, Tinubu’s Minister Condemns Attack
A Chinese businessman allegedly ordered his security guard to shoot a Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) officer while on official duty at a Chinese-owned company in Abuja.
The Nigerian government has strongly condemned the attack, describing it as an assault on Nigeria’s sovereignty.
The Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, disclosed this in Abuja on Thursday at a stakeholders’ sensitisation workshop on the implementation of the Nigeria Visa Policy 2025.
He expressed outrage over the incident and vowed to take it up with the Chinese Embassy.
“An incident happened and I am taking that very personally. I don’t want to mention the company here, that shot one of our immigration personnel. The owner, the people of the company, foreign company, told the security officer to shoot our officer and he did it.
“That happened like a couple of weeks ago. I think it is unjust, right? And we are going to take it up with the Chinese Embassy,” he said.
The Minister described the act as unacceptable, adding, “It is never done anywhere in the world. That alone is an attack on Nigeria. It will never happen. It will never happen.”
He warned that no foreign company or individual would be allowed to undermine Nigeria’s security personnel. “These officers put their lives on the line. These officers serve this country with their all, and you will not come from anywhere and ask them to shoot them in their fatherland. It will no longer happen. We will take it up with you. It will no longer happen,” he declared.
As part of measures to prevent future occurrences, Tunji-Ojo announced that Nigeria was automating its White, Grey, and Black lists to track foreign nationals.
He added that a new expatriate administration system would be introduced on 1st May to monitor expatriates working in Nigeria.
“We will be giving a three-month window. I call it an asylum window from the 1st of May till the 1st of August for regularisation of immigration protocols in line with our laws. After that, we will move to the era of enforcement, prosecution, and deportation,” he stated.
The Minister also addressed concerns raised by a Chinese delegation about alleged blacklisting. He clarified that Nigeria was not targeting China but ensuring compliance with immigration laws.
“We will never, under the leadership of His Excellency, paint an entire street with a single brush. There are Nigerians there.
There are Chinese people here doing fantastically well in our economy. There are Indians investing billions of dollars in our economy. There are Americans. There are Europeans,” he said.
The Comptroller General of NIS, Kemi Nana Nandap, announced reforms in Nigeria’s visa policy, including reducing visa classifications from 79 to 44 and introducing a fully online e-visa system.
“These categories have been logically grouped to simplify procedures, reduce complexities, and greatly improve the user experience,” she said.