HE arrived at the Consular office of the
United
States in Abuja last week in a flowing agbada, bearing his
self-importance on his lapel. By the time he left, however, a member of
the House of Representatives from the South West cut a pitiable sight:
He had been denied visa.
That was after he had banged tables and
engaged consular officers in a hot argument, consular sources confirmed
to the Nigerian Compass. He had also issued several threats against the
consular official who had demanded proof of his claim that he is a
member of the federal legislative body.
The lawmaker, names withheld, flew into a
rage when asked to produce his Certificate of Return, usually issued by
the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to successful
election candidates.
In response, he repeatedly told the
consular officer: "Don't you know I am the lawmaker of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria?" He banged the table several times, and the
official told the Nigerian “Big Man”: "Do you know that I reserve the
right to deny you or to
approve your application?"
It was reliably gathered that the
lawmaker continued to bang the table and, the official subsequently drew
the glass shield between him and the Nigerian big man, signifying the
end of discussion.
A letter by the embassy refusing the
visa application was, however, silent on the dramatic exchange between
the legislator and the official. It simply read: "We have carefully
examined your case and regret to inform you that you have been found
ineligible for a non-immigrant visa under section 214[b] of the
Immigration and Nationality Act.
"This may have been because you either
did not demonstrate strong ties outside the United States or you were
unable to demonstrate that your intended activities would be consistent
with the type of visa for which you applied".
The letter continued: "To be eligible
for a non-immigrant visa you must show that you meet the legal
requirement of the type of visa for which you applied and that you will
depart the United Sates at the end of your authorised stay.
"Today's decision cannot be appealed.
You are welcome to reapply in the future, particularly if you feel there
has been a significant change in your circumstances, or if you have
additional compelling evidence to support your case that you did not
present today".
When contacted, the lawmaker confirmed
that he appeared before the Consular office and that his application was
refused. He blamed the refusal on the handlers of the application
process who, according to him, "did not tell me what to say.
They did not tell me the documents to
take along, they were asking me of the INEC certificate which I did not
know they would ask of. I have never been to the USA, so I did not know
the evidence they would ask me to present.”
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