Daily Mirror E-Paper

Immigration Dept. bears staggering cost of Rs.22.5mn annually

Food and maintenance for 75 illegal immigrants

BY KURULU KOOJANA KARIYAKARAWANA

The Department of Immigration and Emigration has to bear a staggering cost of Rs.22.5 million annually to maintain about 75 illegal immigrants detained at its camp in Mirihana, which is an unnecessary expense during these trying times, its sources said.

Sources within the department said that currently there are about 75 foreigners kept at its Detention Centre in Mirihana and out of which about 45 are from Nigeria. The food and maintenance cost for these detainees have been estimated at Rs.22.5 million per year and the department is bearing this expense for the past three years, which is a staggering sum especially during the present economically difficult period.

Although many discussions were held by the authorities to return these illegal migrants to their homelands it has been another issue as most of them face legal charges for various crimes in Sri Lankan courts. Sources said except for the 45 Nigerians, the rest of the foreigners from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh face only minor charges of overstaying in Sri Lanka for job purposes and violating immigration laws.they could be deported at any time as soon as they get their return airfare ready.

However, the problem persist with the Nigerians, whom face tough criminal charges for engaging in financial scams like credit card frauds, illegal transfers of foreign exchange and topping up accounts.their cases are being heard from time to time and until the court cases are completed the department could not deport them.

When President Gotabaya Rajapaksa came into power since 2019 several top level meetings had been held with the participation of the officials of the Department of Immigration and Emigration, Ministry of Defence and the Attorney General’s Department to expedite measures to send these foreigners back, even at the government’s expense, the sources further said.

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2022-05-24T07:00:00.0000000Z

2022-05-24T07:00:00.0000000Z

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