Of the Nigerian Immigration Service, the e-Passport and its reissuance: my story

2013  UPDATE: Passports are now being reissued in many places other than Abuja. Ikoyi in Lagos, Port-Harcourt etc,  and in many Nigerian representations abroad. I understand the ABUJA-ONLY thing was to centralise all passport data.


Its been well over one week now that I got my electronic passport reissued in Abuja, Nigeria.  I needed to give some time before this blog, because I did not want it colored with personal sentiments. I always do this when I think something is important.  Give it time, think through it, and it gets clearer.

By the time I got ready to go to Nigeria for this passport, I had used up 5 Nigerian international passports and 2 ECOWAS Travel Certificates.  So I was on my 8th travel document.  For frequent travelers, you learn a bunch of lessons. Lessons related to travel.  The first is to know what the priority is: mainly to get to destination.  So you dont waste time, energy or sentiments on things and issues that do not have direct links to your destination.  The second is to keep a financial reserve.  As I tell many new travelers, there is no fixed amount for a plane ticket.  It is the same with a trip, you can never say exactly what the costs are until you get back and calculate. For starters, the ticket from Abidjan to Lagos cost  1088$ on ASky. 

I have come to prefer doing my passports in Umuahia.  That is my State capital.  So I go home, check in with my folks, and go to Umuahia.  If I am required to come back at a short notice or the next day, I can always do that at a short notice.  Inter-State travel in Nigeria does not go beyond 10$.  So I call the immigration office in Umuahia to say "my e-Passport has filled up and I need a new one". I got the response, "we are waiting for you, please buy us a handset when you are coming". I am like "Did they not hear there has been war in  Côte d'Ivoire?"

I log on to  http://www.immigration.gov.ng to check out information about re-issuance of passports. ABSOLUTELY no information.  How much does it cost? What is the process? Can someone do it on your behalf? Where can it be done?  Which form needs to be filled? What administrative papers are required?  How long does it take? No information, nothing! I ask online, someone tells me 15 000 Naira.  That is 100$.  I dont believe it.  Why? Because the first time issuance of the Passport costs less than 9000 Naira, which is like 60$. So why should re-issuance be more expensive.. anyway I tell myself that the cost wont go beyond that.

I get home and call again.  I am coming in on Monday to Umuahia.  Then the gentleman said "I think Tuesday is better". I call on Tuesday. "Ah, Aunty, it's like we now have to take the passport to Abuja and do it oo". Oh Yeah? Why was I not told this before. I ask how much the re-issuance itself costs "I don know, I have to find out". Good gracious me! I am speaking with an agent of the Nigerian Immigration Service and he has no clue about how much the fees for the re-issuance of a Nigerian passport costs?  My antennae go up.  Something is not smelling right.  The man offers to send someone to Abuja to do it for me.  I say no.

Abuja Day 1.

I get to the gate with my bag and the airline tag still hanging.  The Nigerian  Immigration Service (NIS) office is on the road to the airport.  Far from the city itself.  I arrive before the gates open.  In such things, I have learned to be there before time.  The guards at the gate  tell me the luggage is too big.  I keep it at the gate after the controls.  The man "kindly" handed me over to an Officer, who hands me over to another Officer.  They take me aside, assess what they call "my problem".  "Okay, we can help. When do you want to get the passport".  I said same day. "Do you know the price?" I said not exactly.  I too have been wondering but someone has told me 15K. "Mhmm.  For the kind of problem you have, you need between 30 and 40K" I smell a rip-off. I said no, thanks.  .

I go to queue up normally.  By now, I was decided to "go and renew my passport in a proper manner so I can get first hand information". I am told I need to go to "ACG" Office.  The door number is 316. I go there and I explain my mission.  I am told to write a letter to the "ACG". I ask, what does ACG mean?  The officer cannot explain.  Does he know? Or is he feeling I am being too inquisitive? Anyway I write the letter. I write on a plain A4 sheet, explaining I need a new Passport because the old one is full.   He says come back in 3 hours. I ask "Please can you explain the process, what is the next step after the ACG okays my request, how long does the whole thing last?" I dont get a reply

My brother calls me. "Do you have someone helping you?" I said no.  I dont get the process but it does not seem complicated.  He says "Girl, get someone fast".  I said I am not getting anybody. I should be able to fill any forms needed and make any payments. If I cant take care of the process of renewing my own passport in my own country at the official service point.. then I will feel like a challenged person.

My brother begins to make parallel arrangements. Apparently a lady working there is married to one of the guys from my village. I get calls, SMSes.  Where am I?  At what stage? Where exactly?   Why did I not say I was coming? Why do I want to do this all by myself? Why did I have to go and queue up in the first place?

Hang on!! What is happening here?

Anyway.. the lady says I should have told her even before beginning.  It would have made matters easier.  She takes me to one other lady. J Someone. It appears the request could have been made to the Comptroller General.. it is faster.  I sit in the waiting room.  I catch a wifi. NISWLAN1. 3 Hours later, I go back to door 316. I see my letter has been approved. What is the next step? "You need to go and make payment downstairs". Okay.  Let me have the approval so I can go make payment. "No, we cannot hand it over to you.  An officer needs to come and sign for it"

Haba! Shebi na me write the letter? Shebi na me dey renew passport? Abi na the Officer go pay the money?

I lose 1 hour waiting for an Officer to come and pick my approval. By this time, it was 1 PM.  I have spent 4 hours at the Immigration office.

The J Someone comes and takes the approval.  "My sister, we have to go and make payment". How much, I ask? "Give me 10 000.  The price is 9000 something.." If you like, you can go and pay in town, or I can pay for you here.  Now we are at the Passport Hall.  Only officers are entering. Four tents have been mounted outside.  Each tent sits around 100.  Each tent is full. People are standing.  I ask if the total cost is 10k. J Somebody says Yes. "But when the Passport comes out, you can now show appreciation".  I get the info. I hand 10K over to her. I find a place at the tent, I sit. I boot up my Netbook.  There is NISWLAN1 still here. Thank you Lord, for wifi.   I start to tweet. to update my Facebook status.  I am too mixed up to do real work. I  go for lunch.

And between 2PM and 6PM nothing happens. The only info is that my file is waiting to be "vetted" after which I will be photographed. I never got a receipt for the payment.

End of Day 1. I need to find a hotel in Abuja.  I hear the "Honourable Minister" is visiting Nigerian Immigration Service Headquarters the next day.  So work wont begin until 11 am.  I take a taxi, someone says to go to Area 1 or 2. I can get reasonable hotels there. Taxi fare, 2000, hotel 15000, without breakfast.

Day 2.

August 15, 2011

As at 12 noon. Minister was still at the headquarters. He was at the Passport area the time I got in.  He comes out to greet the people under the tents. The Director General of the Nigerian Immigration Service, a lady, says "Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you the Honourable Minister of Interior" Some people clap.  I bring out my camera from my handbag. I take a photo. Two men sitting by me are angry. Hopping mad! A number of others were  mad too. Why wont the Minister  wait so we can ask questions?  Why will he just wave and say hello and go away? Others think he is humble.  At least he came to say hi to "Fellow Nigerians". I cannot tell whether the anger is directed at the Minister or just an expression of the frustration that people are having with the whole passport thing.

And frustrations there were! The man whose file was lost right at NIS office itself.  The boy whose file was being handled by an officer who just died, and nobody knew exactly how to help him. The people who were there the day before and were told to come back because the system crashed.  The guy from UK whose choice of interview date came out with 2012, the wrong year..The stories were many. 

All e-passport renewals from the whole wide world are now being done at headquarters!! So Nigerians all over have to come to this one office in Abuja. Questions!! Why is this information not online? How long is the process? Why are Nigerians being reduced to a helpless state, to the point where you need "help" from an Officer. What exactly does "Help" mean?  What is the Officer "helping" you with exactly. Why does Diaspora not have a separate handling? What are paper files STILL doing in the era of electronic Passports? Why cant information on the process of re-issuance and lost passports be made openly available and put online?  Why cant other NIS offices in the states renew filled ePassports?

On my part, I keep calling the Officer married to someone from my place.  I also keep calling the J Someone to find out when I will be photographed. I notice that there is a kind of selection at the NIS. People automatically "hire" Officers who speak their languages to "help" them. Since I dont live in Nigeria, I am astounded by the many officers speaking the many languages to their "clients". I hear all sorts of Nigerian languages.. my head is in a swirl. 

Finally, I get my photo taken. My mind asks, "Why will an Immigration Officer in Umuahia promise that he can get someone to come and get your passport re-issued in Abuja when the owner of the passport needs his or her photo taken?" The man who took my photo writes August 15 for pick up. The day was August 4th. My flight back to Abidjan from Lagos is August 7th which is a Sunday. The only other working day was August 5th, the next day.  I look at it and I ask the man "Is this date for real?".  He says "Yes Madam" and squeezes his face in a kind of knot that means "Please get out of my sight".

My mind is blown. I make calls and get calls. I get a call from a friend at the Ministry of External Affairs. A Diplomat, I had worked with him when he was on post in Geneva where I had an office.  I was to have dinner with him while I was in Abuja. He too says he knows someone who can help.  He begins to make calls too. I call J Someone. Now, I am visibly unhappy. And I began to see the possibility that I may not get the Passport on the Friday. "You have to see  Officer N, she is the only one who can help you". Where is this Officer N? " She is with Madam still accompanying the Minister. Just wait till she is back.  I dont know Officer N, and I sit.

Till 6 PM, when someone tells me, "Ah, Officer N just left".  I was the last  person to leave the tent that day!
I head back to the hotel. I pay another 15000 Naira for the night.

Day 3

It is Friday. My flight is Sunday.  There is no work on Saturday. I arrive early at the Immigration Service Headquarters. I sit before Passport Hall opens.  I am angry with the J Someone.  She says she is on her way. I ask and know who the Officer N is. I had decided it was useless leaving my fate in the hands of J Someone. And at this time,  the little tiny voice in my head was beginning to say "Maybe it was better to pay 30 or 40k on day 1".  I shut the voice up vigorously. I tell myself  "If you have come this far, sit it through.  The worst case is that someone picks up the passport on August 15 and sends it to you through DHL"

I speak with Officer N.  I explain that I will be leaving Abuja on that day. She looks at me, and asks me to come with her to the office. I feel that I dont need to be given a "VIP" treatment. But something tells me to just shut up. "When you woke up to pray and ask God for favour from men, this is it". She finds my file and assures me the passport is coming out same day. She will take the file herself to production room. Check me in 2 hours, she says. I send out text messages. I give Twitter and Facebook updates. I call my mother, to reassure her.

After 2 hours, I check on Officer N. She says she is yet to get up. Once she does, I can be rest assured.

I pick a taxi to town.  I need to get a ticket to Lagos. Can I leave this night? I check online.. tickets are now between 30 000 and 45 000 Naira.  That is 200 or 300$. I hear weekend flights from Abuja to Lagos are almost always full 3 days before. I begin to foresee road travel. I call a Road Transport Company.  Ticket is okay but departure is at 3PM. Passport is not coming out by then! I go to the Bank, I withdraw 20 000. At this time, I had about 40000 Naira in all.  I needed to pay the hotel if I was staying for the night and the "Thank you" thing..  Another  friend calls back, there is a flight to Lagos. Saturday morning. 29100 Naira. I ask him to pick it. I make out another check of 30 000 Naira for him.  I shut my eyes tight and I pray "Thank you Lord, for savings in my bank account". I get a confirmation for the flight.  I leave Saturday morning.

Friday afternoon in Abuja is another story. All the roads are cleared and all the mosques are full and  those who are not praying are heading down the airport. I pick a taxi from Area 8 to the Immigration Service, an air-conditioned one.  I needed to cool off! Price 4000, finally came down to 2500.

I get back to Immigration services. J Someone is smiling. I force a smile. Passport is ready.  An officer is needed to sign it off. J Someone does that. Then we look for those who will "cancel without prejudice" the preceding passport. I begin to give out envelopes.  To the lady whose husband is from my place, to J Someone, to Officer N. I send more texts.. call my mother... family at home in the East is rejoicing.. like the new passport is a kind of "arrival of a new baby". I feel sick, thoroughly sick.

I head back to the hotel. Room 310 has been given out to someone else since I did a check out in the morning. I get room 309.  The room is not as good as the first one, but since it was weekend, the hotel was giving out the rooms with 15% discount.  I did not really care..


All I wanted was to give myself the farthest  possible space from  the Nigerian Immigration Service, from Abuja, from Nigeria, from the electronic Passport, its issuance, re-issuance

My mind (the legal, intellectual me) and my heart (the sentimental optimistic me) begin a debate:

Heart of Nnenna: Na wa oo. Maybe you should have just paid 30 or 40K on day 1.
Mind of Nnenna: Nonsense, I would still be ignorant of the process and I will not be able to inform others
Heart of Nnenna: They shaa had good Nigerian food at "Mama" the restaurant area.  You enjoyed the food.
Mind of Nnenna: It was not free, I paid. I could have had the same anywhere else in Nigeria.
Heart of Nnenna: Do you recall when you were offered a free passport some time ago?
Mind of Nnenna: Yes, that was another country. I am a Nigerian. The Nigerian Passport is my right.
Heart of Nnenna: Na legalese and right go kill you. For this country na money dey talk
Mind of Nnenna: The country needs to move from a corrupt one to a competency one. I will do my part
Heart of Nnenna: How much has it cost you so far..
Mind of Nnenna: The cash is one thing, the authentic experience is another

That is why it took 10 days.. to write this blog!

Cote d'Ivoire: Government Ethics Charter

Government Ethics Charter

Preamble

The Ministerial function represents  a very important public responsibility at State level. It is based on confidence, on one hand, between the sovereign people  of Côte d’Ivoire and the President of the Republic and, on the other, between the President of the Republic, the Prime Minister, Head of Government and each minister.

By our free adherence to the present Charter “Government Ethics Charter”, we, members of the Government of the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire,  show our engagement to be at the service of the President of the Republic and  the people.

Having received the confidence of the President of the Republic, on one hand for the reconciliation of Ivorians and the reconstruction of our country, and on the other hand, for the  sustainable socio-economic development  and the consolidation of a State of rights, we declare our adherence to the ten (10) cardinal values that follow:

1. Sense of State and  love of Country: Each member of Government shall uphold the fundamental values of the Republic: Union, Discipline and Labour. S/He shall, in speech, action, and behaviour, honour the Country and behave in conformity to the principles of our motto. The love of Côte d’Ivoire shall be upheld over regional, ethnic, political and religious particularities.

2. Respect for Dignity and human Life:  Each member of Government  shall consider life as sacred. Therefore S/He shall abstain from all manner of speech, and action that is susceptible to endanger dignity and human life.

3.  Primacy of the General Interest: All decisions, actions, or task shall be geared  and implemented in the perspective of the general interest, according to  requirements and standards in place and to  the quality which justifies the available resources. Conscious of the ethnic, cultural, and religious diversity of the our country, each member of Government  must make efforts at her/his  personal level as well as as  within the department under her/him  to only consider the  general interest.

4.  Solidarity and Cohesion:  All decisions and actions of the Government  are guided by the principles of collegiality and solidarity.  They involve each member in their elaboration and in their implementation. Members of Government are therefore  under the obligation of reserve and confidentiality  that behoves  government work.  The right of reserve shall include all debates in State Council, Ministerial Council, and in a general manner, all government meetings, as well as their  related correspondences.

5.  Good Governance:  Each member of Government shall seek to cultivate excellence and promote the practices of good governance in her/his ministerial department  and within the structures placed under her/his authority. The strict respect of the laws of the Republic is a national interest necessity on which depends  both the moral rise of our country and its sustainable and integral development.  In keeping with the right to information of the sovereign people, each member of Government also pledges to account for  the actions of her/his department whose results shall be imputed to her/him

6.  Responsibility: Each member of Government is the sole responsible of her/his ministerial department and pledges, in her/his being and conscience, to assume the charges and carry out the mission to which s/he has been called for the greater interest of the nation. Members of Government have an obligation to results. They shall assume the success or the failure of their actions and mission according to the principle of responsibility.

7.  Integrity and Probity: As a model for fellow citizens, each member of Government pledges to cultivate, at all times and in all places, the moral  and ethical values that shall induce higher morals for the Ivorian society: rightness, integrity, probity and incorruptibility.

8. Justice and Equity: In the respect of differences and particularism, members of Government work in a spirit of justice, of equity and of balance among them, in their respective departments and in their relations with users.  Equity shall be promoted in public practices.

9.  Permanent Dialogue and Availability:  Each member of Government shall consecrate her/himself, as a priority, to the exercise of the missions  that constitute her/his attributions and shall be wholly available to this effect. S/he  shall, by the way, maintain a permanent and objective  dialogue, based on republican ideas, notable with  other members of Government, the social bodies and other actors in the sector

10.  Civility, Courtesy and Moderation: Each member  of Government  pledges, in words and action, to the respect of the rules of decorum, courtesy and moderation which constitute the  fundamental conditions on which  group, organisational and societal cohesion is built.

We, members of the Republic of Cote d’Ivoire, pledge to respect this Charter  which we have freely given ourselves on this Tuesday August 9, 2011.

And consequently, we  sign in the presence of the President of the Republic

The official and original document is found on the site of the Government of Côte d'Ivoire.  This  English version is  graciously offered  by NNENNA.ORG

Is Abidjan back? De retour à Abidjan

Je suis rentrée à Abidjan. J'écris de la maison sur ce vieux divan qui me connait tant! Il y a pas mal de poussière mais .. bof! C'est chez moi. Quand la voiture s'est garée avec mes 4 valises et deux autres sacs, tous les gardiens du quartier ont “fait mouvement” vers moi. Ils étaient tous heureux. Je connais le sourire jaune du vieux Mamoudou, édénté! Il y en a qui ne voulaient pas attendre que je monte avant de commencer leur histoire. “Ah madame, on eu chaud ehh”. “Vraiment c'était dure, dure même”.

Dès mon aéroport d'embarquement, la sécurité nous a demandé les carnets de vaccination. “Nous avons reçu un courrier d'Abidjan faisant savoir qu'avant d'embarquer, il faudra se mûnir de son certificat de vaccination”. Je savais qu'on contrôlait à la déscente à l'aéroport mais là.. c'est nouveau. Je ressens un peu de fierté. Alors on m'a contrôlé. Je ne sais pas si c'est pour cholera ou c'est pour la fievre jaune.

Fin d'enregistrement. Je sens mes intérieurs trembler.. ce genre de “frisson-fièvre-félicité” qui s'emparait de moi quand j'avais 8 à 15 ans.. quand il s'agissait d'aller en colonnie de vacances. C'était un genre d'enthousiasme, mêlé de joie, d'attente des aventures, avec une pincée de soulagement “d'avoir à partir d'un endroit que j'aimais moins à un autre que j'aimais plus”. Au Duty Free, j'achete un gros paquet de chocolat blanc de Toblorone. Pas question de ne pas fêter ça!

Attérisage à Abidjan. Comme tout bon abidjanais, j'allume mon portable, et je contrôle mon crédit restant. Ouais, le roaming, ça coute cher. Tout va bien. Je sors de ma classe affaire presqu'en courant. Dans ma tête, ça disait “il faut que je respire, il faut que je respire”! Car chaque ville a son air. L'air d'Abidjan, c'est unique. C'est pas aussi sec que l'air d'Accra. Il y a moins d'agression dans l'air d'Abidjan que l'air de Lagos. C'est plus accueillant que l'air parisien. Je sais.. pas. C'est la lagune, la verdure et l'humidite tout melangé!

Il y a le premier contrôle. Des passports CEDEAO (Communauté économique des états de l'Afrique de l'ouest) n'ont pas de problème. On descend, et il y a le contôle de la “fameuse” carte jeune de vaccination. En suite, l'immigration. Je constate que certaines choses ont changé. Il y a des girdons pour permettre aux beaucoup plus d'arrivants de faire un rang organisé. Certains “vieux” visages sont là. Je constate un changement dans le comportement des officiers. Plus de respect. Je leur donne “Assez bien”.

Baggages prit, je me dirige vers les douaniers. On m'interpelle. Il s'agit de l'imprimante. La dame me demande d'aller à leur bureau. J'obeis. Une dame officier se trouve là. Elle contrôle chaque valise. Se rassure, et me demande de partir. Dans ma tête j'attendais une certaine “donc tu as envoyé quoi pour nous?”. Cette question n'est pas arrivée. Un jeune m'aide à refaire les valises, les remonter dans les chariots. Je lui offre un baton de Toblerone. Quand je fais ça.. ce que je suis contente du service rendu! Je note les douaniers “très bien”

Je change un billet de 50$. Je reçois 23000 Francs CFA. Mon ancien “client” est toujours là. Je tourne, et voici le vieux! Cela fait au moins 5 ans que ce vieux aux cheveaux gris est devenu mon ami. Il m'accueille avec une chaleur.. à fondre le coeur. Je lui demande de trouver un taxi qui a un gros coffre. Mais il a pris une minute pour me raconter comment il a eu à vivre la guerre. “C'était pas facile ma fille.. mais Dieu est grand”. J'achete une carte de recharge.. pour Internet. En ce moment je respirais déjà Abidjan plein les poumons! Ils sont là! La foule qui vient accueiller! Debout, regards à 360 dégrees attendant leur biens aimés. Ils sont là! Le bramôgos djosseurs. Ceux qui se débrouillent à l'aéroport comme le vieux; le type qui me change des devises, celui qui vend les cartes.. tout le monde est là! Je note 'RAS – rien à signaler'.

Les taxis étaient aussi là.. avec les mêmes airs des vautours autour d'un animal mourant. Ils se bagarrent encore a cause des clients. Ils surfacturent toujours. Mais celui sur lequel je suis tombée est vraiment d'une race à part. La voiture était dans un était piteux. Le chauffeur sale, vraiment sale. Le corps, l'habille et chaussures. L'haleine, je vous epargne sa déscription. Normallement j'aurais du commencer une conversation avec lui.. mais l'odeur..

Comment se fait il que ces gens qui sont les premiers à recevoir les arrivants une fois hors de l'aéroport ne sont pas controlés? Pourquoi ne sont ils pas en uniforme? Pourquoi n'afficheons nous pas les tariffs? Comment se fait-il qu'un chauffeur me demande de lui payer 15000 Francs CFA pour une course de l'aéroport à la commune de Cocody? Si on me “mange” comme ça, qu'en est il de ceux qui arrivent à Abidjan pour la première fois, qui ne savent pas exactement où se trouve leur destination? Comment demande t-on une personne de sortir d'un avion, de classe affaire, pour ne pas trouver un taxi climatisé? Pour combien de temps durera ce traumatisme? A qui incombe le travail? A qui devrais-je m'addresser?

Bon, on engage la route. Je constate que les éléphants sont partis, détruits. J'avais appris que les gars du carrefour Akwaaba étaient parti aussi, mais je voulais vérifier de mes propres yeux.. tellement j'en avais marre de ce point de contrôle. Oui, ils sont partis. De l'aéroport jusqu'à chez moi, je n'ai pas vu un barrage. Pas un seul. Au niveau de Café de Versaille, j'ai vu un groupe des hommes en tenue. C'est marqué FRCI. Franchement, je n'ai pas un bon souvenir d'un groupe de militaire.. donc moins je les voir.. mieux ça vaut pour moi.

C'était quoi même le titre de ce blog? Bon je voulais juste m'intéroger.. me demander si Abidjan est de retour? Je crois qu'elle y arrive. Je constate que les efforts y sont consenti. Je vois ce peuple qui ne veut pas baisser les bras.. on y arrivera. J'y crois.

Il faut tout de même garder les yeux ouverts. Il y a certaines choses où on doit aller doucement pour bien les refaire.. mais il y a d'autres qu'il faut faire “en bris”. L'union c'est en douceur.. mais la discipline et le travail.. ceux là, on doit y aller d'une manière résolue.

Demain je vais tourner. Comme on dit à Abidjan, “je vais mettre Abidjan sur ma tête”. Il faut que mon corps, mon esprit, mon ame, mes pensées, mon imagination, mes sensations, ma peau, mes rognons.. sachent qu'ils sont à Abidjan. Il y a aussi des coins qui me doivent certains services. Le coin de choukouya, le coin de poulet et poisson piqué, les allocodromes.. mon aestheticienne, mon couturier, mon église.. SOCOCE, Prima, Orca.. vraiment.. ils sont “foule”

Dès mon reveil, je vais me chausser et me tapper mon itinéraire de footing habituel. Au retour je vais faire une pause chez la burkinabé chez qui j'achete mon gombo, tomate, oignon et poisson magne! Je prendrais mon temps pour saluer les enfants.. ceux à qui je dois des bonbons depuis des mois. Je vais m'assurer que mes voisins sont tous là..

Je vais reprendre ma vie!

Travel by phone: how ICT adds zest to my life!

Yesterday I did a different kind of travel.  I traveled through the greater Accra, the Central, the Eastern and finally the Western regions of Ghana.  All the time, seated in front of my computer, doing research,  and drafting a paper for an African-Union related institution.

Where did I go?  I took off from Accra, to a place called Kade in the Eastern region.  There is a research facility in a tiny village off Kade and there was a meetup scheduled there.  The initial journey was okay.. and the business of the day was done.

But the journey back was the THE one.  "I" was no longer coming back to Accra but going to Takoradi, in the Western region.  So the challenge was to come from Kade to somewhere in the Central region, either to a place called Mankessim  or to Winneba junction.  I needed to go from Kade to Swedru and onwards.

It was raining.. and we were looking for a  nice restaurant too!  Then hopefully, short cut, to link Swedru to Mankessim.  We passed through the villages, all named "Agona" something, then finally to Swedru itself. I have always thought that Swedru was a big place.. but well.  When we stopped by to ask "How far is Swedru from here"?  The answer was  "This is Swedru you are in".. Ah okay..

Then that question, can we go directly to Mankesssim from Swedru or do we need to come back to Winneba junction before going on..  we asked three different groups on the way.  Two of them said you must go down to Winneba junction, one said maybe you can find a way. So we decided to go down to Winneba junction.

The rain let up a bit after Winneba junction, finally caught launch: fufu and bushmeat at a restaurant a bit before Apam junction.  Then hit the road again.  The rain came back.. by the time we passed by Mankessim, it was 5:30 PM but was a dark ast 7:30 PM.  The decision needed to be taken.  Do we continue to go all the way to Takoradi or stop in Cape Coast for the night?  By 7PM, we pulled into a nice little hotel in Cape Coast, not far from the STC bus station and checked in there..

Then the attendant looked and said: "Oh, Master, your tyre is flat"! Well, get some rest, the gas station is opposite.. we will fix all of that in the morning! And will be in Takoradi before 10 AM!

Nice trip huh?  Well, dont forget I said I did all of that on phone!  I was just speaking with the person inside the car..while they drove.. all of that distance..

Oh yeah! Phone call rates are getting cheaper..if you have a "preferred" number.. you can talk all day, talk all night.. and travel... on phone!

Africa, Nigeria, and the likes of John Campbell

On September 9, 2010, John Campbell wrote an article titled: Nigeria on the Brink: What happens if the 2011 elections fail? in which he began by saying:

The 2011 elections in Nigeria, scheduled for January 22, pose a threat to the stability of the United States’ most important partner in West Africa. The end of a power-sharing arrangement between the Muslim North and the Christian South, as now seems likely, could lead to postelection sectarian violence, paralysis of the executive branch, and even a coup

For him,


Logistical preparations for the 2011 elections have not started. There is no voters roll, and despite the president’s signing of an electoral reform bill, some of these reforms remain unimplemented four months before the election. The election therefore will almost certainly lack legitimacy, especially in the eyes of the losers

He goes on to conclude that:


Nigerians have long danced on the edge of the cliff without falling off. Yet at this juncture, the odds are not good for a positive outcome, and it is difficult to see how Nigeria can move back from the brink.

If the readers took into consideration that John Campbell  was former U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria from 2004 to 2007, is the Ralph Bunche Senior Fellow for Africa Policy Studies at the Council on Foreign Relation and  also the author of the Center for Preventive Action’s "Electoral Violence in Nigeria" contingency planning memorandum, one will not doubt that he is indeed an expert in the field. In fact, his book, Nigeria: Dancing on the Brink, will soon be published.

After his article, a certain Azu Robert-Mary wrote a response, trying to highlight the same issues that "experts" go on and on about, most being negative with absolute denial of anything positive about Africa.

The Nigerian elections have been held and for the most part, has been declared by all as credible. Even Nigerians lauded their electoral Commission. Simply put, the predictions of prophet John Campbell did not come to pass.  No, Nigeria did not fall off the cliff, the military did not take over and the nation has come out stronger!

I was a bit surprised this morning to read that "Nigeria denies visa to ex-US envoy Campbell". It was an interesting piece, that recalled part of what Campbell had written about visa fraud in Nigeria.

I think there are some valid reasons to refuse visa to Campbell, not just him, but his likes:

The first reason is that there is 99% certainty that Campbell will be arriving Nigeria to look for that 1% of electoral mis-function, violence, unsatisfactory report and hate-mongering individuals. He needs these to finish his book.  Seeing his rank and connections before now in Nigeria, it is predictable that if he cannot find what he is looking for, he is quite capable of creating it!

The other reason is that it is too early.  Elections only happened several weeks ago and there was actually some orchestrated violence after that.  The prophet of doom should wait a bit.. maybe, just maybe, his dreams of a broken Nigeria will come true.

Ah, so at least Nigerian embassies are still functional?  Planes still land?  Universities still complete school years, up to holding graduation ceremonies? Seriously?  And John Campbell wants to be a guest in a University graduation ceremony in Nigeria?  So the country is still up and about then? The nation is not broken as yet? And John Campbell want to enjoy a peaceful happy graduation ceremony in Nigeria just weeks after the elections? No, thank you. 

Nigeria is a nation.  We have at least 54 of those now in Africa. We are not yet as consolidated as we want to be, but we are on our way.  We hear negatives about Africa everyday.. the images of people dying of hunger, of war, of hopelessness! For every initiative Africa and Africans want to take.. there is a "Campbell" out there drawing up a list of a million reasons why it cannot succeed, why failure is inevitable, why chaos is the only option.. so they can step in as "Almighty Saviours".

Nigeria DOES NOT need Campbell or his likes.

Long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria.  Long Live Africa!