(L-R) Tolu Ojo, director of sales at Etisalat Nigeria discussing with Kennedy Ejakpomewhe, district governor elect, at the four day annual conference of Rotary Club District 9110, Abeokuta.

Nigerian establishments, private and public, that are nursing ideas of growing their business with funds from foreign investors may have to look elsewhere, as the gradually emerging row over who takes a shot at the presidency for the 2011 presidential election becomes a major source of worry for foreign investors.
There are strong indications from economic and political intelligence reports that investment analysts across the globe have been reviewing political developments in the country since the death of Umaru Musa Yar’adua, and have not been comfortable with the trend of the succession arrangement in the ruling political party in the country and may have advised their clients to withhold action on new investments.
This is believed to have been the major reason why the Central Bank of Nigeria has not been able to find buyers for the rescued banks nearly ten months after they were put up for sale.
Our sources further noted that the indication that President Goodluck Jonathan may run against the position of some of his party loyalists may begin to heat up the system that a major crack may likely  ensue within the government and the ruling party, to the extent that economic activities will be adversely affected.
They are of the opinion that there is likely to be an unstable polity in the country if a candidate that does not represent the interests of the protagonists of the zoning agenda of the ruling party in the country and some particular geopolitical zones emerges.
Our sources believe that investors are of the opinion that an impending disagreement on the issue of who should run or not is likely to re-enact some ethnic or regional agenda which would not be healthy for investments.
There are indications that investors have adopted a wait-and-see attitude as a way of limiting their exposure in case the various contenders to the right to contest for presidency on the ticket of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) decide to throw caution to the wind as has been witnessed in other African countries in the last ten years.
Further investigations reveal that the probability of a serious discontent is possible based on the drama that has played out since the time the late president left for medical attention and the emerging political realignments since he died. 
Indications are rife that two areas that have witnessed massive foreign investment inflow in the last ten years are the financial services sector and the aviation industry where various levels of equity investment and partnership of various kinds have been recorded.
Our sources also noted that there have been decline of foreign attention in those areas as investors blame the poor state of government policy and the unstable pre and post election polity.