The Peoples Democratic Party in Kwara State has expressed concerns over the high number of immigrant suspected to be foreign nationals into the state.
The party observed that some unidentified individuals are roaming the state, while others are engaged in street begging, commercial motorcycle business, vegetable farming and sales, among others.
This was contained in a statement released on Tuesday in Ilorin by the party’s spokesman, Prince Tunji Moronfoye, according to the News Agency of Nigeria.
It read, “Residents of Ilorin and other major cities in Kwara State have watched with trepidation at the major influx of foreign nationals into Kwara State.
“We have seen various strange individuals engage in begging, commercial motorbike (Okada) riding, vegetable farming, vegetable sales and scavenging.
“Okada riders in Ilorin are now rather incognito. They wear various designs, colours and identification numbers of their choices; some Okada riders don’t even bother with uniforms; some cover their faces so that they can’t be recognized.”
PDP also noted that most of the said strange nationals do not speak or understand the Hausa language, which is the lingua franca of most Northern states of Nigeria.
The party, thereby, admonished the State Governor, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, to carry out the registration and regulation of these individuals in conjunction with the Nigerian Immigration Service if necessary.
The statement added, “The current security situation with the escalation of aggressive messages from Niger Republic to Nigeria, we need to be security conscious in Kwara State. We have also seen a spike in recent times of kidnappings and outright murder in Kwara State.
“We also “understand” the reluctance of the state governor, Mal. Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, to carry out the registration before the 2023 general elections. His alleged reluctance was premised on not wanting to upset a very important segment/bloc of voters.
“Now that the elections have come and gone and he has apparently “won” re-election, we all need to consider our combined welfare and safety.”
