First Lady Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has criticised Nigerians migrating to the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada among other developed countries to engage in jobs they have refused to do in Nigeria.
The First Lady said Nigerians with their level of education left the country to take up menial jobs such as driving a taxi to make a living, at the expense of their dependants they abandon at home.
She said it when the three Lagos senators – Adetokunbo Abiru, Wasiu Eshinlokun Sanni and Ranti Idiat Adebule paid her a courtesy visit last week at the State House, Abuja.
The video of the discussion was sighted by Vanguard on Thursday.
Sen Tinubu said this when speaking about the need for Nigerians to help one another at home, adding that the government cannot solve all the problems, but the rich can wake up to help the needy for the betterment of all.
The mass exodus of Nigerians leaving the country to seek greener pastures in the developed countries of Europe, North America and even Asia, popularly known Japa, has been on the increase in the past few years following worsening insecurity, rising unemployment, and generally high costs of living.
The Migration Information Data Analysis System (MIDAS), showed that about 2, 115, 139 persons emigrated from Nigeria in 2022, while 1, 574, 357 left the country from January to September 31,2023, making it a total of 3,679, 496 that have left Nigeria in the last two years.
“Look at all those people saying they are going to Japa, they go there. What work are you going to do? You know, work that you refused to do at home where you have loved ones, you now end up to go and do there. With all their education, they’re driving cabs, but they won’t drive cabs here,” Sen Tinubu said.
She also said, “Nigerians, we can help each other [sic], the rate we are doing parties and all that, why can’t we use the money to help your neighbours, until we can really get on our feet? And those are the things we have to look at. It’s not that the government has to begin to give food to everybody, by asking…
“You know I believe in social development and social investment for people who truly need it. And, in the Bible, we even talk about Jesus saying the poor you will always have in the land, and it’s for people whom God has blessed to help the poor.
“Now you don’t even know who are the poor. If they don’t ride a car, they will say they are poor. If you don’t have your own home, they will say they are poor.”
The First Lady tasked the Senators to work on sponsoring bills that would address some of those things.
“So, you know there are a lot of things that you lawmakers would work upon, especially that of the security. I want you to take it to heart. It is really very important,” she added.
