Nigeria-United Kingdom Ties Beyond the Andrew Pocork Years
The send-forth reception organized in honour of His Excellency, SirAndrew Pocock, the British High Commissioner to Nigeria, by Chief Olabintan Famutimi, the Chairman of the Tricontinental Group, on Tuesday, 23rd June at the Southern Sun Hotel in Ikoyi, was significant for one major reason that has generally been ignored by Nigerians: the extent of impact of the British in nation building, and particularly Britain’s appreciation of Nigerians in general. Chief Famutimi, compared and contrasted the attitudinal dispositions of foreign investors, and particularly the former colonial masters, and told the invited distinguished guests that the British are hors classe in Nigeria. He made it clear that it is only in British companies or oil businesses (downstream excluded) that Nigerians have been allowed to get to the highest level. In other words, Nigerians have been heading several British businesses in Nigeria while this feat does not exist in other companies belonging to the former colonial masters or other companies.
This point simply suggests that the British do not appear to be discriminating. This is good. It reminds one of the pattern of Nigeria’s relations with Britain, especially in the past three or four years under High CommissionerAndrew Pocork, who corroborated Chief Famutimi’s observation differently. He not only noted that Nigeria is a very welcoming and hospitable country of many talented and hardworking people but also expressed his happiness that Nigeria has also become a true and genuine democracy. He explained the readiness of the British government to tap from the experiences of talented Nigerians in the UK. The readiness of the British to tap from the experiences of Nigerians is consistent with the Highly Skilled Migrant Programme, established in 2002 and designed to run for 12 months. The programme was opened to any Nigerian who can show evidence of his or her record of achievements in his chosen field ( The Guardian editorial, March 27, 2002, p.18).
Without doubt, High Commissioner Pocork cannot be more correct. Nigerians are multi-dimensionally talented and hardworking. It should be recalled here that history was made in England inApril 2002 when the British Queen Elizabeth II approved the appointment of Mr. Oba Nsugbe as the first Nigerian Queen’s Counsel (QC) practicing in Britain. The position is the Nigerian equivalent of SeniorAdvocate of Nigeria (SAN).Although The Guardian reported that ‘foremost lawyer, Chief FrederickAlade Rotimi Williams, former Deputy Premier of the defunct Western Region, late Chief Fani Kayode, among others, were previously named as QC but (the title) was converted to SAN in 1975,’ the newspaper also reported that QC Nsugbe ‘also scored another first in the British legal history. He is the first and only Nigerian part-time judge in the British Crown Court.’ (vide The Guardian ofApril 9, 2002, p.96).
It should also be noted that in 2002, John Fashanu, a British of Nigerian descent, was named the most influentialAfrican in Britain. He was ranked number 279 out of the 300 most powerful and influential personalities in Britain. In fact, Fashanu not only felt proud but expressed much delight that he was ‘included on the same list that featured the British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, Prince Charles, Prince William, Sir Richard Branson (owner of VirginAtlantic airlines), Gordon Brown (Chancellor of the Exchequer), etc (see The Guardian of February 28, 2002). The point being made from the foregoing is that subjectivity of purpose does not have any place in the conduct and management of public affairs in Britain. One is either good or not good. If a Nigerian is good, he or she is simply acknowledged by the British on the basis of merit. In other words, if Nigerians are allowed to be chief executive of any British business, it is simply because the British are objective and not discriminating.
Thus, relations between Nigeria and the United Kingdom are generally good but that does not mean non-existence of irritants.
Nigeria and Britain: Issues in Politico-Economic Relations
There are three critical issues in Nigeriano-British political and economic relations since 1999 when Nigeria’s Fourth Republic came into being: difficulties associated with the issuance of visas to Nigerians in Nigeria; flow of British investments into Nigeria and its environmental conditionings; and engagement of Nigerians in unlawful activities which the British do not condone in whatever manner but which may not be taken as a big deal in Nigeria.
Regarding the issuance of visa, it is a constant issue in Nigeria-UK relations for one reason: the applications for visa are always more than what the British High Commission (BHC) in Nigeria can cope with on daily basis. For instance, in 2001, the British High Commissioner, Mr. Phillip Thomas, told the Governor of Enugu State, Dr. Chimaroke Nnamani, that the BHC would issue 100,000 visas to Nigerians who would be making genuine trips to the UK and that visas would also be issued within 24 hours after interview by the BHC (vide The Punch, April 6, 2001, p.8).As explained by the British Foreign Office, Lagos is the busiest issuing point in the world for UK’s visa, with 115,000 visa applications processed between 2002 and 2003. With 87,000 applications, New Delhi is placed second whileAbuja, again in Nigeria, is placed in the 13th position in the UK’s total of 166 posts across the world (The Punch, March 23, 2004, p.3.
In fact, the British High Commissioner to Nigeria in 2004, Mr. Richard Gozney told Nigeria’s Minister of Internal affairs, Dr. IyorchiaAyu, during a courtesy visit, that over 150,000 Nigerians apply for British visa every year (The Punch, July 14, 2004). The High Commissioner also restated inApril 2005 that 22,000 visas are issued monthly to Nigerians. In the words of the High Commissioner, ‘six years ago (that is, in 1999), the level of visa applications was 3,500 per month. When I (the High commissioner) came in one year ago (2004) and the number went up to 10,000, we have to change the system so that people could apply for visa through DHLand courier companies within three or four months, the number jumped to 20,000. We knew there will be an upsurge in visa application, but we thought the number would only double, but we were wrong, it’s nearly trebling, 25,000, 28,000 per month, we definitely won’t be able to handle this.’ (Nigerian Tribune,April 25, 2005, p.3).
Thus, there is no disputing the fact that there had been problems of incapacity to deal with the increasing number of Nigerians wishing to go to the UK for various purposes.As High Commissioner Gozney described the situation, ‘with the deluge of applications that the Commission receives on a daily basis, Nigeria has become ‘a huge visa factory.’ In this regard, ‘if you are going to have a visa factory, you have to increase the quality of the equipment. Our plan now is to increase the capacity of that visa factory so, that means rebuilding that visa factory. So we need to train people.’ (ThisDay,April 24, 2005, p.1). This development led to the placement of a ban on the issuance of visas to Nigerians who were aged between 18 and 30 years and were to be travelling to the UK for the first time. The ban exempted those Nigerians in this age bracket but going for educational pursuits in the UK.
At the level of Nigeria, Moses Jolayemi of ThisDay Newspapers raised some of these problems with Mr. Chris Dix, the Director of Visa Services of the UK.As Jolayemi put it, ‘processing visa applications to the UK had become a nightmare.And that is putting it mildly. For nearly two years running, the British Deputy High Commissioner in Lagos has won for itself the image of a rowdy, riotous mission ruled by touts who brazenly exploit helpless applicants.’ In this regard, Mr. Chris Dix came to Nigeria in March 2004 ‘to refine and modify visa services in Nigeria (ThisDay, June 27, 2004, p.14).
The BHC, without doubt, made significant efforts to address the many concerns of Nigerian visa applicants. It is on record that the BHC engaged the services of a visa company, the VFS, which handles the finger printing exercise. Before this, the practice was the courier visa application system. The BHC also introduced the visa-by-post system in June 2004. Two points are noteworthy. The Comet newspaper noted in one of its editorials that ‘in the 1970s, a Nigerian going to the UK for studies simply has to give his passport to the Passage Officer in his school who takes it to the High Commission for a visa.’ (Comet,April 18, 2005, p.11).
The other point is that issuance of visas to Nigerians, especially following the demise of the Second Republic, can also be traced to Britain’s hostility to military dictatorship. Now that the foundations of democracy are increasingly being strengthened, the British have lesser headaches in. This is what Sir Pocork has also been partly preoccupied with since his stay in Nigeria as Britain’s Principal Representative. Chief Famutimi jokingly noted during his reception in honour of Sir Pocork that, for good relationship with any ambassador to endure, ‘one should not ask for visa assistance.’ This may be true in some cases. However, the fundamental truth is that visa is a privilege and not a right. It is generally given if the Visa Officer is convinced that the applicant is not likely to be a ‘landed immigrant,’ not likely to become a public liability, not likely to constitute a threat to national security, and most importantly, not likely to engage in activities for which a visa has not been or will not be issued. In fact, even if one meets all requirements for the issuance of a visa, all still depend on the whims and caprices of the issuing authority.All sovereign states determine the conditions for the issuance of entry visas to anyone and the fact that one has been given a visa is not enough a reason that one would be allowed entry at the border. Consequently, the grant of a visa is nothing more than a recommendation to the immigration and customs authorities at the border for further evaluation of the application for entry visa.
TheEnvironmentofBusinessandInvestmentinNigeria
The discussion of the environmental conditionings of business and investment flows to Nigeria should first be located at the level of the argument that foreign investments are critical to development and therefore the environment for good business and sustainable investment flows must be very friendly. In this regard, for instance, Nigeria’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, His Excellency, Dr. Dalhatu Sarki Tafida, asked the global investment community at the Finance Nigeria Conference in 2010, organized as part of the Opportunity Nigeria Conference by the Banker Magazine of the Financial Times in London, to tap into the immense opportunities in Nigeria.
The President of the Nigerian-British Chamber of Commerce, Mr. AkinolaAkintunde, also underscored the enormous opportunities provided by the private sector in Nigeria and pledged readiness of his Chamber to partner with interested investors. In fact, the editor of the Banker Magazine, Mr. Brian Caplen, had it that the opportunities in Nigeria were not only great but if well harnessed, will change the acronym of BRIC to BRINC where Nigeria will join Brazil, Russia, India and China as strong economies shaping the direction of the global market. ( The Guardian, July 5, 2010, p.26).
From the perspectives of Dr. Tafida, the environment of business in Nigeria is good: macroeconomic stability, external reserve of $4,.72 billion against external debts of $3.9 billion, a GDP growth rate of 8.23% at the end of the fourth quarter of 2009, fastest growing telecommunication industry inAfrica with $70.8 billion private investments, opportunities in the internet sector which stood at about 24% penetration level in a population of over 140 million people, and investment opportunities in textile, solid minerals, etc.
From the perspectives of the British investors, the problem is not simply the extent of conduciveness of the environment that matters. What would matter is first the trust of Nigerians, and their interest in investing in their economy. Secondly, British investors consider their investments within the framework of rivalry with France, Germany, Italy, etc.As reported by Chris Uba, British investors are enthusiastic to come to Nigeria ‘but are only waiting for a more conducive environment to be created.’ In this regard, Chris further reported that ‘there is greater impetus in the UK to work in Nigeria but confidence is needed …Britain was losing out to France, Germany and Italy in Nigeria’s economy ( Daily Champion, October 10, 2000, p.13). This means that rivalry with other European partners is a determinant for new investments in Nigeria. Thirdly and perhaps most disturbingly is the fear of fraudulent stakeholders in Nigeria.As feared, British private investors made their intention to seek clarifications henceforth from members of the Institute of Directors (IOD), Nigeria before they embark on any investment in the country. In the words ofAdekunle Oladele, ‘this is to prevent them from falling prey to what they regard as the fraudulent tendencies of a clique of dubious citizens.’ (The Punch, October 5, 1999, p. 27).All these arguments of non-conduciveness of the Nigerian environment and fear of possible fraudulent partners in Nigeria date back to 1999. At that time, the fears could be legitimate.As at today, they cannot. This is why questions should be asked from Sir Pocork about the extent of British investments in Nigeria as at today, especially at a time he will be bowing out of diplomacy after having served for 34 years in the British diplomatic service.
Unlawful activities and Nigeria-UK Development Cooperation
Unlawful activities and Nigeria-UK Development Cooperation The engagement of some Nigerians in unlawful activities is the third critical issue in Nigeria-UK relations. For instance, the British have always been actively and inactively involved in several domestic questions in Nigeria. Many a time, they were invited. Many other times, they were not.Ateam of detectives from the Metropolitan police, New Scotland yard came to investigate the case of a ritual murder in Nigeria in 2002. This was on the basis of cooperation. (Nigerian Tribune, October 21, 2002, p.1). When the Peoples Democratic Party governorship aspirant, Chief Funso Williams, was assassinated, the British police also was invited. In fact, the case of Chief DiepreyeAlamieyeseigha, the Governor of Bayelsa State, is quite interesting. He tried to escape trial in the UK but to no avail (Saturday Punch, November 26, 2005, p.11).Alamieyeseigha’s case tainted Nigeria-UK ties in different ways.
However, all the irritants in the relationship have not in any serious manner prevented the British from seeking strengthened ties with Nigeria, in spite of their many unwarranted interferences in the domestic affairs of Nigeria: UK government’s condemnation of security excuse for postponement of the 2015 elections (Nigeria Tribune, February 10, 2015, p.41); former Prime Minister Tony Blair’s suggestion to President Muhammadu Buhari to remove oil subsidy ( The Nation, May 31, 2015, p.6), etc.
The future of Nigeria-UK ties is not likely to be brighter than what it is because of some other issues over which the British prefer to be silent: looted funds in Nigeria but in British financial institutions; British refusal to release Nigeria’s artifacts, etc. If the post-Pocork years are really to be more constructive and meaningful, more levels of people-to-people interactions will be necessary to complement official diplomacy.