Ex Head of State’s Business Interest Cripples Nigerian Mission
OFFICIALS of the Nigerian Embassy in Hungary who spoke on condition of anonymity at the weekend, said that a former military head of state, who is said to have multi-million naira interest in an unnamed company in Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, has been threatening to use his position as a former leader to close the embassy in Budapest.
The ex-leader is allegedly incensed that most of the Serbian businessmen and citizens, especially those working for his company, who want to come to Nigeria have to go to Budapest in Hungary to apply for visa, which he said is extremely lengthy, complicated and costly.
He said that the inconvenience of travelling to Budapest to procure visas for their journey to Nigeria has inevitably affected his business interests as the application processes are lengthy and cumbersome, adding that most of the visa applications were always turned down by the embassy in Hungary.
The embassy officials who noted that the silence of the Nigerian Ambassador to Hungary has compounded the issue, said that the persistent threats by the ex-leader has created uneasy calm in the embassy and may not allow them to handle diplomatic duties professionally.
Belgrade is the biggest diplomatic centre in the region and quite a number of African countries are there, unfortunately Nigeria is not on the list despite having its own buildings in Belgrade. The building has been left empty since 2003.
The ex-leader is allegedly incensed that most of the Serbian businessmen and citizens, especially those working for his company, who want to come to Nigeria have to go to Budapest in Hungary to apply for visa, which he said is extremely lengthy, complicated and costly.
He said that the inconvenience of travelling to Budapest to procure visas for their journey to Nigeria has inevitably affected his business interests as the application processes are lengthy and cumbersome, adding that most of the visa applications were always turned down by the embassy in Hungary.
The embassy officials who noted that the silence of the Nigerian Ambassador to Hungary has compounded the issue, said that the persistent threats by the ex-leader has created uneasy calm in the embassy and may not allow them to handle diplomatic duties professionally.
Belgrade is the biggest diplomatic centre in the region and quite a number of African countries are there, unfortunately Nigeria is not on the list despite having its own buildings in Belgrade. The building has been left empty since 2003.
