Akande-Sadipe,
who is representing Oluyole Federal Constituency in the House of
Representatives, made a revelation on Monday, while speaking with journalists
in Abuja.
Chairman
House of Representatives Committee on Diaspora Affairs, Tolulope Akande-Sadipe
said 80,000 Nigerian ladies are being held as sex slaves, and forced labour in
Mali, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia UAE and Oman.
And she
blamed Dr Chris Ngige’s Ministry of Labour for being complicit in the way the
girls were trafficked to the countries.
She called on
the Federal Government to urgently put a stop to the exploitation of Nigerians
abroad.
She pointed
out that the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, under the supervision
of Dr. Chris Ngige has violated the law and has continued to issue
International Recruiters Licenses to Agents, despite Federal Government’s 2017
moratorium.
She lamented
that Nigeria has no Bilateral Labour Agreement with any nation and the
execution of the Standing Operating Procedure (SOP) has been lingering.
“Federal
Government placed a moratorium on issuance of International Recruiters License
in September 2017 and yet the Ministry of Labour and Productivity as at January
2020 was still issuing international recruiters licenses”.
She added
that many Nations in the Middle East and even within Africa were violating the
rights of our citizens under the guise of domestic servitude.
“The question
we must ask is How they got there? We have called out Immigration but then
again the Ministry of Labour is also complicit”, she said.
“These agents
collect $1000 plus the first 3 to 6 months salaries of the girls and abandon
them to their plight in the foreign nations. The trafficked girls unfortunately
are ignorant of the ills they may face abroad and are lured by the agents,
because they seek a better life”.
Akande-Sadipe
also revealed that these agents lie to the ladies about the jobs waiting for
them in foreign lands, urging Nigerians to move away from the perception that
the girls left this shores to prostitute.
She however
decried the Minister of Labour and Employment’s refusal to appear before the
Committee after four invitations, adding that the Ministry also refused to
submit the requested information.
She added
that information submitted earlier by the Ministry of Labour and Productivity,
was inconsistent with the relevant records of other Federal Government
Agencies, such as Corporate Affairs Commission, Nigeria Social Insurance Trust
Fund and Federal Inland Revenue Service.
“In addition
the Ministry has not been complying with laid down policies and procedures for
international recruitment. For example, Agents’ pre-licensing procedures
contravened the requirements of doing business with Federal government MDA’s”,
she added.
“The Ministry
did not conduct the mandatory pre-departure counselling; had no records of the
annual reporting requirements mandated to Agents, which should provide
information on the whereabouts of each Nigerian recruited, compensation and
contact details”, she disclosed.
Akande-Sadipe
further stated that the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment,
Mr. William Alo and two of his lieutenants lied under oath to the Diaspora
Committee.
“It is
disheartening that the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, the Permanent
Secretary and those who came with him gave the Committee false information”,
she said.
This issue of
human trafficking has reached pandemic levels and the appeals for help
circulating across social media is an embarrassment to our Nation.
She therefore
appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to initiate an Executive investigation
into the activities of the Ministry of Labour and Productivity.
She also
urged Mr. President to empower National Agency for the Prohibition of
Trafficking in Persons.
This, she
said, would enable NAPTIP achieve its mandate to apprehend and prosecute these
agents.
Akande-Sadipe
also asked President Buhari to review the funding of Foreign Missions to enable
them meet their responsibilities to Nigerians across the world.
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