Pakistan’s High Commissioner Saqlain Syedah on Saturday, October 2, stated that their citizens were taken advantage of and robbed by job agents in Nairobi.
The envoy revealed that Pakistanis trusted their Kenyan agents who fleeced them millions of shillings resulting in their strandedness in the city.
Syedah maintained that Kenyan job agents pocketed millions in the recent crisis that left thousands of Pakistani nationals at the mercy of the Kenyan government.
Following the influx of Pakistan nationals in Kenya, the government moved on Wednesday, September 29, to cancel a visa-free transit agreement with Pakistan.
Interior Principal Secretary Karanja Kibicho ordered police and the immigration department to crack down on illegal foreigners.
“The majority of these travellers have originated from Pakistan and have valid transit visas to Saudi Arabia that are issued on arrival,†Kibicho stated.
“Going forward, the government will restrict the number of foreigners transiting through the country to levels that do not pose a risk to Kenya’s national interest,” he added.
The government acknowledged that the Pakistans were on their way to Saudi Arabia but maintained that they will be looking into the paperwork for those in Nairobi to avoid cases of illegal immigrants in Kenya.
It is not uncommon to hear cases of Kenyan job agents duping people who are searching for greener pastures in the middle east and even in the country.
On Wednesday, July 28, 2021, employment agencies taking Kenyans to work in the Middle East were put on notice for facilitating what the Central Organisation of Trade Union (Cotu) termed as “modern slaveryâ€.
In June 2021, a suspect was arrested by the DCI over claims of defrauding young job seekers more than Ksh25 million.
The Lang’ata Women Prison officer was charged as the leader of the job scam.
Source: KENYAGIST.COM