Nigerians living in the United States of America have charged officials of the Nigerian Consulate in the country to brace up for better performance.
They gave the charge at an interactive session with the new consul general, Amb. Amina Smaila, in Atlanta with stakeholders in the Nigerian business community in attendance.
Speaking at the event, one of the guests, Francis Agbowa, highlighted some of the discontenting issues known with the commission in time past which he said had given it a bad image in the global society.
He identified some of the issues as delayed visa applications and racketeering among other unprofessional treatments.
He said, “Over the years, Nigerians living in the diaspora are always in the news complaining vehemently about Nigerian consulates abroad, especially in the United States.
“Complaints such as shabby and unprofessional treatment laced with racketeering faced on appointments for visa applications or passport renewal have been at the forefront”.
He, however, commended the new management of the consulate led by Smaila for initiating steps towards improved activities.
He said the new leadership of the mission was committed to turn the tide, with the result already manifesting from the testimonies of applicants.
One of the guests, Arowolo Funke, corroborated Akin’s submission, saying,
“It used to be a very tough and indescribable experience, you can imagine we travel miles for renewal of passport and visa application only to leave disappointed and at times, wait tirelessly without result. It was that bad that there had been cases of physical confrontations between applicants and officials. We hope the changes we are beginning to see lately will be improved on and sustained.”
A thorough bred professional and well-read, Smaila boasts an intimidating resume supported with her elitist background.
Within the short time of assuming duty, she has been able to strengthen business ties between Nigeria and the United States by exploring partnerships to engage both communities.
