Abike Dabiri-Erewa, the Chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, has warned Nigerians about the dangers of migrating to countries that are in worse conditions than Nigeria. In a video posted on X (formerly Twitter), she asked Nigerian influencers and bloggers to help spread this message and educate people about the risks of fleeing to such places.

She explained that while many Nigerians are eager to leave the country, they often end up in places where life is much harder than they imagined. “Please, we appeal to bloggers and influencers. Help us tell Nigerians that the places they are running to are worse than Nigeria,” Dabiri-Erewa said in the video.

Her comments were made in response to a recent viral video showing Nigerians calling for help from a prison in Mali. The prisoners were asking for assistance from the Nigerian government. Surprisingly, some of the women seen in the video had previously been rescued by the Nigerian government but had chosen to return to Mali despite the difficult circumstances they faced there.

“I want to address a viral video of some girls shouting from a prison in Mali, asking to be returned home. Some time ago, the chief of defence staff helped us bring back some girls,” the NiDCOM chief explained. “We have identified some of these girls are some of those brought back that time. That they found themselves back in Mali is shocking.”

She added, “We want to appeal. We need to obey the laws of other countries. Crime and criminality, irregularities migration, is very deadly now. As much as the mission in Mali is working to see if they can bring people back.”

Ms. Dabiri-Erewa hopes that by working together, influencers and bloggers can help raise awareness about the dangers of migrating to certain countries and encourage Nigerians to carefully consider their options before making such a decision.