Stranded Zamfara students in Cyprus: Parents seek Lawal’s intervention

The parents and guardians of the Zamfara students stranded in Cyprus have called for Gov. Dauda Lawal’s urgent intervention.

The Chairman of the parent’s association, Ibrahim Tudu, made the appeal while addressing newsmen in Gusau on Wednesday.

Tudu called on the state government to take tentative measures to rescue their children.

He said, “This is to highlight our concern about the condition of our 88 children sent on scholarship by the Zamfara Government studying various courses at Cyprus International University Nicosia, facing numerous problems currently.

“We would like to clear that the affected students are bonafide indigenes and citizens of Zamfara from decent backgrounds and families.

“They secured the offer of scholarships to study in Cyprus based on their academic performances, competency examinations and screening interviews, all conducted by the State Scholarship Board under the previous administration,” he said.

“I would like to use this medium to inform the state government based on our daily communication with all the 88 students currently in Cyprus that they are facing numerous problems.

“They are facing lack of feeding, accommodation, upkeep allowances , their safety, studies and serious state of mental health as a result of the non-payment of registration, tuition and students’ allowances.”

Tudu added that the students were now in great pain and encountering a lot of hardship as they were ejected from their school accommodation.

“They are now living in a Mosque and rented houses where they are being harassed for non-payment of rent.

“In fact, the female students among them are facing multiple problems,” he lamented.

According to Tudu, the student’s International Passports and Cyprus resident permits had since expired and they were at the risk of being caught at the other side of the law of foreign land.

“They are facing various challenges that may lead to their detention, imprisonment, and deportation to Nigeria as well as risking their lives.

“We are appealing to the state government to immediately save the lives of these students without further delay,” he urged.(NAN)