Deported Nigerian student Olukunle Elukanlo said yesterday he hoped to collect his passport and visa by tomorrow and perhaps be on his way back to Ireland by Friday.
He was contacted by the Irish Embassy in Lagos on Sunday evening and told that a new visa would be ready for him when he called.
Elukanlo was deported two weeks ago, but Minster for Justice Michael McDowell reversed the deportation order after a public outcry and protests from his classmates.
The Palmerstown Community College student is due to sit his Leaving Certificate in June. Yesterday he told The Irish Times that he had no school books with him and so he had missed two weeks of study, as well as school. "But I will still try to do my best when I get back," he said. Asked if he hoped he would be able to stay in Ireland indefinitely, rather than the six months stipulated by Mr McDowell, he said "that is up to them. I can't talk about that yet. All I want to do is just to get there. I can't wait".
Meanwhile, Residents Against Racism has drawn parallels between his case and the case of an 18-year-old Nigerian student named Nosa, who was due for deportation two weeks ago but was too ill to travel.
He was told to report to the Garda Immigration Bureau this afternoon instead. Ms Rosanna Flynn of Residents Against Racism said Nosa was married to a 17-year-old Nigerian immigrant, Itohan, and the couple were now in danger of being separated forever.
She cannot be deported because she arrived as an unaccompanied minor and has not yet reached the age of 18, according to Ms Flynn. She said the couple did not know each other when they arrived here as unaccompanied minors several years ago.
"They are an absolutely brilliant young couple. He's Catholic, she's a born-again Christian and they are very religious. Her best friend died from female genital mutilation, three weeks after the operation and she ran away because of this." Ms Flynn said the couple would be an asset to Irish society as they were both studying and were model citizens.
Residents Against Racism is planning a demonstration against mass deportations, in O'Connell Street, Dublin, at 12.30pm on Saturday.
