Francis Eloagu is the author of The Deadly Journey Across the Mediterranean Sea and a strong advocate against illegal migration, who has taken his campaign to the BBC and other global platforms. The well-travelled author and businessman, currently resident in Barcelona, Spain, is of the opinion that the ordeal Africans go through in the quest for better life in Europe is not fit even for animals. He spoke with Gboyega Alaka.
HAT inspired the book, The Deadly Journey Across the Mediterranean Sea?
The Deadly Journey Across the Mediterranean Sea is about a personal experience. I went through the same journey 20 years ago, though not through the desert and the sea like many are doing today. But it was by no means less dangerous. I went through the Balkans, the former Yugoslavia. I tried to get admission into school to study and then the NATO war came up. Most of us migrants were caught up in the war. There was no way to come back to Nigeria or even move out of the country. Eventually, we found our way into Germany. That same route came into light again during the ongoing Syrian war. We had a lot of people dying, crossing the Serbia into Hungary. I experienced that horror 20 years ago, and it pains me that my people are still passing through the same route and experiencing the same horror. Before settling for the Serbia option, I had options of going through Liberia during the war (as a refugee) or through Libya. But I opted to avoid all those uncertainties by flying to Serbia. I had no idea I would be facing the same ordeal I had dreaded.
How bad is this ‘ordeal’?
To tell you the truth, it is something I would never advise my own brother to go through. Crossing the borders from Serbia to Hungary, I literally went through hell. The border patrols were forever on our heels, so we had to go through the desert and the sea. We trekked on frozen ice, of which at the bottom was the sea. We call it hikihiki road. The dangerous part was that people sometimes fell or sank into the sea below- because you hardly knew which spot was light or solid ice. You see them calling for help, but you also know that you dare not go near them, because they’d pull you down with them. So, usually, it was the end for such people. During the summer, you see the border patrols coming to pull out their frozen bodies. That was 20years ago. Imagine people still going through the same horror 20 years later. I am particularly perturbed by the daily images of Nigerian returnees from Libya on TV and the newspapers since I arrived Nigeria about two years ago. I see it as a result of lack of awareness, so I thought it’s high time they were told the truth.
And what is the truth?
Going back to Barcelona, where I am based, the news of illegal immigrants is very rife. On a regular basis, you see a situation where ship-loads of Africans are detained in the middle of the sea because the European countries would not allow them in. Malta would say they are not coming in; Italy would say the same thing; and they would be in the middle of the sea, negotiating their passage. Twice the Spanish government has had to allow them to come in, and I tell you, it’s a horrible spectacle. You see pregnant women; you see women denying their children, and the government would just take them over. I was tempted to go meet some of them, and the narrative was that back home, the picture they always got was of Europe as a paradise. But it is not true. When I went in 20 years ago, it was a lot better, because then, we didn’t have the European Union. But now, we have lots of migrants from Eastern Europe, such as Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania, coming in to the west to also look for jobs. As a result, our people are finding it hard to get jobs, because the truth is that when they are faced with the issue of choice between picking an African and someone from these countries, chances are that they would go for these people. don’t forget, they have union, an agreement and a mandate.
So I see a lot of my brothers suffering on the streets, living at the mercy of the police. many of them are selling handbags. the one that annoys the Spaniards most is when you have a Louis Vuitton shop on the main street of Barcelona, and you’d see an African selling an imitation of the same bad right in front of the shop. and then you’d see then constantly running, trying to escape from the police. The funny thing though is that there are Europeans who want to patronise them, rather than go spend 1000 Euros to buy the original. Because of that, they really cannot stop them again. But at what cost?
You have undertaken to discourage people from this deadly journey; but many would argue that you have been there for 20 years, have a beautiful Spanish wife, have your twins with promising future and doing really well.
My point would for the government to lay a good foundation for the young people coming out of school and university. Because if you are out of school and you are not able to get a job or are afraid of the future, the tendency is that you begin to think that going to Europe is the only way out. If, however, you can go through the normal process, for instance, to study, why not? It is a good thing to study in Europe to acquire more knowledge and stuff, and once you are done and find it attractive to settle down there to work and integrate yourself into the society, all well and good. Europeans are not bad people. But the question is ‘what will you do?’
Are you then saying there are no opportunities there?
There are no opportunities. I’ve been living there for many years and I know what I’m telling you. The only opportunity there is the one you are able to create. The system in the UK is different from the system in Germany, ditto for France, Spain, the USA et al. Everyone of them has their own peculiarities.
More disappointing is the fact that some fellow Africans, including Nigerians, try to sell wrong images of what really obtains. They go to some beautiful cars, take photos and send home; trying to create the impression that all is well, meanwhile he is sharing a flat with six or seven other people.
The title of your book suggests the ordeal of someone who has been through the notorious Libya desert route and the Mediterranean, but you went by flight.
That’s exactly what I set out to talk about. Just last week, the news went round again of some migrants whose ship sank in the Mediterranean. They were able to rescue only a few of them. I live around some people whose stories are similar and I can tell you that their stories are nothing to write home about. People have been asking me, ‘What are you really going to say? Can you establish the fact that some of these ships are being sunk by the European police?’ The truth is we don’t have such evidence, but anything can happen. However, one fact we have been able to establish is that most of these people traveling to Libya are not even crossing the sea to Europe. Most of them are going through what even the press does not want to talk about. Most of them are being subjected to organ harvest, whereby their kidneys and other internal organs are being taken away without their consent. Consequently, they are left to die, and nobody records these things. The ladies are being used as slaves. I see that the press is doing something about this.
It still sounds a bit hard to believe that slavery part…
It’s happening, it is real. The BBC can tell you. When we had the Late Moamar Gathafi in power, it was different. Most of those who passed through had good experience. Some of them even stayed put because Gathafi was there for them. He gave them jobs while he was building those cities; even those who managed to get to Europe told us they would have preferred to stay in Libya since there were opportunities. But since his demise, what is happening there is not something anyone would want to experience. When I travelled to Tunisia, I was not able to get into Libya, but I interacted with the Libyans there, who confessed that indeed these things are happening. Even reporters from CNN were saying the same thing. No respect for human lives and dignity. Unfortunately, nobody is there to educate the youths.
What is your message to the young ones.
I think the main issue is impatience, ignorance and lack of awareness of what it means to leave a motherland, where you have all the freedom and go to an unknown land. It’s okay to travel on a scholarship, with everything well prepared, but when you go with the motive to go and ‘hustle’, it is something else entirely. When I was growing up as a youth in Ijesha, Lagos – I attended Ijesha Boys High School – the stories were that you’d go there and wash plates and dead bodies. But to be honest with you, I have never seen a dead body in all my years in Europe. So anybody who is telling you that you’re going to wash dead bodies and make loads of money is lying to you.
What I can however tell you is that the Spanish government has a very free mind with the blacks; they sympathise with the blacks. The socialist government that won the last election has always been there for the blacks; even during the last two three incidents, when Italy ordered that the ships conveying Africans be sunk, that they are not welcome, the Spanish government welcomed them. That singular act nearly cost them re-election, but they eventually got elected.
So, this was why I came back, presented my book, worked with the BBC…
You’ve been on the BBC, what exactly is the motive for this book?
To try to create more awareness to the youths coming up; to try to give them the picture that it’s not so rosy. Migration itself is not a bad thing, America was made because people migrated there. Same with Europe; but it’s only when have the career or skills that they need that the welcome you. Yes, you may look at me and say, ‘But you are doing fine;” but the truth is my case is like one in a million. I maintain, Europeans are very good people but their structure and government have a different agenda, which is not good for our people.
What is this agenda?
This is a political issue that many people would not want to agree with; but at the same time, I don’t want to go into politics. I just want to create awareness. I want to also have the opportunity to talk to the government. I see them giving the Libya returnees N100, 000, N200,000; asking them to go and find something to do, but that would not solve the problem. You have to provide the opportunities, give them a curriculum to work with, provide job activities for them to earn something. And it should not be like this Niger-Delta kind of thing, where they are giving them N5,000, N10,000 every month; what happens when the government runs out of money?
Many would argue that N200,000 should be enough to start something.
Have you solved the problem? And don’t forget, the people will use the same money to embark on the same journey again. The system must be well co-ordinated. Everything still boils down to employment opportunities. What has the government provided? I also think we should appreciate our graduates more. In my sojourn across Europe, I meet a lot of engineers and contractors who say to me, ‘Can you get us some experts?’ I know that most of our school system don’t have that practical aspect. That is why you have a graduate engineer, who has never been under a car. So again, the government has to provide that opportunity. I also think everything about achieving greatness lies with the press. I say, for instance, that Nigeria is a great country. When you travel to Togo, Liberia, Sierra Leone and all those countries, you will weep, and come to understand that our forefathers, who fought for Nigeria’s independence really tried and that there is no place like home.
How do you mean?
You know I have families and friends in all these places and they are proud to tell me that Nigeria is our big brother; Nigeria is our own America. Unfortunately, we look down on ourselves here because we are not content with what we have. We are always thinking of America, Japan and America; where we are not even welcome. If you have been to Liberia, you will see that there is only one road, and you need to wake up as early as 5am to beat traffic. But see what we have in Lagos alone. I know we still need to do more, but Nigeria is a beautiful country and you can achieve greatness here.
What are you into in Europe?
I’m a motivational speaker, serial entrepreneur, importer, property enthusiast and retailer. I’m also into agriculture and security consultancy. As an electronics security expert, I want to proffer solutions to insecurity in schools and higher institutions through my App technology, which takes care of clean water, solar energy, access control and CCTV installation, maintenance and training. I’m trying to explore the potentials in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Ghana and other West African countries. My new project is empowerment of our youths and supporting our students to explore and experience inter-cultural communication and scholarship to pursue and achieve their God-given potentials.
Tell us about childhood in Nigeria.
I attended Ijesha Boys Secondary School, Ijesha, Lagos, where I emerged as one of the best science students in Nigeria. If you’d recall, there used to be this Jet Club competition back then. I won it thrice while competing with pupils from Igbobi College, Kings College, Queens College, who were always looking down on Ijesha Boys as a local school, but I thought them a lot of lessons. However, it was also the fallout of that achievement that made me leave the country. Organisers of that competition used to promise lots of things for the winners. The first time, I went to Ibadan to represent Lagos State; next I went to Kano, where I won at the national level. Meanwhile, we had been told that the winner was going to represent the country in a competition in Germany. I first won the competition, when I was in SS1; I won it again in SS2, and then in SS3; they promised scholarships and stuff; and after the competition, I kept waiting for the scholarship, which never came. I was trekking from Ijesha to Oshodi, to Maryland, where I’d branch, relax and have a meal at my relatives; and then I’d go and collapse at Alausa Round House. But they kept giving me excuses.
After some time, I decided to go to the NTA to meet Frank Oliseh, who presented Newsline then. At the gate, they told me I didn’t have appointment and therefore couldn’t see him. Then I showed the military guys newspaper prints of me and IBB, Abacha and other big people, when I won the competitions. They took them with my certificates to frank Oliseh, and after a while, they ushered me in and I told him my grouse. However, what he told me was like an eye-opener to me. He said to me, ‘Francis, the country is not in a good shape now; the advice I’ll give you is that if you have any opportunity to go out of the country, you should just leave.’ I went back to the East and told my people that this is what I have decided to do, and that was how I travelled to Serbia, where I tried to go into their university before the NATO war started.
So what is your advice to young Nigerians?
They should be patient. Be serious as well. We know that we have problems with the educational system here; most people will say they cannot afford the private schools; but let me be honest with you: I’ve been around now for some years, and like I said earlier, I’m into agriculture, real estate, security. And I’m doing the same in Liberia; so I will say there are opportunities here. If you have the opportunity to go abroad and study, believe me, it is the best thing; but aside that, I really think our youths have to be cautious.
