The many things that one has to endure to survive in Germany, by Ibeka, scribe of Nigerian community in Berlin

I have been here since 1994 and I have been living in Berlin since. I have also taken part in all the Nigerian activities held here in Berlin, political, social and cultural activities. How has your experience been? As an I. T. consultant, you have risen above some peculiarities because most people in Nigeria believe […]

I have been here since 1994 and I have been living in Berlin since. I have also taken part in all the Nigerian activities held here in Berlin, political, social and cultural activities.

How has your experience been? As an I. T. consultant, you have risen above some peculiarities because most people in Nigeria believe that an average Nigerian here does menial jobs?

I can’t really say that climbing to the upper echelon of the ladder has been rosy because it is a tough society where we live in. One has to be very strong and you have to get your priority right in order to get to achieve your goals. It has not been easy because, initially when I came here, I did not foresee how tough the German society is.

When I came, I started just like every other Nigerian who came here. I started by doing menial jobs to keep body and soul together  and to see what one can send home to extended family members in Nigeria. And then, while doing that, I was considering going to study or train to have a profession.

I came here at a very young age and I told myself that I cannot do menial jobs for the rest of my life. So, I really had to get myself professionally trained. There were several barriers, especially with the language, so I started taking one step at a time.

It is a tough thing to do but with perseverance and endurance, it is possible to make it. It would have been easier to make it elsewhere, like in the United Kingdom or America where language is not a barrier. So, to survive here, you first of all need to conquer the language barrier before you make any move at all. I don’t want to garnish my experience with so many rhetorics. All I can just say is that to survive here; you need to endure a lot of things.

For instance, when I came, I was not used to the cold weather. So, initially, it was tough but with time, I adapted and got along fine with everything.

Can you tell me more about the Nigerian community in Berlin? What is the association up to and how was it formed?

The Nigerian community in Berlin has undergone a lot of metamorphosis, in the sense that what is called the Nigerian community in Berlin today started as a student union. That is, Nigerian students who were in Berlin came together to form a union.

So, when they wanted to incorporate other Nigerians who were not students, for instance, in order to incorporate  those of us who came, not as students and also as part of the move to raise money for its various activities, the organization was converted into a Nigerian community.  

The majority of the founding fathers have left for home, while others have relocated elsewhere like to the United States or England and then it started to be called the Nigerian community, embracing all Nigerians from all walks of life, regardless of your profession, your status, creed, ethnic background or orientation.

It is called the Nigerian community because it embraces Nigerians irrespective of their status. There is also the Nigerian community at the German federal level but here in Berlin, the community is very strong. We also do take part in the federal chapter activities.

What is the relationship between the Nigerian community in Berlin and the Nigerian embassy here in Berlin?

The Nigerian community and the Nigerian embassy here in Berlin enjoy what I could say a very cordial relationship. It is always more cordial whenever we have an ambassador who sympathizes with Nigerians in Berlin, with their issues and sometimes, we do have ambassadors who only want to maintain the diplomatic relations alone. I won’t want to mention names but we do have some ambassadors who are very dear to our hearts. For instance, the outgoing ambassador, Alhaji Bin Rimdap, a very good Nigerian ambassador who has drawn the Nigerian community in Berlin and the federal chapter closely. I will say that presently, we are enjoying a very good relationship with the embassy.

In what specific ways does the association assist Nigerians in Berlin, maybe Nigerians who are in difficult conditions or who need some help. Specifically, what are the support you render to Nigerians here?

This is the most important aspect where since I assumed the office of the general secretary since February, 2005, we have really done a lot to help Nigerians. We have some Nigerians who will come to Berlin and their first port of call will be the Nigeria haus because it is a very popular House. So when they come, we will meet them and they will narrate their stories and how they have fared. So we try to help them, first, by locating where to harbor them, put them in a place and tell them how to go about.

It is not easy settling down in Germany. For some of them who are not financially well to do, members of the Nigerian community come together and contribute a token to help them to feed and accommodate them, or we recommend a place where we will keep them and that is one of the main functions of the Nigerian community.

When we come to other Nigerians who are also well to do in the society, when they have legal problems, we give them advice on how to go about it by recommending lawyers and we do accompany them to the court.There are also some Nigerians, who, after staying for some time illegally, they want to get their papers by marriage or any other means. We usually recommend them to the embassy by telling the embassy that they are bonafide Nigerians and can be proven.
Beside these, we have really helped a lot of Nigerians here and, as far as I know, the Nigeria house here in Berlin is always the first port of call, even the diplomats from the Nigerian embassy, whenever they come for the first time to Berlin to assume offices, always come here to acquaint themselves with Nigerians and to get some basic orientation about the German society. So, these are some of the things we have been doing but there are some difficulties which we try to surmount.

Now, as someone who has stayed for so long in Berlin, I am sure you are aware of the issues of the negative image of Nigerians abroad, especially as it involves criminal activities, credit card scams and other unwholesome acts. What has been the story of Nigerians in Berlin in this regard?
Nigeria, being a very vast country with a lot of ethnic groups and languages suffers alot. Many of West African citizens hide and disguise as Nigerians to perpetuate criminal activities, thereby bringing the country’s name into disrepute. Although this is not to say that Nigerians are not involved in these kinds of acts.
But I only want people, especially the international community, to be conscious of the fact that most of the atrocities being committed by black people are not all attributable to Nigerians. Most of these people are actually from other countries in black Africa, but since Nigeria is a big country with diverse cultures and ways of life, these criminals find it easy to hide under the cloak of the country to do these things. But having said that, I should also add that the image problem of Nigeria is not only limited to Berlin or Germany, but to other countries too.
What bothers us in Berlin is that the Nigerian government has not really done much in this regard. For instance, the Nigerian community here has made several attempts to contact various state governments in Nigeria to come here and other parts of the world where Nigerians reside to conduct seminars and workshops to orientate people.
Even at our level here, in Berlin, we have been making efforts to convince the German authorities that Nigerians are not criminals. Nigeria, no doubt, has been given a bad name, a fact which I would allude to the way the western media has painted us, but there are so many good things that happen in Nigeria and the Nigerians living here in German society are doing a lot of wonderful things which do not get media coverage. In terms of cultural issues, Nigerian ethnic groups have been doing a lot of cultural exhibitions and doing a lot of shows to demonstrate how wonderful Nigeria is. We have also been showcasing a lot of intellectual workshops by famous Nigerians and doing image making.
We have also been sensitizing them on corruption and how it takes two to tango and that if not that the western countries have been aiding and cooperating with corrupt leaders in Nigeria, the story would not have been this bad. It has always been that Nigeria is corrupt but nobody is talking about the role of the western and developed nations in the corruption process in Nigeria and this is where I would challenge the government in Nigeria to always enumerate the roles being played by western nations in the corruption process in Nigeria. It always takes two to tango. We have also been doing other things. For instance, presently, a film made by a Nigerian in conjunction with the Germans actually tell, our people back home how the society is and that they should not just wake up and say they are leaving for western Europe or America in search of greener pastures. They should do their home work properly and get prepared. That is why we have done such a film to show them that the situation here in Europe is not as rosy as they have been made to believe.

As a Nigerian who has lived in Berlin for this long, how have you been able to tackle the issue of hostility from the German community towards Nigerians and the blacks in general?
The hostility in this society is also prevalent in other western societies. I would say that the hostility we encounter here is not as serious as they have been made to look like. But once in a while, we have some attacks from the neo-Nazis, when they really spring up and make a lot of attacks on foreigners and at a certain time, it really subsided.
In all, I will say that it is a seasonal thing and one is really discriminated against more if you are unable to speak the language or communicate with the people. So one is forced to be on the defensive and it is termed as racism. Well, there is racism quite alright but it is not as pronounced as many think.
But I will call it institutional racism like one being unable to get a proper job after studying or  after vocational training. There you will see what is called racism. I think it is more pronounced in that aspect. Presently, I will say that Germany is safe and maybe, there might come another time when the right radicals will get up but I believe that there is a political undertone to these things. But I must say that presently, we are enjoying an atmosphere of tranquility and safety.

Are there any specific instances of racial violence against Nigerians here?
Yes, in the past, there have been specific incidences of racial and physical attacks on Nigerians and other Africans here but when these racists attack, the victims are more of the colored people from Africa. But for some years now, we have been enjoying some peaceful relationship.

Back home, young people regard Germany and other western countries as the promised land where the Golden Fleece lies. As somebody who has been here for this long, will you confirm these speculations?
Well, this is the area I want to challenge the media people and the government. There has to be a real media campaign to re-educate and re-indoctrinate Nigerian youths who think that Germany or Western Europe is a bed of roses where you pick gold on the streets. I think it is time to re-orientate our people that there are economic difficulties here, too, and I can tell you that a lot of Germans here are presently without jobs. But this is a fact. Lots of Germans who have vocational trainings here and who still do not have a job; I will count myself lucky to have a gainful employment. So, I challenge the government to re-educate our people. Even in Nigeria, if you work hard, there are successes to be made, so it’s not only in Europe or America.

Nigeria will celebrate her 50th anniversary in a couple of months now. Are there any specific events that are being put in place by the Nigerian community to commememorate this event in Berlin?
The Nigerian community is having a special committee to organize the independence anniversary and they are working hard. But I must say also that the anniversary could be gearing up very well in the UK or other English speaking parts of the world but here in Germany, the government has not really made much efforts to make things happen and I will also call on the government to put more focus on Germany because the country is full of human resources. We have a lot of technocrats here who can always contribute to the Nigerian economy.
I wish Germany will get as much attention that countries like the UK and America is getting from the government of Nigeria. But on our own part, we are working hard to make sure that we celebrate the occasion and we are also working in conjunction with the Nigerian embassy here to give Nigeria a befitting 50th independence anniversary celebrations. Although some people may say that there is nothing really to celebrate about Nigeria being 50, but others have enumerated that at least, for the fact that we are still a united nation, we should congratulate eachother for making it this far. I will also call upon corporations in Nigeria to come to Germany and tap from the enormous resources here.
A lot of Nigerians have studied in Germany and are making impact here.