By Charles Adingupu
With series of reported hitches being experienced in the evacuation of Nigerians trapped in the raging Sudanese cross fire, the House of Representatives has invited the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, NiDCOM, and the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, to appear before it.
The Speaker of the House of Reps, Femi Gbajabiamila who disclosed this at the resumed plenary after the Easter and Sallah holidays in Abuja on Tuesday, said it has become expedient at this point for those engaged in the evacuation of Nigerians from Sudan to render an account of the evacuation status of Nigerians in Sudan.
He said, over the last few weeks, the Republic of Sudan had descended into war, adding that unfortunately, such rapid descent into the carnage of violent conflict had entrapped many Nigerians resident in that country.
Mr. Gbajabiamila disclosed that efforts were underway to ensure that Nigeria citizens resident in the Republic of Sudan, as students, business people and in other vocations, were evacuated quickly and safely.
The Speaker said the House was aware of ongoing difficulties with the evacuation efforts and the federal government’s response to the developments in the Republic of Sudan.
According to him, we are also mindful that some of these difficulties flow from interagency disagreements arising from overlapping mandates and the absence of established operational guidelines for such circumstances.
“While our priority is to ensure the welfare and well-being of our fellow citizens caught in this war, we must further revisit the statutory and other frameworks that have left us seemingly unprepared to respond promptly and effectively.”
He said the conflict in Sudan reminded the House of the fragility of nations, adding that in pursuing the country’s political objectives, “we must never lose sight of the fundamental truth.
This according to him is that, in war, everybody loses; in peace, everybody can win, adding that all personal, partisan and sectional interests must always succumb to the overarching and overriding interest of ensuring the 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.”
