The Ministry of Interior says there is no such thing as a “no-fly list” targeted at #EndSARS protesters in the country.
The ministry stated this via a tweet on its verified Twitter handle on Tuesday.
The rebuttal came in response to an exclusive story by Peoples Gazette, reported by The Herald, that “hundreds of Nigerians” who were key strategists or leading voices in the protests have been targeted for overseas journeys.
Peoples Gazette quoted two unnamed Department of State Services (DSS) officials and a senior government official knowledgeable about the matter for the story.
According to the report, the compilation of the “no-fly list” by the Ministry of Interior began two weeks ago.
Between October 8 and 23, Nigerian youths trooped out to demand an end to police brutality.
However, hoodlums hijacked the protests and wreaked havoc on public institutions and private property.
The Interior Ministry, which controls the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS), was said to have begun compiling the list after it requested from the DSS whether or not it had a profile of key supporters of the protests.
One of the DSS officials said the secret police answered in the negative.
One of the persons reportedly named on the preliminary list was identified as a man whose passport was issued in Atlanta, United States, in February 2016.
Recall that Modupe Chizoba Odele, a lawyer for Feminist Coalition, an NGO that coordinated the protests, was also stopped in controversial circumstances and her passport confiscated at the airport on Sunday as she attempted to leave Nigeria for the Maldives.
She later said she was not sure about why she was stopped or by whom, adding that she had been invited by Murtala Muhammad International Airport authorities over the matter.
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But reacting via its Twitter handle, the Ministry of Interior wrote, “The Ministry of Interior did not, has not and will not generate any no-fly list.
“Ignore fake news please!”
See tweet:
The Ministry of Interior did not, has not and will not generate any no-fly list.
Ignore fake news please! pic.twitter.com/zR65TK1uiG
— Ministry of Interior (@MinOfInteriorNG) November 3, 2020