Following the alleged maltreatment of some Nigerians living in China, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, has demanded an end to the inhumane treatment of fellow citizens living in the Asian country.

He said this during a meeting of the leadership of the House with the Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria, Zhou Pingjian, on Friday, April 10th, 2020.

The Speaker demanded that the Chinese envoy look into viral media reports and videos from Beijing which showed Nigerians being evicted from their homes and hotels. The videos further showed details of how Nigerians were rounded up and their international passports confiscated by the Chinese police.

According to a press release on Friday, April 10th, he told the Chinese Ambassador that Chinese authorities should officially explain why Nigerians were treated in such a fashion.

The meeting was also attended by the Minority Leader, Ndudi Elumelu, and the Deputy Minority Leader, Toby Okechukwu.

The viral videos on Wednesday, April 8th and Thursday, April 9th showed some Nigerians in China being forced into another 14-day quarantine, after the initial fourteen (14) days they observed for same purpose over the COVID-19 pandemic.

Gbajabiamila said,

If the diplomatic relationship between our two countries are for the mutual benefits of our citizens, then there must be respect for our citizens and we should not compromise it.

As a government, we will not allow Chinese or other nationals to be maltreated just as we will not allow Nigerians to be maltreated in other countries. The way you treat your citizens, we expect that’s how you’ll treat others.

We will not tolerate our citizens breaking your laws, but the crime of one citizen cannot be used to stigmatise the whole country. It appears that was what happened in this case. You can’t use one brush to smear the whole wall. Whatever the reason, it cannot be used and taken out on the entire (Nigerian) community in China.

Pingjian said the Chinese Government had not officially briefed him on the details of the incident, but that he would take the matter up with the government.

He said,

We take our relationship with Nigeria very seriously. Until we receive a full report back home, I cannot act, but I can assure you it is not a policy issue. We treat everyone equally, but during the implementation of the COVID-19 measures in China, it is possible for some incidents; all I do is to take it back home.

The Speaker gave the ambassador until Tuesday, April 14, 2020 to get back to the House, adding that he hoped the Chinese medical team that arrived in the country on Wednesday, April 8th were quarantined.

Justin Nwosu

Justin Nwosu is the founder and publisher of Flavision. His core interest is in writing unbiased news about Nigeria in particular and Africa in general. He’s a strong adherent of investigative journalism, with a bent on exposing corruption, abuse of power and societal ills.