The Federal Government has warned Nigerians residing in South Africa against fraudulent claims of an ongoing registration for its voluntary repatriation programme, even as it prepares to evacuate another 315 citizens under the fifth phase of the emergency exercise.
The Nigerian High Commission in Pretoria issued the warning on Tuesday, saying criminal elements were circulating fake messages on social media to deceive Nigerians into paying money for a registration process that had already ended.
In a public notice, the mission stressed that the registration and screening exercise for the voluntary repatriation programme closed on June 13, 2026, urging Nigerians to ignore the misleading information.
“Our attention has been drawn to misleading posts currently circulating on social media informing Nigerian nationals to come to the High Commission in Pretoria under the erroneous pretext that registration for voluntary repatriation is taking place,” the mission said.
It added, “There is no registration taking place. No one should come to the Mission, and nobody should pay any money to anybody under the guise of being registered.”
The High Commission maintained that any future repatriation exercise would be announced only through its official communication channels.
The warning comes as Nigerian diplomatic missions in South Africa concluded arrangements for the departure of the fifth government-approved special evacuation flight, which will airlift 315 Nigerians from Johannesburg to Lagos in the early hours of Wednesday.
According to a joint statement issued by the Nigerian High Commission in Pretoria and the Consulate General in Johannesburg, the selected evacuees were notified individually by telephone and directed to report at the High Commission before proceeding to the OR Tambo International Airport in buses provided by the Nigerian government.
The missions explained that the use of the official buses was mandatory because passengers would undergo final processing in a restricted section of the airport designated for the special evacuation exercise.
“None are permitted to go independently, as they will not have access to the special area of the airport being used for the final processing exercise,” the statement said.
The missions also directed returnees to present their screening clearance certificates and other verification documents, including consent forms for minors, noting that Emergency Travel Certificates would be issued free of charge at the airport.
Each adult passenger is entitled to two checked bags weighing up to 23 kilograms each, one carry-on bag of up to seven kilograms and one personal item, while children are entitled to the same baggage allowance.
Reacting to the development, the Nigerian Union South Africa confirmed that the flight would evacuate 315 Nigerians, describing it as the final government-approved special repatriation exercise.
The union’s National Publicity Secretary, Akindele Olunloyo, commended the Federal Government for facilitating the evacuation but warned that hundreds of vulnerable Nigerians would still remain stranded.
“We sincerely thank the Nigerian government for not relenting in its duty to protect Nigerians in the diaspora. However, this final repatriation flight will not capture all stranded and imperilled Nigerians willing to leave South Africa voluntarily,” he said.
Olunloyo disclosed that many Nigerians were still trapped due to lingering xenophobic tensions, alleging that several families with young children were currently sleeping outside the Nigerian High Commission in Pretoria under harsh winter conditions.
He appealed to the Federal Government, state governments and well-meaning Nigerians to provide urgent humanitarian support for those yet to be evacuated.
While acknowledging that the level of violence had reduced compared to previous weeks, Olunloyo said the security situation remained volatile.
According to him, anti-black migrant groups were still carrying out house-to-house searches in some communities and forcibly removing black migrants, creating fear among foreign nationals.
He, however, noted that the Federal Government had assured Nigerians remaining in South Africa that it would continue diplomatic engagement with the South African authorities to safeguard their welfare and security.
