…Promise to invest trillion dollars in Nigeria
By: Mercy Peter
African Diasporans who have traced their root to Nigeria have sought for Nigerian citizenship.
The President of the African Diaspora Union, Archbishop Prof. Chidiebere Ogbu, made the request during a press conference in Abuja on Monday, ahead of the International Gathering in Honor of the Africans in Diaspora scheduled for October 18 to 27, 2024 in Abuja and other parts of the country.
The event, organised by AFRIDU in partnership with the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, would bring together African descendants from around the world with the aim to reconnect with their ancestral homeland.
President Bola Tinubu is expected to address the issue during the event in Abuja.
Ogbu said they have made a passionate appeal to President Bola Tinubu for the request.
He said “For clarity purposes, the Historic African Diaspora are indigenous Africans
whose ancestors were forcefully carried away through conspiracy,
manipulation, and coercions into slavery over 500years ago, and who are
dispersed in Europe, North America, South America, Caribbean and the
Oceania”.
Though he said some African countries have already created the legal framework for those who had traced their root through DNA to those countries to be granted citizenship and they wish Nigeria would do same.
He said: “Please do not despise Nigeria’s passport because we know many black people of the world who want Nigeria’s passport. If our president will be magnanimous enough to grant citizenship to some of these people coming. “We have American basketball, hall of fame and the rest of them they will capture this. We will see a new consciousness and movement in America, South America and the Caribbeans about Nigeria.
“A high percentage of Africans in diaspora have traced their DNA to Nigeria. Some of them would want to enjoy Nigeria’s citizenship which has been denied their own ancestors for centuries. They feel if Nigeria is their home, they ought to enjoy the rights and privileges which their ancestors were denied. So we recommend that our government try as much as possible to make this our brethren feel at home and grant those of them who want the citizenship of Nigeria.”
He added that this would further enhance the drive for Foreign Direct Investment into the country.
He said these group of people are willing to invest trillion of dollars in Nigeria’s economy.
The AFRIDU President therefore said for many of the participants, the event represents a long-awaited opportunity to return to Africa, not just as visitors, but as people reclaiming a deep personal and historical connection.
Nigeria, which was a central hub in the transatlantic slave trade, holds particular significance for those whose ancestors were forcibly taken from its shores more than 500 years ago.
“The gathering will give all the
Black peoples of the world outside Africa the opportunity to visit Africa especially
Nigeria, with most of them visiting different states where they believe is their ancestry home which will usher in a great mass movement of the African
Diaspora Experts, Investors, Professionals, Scientists, Entertainers, Academia, and people with diverse skills to Nigeria in the actualization of the Africans in Diaspora integration,” he said.
For clarity purposes, the Historic African Diaspora are indigenous Africans
whose ancestors were forcefully carried away through conspiracy,
manipulation, and coercions into slavery over 500years ago, and who are
dispersed in Europe, North America, South America, Caribbean and the
Oceania.
