NASS Probes Death Of 26 Nigerians In Mediterranean Sea

The National Assembly has resolved to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death of 26 Nigerian girls in the Mediterranean Sea.

This comes days after Italian investigators launched a murder inquiry into the death of the victims who were said to have drowned while attempting the perilous crossing from Libya to Europe.

During Thursday’s plenary in the Senate, Chairperson of the Committee on Diaspora, Senator Rose Oko, called for emergency measures to address the root causes of the exodus of young Nigerians to foreign lands.

“The Senate is concerned that as at May 2017, it was reported that about 10,000 Nigerians had perished along the Sahara Desert, Libya and the Mediterranean Sea routes.
“Even more horrifying is a suspicion that they had been sexually abused and murdered,” Senator Oko said.

On his part, Senator Shehu Sani from Kaduna State said the death of the 26 girls was part of a tragedy which has gone on for far too long.

“it’s unfortunate that African nations, including Nigeria, continuously ignore this tragedy that is before us,” he said. 

Similarly, in the House of Representatives, the House Leader, Honourable Femi Gbajabiamila, called for an investigation into the cause of death of the migrants. 

“The question that arises now is how come they were found dead at sea, what happened to the remaining passengers that went away alive,” he wondered.

Consequently, the Senate and the House of Representatives directed their committees on diaspora to liaise with the Libyan Embassy to investigate the circumstances surrounding the death of the 26 girls.