The Editor,

THIS is in response to a statement made by the Honourable Ms Gail Teixeira, Member of Parliament, that a number of foreign students here have been complaining about the length of time it takes to process their extensions. According to her, this has been a concern particularly for the large batch of Nigerian students studying at the Texila American University.While commending the efforts of the Parliament of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, I wish to state that as an active member of the Nigerian community in Guyana and  the Caribbean, to the best of my knowledge the backlog of applications for visas and extensions requested by the Nigerian community in Guyana, which had been pending for up to nine years in some instances, has been cleared.

As a matter of fact, a letter of commendation is being discussed to commend the Minister of Citizenship and his staff for reverting to the three-week deadline, as stipulated in the Immigration Act, for the processing of these applications.

I would use this medium to advise Texila American University to desist from misleading members of the Parliament by using the name (Nigeria) for their political and economic gains.

I would equally like to remind the good people of Guyana that Nigeria as a matter of international policy does not meddle in the internal politics of any country, but rather opts to cooperate and work with every country for the good of all

Onoja.Atta.Onoja,

Nigerian Association in Guyana