Theft mars Nigerian 're-branding'

from BBC

Thieves stole a mobile phone belonging to a member of a new team campaigning to improve Nigeria's image as a country riddled by crime and chaos.

Isawa Elaigwu told the launch of the "rebrand Nigeria" campaign he noticed the phone was gone minutes before he was due to address the event.

"As I was entering the gates of the conference centre I noticed I had been pick-pocketed," he said.

"This is just the sort of thing we need to fight against".

Nigeria is often seen abroad as a violent and chaotic place, full of people who use e-mail scams to cheat money out of unwitting victims.

'Most dangerous'

Its commercial capital Lagos recently topped a poll of the world's most dangerous places to work.

The Information Ministry hopes to change this bad reputation with a public relations campaign.

On Tuesday the ministry unveiled a new slogan "Nigeria: Good people, great country", and a logo.

Information Minister Dora Akunyili, who made her name as a fierce campaigner against fake drugs, said the country's reputation was unfair.

"We must shed this toga that says we are untrustworthy, unreliable and ungovernable," she said.

She admitted that the country did have real problems with poverty, corruption and infrastructure, but that wouldn't stop them trying.

"Some people say: 'Why rebrand now?' Nigeria cannot wait until its solved all its problems before addressing its image."

Better life

A better image would improve tourism and encourage businesses to invest in Nigeria, she said.

As Nigerian's own perception of themselves improved they would be less inclined to commit crime, she said.

The previous administration of President Olusegun Obasanjo had a similar campaign to improve Nigeria's image called "Heart of Africa".

Local media reported that the government spent $5.6million (£4million) on it in one year.

It was scrapped by Mrs Akunyili last year.

The minister last week promised the National Assembly the "good people great country" campaign will cost a lot less, and spending will be transparent.

=nijalaw;338291>The pickpocket has already sent an ominous sign of failure.

=nijalaw;338291>The pickpocket has already sent an ominous sign of failure.

=AwesomeO2;338298>Nijalaw:
I wonder why this dude had to publicize the loss of his cell phone. I thought he was attempting to sell a better image of Nigeria.Telling the whole, wide world he had been pick-pocketed was not part of his campaign. And how could he have concluded he had been robbed as opposed to a couple of other scenarios - loss, misplacement, misappropriation etc.?

=NWANZA;338300>The only way out for Nigerians is to rename the country.

Let's get ideas for a name and choose the best name.

Anything Nigeria is hurting our people all over the world, and is detrimental to our development as a nation. It hinders our children’s employment and business prospects.

It is about time to rename the country and do it quietly without much fan fare.

It is the smart thing to do at this point in our history, and the magnitude of negativity that trails our beloved country.

Renaming Nigeria may actually ease the agitation from many ethnic groups that are clamoring for independent states.

=NWANZA;338300>The only way out for Nigerians is to rename the country.

Let's get ideas for a name and choose the best name.

Anything Nigeria is hurting our people all over the world, and is detrimental to our development as a nation. It hinders our children’s employment and business prospects.

It is about time to rename the country and do it quietly without much fan fare.

It is the smart thing to do at this point in our history, and the magnitude of negativity that trails our beloved country.

Renaming Nigeria may actually ease the agitation from many ethnic groups that are clamoring for independent states.

=AwesomeO2;338298>Nijalaw:
I wonder why this dude had to publicize the loss of his cell phone. I thought he was attempting to sell a better image of Nigeria.Telling the whole, wide world he had been pick-pocketed was not part of his campaign. And how could he have concluded he had been robbed as opposed to a couple of other scenarios - loss, misplacement, misappropriation etc.?

=AwesomeO2;338309>You have a good point there, NWANZA. I agree with you that any fresh idea such as yours brings with it some breath of fresh air. Renaming Nigeria in my opinion, will work better than the REBRANDING currently going on. But then again, do any of us doubt the fact that such exercise (REBRANDING) serves no other purpose than to present opportunities for people to embezzle funds allocated for the exercise. Maybe, we need to first of all rebrand our inner selves before rebranding the whole country.