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| Gbandi |
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| Awoniyi |
Kenneth Gbandi and Femi Awoniyi are two Nigerian journalists
plying their trade in Germany. Gbandi publishes African Heritage, the first
African life style magazine with base in Hamburg Germany. He also organizes the
very popular Miss Africa Germany while Awoniyi founded African Courier,
International news magazine published in Berlin Germany and widely circulated
across Europe.
However, at this time, the duo are not editing the next edition of
their magazine but have forged an alliance to enlighten Nigerian young people
on the ills of unplanned emigration to Europe through the tortuous irregular means of the Sahara desert and the
Mediterranean sea .
In the enlightenment dubbed Look before you leave first launched in Lagos , Gbandi’s African German
Information center (AGIC)and Awoniyi’s
African Courier Verlag combine with the support of the German Foreign
Affairs Office to spread the message of safe migration to Europe.
The duo unanimously says Enough is Enough to forced prostitution,
slave labour, death on the sea or on the desert trail all of which are
consequences of irregular migration.
Since the launch of the project , now dubbed Migration
Enlightenment Project Nigeria in Lagos last year, Gbandi and Awoniyi have been touring Africa and Nigerian states
to educate likely victims of unplanned migration.
Just last week, the Stakeholders’
Roundtable Dialogue on Migration’ organized by MEPN held in Abuja. The series
of consultations with civil society on irregular migration has just began and
will travel across the nation to major cities like Enugu, Benin, Lagos, Warri
and Ibadan much later in the year.
The event brought together youths,
parents, journalists, artists, educationists and religious leaders, among
others, to exchange ideas and experiences on the issues deriving from irregular
migration.
According to Awoniyi “In the course
of my work as publisher of African Courier, I encountered victims of irregular
migration from Nigeria. I
met many asylum seekers and noted specially their many tales of woe. I have
also covered and reported events where many African bodies were recovered from
the high sea and it is not a good sight at all. So MEPN seeks to sensitize society to the problems of irregular
migration and the enormous costs that families and the nation pay. My advice is
that young people should explore education as a reason to emigrate to Germany
and indeed other parts of Europe because it guarantees the future”
He further said that the “current campaign is a follow-up to the
one of last year in Lagos which attracted our core audience”
For Gbandi who is also
President of Nigeria in Diaspora Organisation Europe and organizer of the Miss
Nigeria Germany “the enormity of the illegal
migration problem is being underestimated. As NIDOE president, I am worried by
the regular reports of victims. We receive letters from those caught in the
web of prostitution, slavery and other vices. I want to tell young Nigerians;
don’t fall victim of human traffickers. Better seek reliable information about
where you want to go. I mean the situation of things in the country of your
desired destination. That is not all; find out what is legal requirements to
get there. Is there work? What kind of work? Will I have the permission to
work? I want youths to look inwards to see if there are no better alternatives
to migration. Please look before you leave”
By Fred Iwenjora
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