AFTER 38 YEARS IN THE UK, A PHYSICALLY CHALLENGED NIGERIAN MAN FACES DEPORTATION.

Babatunji Wusu –

After spending 38 years in the UK, Anthony Olubunmi George, a 61-year-old crippled Nigerian, faces deportation from the UK, according to the Home Office.

George left Nigeria in 1986 when he was 24 years old, and he has been in the UK ever since without ever being convicted of a crime.

The 61-year-old suffered two strokes in 2019 that significantly affected his speech and movement, according to the Guardian UK.

According to reports, George claimed to have had multiple spells of homelessness and that he no longer has any family relations living in Nigeria.

He acknowledged that he had lost count of the innumerable friends who had provided him with support over the years.

The Home Office has rejected George’s requests for permission to stay in the UK on several occasions; the most recent denial took place on May 7, 2024.

His former attorneys filed a forged entry stamp in his passport in 2005, and the police and legal authorities have subsequently been notified.

But George admitted in a Guardian interview that he didn’t even know about the passport stamp until a few years later.

George’s problems, in the opinion of his current attorney, Naga Kandiah of MTC Solicitors, are related to his subpar prior legal counsel.

The Home Office said that the case was not considered unique in their most recent denial.

Kandiah has appealed the most recent denial, citing unfairness.

He said, “My client has been living in limbo for 38 years, with no family, has suffered two strokes and has no family left in Nigeria.

“His situation is not just because of Home Office policies but also because of poor representation by previous solicitors who failed to uphold professional integrity and ethical standards.”

A spokesperson for the Home Office, speaking with the aforementioned publication, said, “Applications have to be considered on their merits in accordance with the immigration rules, and applicants are responsible for demonstrating that they meet these rules.”