A visiting Nigerian Lecturer at the University of Education Winneba, who was arrested for allegedly inciting the Nigerian community in Ghana to devise strategies that will destroy Ghana’s image, has been granted bail.
Prof. Augustine Uzoma Nwagbara, in a video that has gone viral, asked Nigerian media to destroy Ghana’s image to the international community through negative reportage.
“We’re highly skilled and highly talented and blessed people but many a time, we lack strategy. Nigerians tend to lack strategy. You can have good skills, if you don’t know how to let people know it is there; it dies. It’s like having a factory full of items in the warehouse. If you don’t advertise, it remains in the warehouse”.
“They have harassed us a lot, I know that… What I’m saying is we need strategies. I’ll suggest something which the embassy can think about; I know they know what they can do immediately at the Nigerians community. There is a bad image for Nigeria. We can take it back through the press. We can reverse it. We have powerful Nigerian media stations, channels that broadcast all over the world. There’s active online social media, the plot in Nigeria. Let them come here and run documentaries of the experiences of Nigerians and blast it all over the world. In three days Ghana would respond,” the Nigerian Professor said.
The Public Relations Officer for the Criminal Investigations Department (CID), DSP Juliana Obeng confirmed the Professor’s arrest on Eyewitness News, adding that he was subsequently cautioned and granted bail.
“I can tell you indeed that we have arrested Nigerian Professor Dr. Augustine Nwagbra. He was arrested in the afternoon and he is being cautioned on offensive conduct conducive to the breach of peace in respect with a video that has gone viral. He has been granted bail.”
Nigeria High Commission laments ‘xenophobic tendencies’
This development comes in the wake of concerns by the Nigerian High Commission in Ghana over the nature of reportage of crimes involving Nigerians which it says exhibits some form of xenophobia.
The involvement of Nigerians in high profile crimes in recent times is viewed as causing some resentment for Nigerians in Ghana.
In the statement, Nigerian High Commissioner to Ghana, Ambassador Micheal Olufemi Abikoye, referenced reports involving Nigerians and criminal activity; including the recent kidnapping of two Canadians in Kumasi.
“The Ghanaian Press, both print and electronic as well as social media seems to have enjoyed a field day in demonising Nigeria which for all intent and purposes, is seen as a fraternal brother to Ghana,” the statement noted.
