Senate Will Draw Experience from India, Egypt, to Tackle ‘Japa’ Syndrome- Sen Akpoti-Uduaghan

The new Chairman of Senate Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations,  Senator Natasha Akpoti- Uduaghan (PDP, Kogi) has said that the Senate will work out ways to discourage the ever-rising tide of emigration among Nigerians.

Senator Akpoti made the pledge at her the inaugural meeting of the committee under her leadership on Wednesday.

Sponsored Ad

Speaking at the meeting which held at Meeting Room 305 at the Senate Wing of the National Assembly, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan said that her committee will draw from the experiences of countries like India, Egypt and Pakistan which at different times have had similar situations like Nigeria currently has but managed to make their countries attractive for their citizens.

She also noted that her committee will work with Nigerians in diaspora to ensure that the “Japa” syndrome is reversed in order to save the country.

According to the lawmaker, “This committee will do this by collaborating with relevant stakeholders to encourage Nigerians, particularly the youth, to believe more in their country and not adopt the mindset of wanting to rush out.”

“Patriotism is earned, not enforced or forced, and this will guide us in identifying steps to build our economy here using the energy of our diaspora.

“We will look at countries like India, Pakistan, and even Egypt in Africa to see how they have grown their capacities and made their countries attractive for a larger percentage of their citizenry to stay.”

Earlier in his remark, the former chairman of the committee, Senator Victor Umeh (LP, Anambra) expressed confidence in the ability of Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan to drive the committee to bring god results for the Senate and the country.

“I knew that a great success was in store for this committee with Senator Natasha as chairman.”

“She has what it takes to break new ground and galvanise all efforts towards tapping the potentials of Nigeria’s diaspora communities and also collaborating with other stakeholders to reverse the ‘Japa’ syndrome,” Snator Umeh said.

FACTSHEETS reports that the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio on Tuesday announced minor reshuffle in the leadership composition some Committees.

The reshuffle saw Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan swap positions with Senator Umeh who moved from Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations to Committee on Local Content as Chairman, while the Kogi Lawmaker took over as the Chairman on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations.

Leave A Reply

Your email address will not be published.