Akande-Sadipe, who represents Oluyole Federal Constituency of Oyo State, said the investigation was necessary to curb the alleged exploitation and trafficking of Nigerians seeking employment opportunities abroad.
She alleged that the Ministry of Labour and Employment, under the supervision of the then Minister, Dr. Chris Ngige, continued to issue international recruiters’ licences despite a Federal Government moratorium reportedly imposed in 2017.
Speaking with journalists on Monday, the lawmaker also expressed concern over Nigeria’s lack of Bilateral Labour Agreements with foreign countries and the prolonged delay in implementing the Standing Operating Procedure for international recruitment.
“Federal Government placed a moratorium on issuance of International Recruiters’ Licence in September 2017 and yet the Ministry of Labour and Productivity, as at January 2020, was still issuing international recruiters’ licences,” she said.
According to her, the absence of adequate regulatory safeguards had exposed Nigerians seeking jobs abroad to potential exploitation, particularly in some countries in the Middle East and Africa.
Akande-Sadipe claimed that about 80,000 Nigerian girls were being subjected to sexual exploitation and forced labour in Mali and several Middle Eastern countries, with Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Oman among those she listed.
“The question we must ask is how they got there? We have called out Immigration, but then again, Ministry of Labour is also complicit,” she said.
How Recruitment Agents Allegedly Exploit Nigerians
The lawmaker alleged that some recruitment agents collected about $1,000 from prospective workers, in addition to demanding their salaries for the first three to six months, before allegedly abandoning them in foreign countries.
She said many of the affected women were unaware of the risks associated with travelling abroad for employment and were persuaded by agents who presented overseas jobs as opportunities for a better life.
Akande-Sadipe further alleged that some agents misrepresented the nature of the jobs available to the women before their departure.
She consequently urged Nigerians to stop assuming that women who travel abroad and later find themselves in exploitative circumstances deliberately left the country to engage in prostitution.
Lawmaker Accuses Ministry of Withholding Information
Akande-Sadipe also criticised the then Minister of Labour and Employment for allegedly failing to honour invitations from the House Committee after several requests to appear before it.
She said the ministry had also failed to provide some of the documents and information requested by the committee in the course of its investigation.
According to her, information previously submitted by the Ministry of Labour and Productivity contained inconsistencies when compared with records obtained from other government agencies, including the Corporate Affairs Commission, Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund and Federal Inland Revenue Service.
“In addition, the Ministry has not been complying with laid-down policies and procedures for international recruitment. For example, agents’ pre-licensing procedures contravened the requirements of doing business with Federal Government MDAs,” she said.
The lawmaker further alleged that the ministry failed to conduct mandatory pre-departure counselling for Nigerians recruited for jobs abroad.
She also claimed that there were inadequate records of the annual reports expected from recruitment agents, which should contain details about the whereabouts of Nigerians recruited, their compensation and contact information.
Committee Raises Questions Over Evidence
Akande-Sadipe alleged that the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Labour and Employment at the time, Mr. William Alo, and two other officials who appeared before the committee provided what she described as false information under oath.
“It is disheartening that the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, the Permanent Secretary and those who came with him gave the Committee false information,” she said.
The lawmaker described human trafficking and the alleged exploitation of Nigerians abroad as a serious national concern, saying appeals for assistance from stranded Nigerians circulating on social media had become an embarrassment to the country.
She therefore appealed to the then President, Muhammadu Buhari, to authorise an executive investigation into the activities of the Ministry of Labour and Productivity.
Akande-Sadipe also called for greater support for the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), saying additional resources would strengthen its ability to identify, apprehend and prosecute suspected traffickers.
She further urged the Federal Government to review the activities and funding of Nigerian diplomatic missions abroad to enable them respond more effectively to the needs and welfare of Nigerians living in foreign countries.
0 Comments