A Nigerian Twitter user has raised an alarm over what he described as the physical and psychological maltreatment of a high number of Nigerian students in Northern Cyprus.
Northern Cyprus has emerged as a favourable destination for Nigerian students looking to get an education abroad, although it is only recognised by Turkey, as the international community considers NC to be part of the Republic of Cyprus.
In a Twitter thread, Mr Oparocha highlighted the sufferings of Nigerian students in Northern Cyprus where he revealed that over 800 of them have been unlawfully arrested, with the Northern Cyprus authorities depriving them of legal representation and communication with family members.
He further revealed that over 60 Nigerian students in the country have died of starvation and poor health while in Northern Cypriot custody.
“Since a few weeks ago, I have been tweeting continuously concerning the ongoing physical and psychological maltreatment of 800+ Nigerian students unlawfully held in Northern Cyprus Prison, over 60 Nigerian students have died out of starvation and lack of medical attention.
“Most especially they have been restricted from contacting their families and hiring a lawyer. I have tried my best to get the attention of Mrs @abikedabiri @nidcom_gov to see if there’s anything that can be done to get them out, in which she responded, which is on my TL.
“I am an Employee and a Businessman that travels out of Nigeria mostly for business purposes, I am in Holland and soon I will be back to Nigeria to continue business, and the Nigerian students unlawfully held in Northern Cyprus Prison will not be able to reach to me again.
“I’m using this medium to plead again to Mr President @MBuhari @NGRPresident, Mrs @abikedabiri @nidcom_gov, Mr @GeoffreyOnyeama @NigeriaMFA, the Nigerian Government @NigeriaGov, and to my Fellow Nigerians, If there’s anything that can be done to get these innocent youths out before they all die.
In response to Mr Oparocha’s please, Chairman, Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM), Abike Dabiri-Erewa advised him to contact the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as she can’t do anything on the issue.
She tweeted, “For the umpteenth time, Nigeria has no diplomatic relations with NC. No country does except Turkey. Made this clear consistently and warned to avoid NC. But some of you rather told me to keep my advice to myself. Tag @MFATurkiye. Last word on this pls.”
Speaking on the plight of Nigerian students in Northern Cyprus in August 2022, Dabiri-Erewa had warned against travelling to NC, as both countries had no diplomatic relations.
She said, “Honestly, it’s been a lot of problems in Northern Cyprus. So, we had youths come and tell us, ‘Please tell everybody to stop going to Northern Cyprus. We did that some time ago and some people said, ‘how can you tell people not to go.’ And I’ve said it again, if you’re going to Northern Cyprus, think twice about it.
“Over 20 students have been killed over the years, and nothing happened. So, some of these students came themselves and said, they have to embark on an awareness campaign. Don’t go to these places. Northern Cyprus is recognised only by Turkey. It’s not a UN-recognised nation.
“So, we can’t do much. Our students are being killed on a daily basis, and nothing is happening. So again, I’m going to appeal that we need to take a strong position, about places like Northern Cyprus.”