Allen Onyema, chief executive officer (CEO) of Air Peace, says his airline will evacuate the underage Nigerian girls trafficked to Ivory Coast.
Martin Otse, the social media critic better known as VeryDarkMan, recently shared a video of some girls who said they were trafficked as sex slaves.
Some of the girls said they were first taken to the Niger Republic before being transferred to work in Ivory Coast.
One of the girls, aged 15, claimed she was a native of Ibadan and was taken to Ivory Coast after she was drugged.
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In a statement on Saturday, Onyema expressed concern over the plight of the girls.
Onyema said Nigeria needs collective efforts to discourage trafficking, describing it as “inhumane and ungodly”.
“We should discourage trafficking of any kind. It is inhumane and callous. It is absolutely ungodly and a good example of man’s inhumanity to man,” the statement reads.
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“We, in Air Peace, are ready to bring our fellow citizens back home free of charge.
“Besides that, we are going to send all of them to Duchess International Hospital in Ikeja for free medical examination and treatment.”
Onyema urged the Nigerian embassy in Ivory Coast to assemble the girls and contact Air Peace for their safe return.
The business mogul also urged the federal government to take charge of the teenagers’ education and reunite them with their families.
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In February, the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) handed over 21 minors rescued from suspected traffickers to the Niger state government.
In 2024, the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) rescued a set of 13 trafficked girls from Ghana.
