On day-to-day basis, Nigeria and Nigerians are always in the eyes of the news. If a statistical estimation of the ratio of the good to the bad value of our appearance in the news is to be taken, it is incontrovertible that the bad will take a significant lead. As a country, Nigeria image has been spoiled by the despicable and incorrigible activities of its leaders, past and present.
At the moment, what appears to be the remains of our image, at least at the continental and regional levels, nosedived to a staggering record low, when ECOWAS pronounced that its present headship by our ailing or dying president is the worse the organization has witnessed in its history. While the country and its citizens are trying to battle this particular embarrassment and the limbo state which Yar’adua’s health has caused of the nation, Nigerians who are resident in Malaysia are struggling to swim against the tide of an official pronouncement, which sweepingly imposed on them, the status of criminals, drug traffickers and unrepentant perpetrators of black money. What has become of these helpless citizens of a country, whose leadership is are sinking down on their knees, is the heart of this piece.
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On the 21st December, 2009, Malay Mail, a Malaysian newspaper reported that the Malaysian Government had set up a Special Task Force, which is empowered to deal with Africans. These Africans, as claimed, their purported large entry into Malaysia, has allegedly resulted in increase in crime and social ills. The Special Task Force which comprises officers from the Home, Higher Education, Foreign Affairs, Human Resources and Tourism ministries, police and the immigration departments is empowered to enforce, prosecute and deport in a systematic and cohesive manner, Africans that are resident on its soil.(emphasis is mine). As a responsive government which listened to the cries of its citizens, the decision of the Malaysian government to set up this body was informed by complaints lodged by its citizens. Accordingly, Malay Mail reports, “…The task force was a result of complains from many quarters over rising crime that included black money and drugs.” [Malay Mail, 21st December, 2009.]
While substantiating why this drastic steps must be taken to avert national disaster, figures credited to immigration sources were cited. The figure indicates that, the number of Africans resident in Malaysia, tourists and students, increased from 51,383 in 2001 to 111,805 in 2008. [Malay Mails, 21st December, 2009.] While the source did not compute the country-based percentage of this, a shocking and nerving revelation was made about those African countries which mainly commit the purported atrocities which instigated the need for a Special Task Force. As reported in the same news item, “Africans found to be involved in criminal activities were mainly Nigerians. They are known throughout the world for dabbling in black money and using foreign women as mules to carry drugs in false baggage compartments,” (emphasis is mine). Readers need be reminded that this newspaper gathered its information from governmental sources. As at the time this article was being crafted, which precisely was exactly two weeks after this news items was published, no rebuttal claim has been made issued by the Nigeria High Commissioner to Malaysia.
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A statistical breakdown of the 153 Africans who were arrested for committing various crimes in Malaysia, in 2009 was also used in supporting the claims of the Malaysian government. 69 of these were recorded to be Nigerians, 25 were Sudanese, 16 were from Botswana, and Algiers’ were 14 in number. The remaining 14 were Zimbabweans. [Malay Mail, 21st December, 2009.]
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As it might be difficult to challenge the veracity of the statistical breakdown, it meets the displeasure of the law abiding Nigerians resident in Malaysia. This owns to the fact that the Malaysian government has created and impressed a negative and generalizing stamp of criminals on every one of us. This negative impression does not in any way spare the Nigerian officials who are on diplomatic mission. Not only this, the Malaysian government can be said to have been the first to so proclaim that Nigerians have earned themselves a global reputation for dabbling into black money and using foreign women as mules to carry drugs in false baggage compartments. As much as this reckless claim lacked empirical basis, it has beyond redemption deprived Nigerians of any moral worthiness as human beings that so deserved to be trusted, held responsible and who should be accorded modicum of respect.
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This statement can also be taken to mean that all Nigerians strive on fraud and that none of us earn a decent leaving. In fact, this statement also passes for indicting and passing the verdict of worthlessness and undesirable beings on the generality of well-meaning Nigerians who have contributed immensely to the world. What the America government dare not say, the Malaysian government has pronounced. Some days afterward, I was astonished to see the Agence France-Presse (AFP) use a similar expression to depict Nigeria. As constructed, the AFP writes: “Nigeria, a country long synonymous with graft and coups…” [See New Sunday Times, Jan 3, 2010]. What has started as Malaysian expression, might before long, become a catch phrase that would be used in defining and depicting the Nigerian state and its people.
Agitated by the repercussive and denigrating effects of this on them, Nigerians resident in Malaysia have been making concerted effort to get this impression corrected. Also, worried that what is being propagated of Nigerians in particular and Africans in general, is misleading, some Malaysian based Non-Governmental Organizations have expressed their dissatisfactions. They have spoken in defence of the accused by cautioning that such outburst was discriminatory, blacklisting and simplistically generalizing.
In his reaction, Tah Moon Hui, the coordinator of Suara Rakyat Malaysia argued, ‘at least the 97 percent of the crime is committed by locals. It appears it is not a right move from the government. It is a form of discrimination against the Africans. It appears the police are diverting the issue of crime and focusing on foreigners, and this time on the Africans. [Malay Mail, Dec. 22nd, 2009.]
Regrettably, what Tah Moon considered to be discriminatory and not right, is yet to be noticed by the Nigeria High Commissioner to Malaysia, who is yet to issue any statement on this matter. The silence and the refusal of the High Commissioner to do this simply confirmed what has been said and labeled on the entire citizens of our country.
In a connected reaction, Maria Chin Abdullah, the executive director of one of the Malaysian human rights focused NGOs, asserted that the hasty pronouncement, ‘is blacklisting… and at worse, ignoring genuine students and tourists among them.’ [Malay Mail, Dec. 22nd, 2009.] She went ahead to allude to that, ‘there has always been a trend of finding scapegoats for our social ills’. She also enquired if snatch theft and rape are committed by foreigners?
What Maria did by pointing out the fault lines in her government position on this sensitive matter, the Nigeria High Commissioner in Malaysia has taken with levity and a traditional I don’t care attitude, for which the Commission has garnered a record fame. It is no exaggeration that most Nigerians resident in Malaysia are worth nothing in the eyes of their High Commissioner. This is the more reason why no respond might never be issued by the High Commissioner who often treats his people with disdain.
In his response to this unfortunate and damaging remark, Dr. Irene Fernandez, a Malaysian of timber and caliber also cautioned his government by remarking that, ‘you cannot take a chunk of the community and take action against them.’ [Malay Mail, Dec. 22nd, 2009.] This seems to be contrary to the thought of the Nigeria High Commissioner to Malaysia, because, with the High Commissioner’s silence, the chunk that are involved in crime and the innocent whole, are same of a kind, hence, both should be crucified.
In what best passes for the abandonment of onerous official responsibility, the High Commissioner left the wailing and dejected Nigerian populace in Malaysia to sort out themselves by jetting out to celebrate Christmas and New Year festivities with his family.
By abdicating from the responsibilities of defending the name of his country, the interests of lawfully abiding Nigerians who are resident in Malaysia and of the entire populace of the country that has been tagged criminals and drug syndicates, the Nigeria High Commissioner has demonstrated his disenchantment for the oath of office which so empowered him to represent the Nigeria sovereign in Malaysia.
The situation of the abandoned young and old Nigerians who are resident in Malaysia is one, which is between the fear of the uncertain and the unknown.
There are the few who are truly involved in illegitimate activities, but, should we allow the innocent many to be cohesively dealt with as so specified in the operational terms of the task force set up by the Malaysian government. Will it be sensible to abandon those Nigerian young scholars, majority of whom are schooling as self-sponsored students in some credible Malaysian Universities and of course, those who are serving in Malaysian public and private sectors. We are afraid that if nothing is done to rescue the situation, the plight which befell Nigerians following the unfounded allegation of the murderer of a Malaysian Chinese woman in 2007 could repeat itself.
The intervention of the appropriate governmental agency is therefore solicited before the bubble would burst. It has been echoed, our misery as the stigmatized and the abandoned. We hope somebody would hearken to our aid by saving us from anxiety, blacklisting stereotypes and of course, the insensitivity of our High Commissioner to our plight.
How edifying would it have been, if a commission of enquiry could be instituted to probe the laxities of the Nigeria High Commissioner to Malaysia in fulfilling his official responsibilities and his scornful ways of looking down on the citizens of the country which he is supposed to represent? Would it not be proper, if the abandoned and stigmatized are allow to enjoy the service of someone who would be more responsive to their plight as the Malaysian government has demonstrated?
Mr Adebiyi J. Abudugana, a former UNILAG student Union leader can be reached through [email protected]
(The opinions expressed in this article are in no way reflective of the bodies to which I hold elective positions.)
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