By Vincent Ujumadu, Awka
INFORMATION and Communications Minister, Professor Dora Akunyili took her re-branding campaign to Anambra State yesterday, warning that Nigeria would be left behind if she fails to use the opportunity provided by the exercise to correct the negative perception about the country and her citizens.

Addressing the people of the state at the Women Development Center in Awka, the Minister regretted that the negative impression about the country was given flesh by the bad behaviour of some Nigerians, but argued that since those with such bad behaviour were in the minority, the majority should insist on doing the good things while making efforts to change the attitude of the bad minority.

She recalled that previous governments tried in the past to carve a better image for the country through programmes such as MAMSER, War Against Indiscipline (WAI), the Heart of Africa, Ethical Revolution, among others, regretting that most of them did not achieve much, except WAI which also died with the administration that established it.

According to her, the on-going re-branding exercise is succeeding because it is totally home bred, coupled with the fact that it is anchored on attitudinal change.

“All over the world, Nigerians are recognized as criminals such that in many airports, we are asked to stand aside for special screening, but we know that this is not the true situation. The worrisome aspect is that we are even accepting the situation as normal and that is why there is need to have a change of attitude,” the minister said.

She cited the case of Anambra State which, she observed, had acquired the notoriety for kidnapping, even when it is obvious that only few bad eggs are involved in it and advised that parents should not keep quiet when their children become thugs because from thuggery, they graduate to kidnapping.

Akunyili commended Governor Peter Obi for changing the bad image of the state which, she noted,  is a form of re_branding.

In his speech, Governor Obi advised that re_branding should begin with the kind of people presented for elective positions, adding that “once we get the right people in political offices, good things would eventually follow”.

He said that the problem in the past was that those representing the people in various places were only concerned about themselves and that did not provide any encouragement for the younger ones who looked up to them

The governor said that his administration is working with the traditional rulers and presidents’ general of the various communities in changing the state for the better, adding that there had been successes in that regard.