Nigerian High Commissioner denies 'Ghana bashing'

Nigerian High Commissioner to Ghana, Senator Obanikoro The Nigerian High Commissioner to Ghana, Senator Obanikoro, has denied recent media reports about scathing attacks on Ghana, purportedly made by some top Nigerian officials. The media reports centred on a statement issued by the Ghana High Commission in Nigeria on supposed unfriendly pronouncements made by the Nigerian officials. It accused the Nigerian Defence Minister Godwin Abbe of saying that the volume of water generated in Ghana is not enough to flush toilets in Lagos State among others. The Education Minister Sam Egwu, was also quoted to have said on a national radio that all the university lecturers in Ghana will not be adequate for a single university in Nigeria. But Mr Obanikoro said he was shocked by the report and described it as “ridiculous lies”, insisting no Nigerian official has made such derogatory comments about Ghana. He warned that such reports have the tendency to ruin the “spiritual” and cordial relationship between Ghana and Nigeria. Senator Obanikoro hoped that the two countries would put those detracting issues aside and continue to work together to improve Africa’s development. “I was kind of shock how we give prominence to such issues that did not take place at all, and no media person took effort to crosscheck all these things” he admonished. The High Commissioner further stated: “I told my officer to go on the net and google the name of our minister; and everything he has said in the last two months came out, nothing like that was said by any of the ministers. “I think we all owe it a duty to assist the effort of our leaders to strengthen our sub region in all facets. “It is becoming a pattern; something is being done just to weaken the relationship between our two great countries." Story by Isaac Essel Myjoyonline.com/Ghana