Joey Terna Agor :
Chapter 3 of Nigeria's constitution is devoted entirely to citizenship, definition, types of, acquisition, etc. Foreign wives of Nigerian citizens get citizenship by registration. Foreign husbands of Nigerian women can acquire Nigerian citizenship through naturalization which is more demanding - they have to live in a given state of their choice for so many years, assimilate and be accepted by the community in which they reside as part of the requirements for the grant of Nigerian citizenship. This is not unreasonable. Nigeria has over 300 distinct ethnicities, that's already a challenge. A permissive immigration or citizenship law will likely result in abuse and the influx of new ethnicities/nationalities that can only compound our ethnic mix. A ready example can be seen in the influx of foreign Fulani who exploit the ECOWAS protocol on free movement/transhumans that has spawned our herders/farmers clashes and banditry even though Fulani are one of Nigeria's local tribes but the foreign ones are not Nigerian. You can equally see the problems of integration or assimilation that European countries face from permissive migration policies especially from Muslim countries, how this has given rise to violent extremism driven by religious beliefs. So, it will be a mistake to presume that just because other countries have permissive immigration/citizenship laws, therefore, Nigeria should have similar laws. Each country has its history and rationale for implementing laws and Nigeria is Nigeria, it is not those other countries, neither is she obligated to copy them, so, understand that our citizenship law is well grounded in history, logic and reason. By the way, if you have a foreign husband, he is eligible for a residency permit (CERPAC) which is renewable until he naturalises, that is if he chooses to. Don't forget, population is the least of our problems, I am sure the same goes for China and India. Let Nigeria breath!😂
2026-07-12 16:29:58