Minister of Interior, Comrade Abba Moro

Vincent Obia
Minister of Interior, Comrade Abba Moro, has said that the negative image being imputed to Nigeria’s name in the foreign media is largely concocted and meant to scare away foreigners, whom he said had remained undeterred.

Moro who insinuated that lies, propaganda and rumours were usually the features of pictures shown to the world about Nigeria, told newsmen in Abuja that despite the exaggeration of Nigeria’s poor image, more and more foreigners have continued to look beyond the rhetoric by making the country their investment, residential and tourism destination.

He also said a growing number of foreigners who had lived in the country for the statutory minimum of 15 years had rather expressed their desires to become Nigerian citizens.

“I have their applications in their thousands here that we are processing. So, I can speak with authority. If Nigeria is as bad as being painted in the social media and the Western media, the same Westerners, the same Americans would not be desiring to come and take the citizenship of Nigeria and remain permanently in Nigeria.

“I can tell you that I have volumes of Europeans, Americans that desire to come and do business with Nigeria today. If the Nigerian business climate is that doomed and hostile, these Europeans, these Asians, these Americans, certainly, would not apply to come and establish businesses in Nigeria here. So, we are in the process of re-educating Nigerians and nationals of other countries on the fact that the picture of insecurity, the picture of business hostility that is painted by the media is not in conformity with the reality that is on ground today.”

Moro attributed Nigeria’s present social and security challenges to a growth phase that the country would soon outgrow adding that the process of expatriate quota application and permission had been abused but said Nigerian government institutions were often to blame.