Kathmandu: Nepali Congress central member Ajay Babu Shiwakoti has strongly condemned what he called a “serious syndicate” exploiting Nepali trainee workers seeking employment in Japan. In a statement released on social media Friday morning, Shiwakoti called for immediate action against those responsible, accusing them of financially and emotionally exploiting the youth through unnecessary procedures.

Shiwakoti criticized the ongoing practice of requiring language tests even after the Japanese side has approved visas for workers. “When the Japanese government has already issued visas and accepted the workers, it is illegal and inhumane to subject them to another language test,” he said. “It’s a deliberate effort to confuse, delay, and extract money from them.”

He accused the Department of Foreign Employment of colluding with the JICA Alumni Association Nepal (JAN), which he described as the key player in a longstanding exploitative network. Shiwakoti demanded an immediate end to this partnership, describing JAN as a “model of this syndicate” that has profited from youth labor for over 15 years.

“This situation is no less horrific than the visit visa scams,” he added. “A handful of individuals and organizations are misusing the name of government offices to ruin the futures of innocent youth and waste the hard-earned savings of their families.”

Calling for good governance and accountability, Shiwakoti urged the Department of Foreign Employment to take bold steps to restore transparency in the foreign employment sector. He demanded the removal of unauthorized organizations from the labor processing system and the initiation of a thorough investigation and legal action.

“If we cannot respect and protect the dignity of our youth’s labor, we lose the very moral foundation needed to solve unemployment within the country,” he concluded.