Sudan War: Evacuation Gone Wrong as Stranded Nigerians in Sahara Desert Cries Out (VIDEO)

… bus drivers abandoned the journey, claiming FG failed to pay them

Paschal Emeka, Abuja / posted April 27, 2023

Nigerian students and others being evacuated by road from war-hit Sudan are reportedly stranded in the Sahara Desert after the drivers of the buses stopped them in the middle of the desert and claimed that the federal government and other critical stakeholders had not paid them.

A video making the rounds on social media shows some of the students expressing their frustrations after being stuck in the desert for over five hours by the drivers with absolutely no assistance in sight.

“The Buses evacuating Nigerian students and non-student were stopped in the middle of the Sahara, and the drivers refused to continue the journey because they were not PAID. @abikedabiri @nemanigeria @FMHDSD @nidcom_gov @NigeriaMFA,” Dr. Ahmad captioned the video.

A female student could be heard complaining that the drivers insisted that they would not leave the desert unless they are paid.

“Before we started this journey, we had to go on several fightings. Can you even imagine, we are stuck in this desert for five hours? We don’t even know the situation we are in. Our money has finished,” she said.

“Can you even imagine? The vehicle drivers said they are not moving their buses if they don’t give them money.”

It will be recalled that after the initial official reluctance to evacuate Nigerians following the outbreak of war in Sudan, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama revealed that the Federal Government has spent the whooping sum of $1.2 million for the purchase of 40 buses for the evacuation of Nigerians trapped in the war-torn country.

However, the alleged failure of the federal government to pay the drivers of the buses casts a dark shadow on the belated move to evacuate citizens affected by the war.