Air Peace offers free evacuation of Nigerians in Sudan with condition
Air Peace, a private airline in Nigeria has disclosed its readiness to evacuate stranded Nigerians in Sudan, North-East Africa for free if the Federal Government can get them to a safe and secure airport in any of the neighbouring countries bordering Sudan.
This was disclosed in a statement on Monday by the Chairman and Chief Executive Office of the airline, Allen Onyema.
He noted that Nigerian students and others stranded in the war-racked nation have urgent “needs for our help.”
Onyema said he is compelled to help because Nigeria cannot afford to lose her citizens in that country, adding that it would be his own commitment to making sure that the stranded Nigerians in the war-torn country are safe.
“Again, Air Peace is willing to evacuate Nigerians stranded in Sudan free of charge if the government can get them to a safe and secure airport in any of the neighbouring countries bordering Sudan.
READ ALSO: Nigerian gov’t concludes plans to evacuate citizens in Sudan by road
“Everything must not be left to the government and the government alone.
“We are very ready to do it immediately. No time wasting. Any action that would promote national pride, national cohesion, peace and unity, we are for it.
“Again, we have no apologies for believing in our nation and loving the nation despite certain national challenges. If they are moved to Kenya or Uganda or any other country, we will move in to get them out. Some parents have started calling on us to help. We are ready to do this again and again,” he said.
In 2019, Air Peace deployed flights to evacuate Nigerians in South Africa when the xenophobic attack against Africans living in that country threatened the lives of Nigerians.
The PUNCH reports that the Federal Government was making preparations to evacuate about 5,500 stranded Nigerians out of Sudan through the Egyptian town of Luxor.
It was gathered that the Federal Government was seeking Egypt’s support so that the stranded Nigerians could be moved to Luxor.
The Director of Special Duties of the National Emergency Management Agency, who doubles as Chairman of NEMA’s Committee for the Evacuation of the Stranded Nigerians from Sudan, Dr Onimode Bandele, said the FG was meeting with government officials in Egypt on how to move Nigerians out of Sudan through Egypt.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, in an interview with Channels Television on Sunday, said that the government had concluded arrangements to evacuate 5,500 Nigerians in Sudan by road.
According to him, Nigeria, for security reasons, will get authorisation from the Sudanese government before the evacuation.
The fighting between the forces loyal to Sudan’s Army Chief, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his deputy, Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, who commands the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) that started some weeks ago in Sudan has caused the death of at least 413 people and injured 3,551, according to the World Health Organisation.