Nigerians living in the United Kingdom have protested against rising cases of certificate of sponsorship scams in the country.

Some UK-based Nigerians assembled on Marsham Street in London to participate in the protest on Thursday, according to Sunday PUNCH .

A live video on TikTok seen by our correspondents showed a woman, Christiana Olabisi, aka Ferrari, with a megaphone, as she called on victims of the scams to join in the demonstration.

She said, “No more scamming. Enough is enough. Whether you like it or not, all of you are going to get reported.

“We are here waiting for you, for those of you still wanting to join the protest, we are waiting for you. Don’t let anybody scare you. This is a country where you can speak up. Don’t let anyone scare you with deportation. If anyone has collected money from you, this is the time to speak up. Tomorrow may be too late.

“We have a lot of people making others cry in this country. A group of people collecting huge sums of money from the newcomers; we are here to inform the Home Office about what is going on in this country. They don’t even know the huge sums being collected. We are going to expose you,”

According to an e-flier circulated on X last week, which was turned into a banner on the protest ground, 30 suspects were identified with their photos.

The flier, titled, ‘Say No To UK CoS Scam’ read, ‘Faces of people scamming people with thousands of pounds for CoS in the UK.’

Speaking with our correspondent, Olabisi said there were about 10 people at the protest, which was held in front of the UK Home Office.

“One of the officials later addressed us that we should write a formal letter for the Home Office to address our grievances,” she added.

Victims share ordeals

Certificate of Sponsorship is a visa scheme designed for licensed organisations by the UK government to enable them to hire overseas workers, who they bring into the European country. CoS is supposed to be free.

Overseas workers can only make valid visa applications from their countries if they have the backing of such licensed companies, who are also called sponsors.

Many desperate foreign workers looking for such visas have, however, fallen victim to fraudulent agents and companies who demand huge sums of money in return for the favour.

Some immigrants, who once had blue-collar jobs, have been discovered to leave them with assurance from their agents that they would get skilled jobs in the UK.

However, many get stranded in the UK with no jobs as they depend on food banks for survival after losing millions of naira spent on relocation.

During the protest in London, hundreds of people who claimed to be resident in the UK and joined the livestream on TikTok, commended the organisers of the demonstration.

A caller, who did not identify himself, recounted how a fraudster defrauded his friend of £15,000.

“My friend, along with his wife and two children, paid a whopping £15,000 to a guy in the UK for a Certificate of Sponsorship. I warned them not to, but they didn’t listen.

“When they got to Manchester, I learned they paid even more money to another person for the same CoS. But nothing came out of it,” he said.

A woman, who identified herself as Ehizojie Joy, said, “I have been here for two years, yet no shifts from my employer after paying £10,000. I have only been managing 20-hour shifts from another employer.”

Another victim said, “I paid £12,000, and now the company has stopped taking my calls.”

A content creator, Musa Eunice, also shared her experience, revealing how her cousin was allegedly scammed of £20,000.

“Na £20,000 they collected from my cousin. Wicked people,” she wrote.

Another user recounted losing £12,000 to the fraudsters.

“Since I arrived in the UK, I have had no work. I have been struggling financially after paying £12,000 in debt for the CoS,” he wrote.

More victims came forward with similar stories in the comment section.

Juicy.cake1 wrote, “I got duped £3,000. The person who scammed me is on the list,” while another unnamed user said, “I was scammed out of £8,500. Please, I need help recovering my money.”

Eddyking71 stated, “They already scammed me out of £11,000.”

Another user, Sovereign_ruler, shared how the scam had caused his mother heartbreak.

“My mom has been in pain after being scammed out of her hard-earned money by one Toyin,” he wrote.

In a live broadcast, another TikToker, Rita Onyekweli (@rita4delta), recounted how the fraudulent schemes ruined lives both at home and abroad.

She said, “A lot of people are in my DMs, crying. These scammers prey on people’s vulnerabilities and take thousands of pounds from them. Do you know how much that is? Some people sold their properties, while others borrowed heavily just to raise the money, only to be scammed.

“These people charge between £12,000 to £20,000, but when the victims arrive in the UK, there is no job for them. Some, after paying everything, even get their visas denied because they were given fake CoS. Why are Africans like this? If you don’t have a CoS, why take someone’s money? It is disheartening!”

CoS scam is rampant in the UK with many immigrants falling victims.

In August 2023, Sky News investigated and reported how many Africans were exploited by fraudulent companies.

Victims who shared their ordeals on condition of anonymity, said they were relying on food banks to survive as they had been left stranded after paying thousands of pounds for CoS.

“There is a big scam going on about this. A lot of people are being scammed and deceived every day that there are jobs in the UK,” one of the victims stated.

Also, DailyMail in 2024 investigated a Baptist minister, who was arrested after admitting on camera to charging £9,000 to arrange a job in three days.

One migrant said he paid £6,000 cash for a Certificate of Sponsorship at a meeting in one of the company’s offices in the north-west of England, but did not get the sponsorship.

Suspect denies allegation

One of the people whose pictures were put on the protest poster, Mojisola, denied the allegation.

She disclosed that she had already taken steps to clear her name and seek redress through legal means.

Mojisola told Sunday PUNCH that she had taken legal action against her accuser at the King’s Bench Division of the Royal Courts of Justice in London.

“The allegations made against me on social media are completely false.

“I have commenced legal actions against her and as this matter is now before the court, I will not be making any further comments at this time,” she said.

NiDCOM counsels protesters

The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission said while it was not aware of the Thursday protest, visa scams had been a serious cause for concern.

The NiDCOM Director of Media, Public Relations and Protocol Unit, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, said most Nigerians fell victim because they did not use legal channels to relocate.

“My advice for them is that they should seek legal redress,” the NiDCOM spokesperson said. “They should tread cautiously as they protest. They should not take the law into their own hands. They should remain law-abiding even as they register their displeasure.”

The Home Office has yet to respond to enquiries on the protest as of press time.(Sunday PUNCH)