Uzoma Achigbue is one of those Nigerians abroad whose industry gives hope and reinforces the true Nigerian spirit. About two decades ago, he left our shores for The Gambia, a tiny West African country of slightly above two million people to live his dream. A lawyer and entrepreneur, Achigbue who is widely travelled, believes his country of origin is one of the wonders of creation despite the tragedy of modern Nigeria. And for nearly two hours, he shared his thoughts, his choices and experiences in Nigeria and The Gambia where he currently lives. As the interview progressed, there were areas of agreement and divergence especially with regard to the current jumbled fight against corruption and his view on infrastructure. But regardless of our disagreement on a few issues, the lawyer still managed to maintain admirable commitment and consistency on his views. He spoke with great feeling about Nigeria’s lost opportunities, the peace in The Gambia, the never-ending dialogue among Nigeria’s different ethnic groups, the state of infrastructure, the new administration under the All Progressives Congress, APC and The Gambian hospitality, which he described as second to none.
Achigbue who is the legal adviser to the Nigerian community in The Gambia began his career in the West African country as State Counsel. From there, he moved to Gambia’s Asset Management and Recovery Corporation where he rose to the position of Director of Legal Matters.
He later enrolled in the private Bar in 2009 and shortly after, started his private law firm which he still manages till today.
It is instructive to note that in the African Bar, this Nigerian served as Chairman of The Gambian Forum. He is now Director of Membership. But he is also a farmer. According to him, “law is my profession as a modern man but farming is my effort at identifying with the occupation of my ancestors. I do mixed farming but I have a standard cash crop farm of cashew and some palm trees in The Gambia”. He spoke with Sylvester Asoya.
Welcome home! Is there any particular reason for this visit to Nigeria?
I came to attend the African Bar Association annual conference which took place in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.
How was the conference?
It was well attended and it had great quality. It also attracted eminent persons. There were lectures and papers from eminent jurists from Nigeria, Europe and other parts of the world. It was a well organised conference but I hope this will be surpassed by our next destination, which is Nairobi, Kenya. Hopefully, one day, we will be lucky to host it in The Gambia.
How would you describe the Nigerian judiciary?
The Nigerian judiciary is virile. It has made a lot of progress. For instance, I noticed that the National Judicial Council now has a great measure of independence. And that is a plus for the judiciary. But there is still need for improvement. I know that with the quality of leadership present in the body, they will still make great strides.
I know you’ve been away for some time, what is your impression of Nigeria today?
I have positive impression and I can also say that I have mixed impression as well. I would say positive in the sense that the country has made a great stride in the area of infrastructural development as well as political advancement. But mixed in the sense that I still sense and see a few of those things that I consider negative. For example, the way politics is played, the general attitude of people in their inter-personal relationships as well as the attitude of government in certain areas of national life and public discourse. Let me give an example. One would have expected that those in authority in a fairly new capital city like Asaba in Delta State would have taken into consideration, some environmental issues and objectives in planning the city. For instance, you don’t expect to find flood taking over Government House and certain key areas of the town in this age and time. You would expect the planning authorities to have done something about this from previous experiences because I was made to understand that this is recurrent.
Secondly, on the road that is in traffic, you find certain security agencies doing jobs that are not supposed to be their briefs. I know we have a lot of traffic agencies; we have the Federal Road Safety Commission, FRSC and the traffic police within the police force. What business does a soldier have demanding for vehicle registration licence or drivers licence? Is it not a waste of time of the driver who probably is attending to something very urgent? And of course, a waste of resources for the country because the security agent is doing what he is not called to do.
Many people have argued that there is no fundamental difference between the ruling APC and the PDP because the political actors in APC today were the same people in PDP who brought us to where we are, do you agree?
I don’t agree totally. First of all, it was a good thing that Nigeria became a democratic country. We cannot write off PDP completely but I believe things would have been done a little better, and of course that was why the change mantra carried the day. Yes, during the PDP era, there were a few high profile trials with respect to the fight against corruption which is the main problem the country faces. But now, you can see that the fight against sleaze has become more practical because we are discovering huge sums of money stashed away in buildings and other places. We are also seeing these people who are involved, making some approaches to government to return what they must have improperly taken. So I think there have been some changes.
Are you saying that Nigeria’s politicians have done well since 1999?
No. There are problems. And there are things we must do to improve our political process. First, we must de-emphasize money politics. We must also put behind us, politics with bitterness. At the end of the day, if I am APC and you are PDP, and I am now in government, if I leave, what you should do is not to destroy my legacies. The right attitude is to uphold and build on my legacy, that is what government is all about. So, let us borrow a leave from some advanced countries. What they do is to follow up on projects and existing policies initiated by their predecessors. If a policy is people-friendly, it must not be destroyed because of politics or because it was not started by your party. For me, that is a wrong way to play politics. Politics should be in the overall interest of the people, not against the people or against a party to the detriment of the common good.
Any hope?
Yes. I like the new message of the National Orientation Agency, “Change begins with me”. We as individuals and citizens of this country should make conscious efforts to support the much needed attitudinal change for the positive, having the interest of our family, community, state and country at heart. We must not be indifferent. It is only this sense of communal attitude that will make Nigeria great again.
You live and work in The Gambia, what are your experiences?
Well, I have experienced that people can live peacefully irrespective of their race or religion. I have also noticed that people can, in spite of advancement technologically, economically, politically, socially or otherwise, relate with one another as human beings, and with a sense of equality.
Are you saying that Gambians are friendlier or that their society is more favourably disposed to integration?
I won’t expressly say that but I would rather say that there is a lot for the two countries to learn from each other. But as I said earlier, in The Gambia, you will not hear about a religious upheaval. And you will also not hear that there is a tribal war in The Gambia. Everybody celebrates Christmas and Sallah together. In one family, you would find Muslims and Christians celebrating and inter-marrying. That is what I call positive communal living and it is worthy of emulation. And once that spirit of communality is imbibed, you will see that people will have respect for one another, and equally respect and value human life. Let me say this: there can never be progress without peace.
Xenophobia is now a recurring word in almost every discussion around crisis across Africa and even beyond. Some Nigerians living abroad had at different times, complained of violent attacks by citizens of their host countries. Is this ugly trend also present in The Gambia?
Gambia as a corporate entity has never been unfair to me. Yes, it is possible for you to have a black sheep in every family. You will have some people who feel that you do not merit what you are enjoying for their own personal reasons. But that does not define the country.
Do you have a strong Nigerian community in The Gambia?
Yes, a very strong one. We meet regularly. In fact, I am the legal adviser to the Nigerian community in The Gambia. It is a very vibrant association and we are recognised in The Gambia.
Are there opportunities for interested Nigerians who may want to work and live in The Gambia?
Of course! There are opportunities in law, medicine, journalism, academics and other areas. It is a developing country and they need all the input they can get to transform the country.
Recently, the former president, Yahya Jammeh left the country under very controversial circumstance following his defeat at the polls. What is the state of affairs since the new government came on board?
You will agree with me that the last regime was in power for almost 22 years. And in all that time, they wielded a very strong influence in the country and the sun-region. However, the current president, though he is of the same age with the last president, he is new to governance. Yes, he is surrounded by a lot of experienced people but you cannot wish away a government of 22 years. I would say that the current government is making very conscious and positive efforts towards addressing what went wrong in the past. And they are seriously tackling the issues with a view to moving forward.
Is tourism still thriving in The Gambia?
Tourism still remains one of the main stays of the economy of The Gambia. And at all times, the government is always fashioning out policies to make sure that the sector remains relevant. The last political misunderstanding slightly affected the tourism industry but with the return of stability, a lot of tourists who had left in apprehension are already returning. It is foreseen that the next tourist destination in the sub-region is The Gambia and efforts are being made to make tourism an all-year round experience.
Are you returning finally to Nigeria any time soon?
But I am here as you can see!