Former Abia State Governor Orji Uzor Kalu yesterday described the statement credited to British Prime Minister David Cameron, in which he referred to Nigeria as a “fantastically corrupt” country as unguarded.
He said Cameron should apologise for the “unfortunate” statement.
“My attention and that of the Nigerian public have been drawn to the recent statement made by the British Prime Minister, Mr. David Cameron in which he characterized Nigeria as a “fantastically corrupt country” during his briefing to Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth just before the anti-corruption summit which was attended by President Muhammadu Buhari in London.
“The statements of the British Prime Minister are most unfortunate and unguarded, given the relationship between the Nigeria and Britain, two countries that share very long and deep heritage; and especially as the British PM did not state the basis on which he made such assertion which has now become public. It is also a gross disrespect and a most uncharitable disposition to the Nigerian people who work hard to earn their living and who have made very positive impacts on the lives of British people and their economy. Also, such statements coming from the convener of the summit himself, just before the commencement, suggest that either he doesn’t take the summit serious, or he is deceptive in terms of his commitment to the Nigerian government in the fight against corruption.
“In the light of this, the British Prime Minister should render an immediate and unreserved apology to the Nigerian people and to President Buhari for those embarrassing comments. As a responsible government and former colonists of Nigeria, my advice is that Britain should handle this matter with the required level of responsibility and prudence so as to avoid a possible breakdown of diplomatic relations between the two countries,” Kalu added.
