The Nigerian Senate
has rejected the visa-on-arrival policy of President Muhammadu Buhari.
The lawmakers said the
move by the president is premature, considering the spate of insecurity
currently witnessed in the country.
President Buhari had
announced on Wednesday, December 11, at the Aswan Forum in Egypt that starting
from January 2020, other Africans will be allowed to enter Nigeria without a
visa.
The president said Nigeria will commence
issuance of visas at the point of entry into the country, to other African
nationals in line with his administration’s commitment to supporting the free
movement of Africans within Africa.
The Senate, however,
rejected the president’s idea and went ahead to summon the minister of
interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola along with Comptroller General of Nigeria
Immigration to appear before its committee on interior, judiciary and legal
matters.
The invitation was to
explain to the Senate the legality, logistics and constitutional issues
available and required for compliance, before the implementation of the
visa-on-arrival policy.
Senator Adewunmi
Adetunbi of the ruling All Progressives Congress argued that “It is premature constitutionally and
legally impossible for the provisions of the said agreement to have any effect
within the territory of Nigeria,”. Supporting the motion, Senate Minority
Leader Eyinnaya Abaribe said a lot of Nigerians were worried about the policy
because of the spate of insecurity in the country. “What it meant was that
anybody could just come in and actually cause mayhem in Nigeria not knowing the
result,” he observed.
However, Senator Barau
Jibrin opposed the view of the senators who rejected the policy, stressing that
the policy announced by Buhari is a global trend, and should not in any way be
faulted.
