantime, the embassy has expressed to the host authorities its dissatisfaction with this unfortunate incident.”
Source: News Agencies