A former Lagos State Governor and immediate past Minister of Works, Babatunde Fashola, has said he remains a Nigerian by choice and holds no dual citizenship.

This was as he urged Nigerians at home and in the diaspora to take collective ownership of the country and its problems.

Fashola said this while delivering a keynote address at the Nigeria Reputation Summit 2026, organised by the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations, in Abuja on Tuesday.

“I don’t think we own Nigeria enough. So, I hear some of our colleagues and our compatriots who, by virtue of the 1999 Constitution, have dual citizenship. But I have only one.

“And when they talk to me, they say, your country. I say, stop. It’s our country. Your problem is our problem. There must be a common ownership on every platform. If we have common ownership, we will solve it. So, from my childhood experience, I tell people I’m not just a proud Nigerian, I’m an arrogant one. I’m arrogant about my country.

“I tell people that I have not received one day’s education outside this country. All my education was here. So, proudly made in Nigeria. Arrogantly, too. So everything, every inch that we think that we have lost, we can get back if we decide to,” he stated.

Fashola reflected on Nigeria's enduring emigration trend, stating that the current 'Japa' phenomenon has roots dating back many decades.

“When we graduated from the University of Benin, not a few of our colleagues left Nigeria. The wave of the movement at that time, in the 80s, was checking out. It was not unusual to hear things like ‘I’m tired of this country, I want to check out.

“Now it’s Japa, 35 years after. So the more things change, the more they seem to remain the same. But you know what has happened? Almost all of them have come back,” he said.

The former governor argued that despite its challenges, Nigeria remains a country of vast opportunities and social mobility.

“So, why is this? Nigeria is a land of opportunities. This is a land of unending possibilities. This is where the biggest rags-to-riches stories have happened and where people of the most humble beginnings have risen to the top of leadership.

“Look at Nigeria’s history. Which son of a king or a billionaire ever made it to our presidency? Think about it. We spend so much time valorising other people’s dreams.”

Fashola cautioned against allowing the actions of a few individuals to define the country’s image.

“Yes, there are a few people amongst us who choose a path that gives us cause for concern. But they do not define us. They do not reflect what right-thinking and well-meaning people believe about us.”

The ex-minister recalled a similar incident in London, where a shopkeeper reacted with excitement upon learning they were Nigerians.

“He left us in the shop, went upstairs, excited, brought his wife and his children down, and asked if we would please take photographs with them.”

Fashola stated that these experiences happened even while Nigeria faced internal security issues. He emphasized that every country encounters challenges and that its reputation depends on how it responds to such difficulties.

“The point I wish to make from that is that there is no country without its challenges. And how we embrace those challenges is what defines us, not the challenges themselves,” he explained.

ASA