Bloodshed at Nigeria House

The Nigerian Embassy in Congo Town, a suburb of Monrovia was a bloody scene Tuesday, 8 April, when a group of Nigerians and their descendants in Liberia stormed the embassy premises, demanding the resignation of the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Nigeria accredited here, Ms. Chigozie F-Obi Nnadozie.

The protesters held placards in front of the Nigeria House, calling on the Federal Government to immediately recall Ambassador F-Obi Nnadozie from Liberia.

The protest, which had earlier commenced peacefully, turned bloody after the arrival of the Police Support Unit (PSU) of the Liberia National Police. Some of the protesters were wounded on the head during scuffle with the police, while others sustained minor injuries on their hands and back.

Nigerians here under the umbrella body, Nigerian Community and Descendants Union of Liberia (NCDUL) described Ambassador F-Obi Nnadozie as the “most corrupt and wicked person” the Federal Government of Nigeria had ever sent to Liberia.

The spokesperson for the group, Pastor Vincent Abuka said, the Nigerian Ambassador, without any evidence, collectively branded Nigerians and their descendents in Liberia as terrorists and Boko Haram insurgents, thereby circumscribing and mortgaging the safety and security of Nigerians and descendants here.

According to Pastor Abuka, the alleged statement by the ambassador  against fellow Nigerians here now forms the basis of recent assertion by a top Liberian security operative that Nigerian businessmen are Boko Haram operatives.

The protestors, however, refused to name the top Liberian security officer, who allegedly made the statement. They also claimed the ambassador usually denied and obstructed the repatriation and conveyance of corpses of deceased Nigerians back home for burial as custom demands.

“Her actions often frustrate and compound the sorrow of relatives and survivors; this behavior has been unheard of in Liberia,” one protester said.

They also alleged that Ambassador F-Obi Nnadozie compiled list of some Nigerians and their descendants and forwarded same to the Ministry of Justice of Liberia to have them investigated by the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization in Monrovia on allegations that they were either illegal residents or improperly naturalized as Liberians.

They furthered that the intent of the ambassador is to have the citizenship of naturalized Liberians of Nigerian descent revoked by the Government of Liberia.

According to them, the Nigerian Ambassador wrote and circulated to the Government of Liberia and general Liberian public information that immigrant Nigerians who took citizenship in Liberia are in error unless they first revoke their Nigerian citizenship by and through the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

They said this action poses a serious security threat to all naturalized Liberians of Nigerian descent. The protestors also accused Ambassador F-Obi Nnadozie of collecting US$10 from each Nigerian here as registration fee at the embassy when registration of Nigerians had be done free of charge during the tenure of previous ambassadors.

The aggrieved Nigerians said charges levied against the ambassador were only part of a long roll of complaints against her administration in Liberia, adding that more grievances will be disclosed subsequently. Meanwhile, all efforts by the NewDawn to get the side of Ambassador Ms. Chigozie F-Obi Nnadozie were unsuccessful as staffers of the embassy refused to talk to the press.