Posted by By Ndidi Onuora on
Nigeria Immigrations Service Attaches to the country's three embassies and two High Commissions may have been recalled by the Federal Government following some allegations levelled against them.
ABUJA - Nigeria Immigrations Service Attaches to the country's three embassies and two High Commissions may have been recalled by the Federal Government following some allegations levelled against them.
The attaches (names withheld) who were serving at various embassies and High Commissions which included the United States, Britain, France, Germany and South Africa before the sudden recall were posted there following the Federal Government re-enactment on the appointment of immigration attaches to the nation's prominent foreign missions.
A source at the Ministry of Internal Affairs said the government ordered immediate recall of the attaches last month for unspecified "offence."
He said, " the problem of the attaches started when President Olusegun Obasanjo received a complaint about one of the attaches while on a visit to the US", adding that the complaint of the alleged offence was laid by a highly placed Nigerian embassy official in the US.
According to him, "We heard that Mr. President ordered the recall of the attache after the complaint. We also heard that the same embassy official informed Mr. President that other missions had the same problem, which made Mr. President to conclude that the five attaches should be recalled."
The former Minister of Internal Affairs, Dr. Iyorchia Ayu, had in a sent forth address, charged the attaches to conduct themselves well and to be good ambassadors of the country.
The minister promised that more attaches would be posted to foreign missions but warned that the ministry would not hesitate to recall any of them found wanting.
The Service Public Relations Officer, Mr. Ekpedeme King, who said he is not competent to speak on the matter when contacted however noted that all the officers could not have been recalled for the same offence as" foreign posting of officers does not start and end with Immigration but also involves Foreign Affairs and the Presidency".