Emdee Tiamiyu, a Nigerian YouTuber who said in an interview with BBC that Nigerian students do not migrate to the United Kingdom for degrees but for greener pastures, has finally explained why he made the claim.
The YouTuber has come under fire on social media after British Home Secretary Suella Braverman revealed in a statement on Tuesday that Nigerians and other international students will be prevented from bringing dependants into the UK beginning in January 2024.
Earlier in an interview with BBC, Emdee Tiamiyu asserted that “It is not like they [Nigerian students] need the degree, they need the degree as an access road to come into the country. So, a lot of these people their priorities shifted really fast…It’s not really about their education.”
The interview clip went viral shortly after the UK forbade international students from bringing dependents with them.
Many people reacted negatively to the YouTuber’s assertion.
However, in an Instagram Live Session with prominent Nigerian media personality Daddy Freeze, Tiamiyu stated that he made the claim because he was being “real.”
“I know I’d have to strike a balance between being genuine and diplomatic,” he remarked. People will be offended if you are genuine. People are cursing you because you mentioned why they are japaring [migrating overseas]…”
Daddy Freeze went on to say that he doesn’t mind what the YouTuber said so much as where he said it.