More than 300 suspected illegal immigrants have been apprehended by the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) in Uyo, in Akwa Ibom state.
NIS comptroller in the State, Mrs Francisca Dakat, announced this while briefing newsmen after the mop up exercise in Uyo at the weekend.
Dakat said that out of the 303 apprehended, 285 were adult while 18 were minors.
She said that the mop up exercise was in line with the service directives that non Nigerian should not partake in the forthcoming general elections.
She said that before the mop up exercise, the command had earlier carried out a sensitisation workshop for all non Nigerians resident in the state.
“The mop up exercise which took place in Uyo metropolis will be a continuous exercise and will be extended to all the 31 Local Government Areas of the state.
“A total of 303 suspected irregular migrants were apprehended at different locations in the state capital.
“The 303 suspected irregular migrants were profiled and 203 were confirmed Nigeriens while 100 were Nigerians who have since been handed to their community leaders,” Dakat said.
Dakat urged non nationals who are resident in the state and those who visited for business or leisure purposes to ensure that they have valid travel documents to prevent be running foul of immigration extant laws.
The comptroller warned non Nigerians against participating directly or indirectly in the forthcoming general elections, stressing that culprits will be punished accordingly.
She commended the Comptroller General of NIS, the State Government and other security agencies for their support to ensure success of the mop up exercise.
