Senator Remi Tinubu, the spouse of the Nigerian President, did not mince words in a recent interview with Arise News, where she ridiculed young Nigerians who have sought opportunities overseas, labeling their choices as hypocritical.
Expressing her dismay, she highlighted the irony of educated Nigerians leaving their homeland only to engage in menial jobs like taxi driving, neglecting their families back home.
She remarked, “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.”
The phenomenon, termed ‘Japa Syndrome’, stems from the escalating insecurity and economic challenges in Nigeria, prompting citizens to seek better prospects abroad, leading to brain drain in the country.
According to a recent survey by Phillips Consulting, over half (52%) of Nigerian professionals are considering leaving their current jobs and moving abroad within a year.
In the vein, a survey conducted in 2023 by the Nigeria Social Cohesion Survey revealed that seven out of 10 Nigerians are willing to relocate to other countries for various reasons, with a good number of them recording success.
