The Nigeria High Commission in the United Kingdom has removed statements and policies from former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration from its website. Jonathan left office in 2015 after being defeated by Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in that year’s presidential election.
Recently, reports indicated that the High Commission’s website still contained information from Jonathan’s era, despite the transition to President Bola Tinubu’s administration. Although Nigeria’s national anthem changed in May with the National Anthem Bill, 2024, the old anthem, “Arise O Compatriots,” reportedly remained online.
According to Daily Trust, as of October 4, 2024, President Tinubu’s policy statements were absent from the site, despite his multiple visits to the UK since taking office in 2023. However, following media observations, updates have since appeared on the commission’s website, though remnants of Jonathan’s tenure still linger in key sections.
The new anthem, “Nigeria, We Hail Thee,” has now been added, and Jonathan’s policy statements that once filled the site have been taken down. Sections like Economy Overview, Labour Market and Unemployment, and Agriculture, Forestry & Fishing, which hadn’t been updated since Olusegun Obasanjo’s presidency, now feature a note indicating “update in progress.”...Read Full Article [Click Here>]
Dr. Bola Akintehinwa, former Director-General of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA), expressed his concern about the outdated information on the commission’s website, stating it negatively affects Nigeria’s reputation abroad. He noted that the lack of President Tinubu’s policy documents signifies a missed opportunity to strengthen global connections for Nigeria’s economic advancement.
“It is how you are perceived that people relate with you. It shows that public administration in Nigeria is at best, zero. That is why, for instance, former British Prime Minister (David Cameron) described Nigeria as fantastically corrupt. When you’re fantastically corrupt, how do you expect to address minor issues like updating the website? It gives Nigeria a very bad image.
“It gives the government an image of recklessness; it tells investors that they can’t depend on information on the internet and it is better for them to make inquiries one-on-one. If you don’t have updated information, they (the investors) will engage in bad decision-making. It only portrays Nigeria as, at best, an analogue country in a new world of globalisation and technologically-driven world,” he told Daily Trust.
