TheCable

Ben Ayade, governor of Cross River, says Nigerians must stop “demarketing” the country in order not to discourage foreign investors.

Speaking on Tuesday in an interview with Channels Television, Ayade said investors will be discouraged from doing business with Nigeria if people continue to spread bad news about the country.

The Cross River governor bemoaned what he described as politics seeking the downfall of the ruling party, saying it does not translate to the good of the country.

Ayade urged Nigerians to support the All Progressives Congress (APC) for continuity in government, adding that countries that have made progress had long-term leadership.

“If you look all over the world, nations that have really made progress are nations that have had a very stable government, a very consistent and long-term leadership. For a third-world country to run a first-world democracy is quite primitivist,” he said.

“It is just like the lifestyle we live in Nigeria is a first-world lifestyle in a third-world economy. There is a disconnect.

“There is a broken corporate personality in this country. Until all those are addressed, we will continue to have this situation and this is why I have moved to the centre; to really add my own strong voice to the credibility and stability of this nation.

“The young people are watching and are seeing that politicians are playing politics with their future.

“Just look at the newspapers, go to the internet and everything you read about Nigeria is woe. How will you call any investor to come to a country like that?

“When we use our own mouth, our own print media, our own newspaper to demarket the country, I think sometimes I shudder with pain.

“And I will just really wonder if this is the way to go as a nation, particularly when Nigeria represents the growth and the direction of the black man in the world.”