Sudan: Stranded Nigerians Raise Alarm As Contracted Sudanese Drivers Abandon Them In Desert Over Non-payment

A shocking video online has revealed that the buses sent to evacuate thousands of stranded Nigerian students and other nationals from warring Sudan were stopped in the middle of the Sahara desert by the drivers, who complained about the refusal of the Nigerian government to offset their payments.

A Twitter user, Dr Ahmad Small shared the viral video via his verified handle which showed some of the agitated students venting their frustrations after being held in the desert for over four hours by the drivers with no help 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 is heard in the video complaining that the drivers insisted that they would not leave the desert unless they were paid.

She said, “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. Our money has finished.

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

This comes a day after the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffery Onyeama said the Nigerian government would be spending $1.2 million to hire 40 luxurious buses to be used for the evacuation of Nigerians trapped in Sudan.
-Text excluding headline by Newsdirect