My Odyssey to Saudi Arabia and Crying for my Nigerianness

 My Odyssey to Saudi Arabia and Crying for my Nigerianness

By

Prof MK Othman

Two holy cities, Makkah and Madina, in the heart of Saudi Arabia, are the most cherished and pious towns, visited by millions of Muslims. Each visit brings greater contentment and an irresistible desire to return again and again. During each visit, one cannot help but be amazed and stunned by the incredible, supersonic level of infrastructural development. We must salute Saudi Arabian authorities, who are fully aware of the enormous spiritual responsibilities placed on the country as the world center for Muslims. For a Muslim, performing Hajj, which is performed only in Makkah and Madina, is not just a personal choice but an obligatory duty for those who are able. The nostalgia of standing before the Holy Ka’aba, the divine house of Almighty Allah, is so powerful that one can't help but raise their hands in prayer to return to that moment. Yes, whenever you're saying goodbye to Saudi Arabia, one of your heartfelt prayers is to return soon for Hajj or Umrah, reflecting Makkah's appeal to Muslims worldwide. So far, Saudi Arabia’s leadership is working tirelessly on infrastructure and human capacity development to make pilgrims’ short stay memorable and desirable. One of Saudi Arabia's most impressive developments is its ability to use a virtual camera system installed in crowded areas to detect crime and traffic offenses. For instance, thousands of cameras span the route from Makkah to Jeddah, about 100 km apart, with a speed limit of 120 km per hour; the CCTV cameras detect speeding and other offenses like phoning while driving, and the offender is penalized on the spot.  

As mentioned in my earlier write-ups on Saudi Arabia, the general public living in the two holy cities – Makkah and Madina, most of whom are non-nationals working as taxi drivers, salespeople, receptionists, etc. - disappoints me. While the Saudi Arabian authorities are working to meet the demands of an ever-increasing population of pilgrims, and some of us rave about opportunities to be in these cities for spiritual cleansing and heavenly rewards, the residents, particularly the non-nationals, focus on making money by any means necessary. They take advantage of pilgrims' lack of knowledge and limited exposure to make money fraudulently.  They want to profit from pilgrims at all costs through sharp practices in securing accommodation, purchases of souvenirs, gifts, logistics, and other related services in high demand. It may sound normal for people hustling to earn and repatriate to their home countries, but doing it in holy cities undermines the spiritual attributes of those towns.

As much as one enjoys staying in the two cities, one must notice the underlying social malaise directed at Africans, especially Nigerians. Unspoken racial discrimination, expressed through the behavior of people of color toward Black people, including jesting and teasing, is common and sometimes annoying, as the dignity of some of us is incomparable to that of so-called non-black people. They look down on Africans, some of us with dark skin, especially those wearing traditional Hausa clothes; they hiss and jest at you with derogatory comments: shinkafa-kaza. One can see that these people are semi-illiterate, from Bangladesh, Yemen, Egypt, and other Arabic-speaking countries. At one point, one of them teasingly asked me, “Are you Ghanaian, Nigerian, Senegalese, Nigerien, etc.?” I replied, “I am a Muslim,” with a well-understood message of disdain. Regarding us with low esteem is baseless, as intellectualism, wisdom, experience, and skill have no respect for race, tribe, social class, or language.

Still, my major concern in Saudi Arabia is the fate of Nigerians living there, particularly in Makkah and Madina. Nigerians are numerous and live in a complex, often problematic way. They are derogatorily called “Tukari.” I hate to see them running and abandoning their trades as Saudi security personnel chase them. That was when I cried for my Nigerianness. What an irony for a people from a wealthy country like Nigeria!

Many Nigerians living in Saudi Arabia have spent decades there, and some were born there without any national integration or claims of being Saudis. They live by paying their annual residence fees (Iqama) of about 9,000 Riyals, equivalent to over ₦4 million, an exorbitant fee that is hardly affordable to many. Delay or failure to settle the payment promptly attracts penalties, including deportation, suspension of the visa, and imprisonment. Defaulters are at loggerheads with security personnel, playing cat-and-mouse games. Some who have spent more than two years without paying their Iqama are at a crossroads, as they cannot pass immigration and leave the country without settling their debts. They are either caught and deported with a ten-year ban on returning to Saudi Arabia or cross over Yamel, a border country, and bribe their way back to Nigeria, which is not possible now due to the ongoing war between the two countries. Some years ago, Saudis had a nationalization policy called "Tadiyya - Dankasa," which was granted to deserving Nigerians. Presently, the policy has been suspended, making it difficult for a Nigerian immigrant to become a Saudi.      

These Nigerian residents in Saudi Arabia lacked educational opportunities unless they returned to Nigeria to pursue Islamic and Western education. These Nigerians work in menial jobs, prepare traditional cuisine, and guide Nigerian pilgrims. Essentially, the Nigerians in Saudi Arabia contribute immensely to the development of their host country and are hardly involved in crime, as crime in Saudi Arabia is met with harsh punitive measures, from instant imprisonment to summary execution. As non-nationals, they are afraid to commit crimes, which would result in instant deportation and imprisonment.  

Our attitudes as Nigerians leave much to be desired, which allows others to ridicule us. How do we allow our youth to travel out of the country without legal documents such as a valid passport, visa, or residence permit? Why don’t we learn to obey the laws and regulations of our host countries? Why do we lose our self-respect for a cup of tea? Nigeria is a God-endowed country with plentiful natural resources that should raise our heads high in prayer and refuse to be global underdogs. A lot needs to be done to change the bad narrative of Nigerians living in Saudi Arabia into an amazing one.

First, the Nigerian Embassy in Riyadh and the Consul General in Jeddah must vigorously embark on diplomatic efforts to support Nigerians living in Saudi Arabia through bilateral discussions with Saudi Arabian authorities. They should also mobilize, sensitize, and educate Nigerians on regularizing their stay in the holy land.

Second, through diplomatic efforts, the Saudi Arabian government can be made to provide educational opportunities to Nigerian immigrants, as Saudi Arabia will be the primary beneficiary of an educated Nigerian populace living in their country. After all, many Nigerian nurses and doctors are employed in large numbers in Saudi Arabia. This population can add immense value to Saudi Arabia's growth. Nigerians deserve better treatment from Saudi Arabia due to our longstanding cordial relationship. Most importantly, the cardinal pillar of the Islamic religion ascribes equality of Muslims before the Almighty Allah, except for the most dutiful among them. As the world sinks more profoundly into the 21st century, Saudi Arabia needs a dogged, resilient, and intelligent workforce to effectively control the overwhelming foreseeable crowd of millions coming to perform their religious acts. Nigerians are the perfect candidates. Let Saudis beam their searchlight and take the opportunity from the most resilient black people in the world, called Nigerians.

It is not all bad news; my last stay in Makkah last week led me to discover an African restaurant owned by a Nigerian, located on Shara Mansur near Bin Ladan mosque. It was the only one in the two holy cities, and it had opened just a few days earlier. I spoke with the owner and encouraged them to open more restaurants in Saudi Arabia's three major cities: Jeddah, Makkah, and Madinah. I hope we are on the path to a glorious future for Nigerians living in Saudi Arabia.