Another batch of Nigerians evacuated from South Africa arrived in Lagos on Tuesday as part of the Federal Government’s voluntary repatriation programme.
Gatekeepers News reports that in Air Peace flight carrying about 271 returnees landed at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport shortly before 11 a.m. after departing Johannesburg at about 5 a.m. local time.
Officials of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) and the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) were at the airport to receive the returnees.
The latest evacuation forms part of the Federal Government’s efforts to assist Nigerians who have voluntarily chosen to return home amid growing anti-immigration tensions in South Africa.
The repatriation comes ahead of a June 30 deadline declared by vigilante groups and other organisations calling for undocumented migrants to leave the country.
President Bola Tinubu approved the voluntary evacuation programme earlier this month to facilitate the safe return of Nigerians willing to leave South Africa.
Earlier in June, the Federal Government announced that five Air Peace evacuation flights had been approved after more than 500 Nigerians were screened for repatriation. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the flights were intended to ensure that all registered Nigerians who opted to return home would be evacuated safely.
Before Tuesday’s operation, 328 Nigerians had already been repatriated in two batches. The first flight, which arrived on June 11, brought back 262 returnees, while a second batch of 66 Nigerians landed in Lagos on June 25.
The evacuation exercise is being coordinated by the Federal Government in partnership with Air Peace and relevant agencies.
Meanwhile, businesses remained largely closed and streets in central Johannesburg were noticeably quiet on Tuesday as police maintained a heavy presence across the city while commuters travelled to work.
The protests have been organised by a loose coalition of minor political parties and citizen-led vigilante groups, which analysts describe as well coordinated and adequately resourced.
In the southeastern city of Durban, small groups of protesters dressed in traditional Zulu attire gathered in a public park carrying sticks and shields while chanting “abahambe”—meaning “Let them go”—as security personnel monitored the demonstrations.
