Libya has launched a wave of mass arrests targeting Nigerian workers in the country, reportedly in response to the Confederation of African Football’s (CAF) recent verdict.
This comes after the Nigeria Football Federation lodged a formal complaint against the harsh treatment of the Super Eagles during their time in Libya.
The situation escalated when Libya News Today 1, a widely followed news platform, posted on Sunday, “All Libyan TV channels are urging the government to arrest the Nigerian workers who are working here in Libya without legal papers. They have to pay $500 plus taxes.
“The fine that Libya is accused of will be paid by Nigerian citizens who live in Libya. We have been subjected to injustice. We have no borders with Nigeria. What benefit are they to us? They’re a burden on the Libyan people. They have to go back home.”
The page, which boasts over 188,000 Facebook followers and 57,000 likes, also shared a video of a TV presenter demanding the arrest and fining of Nigerians working illegally.
“Anyone who is living in Libya and working without paying tax is eating haram, which means sinful money. The government should make every effort to arrest all Nigerians who are working in Libya so that they can pay a tax of $500 and regulate their stay in the country by obtaining residence permits,” the presenter stated.
Similarly, another site, Libya INF.TV, echoed calls for action.
“Those who don’t have Libyan papers will have to pay a fine of $500 for taxes. If you refuse deportation, no mercy. The Libyan government will pay the Nigerian government from their citizens’ money,” the platform reported.
Adenaike Emmanuel, a Nigerian resident in Tripoli, confirmed the arrests began shortly after the CAF decision was announced.
“They have already started. The news came out on Saturday, and they were saying they can’t accept it and that they are not the ones who will pay the money. They have started proving this,” he said.
Emmanuel recounted receiving calls from people whose neighborhoods were raided, adding, “The same thing is happening here in Tripoli. In some places, people were arrested on Sunday morning and afternoon. As I mentioned before, Libyans don’t hide their feelings. They believe that by doing this, they are getting their revenge.”
Peter Omoregbie, President of the Nigerian community in Libya, corroborated these reports in a video shared across various Nigerian blogs based in Libya, confirming the escalating crackdown on Nigerian nationals.
