Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu, a former governor of Abia State and chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in this interview monitored in Abuja, speaks on his business travails under the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, the challenges of doing business in Nigeria, the economic recession and the state of the nation. TEMIDAYO AKINSUYI brings the excerpt:

You are a major player in the nation’s economy. What actually are your businesses?

We are into shipping, banking and insurance. We are also into trading, which is my traditional profession as an Igbere man, while our other businesses that were thriving during the tenure of President Olusegun Obasanjo have been moved out of Nigeria. This happened when the licences of Hallmark Bank and Slok Airline were cancelled. We had to move them to the sub-region to join First International Bank, which had been there since 1997, when it was opened in The Gambia and is spread to other West African countries and the international insurance company.

We also have investments in some banks and insurance companies in Nigeria. We are into shipping and we are the largest shipper in sub-Saharan Africa and we also into transportation and oil drilling support. We also export cocoa, cashew nuts and other major cash crops. We are also into manufacturing with about 9,000 workers on the payroll, which makes us a fairly large group.

As a member of the ruling party and a very good friend of President Muhammadu Buhari, don’t you think that bringing back those businesses to Nigeria would be a plus to your party and yourself given the number of jobs involved?

The 9,000 workers I mentioned are all here in Nigeria and we could have been a larger group if Hallmark Bank was not closed and its license withdrawn. A bank with 5,000 workers and 33 branches and someone cancelled the license in one day for political reasons and that takes us to where we are now in Africa. Somebody cancelled the license of an airline with 14 aircraft in a day and nobody asked questions.

How do you convince people to come and invest in your country when a president can wake up and order the Central Bank and the Ministry of Aviation to cancel licenses without due process? I am in court with the Federal Government. So, I won’t dwell more on the issue because the whole process was totally flawed. There was no offence committed, just because we disagreed on third term and that was the price I paid. It was uncalled for to take such action without considering the many families that would be affected.

So, these are the major factors that discourage investors from having long term businesses in the country. When politicians quarrel in America, they quarrel as politicians, they don’t go about attacking each other’s businesses. They talk about politics face to face; they agree and disagree; they quarrel based on politics and they agree and disagree on issues. These are what our political leaders engaged in which is not fair at all. They should not channel their grievances to businesses which people make their living from.
http://independent.ng/paid-price-disagreeing-obasanjo-third-term-kalu/

Mr man, shut your trap. We're tired of your constant whining. Obasanjo this, Nnamdi Kanu that, IPOB the other one.

Afam4eva:
Mr man, shut your trap. We're tired of your constant whining. Obasanjo this, Nnamdi Kanu that, IPOB the other one.

Oga Afam,

I be think sey Kalu be your man?

Tolexander:
Oga Afam,

I be think sey Kalu be your man?

He was never my man but i respected him like i would do most Igbo leaders, even the thieves among them. The moment you use Igbo to pa (like Yorubas say), you're nothing but an idiot to me. Him and Rochas are one and the same. Denigrating their people for cheap fame.

Believe this daylight robber at your peril.

Obansanjo and Buhari are two of the greatest problems that has hit Nigeria since independence and they are products of the poor recruitment process and standard of our military.

Your Mother was in charge of your businesses then and Obasanjo didn't grant special favour to women.