Motsoaledi said 179 people were allowed to leave South Africa for Nigeria from Johannesburg on Wednesday but one was handed over to the police for fraudulently obtaining a South African visa.
Home Affairs Minister of South Africa, Aaron Motsoaledi, has said that one Nigerian was prevented from leaving the country when 179 people went back home to Nigeria over recent xenophobic attacks in the country.
Motsoaledi said 179 people were allowed to leave South Africa for Nigeria from Johannesburg on Wednesday but one was handed over to the police for fraudulently obtaining a South African visa.
Last week, a privately-owned aircraft, Air Peace, volunteered to evacuate over 600 Nigerians wanting to return to home after the latest round of xenophobic violence against African migrants in the former apartheid nation.
However, Motsoaledi said the flight was delayed due to problems experienced at check-in, SABC reports.
“The final figure of people who left on Wednesday was 179. When we were doing our exit controls, we found that four were children.
“One person was arrested for having a fraudulent South African visa. We couldn’t allow him to leave because he fraudulently obtained a visa.
“So, we handed him over to police. Only 179 ended up boarding that plane.”