By Okeke Eunice
The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) has stated that the Federal Government is prepared to receive Nigerians deported from the United States.
In an interview with a national television on Tuesday evening, the commission’s Director of Media and Corporate Affairs, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, explained that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is responsible for managing such situations.
He further revealed that the Federal Government has already established an inter-agency committee to handle the matter in case of mass deportations from the U.S.
“The Federal Government has set up an inter-agency committee, which includes the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, NiDCOM, the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, and the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA), to address any potential large-scale deportation of Nigerians from the United States,” Balogun stated.
However, the NiDCOM spokesperson clarified that the commission had no knowledge of any Nigerians in the U.S. currently undergoing deportation proceedings.
It is worth noting that approximately 3,690 Nigerians in the United States are at risk of deportation as part of Donald Trump’s crackdown on undocumented immigrants.
A document compiled by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and its Enforcement and Removal Operations, reviewed by our correspondent on Tuesday, detailed deportation figures categorized by nationality and the number of individuals affected.
As of November 24, 2024, the document clarified that 1,445,549 non-citizens were listed on ICE’s non-detained docket with final removal orders. Titled “Noncitizens on the ICE Non-Detained Docket with Final Orders of Removal by Country of Citizenship,” the report showed that Mexico and El Salvador had the highest numbers of individuals facing deportation, with 252,044 and 203,822, respectively.
ICE is tasked with safeguarding the U.S. from cross-border crime and illegal immigration, which pose threats to national security.
Meanwhile, last Thursday, hundreds of migrants were arrested, and others were deported via military aircraft as part of Donald Trump’s mass deportation initiative. According to Honourable Fm, Nigerian and other African undocumented immigrants in the United States may soon be targeted for deportation by the U.S. government.