Abuja and Islamabad seem headed for a diplomatic row over the death of a Pakistani in a Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) cell in Lagos on October 14.
The death at NIS Zone A command has driven relations between Nigeria and Pakistan to the lowest ebb, with Pakistan demanding a clear explanation over the circumstances surrounding the death of its citizen.
The Pakistani committed suicide by hanging with a thread.
Immigration officers on duty at the time of the incident have been arrested and taken to Abuja for alleged dereliction of duty, but Pakistan refuses to be pacified.
To calm frayed nerves, NIS Comptroller General, David Parradang, visited Zone A early last week to get details of the incident.
It was learnt that the visit was as a result of the pressure on him from Aso Rock.
The officers flown to Abuja may have been indicted for not following procedure, which led to the death, TheNiche learnt last week
An email sent to the Pakistani Embassy in Abuja for comment was not replied at press time. But it was learnt that the country is still boiling with anger.
There is the fear that if the incident is not well handled, it may lead to reprisals against Nigerians in Pakistan.
TheNiche reported exclusively on October 19 that the Pakistani was arrested based on a petition written by a Nigerian lady who claimed they were lovers but that the man threatened her life.
He and the lady used to live together as lovers. But the man, who was in his early 30s, fell out with his lovebird, leading to her petition to the immigration office, which promptly arrested him.
His arrest was said to have been approved by NIS Assistant Comptroller General (Zone A), N. A. Ibrahim, but no one knew his identity when he was arrested because a passport was not found on him.
A passport recovered after the man’s death revealed his identity as a Pakistani, but he entered Nigeria through Ghana, which meant he was not granted Nigerian visa.
The lady was said to have complained to the NIS that each time they wanted to make love, the man would bring out a dagger with which he threatened her.
After his death those who were supposed to be on guard were initially handed over to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) Panti, Yaba, Lagos, for interrogation and later transferred to Abuja.
Two other officers, Emmanuel Oraelosi and one Kehinde, who arrested the deceased were summoned to Abuja on October 16.
Ibrahim’s personal assistant was also summoned.
NIS Provost Marshall, Ebohi, an Assistant Superintendent, reportedly explained that the incident happened because Ibrahim’s personal assistant withdrew the two officers on guard duty to go and welcome Interior Minister, Abba Moro, who was visiting Lagos.
Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Kenneth Nwosu, confirmed the incident but explained that immigration officers were brought to Panti as “part of our investigation” and were left to go that same day.
NIS Public Relations Officer, Obuah Chukwuma, said the NIS authorities were considering all sides of the incident and its implication for relations between Nigeria and Pakistan.
They “are still looking at and investigating the circumstances under which the incident took place. We learnt that the comptroller general hopes to address a world press conference this week after the authorities would have carried out their investigation,” he told TheNiche.
A week after, however, the matter seems unresolved as Parradang is said to be under intense pressure to ensure that it does not cause a diplomatic row between Nigeria and Pakistan, a long time ally.
At press time he was yet to address the media.
