torsdag 13. februar 2020

'As each day passes, the chances of evacuation slip by.' The Nigerian students 'abandoned' in Wuhan

Since the Chinese city of Wuhan went into lockdown three weeks ago, university student Victor Vincent has watched as other international students on his campus have returned home. Last week, he says it was the turn of a group of pupils from Myanmar who lived in the apartment above.

"They knocked on my door to say goodbye," the 26-year-old Nigerian student at the China University of Geosciences told CNN. "And give me their fresh vegetables, because they wouldn't be needing them."

Not so for Vincent. He is one of around 50 Nigerian students living in Wuhan -- the epicenter of the global coronavirus outbreak -- who say they've been abandoned by their country, their repeated pleas for evacuation and medical supplies largely ignored by government officials. The students say they, along with over a dozen other Nigerian teachers and businesspeople living in Hubei province, have repeatedly written and called Nigerian government officials requesting assistance. But they say very little has been forthcoming in return.