By Adedapo Adesanya
The Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, has walked back on a widely reported admission that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has lifted the visa ban placed on Nigerian travellers.
Earlier on Tuesday, two media aides of Mr Tinubu, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr Ajuri Ngelale, and Mr Onanuga, confirmed that the restriction has finally been removed.
In a single tweet posted hours after the initial announcement, Mr Onanuga wrote, “UAE has not resumed visa issuance to Nigerians. The document in circulation is not authorized either by the Nigerian government or the UAE.”
Recall that Mr Onanuga, a former Director-General of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), was one of the people who announced that the move had occurred.
This would not be the first time this is happening as a similar episode happened after President Bola Tinubu, travelled to the Middle East country last year to talk to the government on how to resolve the travel ban on his citizens.
At the time, Mr Ngelale released a statement to claim the ban had been removed when it was not so. He would later admit much.
In the statement from the UAE posted by him again, the country’s Embassy in Abuja said its country agreed to lift the embargo because of a “shared commitment to strengthening ties, enhancing cultural exchanges, and fostering opportunities for economic and social collaboration.”
“All Nigerian applicants for UAE visas are required to first obtain a Document Verification Number. This essential step is to be completed by visiting the dedicated online Document Verification Hub platform (official link https://documentverficationhub.com,” the UAE Embassy said in the now-confirmed fake letter.
“We encourage all prospective travellers to adhere to the guidelines and initiate the applications promptly, ensuring and smooth transition to the new system,” it added.
