Visa Restrictions - Stop Disrespecting Nigeria, Government Tells United States, UK

Visa – The Nigerian Government has asked the United States of America and United Kingdom to stop disrespecting the country and its citizens.

The government was reacting to the statements issued by the US and UK on the governorship elections holding in Edo and Ondo states on September 19 and October 10 respectively.

According to a statement by Ferdinand Nwonye, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, expressed concern over the visa restrictions imposed by the US on unnamed politicians for alleged involvement in electoral violence during the Kogi and Bayelsa states governorship polls.

The statement reads, “It would be considered disrespectful of the sovereignty of Nigeria for any outside authority to sit in judgment over the conduct of our citizens and apply punitive measures such as visa restriction unilaterally.

“The Federal Government and especially the President, are committed to providing all necessary logistic, financial, and security support to the electoral process.

“While we appreciate the support and encouragement of our international partners such as the European Union, we urge our equally valued partners such as the UK and US to cooperate with our relevant agencies by providing them whatever concrete evidence of observed misconduct to allow our laws and regulations to take their course.”

SaharaReporters recall that both US and the UK had vowed to sanction anyone, who perpetrated violence during the Edo and Ondo elections including imposing visa restrictions and blocking them from accessing their assets and prosecuting them under international law.

Source – http://saharareporters.com/