Nigerians Are Deceived With Fake Job Offers In Qatar

As a Nigerian Professional resident in Doha, State of Qatar, I would like to draw the attention of the Federal Government of Nigeria, The Federal Ministry of External Affairs, and the National Assembly to the activities of some unscrupulous agents in Nigeria, with collaboration of some Nigerian elements in Doha offering Work Visa to unsuspecting Nigerians to work and live in Qatar. This practice has been on for some time but has recently reached a frightening dimension in the last few months.

Nigerians Are Deceived With Fake Job Offers In Qatar

There are now many Nigerians living roughly, some in detention, many living in uncompleted buildings earmarked for demolition, as a result of a scam going on in Nigeria about Qatar Work visas.
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Qatar is a tiny emirate in the Middle East. It is a country rich in oil and gas resources which have fueled the infrastructural and economic development of this Arabian Peninsula nation over the past decades. This economic boom has seen the migration of people from South East Asia, Europe, America and Africa to this small Gulf State. The local Qatari people are also friendly and receptive to foreigners of diverse languages, cultural and religious background. In anticipation of the influx of economic migrant to support the Nations growth, the government of the State of Qatar has an effective immigration system that has been designed to ensure that only legal immigrants are allowed to live and work in Qatar.

While Work Visa as it’s currently being secured for Nigerians by Local Nigerian agents in Qatar and their collaborators in Nigeria grants you the right to live in Qatar, there is no job attached to this Visa. The impression given is that once you arrive in Qatar, Jobs are waiting for you as there are opportunities everywhere. This is not the truth as there are many Nigerians on the streets of Doha today seeking employment without headway for months and in some cases over a year.

Some have returned home disappointed after borrowing money and selling properties to secure Qatar Work visa with high expectations of better life. They lived in harrowing conditions in slums and labour quarters before finding their way back to their motherland. The Agents, who procured the Visa disappeared and live these individuals to the mercy of friends and fellow Nigerians to assist to the best of their abilities. The saddening thing is that most of these unfortunate migrants left paid employment behind in Nigeria, to seek “greener pastures” as painted by this Work Visa Agents.

I must state clearly that, there are indeed job opportunities for qualified professionals in Qatar, and many Nigerians are gainfully employed and practicing their professions in Qatar, it is important to highlight the danger posed by the activities of these nefarious individuals not only to law abiding Nigerians in Qatar, but also the image of the Nigeria Nation. In addition, because of the bad publicity this has generated in government circle, stricter restriction on the issuance of Visa for Nigerians is in place. All hotels in Qatar no longer process Nigeria tourist Visa as applicable to Nationals of other countries willing to come to Qatar on holiday. Despite all these, there has been no official response to this malaise by the relevant Nigerian Embassies in the Gulf.

The implication of this is that, Nigerians with genuine business/holiday interest are refused entry visa. This was not the case five years ago, as you could apply for Visa for anyone by approaching any of the hotels in Doha.

Source: Pointblanknews