The Comptroller General of the Nigerian Customs Service, Colonel Hammed Ali (rtd), has said that closure of Nigerian land borders would make the country great.

He said this in a video, which has been trending on social media, Punch reports.

In the video, Ali reportedly said, “This is the government that has insisted that we must grow Nigeria, eat Nigeria. China that we go there to buy almost everything we use, closed their bothers for how many years? They closed it for 40 years to the whole world and today they are great China. Don’t you want to be great Nigeria?”

Ali went on to dismiss the notion that the closure of the border had increased the suffering of Nigerians.

He said:, “The notion that this border closure is what has created pressure on the suffering of the Nigerian citizens is unfounded. Before now, we have poor people. Before now, we have people who could not afford three square meals. Before now we have people who do not have jobs, so for anybody to come up with the idea that because we have closed border, all of these vices are being visited on us is completely unfounded”.