THE AFRICAN COURIER. Reporting Africa and its Diaspora! The African Courier is an international magazine published in Germany to report on Africa and the Diaspora African experience. The first issue of the bimonthly magazine appeared on the newsstands on 15 February 1998. The African Courier is a communication forum for European-African political, economic and cultural exchanges, and a voice for Africa in Europe.
Berlin-based practising lawyer Efosa Ogieriakhi is no longer content with complaining about the situation in his home country Nigeria. He now wants to be part of the solution of a problem he describes as “stagnant development”.
A former Legal Adviser to Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation Europe (NIDOE) and one-time Chairman of the Edo Diaspora Worldwide, Barrister Ogieriakhi has been actively involved in Nigerian issues for many years.
In fact, he convened a coalition of Edo diaspora groups in 2016 to back the candidacy of Godwin Obaseki for the Governorship of Edo State.
Seven years down the road, he is disappointed that the hopes invested in Obaseki have not been realised. “Perhaps our expectations are too high for him to accomplished,” he said.
“In fact, it’s more of the same,” Ogieriakhi sadly remarked. “Our politics has been hijacked by moneybags who see political offices as avenue to make profits on their political investment,” he added.
Tired of complaining from more than 6,000 km away, Barrister Ogieriakhi has joined the fray to make a difference. And he is starting from his home state, Edo State, one of Nigeria’s 36 federating states. He has declared his intention to contest the governorship of the state next year.
A member of the Labour Party, the Germany-trained lawyer is determined to change politics as we know it in Nigeria.
“We want to bring visible and practical changes to how government works in Nigeria,” he said. “Our state is very rich in natural and human resources, but paradoxically most of our people live in abject poverty.”
He blames the failure of governance on “political investors, whose mission is to invest high sums of money to help their cohorts into office and then rip off the public coffers to recoup their investments and make much more profit on top.”
“Having satisfactorily refilled their bags, they embark on skeletal projects to cover up the madness.”
To actualize his Rescue Edo Mission, Barrister Ogieriakhi is currently crowd-raising funds for his campaign. He believes the people must drive the project by themselves, because only the oppressed can liberate themselves. Oppressors will never think of liberation of the oppressed.
The governorship aspirant doesn’t want to be sponsored by the so-called political godfathers, political investors who provide campaign funds to candidates and expect to be paid back in multiple folds from the public purse when their candidates win.
“That is the bane of our politics and a fundamental reason why elected officials aren’t able to perform because they are first beholden to those who sponsored them into office,” Ogieriakhi added.
“Some political investors are set again in moments like these to continue with the Nigerian factor within the party, by buying and influencing political heads with money and hijack the governorship candidacy,” he said. “We also heard that there is plan to fix a record-high price for the nomination form.”
To pursue his governorship ambition against these developments, he has to raise funds from patriots whom he described as “Liberators and Transformers”.
He believes that he stands good chances of raising money from diaspora Nigerians who are also frustrated with governance in Nigeria and would like things to change.
An estimated budget of 6 billion naira (€6 million) is required to enable him carry out a serious governorship campaign in Edo State. He has drawn representative from across all the Local Governments in Edo State to “honestly, transparently and independently” manage his campaign account without his personal involvement.
To support Barrister Efosa Ogieriakhi, please donate to his campaign fund.
Naira Account
Name: Barrister Efosa Ogieriakhi Campaign Account
Bank: Zenith Bank
Account No.: 124 3945 408
Euro Account
Bank: Zenith Bank
Account No.: 508 1042 138
Swift: ZEIBNGLA
Bank Address: Zenith Heights 87, Ajose Adeogun Street, Victoria Island, Lagos State, Nigeria
US Dollar Account
Bank: Zenith Bank
Account No.: 507 4069 850
Swift: ZEIBNGLA
Bank Address: Zenith Heights 87, Ajose Adeogun Street, Victoria Island, Lagos State, Nigeria
Pounds Account
Bank: Zenith Bank
Account No.: 506 1306 731
Swift: ZEIBNGLA
Bank Address: Zenith Heights 87, Ajose Adeogun Street, Victoria Island, Lagos State, Nigeria
Barrister Ogieriakhi welcomes any contributions and thanks anyone who contributes to this Rescue Mission, what he called, first of its kind in Africa.
