YPP presidential candidate urges Nigerians in US to return

File: The presidential candidate of the Young Progressives Party, Peter Agada

The presidential candidate of the Young Progressives Party, Dr Peter Agada, on Friday urged Nigerian professionals in the diaspora to return home and contribute to national development amid the United States government’s tightening of immigration policies.

Agada, who disclosed this in a statement issued in Abuja, blamed the Federal Government for failing to develop a clear plan to attract skilled Nigerians back home, describing the situation as a national embarrassment.

While ruling out condemning the US government over its immigration policy, he said every country had the right to adopt measures to protect its interests and promote economic development.

He said, “I do not blame the US for its policy. Every country has the right to protect its system. But I blame Nigeria for not having a plan to receive its own professionals when other countries push them out.”

The YPP candidate said Nigeria had spent two decades celebrating the migration of its citizens, popularly known as Japa, largely because of remittances from Nigerians abroad, without establishing the necessary structures to encourage their return.

He said, “We did not build wards to receive them back. Now, our nurses in Houston who lose Employment Authorisation Document will have no work. Our engineers in Chicago whose status is under review under Operation PARRIS (Post-Admission Refugee Reverification and Integrity Strengthening) will live in fear. Where will they go?”

He urged Nigerian professionals living in major cities in the US and other parts of the diaspora to begin planning their return, arguing that their expertise was needed at the grassroots.

“That is why I’m calling today: Nigerian professionals in cities and in diaspora, plan your return home – not to Abuja, but to your Ward,” he said.

Agada noted that although Nigeria had 8,809 wards, many lacked resident professionals because of the continued migration of skilled workers to major cities and foreign countries.

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He argued that successive administrations had appealed to Nigerians abroad to return without providing the accommodation, equipment, working conditions and transparent remuneration needed to retain them.

According to him, the absence of such support had contributed to the repeated departure of professionals who initially returned to the country.

“Do not wait to be pushed. Plan your return now. Your Ward needs you more than America needs you. In your Ward, you are not a refugee with 10 days to defend your status,” he said.

The former Obidient coordinator said he had followed with concern the new immigration measures announced by the US government, urging Nigeria to view the development as an opportunity to strengthen its domestic economy by attracting back skilled citizens.

The PUNCH reported on October 14 that the administration of US President Donald Trump had revoked more than 300,000 visas since he began his second term in January 2025.

A State Department spokesman, Tommy Pigott, disclosed the figure on Tuesday, saying the administration had accelerated visa revocations as part of its broader immigration crackdown.

In a statement posted on X, Pigott said the Trump administration “has revoked more than 300,000 visas at a faster pace than any administration in history.”

He added that the government maintained “zero tolerance for foreigners here on visas who break the law, commit fraud, or undermine our national security.”

The latest figure represented a significant increase from the more than 175,000 visa revocations reported by the State Department in an update issued on August 10.