Another batch of twenty seven stranded Nigerian girls have been evacuated from Lebanon by the Nigerian Government.
The girls arrived at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja on Sunday.
Receiving them, Mr Ferdinand Nwonye, Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs who represented the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Geoffrey Onyeama, said the evacuation was in fulfillment of the Nigerian government’s promise to rescue Nigerians stranded in Lebanon.
“I am here on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs who facilitated their return, together with the Ministry of Aviation, Embassy of Nigeria in Beirut, the Lebanese Embassy in Nigeria and the Lebanese community in Nigeria
“It is unfortunate the situation you passed through this stage; we are telling you that you are now home today and nothing will happen to you, he assured the returnees,” he said.
The Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesman told newsmen that the stranded Nigerian girls tested negative for COVID-19 before embarking on the journey.
He added that they would return to their various destinations after 14 days of self-isolation, in line with the Federal Government’s guidelines for COVID-19 evacuations.
He revealed that their passports were retrieved from them upon arrival and they are expected to collect them back with proof of COVID-19 tests once they complete their 14-day self-isolation.
One of the returnees who spoke on condition of anonymity appreciated the Nigerian and Lebanese governments for their safe return back home.
She said that if not for the assistance, they would have been left stranded in Lebanon due to the inability to buy tickets to return to Nigeria, NAN reports.
The returnee said they encountered many challenges in Lebanon with many of them being owed seven to eight months salaries by their employers.
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