Mr. Speaker, demands on today's youth are heavy. Tuition fees are soaring. Many take out sizeable loans to complete even the most basic post-secondary education. Some try to curb their debt by taking on part-time jobs. As a teacher, I applaud them.
Victoria Ordu and Ihuoma Amadi, university students from Nigeria studying in Saskatchewan, were doing just that: looking for work part time as they studied. Unbeknownst to them, a job was in violation of their student visa. Ten months ago, deportation orders were issued against these students for making an honest mistake. These students have now missed an entire academic year while in sanctuary at a church.
I join with my New Democrat colleagues here, the Saskatchewan government and university officials in asking the Minister of Public Safety and the Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism to send these hard-working students back to school.