Nigeria-Ghana relations beyond diplomacy –Onafowokan

One year ago you assumed duty as the Nigerian High Commissioner to Ghana, what was on your mind at the start of duty?First of all to be appointed by the Federal Government of Nigeria to come to Ghana is a measure of confidence the Foreign Affairs Minister reposed on me. Secondly that President Goodluck Jonathan […]

One year ago you assumed duty as the Nigerian High Commissioner to Ghana, what was on your mind at the start of duty?
First of all to be appointed by the Federal Government of Nigeria to come to Ghana is a measure of confidence the Foreign Affairs Minister reposed on me. Secondly that President Goodluck Jonathan agreed to the recommendation of the Foreign Affairs minister that I be posted to Ghana, because Ghana is very strategic in Africa, to be posted here for me was a vote of confidence. When I got down here, the embassy was facing a lot of challenges, but that was what I was groomed for in the 31 years I have been in the diplomatic service.
Looking back, how has it been in the past months as the High Commissioner here?
The journey of one year for a career diplomat is a long journey, because if you spent one year somewhere, in a place like Ghana, where you have huge consular problems, where you have strong but budding economic relations, where you have historical ties-very strong. I think I have to thank God.  After the issuance of credence, this was delayed for a long time. By the time I got here the traders were in disarray. I had several meetings with them. I saw the Minister of Trade, the problem continued to linger, but we managed to keep tempers down. After the election, Ghana had a new Minister of Trade who before then had become a friend. We started talking, Nigerian traders in Ghana and Ghana Union of Traders Association. I went to the Ghana Chamber of Commerce. I spoke to their leadership and they gave me their support. We got the Minister of Trade in Nigeria to speak with Hon. Haruna Idrissu and we were able to remove the lingering crisis. Those things, especially the obstacles in the area of trade by giving assurances on our side and later made to compromise. I want to tell you that immediately after the shops were re-opened. Before then some had been closed for more than two years. Today they are all re-opened. People are back in their businesses, that is a major victory. Secondly I visited five regions, resolved so many crises with the Nigerian community. We are seriously seeking the establishment of Ghanaian businesses in Nigeria. You might say what is Nigeria going to gain? A lot, we have comparative advantage. We have several areas of interest. Dangote is here, a lot of other businesses are coming here from Nigeria. Kasapreko is one of the largest industries in Ghana. Nigeria is their biggest market. Their prints also go to Nigeria. Apart from Dangote there are so many tertiary trades that we do not even record. One of our strategies is to keep talking to the people in order to make sure everything is in total control.
We hear there are Nigerians in prison here, what is being about them?
Yes, we have Nigerians in prison here. I visited them and of course naturally we are Nigerians, we sympathize with their circumstances. Most of them finding themselves there was their own making. But then……they were over 200, the number is falling. We give each of them GHs 100 to get back home because by the time they get out of prison they have nothing. In order not to go back to crime, we give each of them about GHs 100 and send them back home. The number of Nigerians in prison is dwindling, but we are still getting new ones every day. Only yesterday there were two Nigerians apprehended using Ghanaian names. They had duped a German of thousands of Euro. There were Nigerians who assumed Ghanaian names we have to ensure that they are really Nigerians. Then we will give them minimum assistance, which I have told the consular section to investigate. They are to ensure they are not maltreated. If they are guilty they should go to prison. But the United Nations advocates a certain level of treatment, even for criminals. Prisoners also have rights.
Nigeria and Ghana are supposed to have close cultural ties, is this being promoted?
We have just completed a befitting cultural center. Culture is part of diplomacy. The cultural centre which is in one of our old prime properties would have been demolished because it was just there. We built it and created a beautiful car park. We have written to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I actually spoke with the minister and right now they have to do the preparatory work. They need to distribute their report. Very soon, we will have a cultural centre here in Ghana, because we have one in London inside the High Commission. We have in Washington. We have a big one in New York. I have been to all of them but this one is slightly bigger and has a very modern setting, which is our own property where we can sell Nigerian food, have Nigerian music from every nook and cranny of Nigeria and serve Nigerian dishes.  As for Nigerian Cultural Centre, it is one of the pet projects we worked on for the last six months. Being that we are going to contract it out, the Nigerian High Commission will not run it by itself. We expect a little income to come in from there to the High Commission. And the Ghanaian laws will have to be obeyed. We want to do it correctly. Have it registered, in a way not to bring friction between our two countries. I don’t just want to go there and put Nigerian Cultural Centre-authentic Nigerian cuisine without the blessing of the authorities of the Ghanaian government. We will never violate their rules, but we are doing it in the way it should be done, properly. I am looking at before the 1st of October, we will be able to go there and eat eba, akpu or wheat or amala. And of course for me it will be jollof rice and goat meat. Where somebody who is somebody, who has money can go and eat a Nigerian meal most decently. One of the things I did apart from meeting with the All Nigerian Community Board of Trustees was also to meet with the body of Nigerian students. We have close to 100,000 students here in Ghana. And the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) Ghana chapter was in disarray. They were fighting among themselves. We were able to calm them down and we asked them to conduct an election. They have their officers in place now and their senate. For them it is very important. For us too it is very important, so that they can watch over themselves for the image of Nigeria.  We also are working, we met with the outgoing executive of the All Nigerian Community. We met with the Board of Trustees and we discussed issues and we have set up an electoral committee. They are going to have an election. They are going to have it here at the High Commission and supervised by us to appoint new officers to run their affairs. They have been fighting among themselves over two years. We have intervened seriously in the Yoruba crisis in Kumasi. But very importantly, in the area of trade- the formal sector, the first thing I did at the Oak Plaza Hotel was to bring all the formal Nigerian businesses, that is the banking sector, insurance, oil and gas together, asked of their problems and tried to figure out how I could help them, and they spoke a lot to us. I encouraged them to form an association. I have not heard anything about that.
And you stopped there?
We didn’t stop there because they have not formed an association. I booked an audience with the President of the Republic of Ghana, John Dramani Mahama and by the grace of God, I took all the MDs of all Nigerian banks, MDs of all Nigerian Insurance companies in the country. We paid a courtesy call on him. We pledged our solidarity for the people of Ghana and for the government of Ghana. This softened the ground for Nigerian businesses here. Because Ghanaians know that we are not rivals, rather we are complementing each other. We are brothers and sisters. The relationship between Nigeria and Ghana goes beyond even diplomacy. You either have a brother or a sister, or a daughter or a cousin in either of the two countries. So we were able to bring them together. The president of Ghana was very grateful. As I am talking to you, more Nigerian businesses are coming in. First of them is First Atlantic Bank which has opened here. They are referred to as First Atlantic Bank, but they are Nigerian owned.  I am sure that very soon First Bank is coming here too. By December by the grace of God, everything would have been formalized. Ghana is a good place to do business. We are talking seriously with the Ghanaian government on the repatriation of profits. I had a lengthy meeting with the chairlady of the Ghana Investment Promotion Council (GIPC) who sought audience with me on Friday. We met for a while, then we met again yesterday and we had a very beautiful discussion. They are about to re-position the GIPC and they wanted to know how we can help. I made recommendations on what the Nigerian Investment Promotion Council (NIPC) and the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC) are doing. They can learn a lot from them. We are going to arrange meetings for them to meet. But while doing that, we took advantage of that to suggest to the chairlady about the repatriation of investments of Nigerian businesses back home. You know in Nigeria you can bring in your money 100 per cent plus your profit provided it is genuine. For the Ghanaian economy to grow they can borrow that from Nigeria. If they keep disallowing people from repatriating their profits it is going to discourage businesses and invariably that will hurt Ghana, Nigeria and the sub-region. We are going to work on that so that we can bring to fruition a successful economic collaboration without punishing anybody by withholding their money with their investment.
For the much desired economic integration between Nigeria, Ghana and the entire sub-region to materialize, how do boost trade between the two countries?
Well, for me personally in my 31 years in foreign service I have shown a lot of interest in trade and international economic relationship. I was on the Economic Desk. I have been on the Investment Promotion Desk in London. In fact I was the first consular officer on that desk when it was created in London under Ali Mohammed. He was my boss then, and then there was the Trade Desk from the Ministry of Trade. Trade and investment is very important. As I told you a lot of things have been achieved like the GIPC, Chamber of Commerce is very solid in Nigeria. The Ghanaian Chamber of Commerce is very solid. We are working hard to attract investments to Nigeria. We are also trying to start what is called Nigeria- Ghana Business Council. Also I am aware that there is a Nigeria-Ghana Chamber of Commerce. I have met with the CEO of the Ghana Chamber of Commerce and some of its members. I believe these organizations cannot work parallel. If they decide they can team up together, but the most important thing is to promote investments into Nigeria.
What do you mean promote investments to Nigeria? What are Ghanaians coming to invest in Nigeria?
Ghanaians have told me that they are fortunate to be neighbours with Nigeria. With their 26 million, we are 160 million; we can create a market for them. I think organizing the Nigerian businesses community here with the Business Council or Chamber of Commerce will to a large extent appeal to them,   Ghanaians that have money want to buy into that big market. What they need do is to make money. We have billions here and you are selling to 10 million people, your profit margin will be low. But if you can sell to at least 80 million people in Nigeria like Kasapreko is doing. Seventy per cent of their production goes to Nigeria; their factory here is very big. What I am trying to urge them is to set up the same factory in Nigeria. They can sell the production here in Ivory Coast and other countries. Nigerians consume this product a lot.
One of the cardinal policies of President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration is to promote the welfare of Nigerians in the Diaspora. How has the embassy been able to discharge this responsibility? Also the issue of stranded Nigerians, how are they assisted?
You know with Nigeria, for me I don’t have any other country. My first responsibility is to look out for Nigerians. To make sure as much as possible they feel at home, they are happy. This High Commission is open to them. We have conducted the election of NANS. The Board of trustees and the executive of the All Nigerian Community just left here. I have been to several regions in Ghana. I have visited five now and the first point of call is the traditional ruler and the regional minister- they are like governors. First of all I meet fellow Nigerians. I have done that successfully.  And I always ask them questions about their welfare. When I meet with the traditional ruler or minister, I express my appreciation to them and very importantly to the Ghanaian society. I always acknowledge the help they have been rendering to Nigerians for years. Nigerians have been in Accra and Kumasi for more than 100 hundred years. We thank them for their charity. We encourage Nigerians to do good. If they have any problems we reach out to them. Only recently two Fulanis were killed. I dispatched somebody there, confirmed their identity and we spoke to the relevant authority to release their bodies for burial. We assisted them with the equivalent of US$250 to carry them back. On the issue of stranded Nigerians, a lot of Nigerians are marooned in Ghana, because the impression is that go to Ghana, gold is everywhere, you can pick them on the streets. In most cases as I have seen, even this morning, they do not even have travelling documents. But no matter how bad your child is, you won’t wish the child to be eaten up by a lion. They are still my children. When they come they say we are stranded. And we look at their case to be very genuine, not trying to exploit the goodness of the Federal Government. You want to go back home. We will examine the case. On the average on a daily basis we spend about US$50. This morning I have spent over US$200 for two of them who came here for one thing or the other, they are stranded. Every time a prisoner is released from jail we give the person GHs 100 to go home, so that they do not compound our problem by going back to crime. If he does it the second time he is on his own. But if you come here for the first time, we have your photograph. We have your identity, you will benefit from that GHs 100 because you cannot keep too many Nigerians away from here. It is not that we are doing welfare, but if we do not do it they will become a nuisance to this society and our name will be tarnished. Nigerian name will be tarnished. It is better to take their rot back home and let hide them that is exactly what we are doing. And also we have cooperated with NATIP to repatriate a whole lot of them by road and I think some of them were even flown back some time ago. The ones that came for prostitution or domestic helps whatever we sent them back. We do not cast them away. They are just unfortunate. They are human beings that need to be assisted. And we reach out extensively to them.
Many Nigerian missions abroad can issue Nigerian passports, when will this mission commence the process?
It is not a moribund idea, it is on. It is very alive. In fact I thought that by last year we could have started issuing passports. The machines are downstairs and we have spoken to the current Comptroller-General of Immigration and he assured us that it will be done. The Senate President has promised that it will be done. We have created a small portacabin by the gate, so that the whole place will not be crowded. You know the people who installed this machine have a lot to do. From what I learnt they are in Sudan once they finish they will come here. Then Nigerians will be the position to get their passports here.  But before I conclude on that we have created a small booklet of Nigerian history, geography and culture, so that people going to Nigeria for the first time we can give them a copy of the booklet. It will help to banish the tales and idea that Nigeria is a dangerous place to travel to. They keep saying Nigeria is this, Nigeria is that, but more than any other country in Sub-Sahara-Africa Nigeria under President Jonathan attracted more Foreign Direct Investments than any other country last year. Nigeria is a land of prosperity.
The Ghanaian government has introduced the compulsory registration of foreigners for a fee of US$ 120. What does this portend for millions of Nigerians resident in the country?
I was wondering that once you pay your resident permit, why you should pay for another registration. I took it up on the 5th of May with the Foreign Minister, when I visited her office the last time for a courtesy call. And she was very frank in her explanation. She explained that it was not her ministry that is in charge of that. It is in fact an office in the Ministry of Interior that is in charge. She had promised to look into that and get back to us. We also made our own enquiries. Do we charge this money in Nigeria too? And from what I gathered it is not so. It is only when you lose the card that you are made to pay not ab initio. So we are talking to Ghanaian authority. I do not think Nigerians have started paying. Under ECOWAS protocol I cannot find any provision for that. I think that at the high level, the ministerial level it might be discussed in order to find a lasting solution.