What is responsible for the mass migration of Africans to Western Europe? Is it the desire for a better life? Can it be greed or bad leadership? Can it be squandering of resources by corrupt politicians? Can it be wrong policy and planning which leaves the citizens jobless, hopeless and in abject penury? Can we say that our love for Europe is daily nurtured by the relentless portrayal of Europe as a land flowing with milk and honey? Is it driven by the myth which portrays Europe’s cobbled roads as being overlaid with gold?  Why is mother Africa with all her natural resources sending her able-bodied men and women into the cauldron of temperate Europe, with its markedly different culture? Can it be our lack of contentment that forever hungers after a life of ease and luxury?

Yearly, Nigerians in their thousands still gamble on looking for a better life in Europe. Husbands leave behind long-suffering wives in search of greener pastures.  Wives abandon jobless husbands to escape to London in search of the almighty pound sterling. Sometimes, and this may sound cruel, very young children are carted off to grandparents, while their fathers and mothers make a choice between survival and starvation.

Do we all have right, as parents, to abandon our kids to fate by emigrating abroad in search of tomorrow’s world?  This is unfair. And because we live in an unfair, mad and get-rich-quick world, many are taking the risk, the trouble, expense and the emotional heartbreak of uprooting themselves and starting life anew in an untried and hostile environment where they must strive harder than the host to survive.

Adaptability to the new conditions must quickly be won over. And thank God for the resilience of Nigerians. Many are now conquering frontiers as far flung as Siberia and Iceland in a pioneering spirit. However, there is a thin line between resilience and selfishness. Can we really say that resilience is behind our ability to absorb sudden break with family ties and known familiar way of life?   Is resilience behind our ability to cope with emotional, mental, psychological and social stress afflicting black residents in hostile and racist Europe?

The old 60s and 70s black Africans travel genre had undergone a different narrative.  Then, what drove travel to Europe was mainly dictated by burning desire to acquire western education, knowledge and skills. Our society confers dignity and awe to every proud possessor of polytechnic, technical and university certificates that originated from Britain. This ‘colo’ mentality still persists today. After the completion of their education and the acquisition western skills and knowledge, few Nigerians stay behind in England.  Most of the early Nigerian migrants were students and treated Britain as a place to acquire education and saw no reason to become citizens.  They troop back home to take up government and corporate appointments that were readily available.  In this bygone era, Nigeria was a country of promise.  The house had not fallen. The economy was robust. Corruption had not taken on its present pandemic proportion. Affluence was visible and greed had not entwined itself like poison ivy round the neck of this nation. We were known for fairplay, decency and honesty.

Until the decay set in. Today, what dictates travel is desperation and survival.  A new travel genre had begun. Economic and social malaises have both paralysed a nation blessed with limitless resources but lacking in visionary rigour. As the economy nose-dived and looter-rulers made their fatal assault on oil revenues, smart Nigerians from lower to middle class homes started voting with their passports and legs.

The reality of rat race began in earnest. To reach Europe, some Nigerians, invoking the ancient Israelites woes in the wilderness, had to pass through perilous desert of Morocco. Women offered their bodies as rape currency to libidinous Arabs along the Mediterranean coastlines. Men offered scarce dollars and lived under severe restrictions and slavery rules in Libya’s hostile desert to get to Europe.

The lucky ones end up in Ceuta, the Spanish enclave on the Moroccan coast.  There, they are kept in detention centres to await charges of illegal entry into Spain.  The bones of the unlucky ones remain unclaimed and unsung under the forbidden bed of the Mediterranean seas. They died mostly from disease and thirst.  The millennium-day migrants, the opportunity-seekers and risk takers, whatever their reasons need more than a wing and a prayer. They require enterprise, ambition, determination and stubborn desperation to pull off from their roots, severe the past and face a new life in a brand new clime.

What is visible is the new paradigm shift. New Nigerian migrants are coming to Britain not to acquire education but to gather pound sterling. I call the shift, the ‘pound offensive’.  This is true of average Nigerian instinct to travel to London and work to gather enough money for a better life back home.  And money being a universal magnet does not respect race, age, educational achievement and gender. Therefore, London is now home to experience university lecturers on career exchange as security guards because of pound sterling. Pastors are leaving behind bewildered congregation to become cab drivers in London. Strange still, the ‘mama Afusa and mama Ramonu’ of this world are abandoning their market stalls at Dugbe market to clean hospital toilets in London.

These new tribes of migrants are the direct beneficiaries of our world becoming a global village. Within 36 hrs of arrival in London, it is possible to start a new life as a porter in a 5 star hotel. Though on a slave wage, nevertheless the porter has proved the truth that it is easier to succeed in London than in Lagos.  It is now a myth that black Africans endless tribal wars form the decisive cause of migration towards Europe and North America.

New arrivals are neither fleeing from tribal warlords nor oppressive regimes. The emerging pattern is that majorities of sub Saharan Africans are economic migrants and they fall under the dreaded category of illegal immigrants. Illegal immigrants are the stubborn enemy on Britain’s doorpost. They are invisible enemies with no postcodes.  They are the shadowy enemies fuelling so much hysteria and bellyaching among the British voting public. They are the detestable sub-human species causing anxieties, and thus, leading to xenophobia and racism among British people.

There is social tension following the ever-growing illegal immigration, especially from black Africa.  Poor and jobless lower class whites blame the influx of illegal immigrants as the source of their misfortune. Homeless whites blame illegal black migrants as the source of their sleeping rough on the streets. Old, conservative whites shake their arthritis-damaged fist at the poor, underclass blacks, as the cause of rising crime waves in their neighbourhoods. Illegal immigration is now leading to the notion of difference. The ‘us and them’ syndrome is the new racist currency.  The racists reason that black African culture and way of life are backward.  We are still apes, freely somersaulting from trees to trees in sundrenched Africa.  Also, there is the dirty tabloid campaign which demonises the blackman and thus fuels resentment.

Citizens from the Dark Continent are still being seen as ethnic beasts with prehistoric savagery in their blood veins. Our hygienic and moral values are detestable to the white model. In Britain, a black South African falls into the ready trap of an illegal immigrant than a white person from the same country. They have the same passports but differential treatment in the European wise eyes. There is no explanation to justify why the white South African is heavily favoured other than racial preference. To quell public anxiety and placate the pampered ‘middle England’, British government is on the horns of a liberal dilemma.

A gloss is being applied over the ugly canvass of racialised view of illegal immigration. The British government now stresses the cultural and economic dynamism that comes with relatively high levels of immigration.  However, Britain like the rest of EU is rolling out draconian immigration legislation to discourage the tired, the poor and the huddled masses of economic migrants from black Africa.  Mainland Europe, from the coastal enclave of Ceuta along the Moroccan shore, to the rolling fjord of Norway has barricaded itself behind a double exclusion fence, surrounded by razor wire, electronic sensors and closed circuit televisions. The subtext is clear. Many of us are here and the house is full.

But it is too late to keep away the ‘barbarians’ massing at the gate. Black Africans are among the billions of other people reduced to penury and living on less than $1.00 a day. This is through the massive economic exploitation of the black race. Mr Ken Livingstone, the Mayor of London, has publicly acknowledged that proceeds from slavery underpinned the transformation of Britain into a kind of paradise it is today.  Would any barrier or law deter majority of poor Nigerians living under N200.00 a day from crossing the Atlantic?

Tijani, a social and afrocentric scholar lives in London.

Robot  Villager

# 1 What is responsible for the mass migration of Africans to Western Europe? Is it the desire for a...Read the full article. Posted by Robot| 03.04.2008 09:12

salford  Villager

# 2 Until Nigerians arise, put away petty ethnic and religious issues and jointly confront the looters who masqurade as leaders, tens of thousands of young Nigerians will cross deserts and swim oceans to have a fighting chance at survival. Posted by salford| 03.04.2008 13:00

K_Station  Villager

# 3 Dear TJ, Thank you for this wonderful insight. As an immigrant who has lived about 8 years between the United States and Canada, I can associate with the plight of the many economic migrants like me. During the last Nations Cup, I went to a popular Nigerian restuarant in SW Houston very early in the morning to watch one of the games featuring Nigeria and boy, I was shocked to see how many Nigerian guys turned out there! The story is the same whether you are in Maryland, New York, Chicago, Toronto, etc......sometimes you wonder whether there are still people back home in Nigeria! But wetin man go do? We have been decimated as a people to such an extent that corruption and greed has now become our most defining character. I disagree with the default argument on slavery because the collapse of Nigerian economy and infrastructure has no direct connection to slavery. I don't blame those who are choosing to go the Andrew way o, in fact if I can do it all over again I will still choose to leave Nigeria at the time that I left. I have only one life to live and I will not live it under a system that daily suppresses my dreams and hopes. No be me spoil Nigeria! Posted by K_Station| 03.04.2008 16:24

ozoodoo  Villager

# 4 When a good portion of the able and educated among us takes flight of Nigeria to Europe and America (places made livable through the sweat and blood of the natives) who do we expect to make Nigeria a better place for us to be proud of and/or to return to? Posted by ozoodoo| 03.04.2008 18:02

Jucihart  Villager

# 5 Salford, I quite agree with you. People are taking their destiny in their own hands because what happens in 9ja will give 0 chance to stand on one leg not to talk of both legs. Posted by Jucihart| 03.04.2008 19:19

Jucihart  Villager

# 6 =K_Station;4295001555>Dear TJ, Thank you for this wonderful insight. As an immigrant who has lived about 8 years between the United States and Canada, I can associate with the plight of the many economic migrants like me. During the last Nations Cup, I went to a popular Nigerian restuarant in SW Houston very early in the morning to watch one of the games featuring Nigeria and boy, I was shocked to see how many Nigerian guys turned out there! The story is the same whether you are in Maryland, New York, Chicago, Toronto, etc......sometimes you wonder whether there are still people back home in Nigeria! But wetin man go do? We have been decimated as a people to such an extent that corruption and greed has now become our most defining character. I disagree with the default argument on slavery because the collapse of Nigerian economy and infrastructure has no direct connection to slavery. I don't blame those who are choosing to go the Andrew way o, in fact if I can do it all over again I will still choose to leave Nigeria at the time that I left. I have only one life to live and I will not live it under a system that daily suppresses my dreams and hopes. No be me spoil Nigeria! Bros you are quite correct. Who will blame who left a country where you have no hope of surviving? corruption has eaten deep into the system and when you cant change that, you try option B Posted by Jucihart| 03.04.2008 19:23

Jucihart  Villager

# 7 =Robot;4295001322>What is responsible for the mass migration of Africans to Western Europe? Is it the desire for a...Read the full article. TJ, thanks an interesting read. Migration to Europe is an option to survival and better life for people who have the will to survive. why would one claime a future you are not sure of in 9ja with the current so-called leaders who have been there for close to 48yrs with nothing to show for it? i dont envy them at all cos they are wise enough to talk a bold step. but i dont encourage the fact that people should come here and do dehumanising jobs - not at all. but there again they have to start somewhere to get to somewhere. let us also not forget that we also have people that left and are doing better things in Europe even as foreigners. as far as i am concerned, we have a very long way to go to stop people from leaving. why not try making available what they seek for in Europe to be in Nigeria so that "wetin dey for shokoto go dey for shokoto"? come on lets be realistic, an adage in Igbo says "anaghi afu ebe ana echi ozo wee gaa ebe ana aru agwu" which is translates as "you dont leave a place of festivity for a suffering". that is the plain truth. Until a positive change is made, migration to Europe is only just beginning. Posted by Jucihart| 03.04.2008 19:39

emj  Villager

# 8 Why is mother Africa with all her natural resources sending her able-bodied men and women into the cauldron of temperate Europe, with its markedly different culture? Hmmmmm...Taju, not da fault of Mother Africa, but Africans and their bad leaders...VQAS. The reality of rat race began in earnest. To reach Europe, some Nigerians, invoking the ancient Israelites woes in the wilderness, had to pass through perilous desert of Morocco. Women offered their bodies as rape currency to libidinous Arabs along the Mediterranean coastlines. Men offered scarce dollars and lived under severe restrictions and slavery rules in Libya’s hostile desert to get to Europe. Hmmm.....u must have seen dat tape made by dat boy who crossed the Sahara Dessert...a very dangerous option walahi:eek: Do we all have right, as parents, to abandon our kids to fate by emigrating abroad in search of tomorrow’s world? This is unfair. And because we live in an unfair, mad and get-rich-quick world, many are taking the risk, the trouble, expense and the emotional heartbreak of uprooting themselves and starting life anew in an untried and hostile environment where they must strive harder than the host to survive. Hmmm...not only dat, we then start from scratch and all we do is pay bills...wat with mortgages amortized till God knows when....and interests rates dat can break da back of Mighty Igor....taxes nko...don't even go there...da tax dat we refused to pay back home, we will tipa tipa by force pay hia(u cannot even negotiate like in naija..chei)....all na suffer head.......drat:wink: There is social tension following the ever-growing illegal immigration, especially from black Africa. Poor and jobless lower class whites blame the influx of illegal immigrants as the source of their misfortune. Homeless whites blame illegal black migrants as the source of their sleeping rough on the streets. Old, conservative whites shake their arthritis-damaged fist at the poor, underclass blacks, as the cause of rising crime waves in their neighbourhoods. Illegal immigration is now leading to the notion of difference. The ‘us and them’ syndrome is the new racist currency. The racists reason that black African culture and way of life are backward. We are still apes, freely somersaulting from trees to trees in sundrenched Africa. Also, there is the dirty tabloid campaign which demonises the blackman and thus fuels resentment. Gad dem, taju..oti o...wey my bow and arrow, sepe all dose/those people for london dey accuse us laik dat...drat....somebodi hold me b4 i vex finish:twisted: But it is too late to keep away the ‘barbarians’ massing at the gate. Black Africans are among the billions of other people reduced to penury and living on less than $1.00 a day. This is through the massive economic exploitation of the black race. Mr Ken Livingstone, the Mayor of London, has publicly acknowledged that proceeds from slavery underpinned the transformation of Britain into a kind of paradise it is today. Would any barrier or law deter majority of poor Nigerians living under N200.00 a day from crossing the Atlantic? Taju, u know that we are not barbarians.....africans are in europe and other nations to collect back what they stole from us...all da looted funds are in Vaults all over europe, plus da fact that they all owe us big time for distubing our peace by enslaving us in da 1st instance...we wia in our dark world...sitting jejely and enjoying our un-polluted environment before they came with their garaje...chanced our chiefs/elders with worthless things...then b4 we could say John Jack, they garuned and saw all da precious(mineral resources, arts&crafts, and other fine fine things)things we have.........hmmm. PS>>>>>anywaz, we've helped to build the various economies...if we shld decide to leave and return en-mass back to our various countries...walahi, they will all catch cold....they will all suffer a massive/serious withdrawal :) Posted by emj| 03.04.2008 21:31

omoboi  Villager

# 9 'The old 60s and 70s black Africans travel genre had undergone a different narrative. Then, what drove travel to Europe was mainly dictated by burning desire to acquire western education, knowledge and skills. Our society confers dignity and awe to every proud possessor of polytechnic, technical and university certificates that originated from Britain. This ‘colo’ mentality still persists today. After the completion of their education and the acquisition western skills and knowledge, few Nigerians stay behind in England. Most of the early Nigerian migrants were students and treated Britain as a place to acquire education and saw no reason to become citizens. They troop back home to take up government and corporate appointments that were readily available. In this bygone era, Nigeria was a country of promise. The house had not fallen. The economy was robust. Corruption had not taken on its present pandemic proportion. Affluence was visible and greed had not entwined itself like poison ivy round the neck of this nation. We were known for fairplay, decency and honesty' taju, dayziz b long 4 dis well kowaciated piece, baba, may u walk and never stumble the problem(s) realy starts from the homefront...when employers have been known to treat our cerficates with disdain. when even almighty BSc has become so weightless in the job market and now requires the compliment of a masters or whatever from wherever abroad to be taken seriously...when returnees from abroad become instant heros and sheros...when our country is blind and indiffferent to talents back home and quick to identify with foreigness. when even our leaders are quick to become citizens of another western country...when we are in darkness... who no go check out and remain there even in stifling, resricted conditions? who no like better thing make im raise im hand? Posted by omoboi| 04.04.2008 02:38

Ranter  Villager

# 10 Anywhere but Nigeria. There are Nigerians teaching english language for a living in countries like Cambodia,where the government depends on donor countries to pay its civil service and armed forces.Some of them cant even speak passable english but Andy has got to survive. Sometimes events point out to us that for drastic changes to occur there would have to drastic measures.The problems are too complicated to be reasonably resolved.If you dont tear down the house you can not erect a better suited one. Posted by Ranter| 04.04.2008 04:27

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