US to award 16 officials for exceptional care of American woman

16 government officials will be awarded certificates of appreciation by the US Consul General on February 18 for their excellent care of an American woman, Onija Andrew Robinson.

The US Consul General will present certificates of appreciation to 16 officers and employees of the FIA, as well as police and airport medical staff, for the excellent care and kindness shown to Onijah.

According to sources, certificates of appreciation will be presented to Director FIA Karachi Noman Siddiqui, Deputy Director Immigration Bahawal Dosto, Assistant Director Immigration Abdul Jabbar, Immigration Officers Ghulam Sarwar and Omar Daraz, Police Officers Shabana Jilani, Nosheen Akhtar, SHO Airport Kaleem Musa, Protocol Officers Syed Danish, Furqan Rahim, Sagheer Ahmed, Director Airport Security Force Ehsanullah, Executive Director of Airport Medical Staff Shahid Rasool, Joint Director Muhammad Suleman, Deputy Director Yahya Tanio and Dr. Chani Lal at a special ceremony.

After leaving Pakistan in early February, Onija, who travelled there to marry a man but was rejected due to family pressure, stopped in Dubai on February 7 with an on-arrival visa. She was supposed to be on her way back to the US, but after not complying with the plan, she has now been placed in protective custody.

She was scheduled to board Emertite flight EK203 to New York but chose not to despite her family and US officials expecting her.

Videos of her strolling the streets of Dubai circulated the internet yet again, after which the American agencies alert UAE authorities.

Onijah in Pakistan

Onijah Andrew Robinson, the American woman who had been in Karachi ever since her Pakistani lover abandoned her after making false promises of marriage last year, now returned to the US on February 7, 2025.

She reportedly landed in Karachi on October 11, 2024, while her visa was set to expire on November 10, but despite her online paramour's refusal to marry her, she chose to stay.

In February, she was taken to Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC), Karachi, with concerns for her mental health.

According to media sources, incoherence in speech and swelling in her hands and feet caused concerns. Admitted to the  Department of Psychiatry, reports of her detailed examination are due.

Jeremiah Andrew Robinson, Onijah’s son, revealed in a video statement earlier this week that his mother is mentally unwell and experiences cognitive hindrances. He stated that her claims and actions must be perceived and dealt with accordingly.

He also claimed that Onijah was supposed to return to the US two weeks after she arrived in Pakistan in October, and that he and his brother had bought a return ticket.

The 33-year-old US national’s criminal record shows that she was arrested in Charleston County in South Carolina in 2021, “ENTERING PREMISES AFTER WARNING”. It also revealed that a bail bond of $465 is possibly not paid.

On February 7 a medical board gave the green signal for her to travel, deeming her fit to go, after which the police escorted her to the airport. US Consulate staff also paid her a visit in the hospital, persuading her to go back to the US, and organised her flight.

While Onijah Robinson was in Pakistan, people around the world, especially in America, followed her story with zesty as her odyssey turned into a media storm. Foreign netizens shared how their perspective of Pakistanis changed upon witnessing the hospitality given to Onija and the patience people here showed towards her. Comparisons were drawn with the depiction of Pakistanis in Western media, which is often bleak and fearful.