German Chancellor Angela Merkel has put her foot down against Nigerian asylum seekers as she noted majority of them come for economic reasons rather than fleeing from war.
The Chancellor, widely panned for her ‘open-door’ policy for migrants, has pulled up the drawbridge for Nigerians claiming officials will send back citizens of the African nation.
So far this year more than 10,000 Nigerians have applied for asylum seeker status in Germany, and 13,000 have applied from Eritrea. The country is the most sought-after destination for migrants, partly due to Mrs Merkel’s policy to open the borders to them.
Merkel declared Germany is no longer able to grant Nigerians international protection.
Speaking after her tour of Mali, Niger and Ethiopia, she declared that Nigerians were coming to Germany not because they were fleeing militant group Boko Haram but because they want an easier life.
She said, “We presume that most of them came for economic reasons.”
This is in contrast to migrants from Iraq or Syria who are fleeing war and persecution in their homelands, notably from bloodthirsty regime Islamic State (ISIS).
She said not all Nigerians who claim to be fleeing Boko Haram are doing so, and are therefore ineligible for international protection under the conditions afforded to asylum seekers.
Boko Haram is an Islamic extremist group which has announced its allegiance to barbaric ISIS. It is responsible for the deaths of thousands of people and hit the headlines when it kidnapped 276 schoolgirls in 2014.
Merkel pledged Berlin will continue to help the African country fight Boko Haram.
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