Ibekimi Oriamaja Reports
Eleven surviving Nigerians from a stowaway party of 13 were rescued by Liberian immigration and returned to Nigeria via the Murtala Muhammed International Airport after allegedly being tortured on board the cargo vessel ‘Ophelia Panama’ registration (IMO9228083) ( MMIA).
The 13 Nigerians and one Cameroonian, aged 24 to 40, were returned to the country escorted by a nine-man team of Liberia Immigration Officers led by Capt. Mark Weaye aboard ASKY Airlines, Flight KP062 at approximately 4:00pm on Thursday, October 6, 2022.
Seyi Popoola, Precious Uwalogho, Ayetimiyi Kelvin, Stephen Junior, Emmanuel Benjamin, Balogun Gbenga, Temiotan Adewale, Igiebor Stephen, Hamza John, Alfred Ese, and Ogechi Chika are among the young men, as is one Cameroonian.
According to reports, the stowaways all sneaked into the basement of the Ophelia Panama, a cargo ship at Tin Can Island, Apapa, Lagos, around 12 midnight on Wednesday, September 7, 2022, after transporting themselves to the ship on a smaller boat.
They entered with their personal belongings and some food, hoping to make it to any country in Europe. The ship set sail for Europe in the morning, completely unaware of the crew of the Ophelia Panama.
However, on the fifth day of their journey, after they had exhausted all of their food supplies and were on the verge of starvation, they all decided to present themselves to the ship’s crew in the hope of some sympathy and food for survival.
However, when they appeared before the ship’s crew, they were all subjected to severe physical and mental torture.
The crew members then dumped them into the water in groups of three. Two Nigerians, Frank and Osas, were killed in the process, the Cameroonian was missing, and the remaining eleven were severely injured.
They were rescued while struggling for survival in the waters by Liberian fishermen, who treated their injuries and notified the Liberian Immigration Service.
Emmanuel Benjamin, a 31-year-old Delta State resident, described their ordeal at sea, saying, “I was a mariner driver.” I’ve been a boat driver for almost seven years. Our boat caught fire, and I have tried my hardest since then; I have two children, but when I saw this opportunity, I decided to leave so that my children could live a better life.
“We met on the ship, we’re 14 with one Cameroonian.” We moved away from Nigerdock and entered the ship through the rudder side. After four days on the ship, our food ran out, and we needed assistance from the crew. Unfortunately, the crew began spraying us with chemicals that burned our skin while demanding that we jump into the sea.”
Adeola Adesokan, Comptroller of Immigration Service, MMA Command, CIS, received the stowaways and forwarded them for documentation and profiling, as well as making provisions for their feeding and allowing them to share their horrifying experiences with the rest of the world.
She also expressed gratitude to the Liberia Immigration Service, and thus the Liberian Government, on behalf of the Nigeria Immigration Service and the Federal Republic of Nigeria, for the noble and diplomatic gesture shown to the stranded stowaways.
She emphasized that the Liberian immigration demonstrated the true spirit of Pan-Africanism by thanking them for being their brothers’ keepers.
“We discovered they are genuine Nigerians attempting to flee the country’s shores,” Adesokan said. Their story is harrowing and pitiful; there was hot water flushing, and they were thrown into the high sea and left to their fate.
“On behalf of Controller General Isah Jere Idris, we would like to express our gratitude to the Commander General for Immigration for Liberia for their kind gesture.
