The Nigerian High Commission in South Africa has fired back at Presidential Spokesperson Vincent Magwenya over his accusation that Nigeria’s High Commissioner, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, lied about President Cyril Ramaphosa intervening in the controversy surrounding his diplomatic credentials presentation.
In a strongly worded response on X, the Nigerian mission described Magwenya’s conduct as provocative and diplomatically inappropriate.
It insisted that President Ramaphosa personally intervened to resolve the matter after Fani-Kayode raised concerns over the omission of his address during Friday’s credentials ceremony in Tshwane.
“You are the disgrace and no-one else. Outside of that your insolence and ignorance knows no bounds,” the Commission declared.
The controversy followed the apparent disruption of the South African Presidency’s YouTube livestream just about the time for the Nigerian High Commissioner, Ambassador Femi Fani-Kayode to present his letters of credence to President Cyril Ramaphosa.
The live broadcast was subsequently back online when President Ramaphosa was addressing the ambassadors.
Fani-Kayode, who was the last diplomat to present his credentials, expressed displeasure that his speech had been deliberately omitted and said he spoke with Ramaphosa, who apologised and assured him that everything was fine.
Reacting to Magwenya’s denial of presidential intervention, the Nigerian High Commission maintained that the South African President had indeed stepped in to resolve the disagreement, declaring: “Thankfully your President had the decency and presence of mind to put out the fire and direct you and your state broadcaster to do the right thing. He literally saved the day.”
The mission further recalled an earlier controversy in which Magwenya reportedly described President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Ghanaian President John Mahama as peddlers of fake news following their concerns about xenophobia and Afrophobia in South Africa, noting that Nigeria had previously refrained from escalating the matter.
Questioning Magwenya’s conduct towards Nigeria’s newly accredited envoy, the Commission asked: “Did you really expect him to simply stomach your ill manners and keep quiet? If so, you have misunderstood the character and nature of the Nigerian. We cannot be easily cowed.”
It also disclosed that several newly accredited ambassadors witnessed the proceedings and that it possesses the full video recording of events following the official photographs.
Insisting that the disagreement should have been handled through diplomatic channels, the Nigerian High Commission urged Magwenya to exercise restraint and embrace reconciliation, stressing that its concern was the preservation of cordial relations between Nigeria and South Africa.
“To us this matter is closed but if you wish to escalate it, you are welcome to do so and we are up to the task. A word is enough for the wise,” the Commission declared.
