interview
By Abubakar Adam Ibrahim
His Excellency Ajjampur Rangaiah Ghanashyam was the Indian High Commissioner to Nigeria for two years. On his last night in Nigeria, Daily Trust caught up with him at the Diplomatic Jazz Night hosted by the Indian High Commission where he talked about his experience in the country, what Nigeria is getting wrong and India-Nigeria relations.
What appealed to you about the diplomatic Jazz Night that made you agree to host it?
Music has no boundaries. It cuts across cultures and boundaries and religion and it brings together many people. Look at the audience here. There are many nationalities in this group today and everyone enjoyed it. No one left and they [the performers] had to extend it a bit due to popular demand. You have so much talent. I feel I have done Nigeria a favour by bringing so many nationals and Indians to enjoy your music. So you must give me some commission for selling Nigeria (Laugh). I have sold Nigeria.
My job is to sell India but sometimes you need to stop being a salesman and start becoming a human being. When you become a human being, other people in Nigeria start treating you like one immaterial of the language, immaterial of the culture.
How long have you served in Nigeria?
Two years. It’s a wonderful country and it’s a blessed country. You talk about natural resources. Talk about human resources. Talk about intellectual resources. You have everything. God has given you the best of everything. If you have not reached the top, it’s your own fault because everything is available here for you to reach the top.
So what do you think Nigeria is getting wrong?
Nothing is wrong. One thing I have always said about any institution, about any country is pride. The moment the child from school, the student from the university, the worker in the ministry of so and so starts taking pride in their jobs, take pride in their work, then no one can stop that country. And this should start from the top to the bottom. You have so much in your own country you don’t have to go anywhere else. I keep saying you can feed the whole continent with your land and you are only one million out of 30 million square kilometres of the continent, still you have the capacity to feed the continent. You are the only country apart from Rwanda that has 60 per cent of arable land. You to go the United States, after Indians it is Nigerians who are well-known doctors there. Why? And why are Nigerians going to India for medical tourism? Get your doctors from the United States. In fact, other countries in Africa should be coming to Nigeria for medical treatment, not Nigerians going to India. But you have to give them the enabling environment. The government, the people must invite them and accept them and make them feel pride, then you will have a great future. Even now, I think in the next four or five years, you will be a major agricultural producer. Thank God that oil prices have gone down. It is good for Nigeria. I don’t think anyone in Nigeria should feel bad that oil prices are going down because it would make you explore other resources.
What do you think of Nigeria-India relations?
Nigeria and India relations have been very, very good.It goes back to the time of your great grandfathers and even beyond. You know Indian and Nigerian soldiers fought in the First World War; that is 1914, a hundred years ago. So our relationship doesn’t need ambassadors because there are ambassadors here and ambassadors in India, so we have a relationship that is on auto-pilot. The ambassador is only here to make sure it doesn’t go in the wrong direction. There is trust between the people. I am happy I have spent two years here. I am extremely happy. My only regret is that I couldn’t see the whole country because I had three more countries-Chad, Benin and Cameroun, to cover. I would have loved to go to every state in Nigeria at least once but I have seen about 16.
India has been successfully doing cultural diplomacy for years through Bollywood…
Actually, I feel there is great scope for Nigeria and India to get Nollywood and Bollywood together because the two of us together can take Hollywood by surprise because there is no dearth of stories in Africa and there is no dearth of stories in India. There are many stories between India and Africa and there are many directors and writers and musicians on both sides who are world class. If they gang up, they will goplaces. I have been trying. In fact I entertained your Nollywood Guild once at home and there were plans to get them to India but there were lots of problems here and there with elections and all that. I hope the next High Commissioner who comes after me will take his cue from me. Just imagine a movie made between India and Nigeria. It will sell like hot cakes in Hollywood.
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