The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, has condemned the recent shooting of an immigration officer allegedly on the orders of a Chinese company operating in Nigeria.
Describing the incident which occurred in Niger State, as an attack on Nigeria, the minister vowed to escalate the matter to the highest diplomatic level, particularly with the Chinese authorities.
Speaking at a stakeholders’ sensitisation workshop on the implementation of the Nigeria Visa Policy 2025 in Abuja on Thursday, the minister stated that there was nowhere in the world such an action would be tolerated.
He said, “I will not go to any country, open a company, and say the immigration service cannot come out. I will not do that.
“I don’t want to mention the company here, but they shot one of our immigration officers. They told their security attaché to shoot our officer, and he did— a foreign company?
“That happened a couple of weeks ago in Niger, and we are going to take it up with the Chinese embassy because it’s a Chinese company.
“I won’t go to China as a Nigerian, enter a company, and tell my security to shoot a government official in uniform. It’s never done anywhere in the world. That alone is an attack on Nigeria.”
The minister stated that the officer was simply carrying out his lawful duties when the incident occurred.
“For a father to leave his children to fulfil his legitimate responsibility, go to a company, and say, ‘I need to see your expatriates, let’s see your list,’ just to ask questions— and the next thing, you lock the gate and shoot him?” he asked.
He vowed that such incidents would no longer be tolerated.
“That is a diplomatic issue, and we will handle it. It will not happen again. So we are going to be very firm. We will not disturb your business or overburden your operations.
“But don’t make us inferior in our land. We are going to be very tough on this. I’m not just speaking with passion; I’m speaking with anger.”
The minister warned that the government has the authority to revoke business licenses and declare companies operating with impunity illegal.
“No company is above the law. We will not tolerate it. No agent, no company is above the law.
