China – The new face of apartheid
In exasperation, I offered a loud apology on behalf of Nigeria for letting down its citizens and subjecting them to this humiliation. But the lady to whom I was addressing my pun did not understand the insult – she barely spoke English. It is typical of the quality of people that iron-clad China unleashes on […]
In exasperation, I offered a loud apology on behalf of Nigeria for letting down its citizens and subjecting them to this humiliation. But the lady to whom I was addressing my pun did not understand the insult – she barely spoke English. It is typical of the quality of people that iron-clad China unleashes on any country in search of partnership without rules or regulations. A visibly mismanaged country cannot guarantee the dignity of its citizenry who are forced to grovel before semi-literate foreigners who deride their educational and social status.
What Nigeria gains from its unbridled and uncoordinated association with China is less than what it loses. Our few surviving industries are killed by uncontrolled incursion of sub-standard goods from China. They include supposed Chinese traditional medication without adequate control or registration. Their effects on the human physiognomy are ever unlikely to be properly evaluated. Sub-standard textile products are smuggled into our local markets. This kills the few surviving industries; leads to loss of income by Nigerians and affects the scores of people who depend on their meagre wages in an extended family system. Worse still, a recent television report from Lagos showed that the Chinese do not pay appropriate taxes for the few legitimate businesses that they openly engage in.
A few years back, a Chinese company locked up its Nigerian workers up and went with the keys. When there was a fire outbreak, only a few people could be saved. But that did not stop a bakery in Abuja from employing the same inhumane tactics in treating its workers. Such inhumane treatment may be standard practice in China; they are clearly against Nigerian law. Yet, nobody has cautioned the Chinese or prosecuted them for these wide practices.
The Chinese are said to be eyeing feeble Nigerian banks. The effect of their intervention on the banking sector can only be imagined than felt. These people are not known to follow noble principles in business and a sleazy country like Nigeria is a fertile ground to practice anything. The Chinese do not follow the principles and procedures of other advanced countries. Worse still it has no independent press, a real parliament or a thriving rights group that can bring it to book for crimes committed abroad.
China has its eyes on Africa’s oil, and naturally sees Nigeria fitting the bill. Indeed, it once struck a $2 billion oil deal in the country along with a whopping contract to help revamp our moribund rail system. China is yet to turn the sod for building a refinery and the so-called rail deal is as moribund as any business they’ve struck. As usual, nobody is asking questions and the Chinese are gallivanting across the land showing that they regard Nigeria as a crooked country with which to do crooked deals.
China does not respect the rights of its citizens at home and it will be absurd to expect it to respect the rights of Nigerians. This perhaps explains the disposition of the female manager at the Jos confectionary and the docile attitude of his Nigerian staff who daily grovel at her feet. Over a decade since the inventors of apartheid have surrendered their ill-famed project, it is quite painful to see it thrive in Nigeria. Nigerians in China are not treated any better, they are overcharged, baton charged and dehumanised by the Chinese security on a daily basis, imprisoned and deported at will like common criminals. Painfully, an official of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs took the side of a foreign government in its dehumanisation of his own compatriots. This is the practicality of citizen-diplomacy a la Ojo Maduekwe.
It would amount to double jeopardy if the Chinese are allowed to abuse our citizens in China and here in Nigeria while our government stands by and watch. If this government finds it impossible to protect Nigerians in China against official dehumanisation, it must not permit its citizens within its own shores to be treated as second class citizens by people with no better social or educational status other than that they have established some business in Nigeria.
The allegations of human rights abuse by Chinese companies against Nigerians must be thoroughly investigated and punished. This is the only way to assure Nigerians that they have a government that cares and send strong signals to those bent on treating Nigerians like criminals that its government would stand by its citizens and defend their fundamental rights anywhere. This is what true citizen diplomacy should mean. This apartheid must stop – NOW.