The House of Representatives, on Thursday, unanimously voted against a motion seeking to make the Federal Government address the issues causing Nigerian professionals to migrate to other countries en masse, in search of greener pastures.
A new member of the House, Philip Agbese, had moved a motion titled, ‘Need to Declare Emigration of Young Nigerians Abroad A.K.A Japa Syndrome a National Emergency,’ urging the government to “convene a national summit with key stakeholders to effectively address the ‘Japa syndrom
Japa, is a Yoruba slang that simply means flee a problem or trouble.
Agbese also prayed the House to “declare a state of emergency on the factors that predispose young Nigerians to give up on Nigeria in preference for other nations.”
The lawmaker referenced statistics from the Nigerian Economic Summit, showing that a growing number of young Nigerians are relocating abroad.
Agbese said, “The House is concerned that the growing statistics of young Nigerians leaving Nigeria and securing permanent residence in the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Canada portends a grave danger for our nation in many ways from economic to intellectual and social aspects.
“The House is also concerned that the Nigerian population is made of two-thirds of persons under the age of 30 and a good number of these persons are already afflicted with what today is acceptably referred to as the ‘japa syndrome,’ as estimates indicate a staggering tens of thousands have relocated to the USA, Canada, South Africa and, even, Gambia over the last two years.
