Nigerian gay who’s facing deportation from UK says he might be killed

Adeniyi Raji, a Nigerian gay seeking asylum in the United Kingdom (UK), is currently battling deportation to his home country.

Being among persons selected to be deported to their home countries, Raji is afraid of returning to Nigeria considering the death threat he has gotten already.

“I’m in the UK because I need protection. If I’m returned to Nigeria, they will kill me,” Raji said.

“So after all that we did to you before, you are still a practising homosexual. Wait until we see you down here, that will be the end of you,” a message Raji alleged was from one of those threatening him, read.

Raji is not new to unusual times like this. In 2017, he faced deportation to Nigeria but was later allowed to continue living in the UK.

Reacting to Raji’s situation, the Home Office said the deportation of asylum seekers is usually by court order after careful consideration of the situation.

“The UK only ever returns individuals to their country of origin when the Home Office and, where applicable, the courts deem it is safe to do so,” a Home Office spokesperson said.

“All asylum and human rights claims are carefully considered in accordance with our international obligations. Each individual assessment is made against the background of relevant caselaw and the latest country information.

“The New Plan for Immigration will fix the broken immigration system and expedite the removal of those with no right to be here,” the spokesperson added.

It is, however, pertinent to note that the Nigerian law prohibits the LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, transsexual, queer, questioning, intersex, asexual, ally, pansexual) community.

Therefore, persons with these sexual orientations risk about 14 years in jail according to the Same-Sex Prohibition Act signed by former President Goodluck Jonathan on January 7, 2014.