•Titilopeyemi Olaniyi
A 32-year-old widow and mother of two, Titilopeyemi Olaniyi, in this interview talks about the horrors of travelling to Libya by road after she was promised a trip to Europe, but ended up in the North African country and her experience in a Libyan prison for five months before getting deported to Nigeria, reports Sunday PUNCH.
Excerpts:
Where are you from, and what is your occupation?
I’m from Ibadan in Oyo State. I am the first of four children, and I’m a widow with two kids. I’m not working currently due to the situation with me.
What happened to your husband?
He had an accident in 2020. He later died after several attempts to help him at the hospital.
As a single mother, what impact did leaving your child behind have on you emotionally and mentally?
I was not happy about leaving my children behind. I left them in the care of my mum, who was also in Ibadan at that time.
Why did you travel to Libya in the first place?
I decided to travel because I wanted to support myself. After my husband died, there was no support, and taking care of the two young children as a widow was difficult. I felt I would get a good job if I left the country and went to a different country. I travelled to Libya in 2023, and I spent two weeks on the road before arriving at our final destination in Libya.
What were you doing before you travelled?
I was selling drinks in wholesale and retail. But when my husband had the accident, we spent so much money at the hospital, and it drained my business just before he died.
What was the experience like travelling to Libya by road?
It was a hectic and uncomfortable journey. There was little or no food, and many people died along the way. We travelled in a pick-up truck, and there was not enough space for someone to sit. Not everyone made it to the last stop. I remember one guy fell from the vehicle while we were moving because there was not enough space for him to sit comfortably.
It was so tight, but thank God I made it there safely. I remember calling the names of my children and my husband while crying several times; I kept on telling myself that I embarked on the trip because I did not want my children to suffer. My broker promised to take me to Europe, but she took me to Libya instead.
When you arrived in Libya, what was your experience like?
After suffering on the road for two weeks, I entered another phase of suffering because the lady who took me in, Bola, made sure I paid her all the money I owed before she set me free. She took me to work as a maid for a year in an Arab man’s house, and even when I fell sick, it was the Arab man who took me to the hospital for treatment.
I even had an injury on my leg that had to be stitched, but she did not care. I was never given any money by the Arab while I worked with him. Some of the brokers who accommodate people in Libya usually leave them to fend for themselves after the debt is paid in full.
I was clothed and fed by the Arab man for the whole year. I never set eyes on Bola again, even after I completed the payment of my debt. I was not able to send money home to my mother, who was taking care of my children while I was there.
My mother was responsible for my children’s school fees while I was in Libya. I usually used the Arab man’s phone to speak with my mother and my kids because my broker took the phone I travelled with and never returned it.
Was your plan to work as a maid in Libya?
After I finished paying my broker, I went on to look for another job. I was lucky to get a job at a hospital as a cleaner. I worked there from 8 am in the morning till 8 pm. The hospital was a three-storey building, and I was the only one cleaning the entire building.
I was not sure what type of jobs they had; all I wanted was to work so I could save up money. It was going well until I got arrested one day. I got the hospital job through a friend’s agent.
What specific events or circumstances led to your arrest in Libya?
One day, I came back from work, but I was not aware that my neighbour had fought with someone in the afternoon, and one of the Arabs around had called the police that some Nigerians were fighting. By the time I got home, the policemen were alerted to my arrival, and that was how I was arrested without committing any crime.
I spent five months in prison before I was deported back to Nigeria. Sometimes, the police would just raid an apartment occupied by Nigerians, pack all the money they could find, and throw them in prison for no just cause.
I had to sign for deportation because there was no help from anyone, and I wanted to come back to my kids. Another reason I signed up for deportation was that my mum also had stroke at that time while she was taking care of my children. I was arrested on July 27, 2024, and I was deported on January 28, 2025. I can never forget the day I was arrested.
What were the conditions like during your time in the Libyan prison?
The conditions in the prison were tough and very uncomfortable. Once they hear that someone is a Nigerian, they treat the person poorly. They respect citizens of other countries more than they respect Nigerians. The food was bad; they gave us half-done rice in the morning without soup or salt.
Some Nigerians there have lost their sanity; some women who came into the prison pregnant died during labour because of the poor food and lack of healthcare services. Nigeria has the highest population of prisoners in the prison I was in. I was in the Sunaya Prison.
Were you given a fair hearing or legal representation when you were arrested?
The police did not allow me to defend myself. They said Nigerians were always causing a lot of problems and that we liked to fight in their country. They call us thieves, prostitutes, and all sorts of names.
Did anyone try to bail you out while you were in prison?
Nobody was able to. I did not have anyone there who could attempt to bail me.
What was your deportation process like?
The Nigerian embassy in Libya is not treating Nigerians well. When embassies from other countries visit their citizens, they usually bring relief items such as food, clothing, toiletries, and other essential supplies. But the Nigerian embassy only comes to ask Nigerian prisoners who want to be deported.
The Nigerian embassy representatives can register close to 100 people for deportation, but only deport 60 people, without accounting for the rest. Other embassies come to bail their citizens, but the Nigerian embassy representatives don’t.
I signed up for deportation, and it took more than two months before my terms and conditions were made available. Three Nigerians died on the 1st of January while waiting for their terms and conditions. The prison authorities had to call out the embassy because of the way we were being treated.
Since you did not commit any crime before your arrest, would you like to travel back to Libya?
I can’t go back there. Some of the friends I made there have been asking if I want to come back, but I told them I don’t want to. Some have asked if I would go to Iraq or Burkina Faso, saying they have people there, but I declined all the offers. I can never step foot in that place again. I still speak with some of the women who were deported along with me.
How did the experience in prison change you as a person and as a mother?
It was an awful experience. When I first arrived in Nigeria, I was vomiting and purging for a while because I was malnourished. I fell very sick. When my mother saw me, she was very sad.
What support did you receive from Nigerian authorities or humanitarian groups during your ordeal?
The Nigerian embassy in Libya has neglected many people in prison. They don’t help without demanding money, and even after collecting it, they often do nothing.
Since your return, how have you been coping and rebuilding your life in Nigeria?
It has not been easy. It’s still my family that takes care of my children for me because I have not been able to get a job yet. I have still not settled down properly since I got back. Sometimes, if I stand for too long, I get dizzy. The experience was traumatic, and I don’t wish anyone to go through such.
Recently, my mother still called me to inform me that my father had just gone to pay N20,000 as part of the school fees for my children. There is no support from anywhere.
My husband’s parents are also late, and there is no one I would leave my children with if not my parents. I am currently in my uncle’s place in Edo State, hoping to get a salary job because there is nothing I am doing in Ibadan.
Do you think enough is being done in Nigeria to discourage desperate migration, especially for women?
If the government can provide good jobs for people, not just women, many of us would not need to travel to Libya or any other country to work. The Libyan government pays their citizens; it pays the old people, it pays parents for their children, and it pays the widows as well, but our country doesn’t do such.
So, the poor situation of the country is what makes many people travel. If not for the death of my husband, which made things rough, I wouldn’t have any reason to travel to Libya because while he was alive, he was so caring, and the children and I were properly taken care of, but there was nothing we could do after his death.
The government should check it. If we count the number of other countries in Libyan prisons, they are just a little above 20, but Nigerians number as many as 200. Nigeria has the highest number of inmates in Libyan prisons.
What message would you give to other single mothers or young women considering taking the same route you did?
I would advise them not to go; they should stay with their children and work here. I planned to work for about four years because my children were still young when I travelled. I planned that after returning, I would be able to start a business again, take care of my children, and support my family. But when the plan did not go as I thought, I decided to return for the sake of my kids.
When we were deported, the government promised to help us, but from then till now, I have not heard anything from them. When we got to the airport, we were asked to write statements. I wrote my statement and added my mother’s phone number to it, but we have not received any call from government officials.
How would you want the government and the public to help you?
I want to start a business again. I have been thinking so hard, and I’m tired of thinking, and I don’t want to do something bad to myself. While I was married, I was doing fine. My family members are asking me to get married again, but there is no point in getting married when I don’t have a job that pays. I don’t want my children to suffer.
