Former Minister of Aviation Femi Fani-Kayode has been redeployed as Nigeria’s ambassador-designate to South Africa after initially being assigned to Germany.
Fani-Kayode disclosed the development on Thursday, stating that President Bola Tinubu approved the reassignment following his request for a change of posting.
Explaining the reason behind his decision, the former minister said he was uncomfortable with the Germany assignment due to personal considerations and his long history of living in Europe.
“I was not comfortable with Germany for a number of personal reasons and given the fact that I had lived in Europe most of my life I would prefer to go to South Africa which is a country that I had never been to and for which I have so much interest,” he said.
Fani-Kayode added that he preferred to serve in a country whose worldview and political outlook aligned more closely with his own.
“I also expressed the fact that I would rather serve in a country that shares some of my convictions, beilefs and values when it comes to world affairs, that has the biggest economy in Africa, that has closer ties to Nigeria and that is more proximate to my political thinking when it comes to foreign affairs and a pan African vision,” he stated.
According to him, he formally requested a redeployment shortly after the original ambassadorial list was announced.
“I therefore made an application for a redeployment to South Africa two days after the initial announcement was made and I am pleased to say that after the then Foreign Minister (H.E. Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar) heard my reasons he considered them favourably after which he conveyed the request to Mr. President who graciously approved it.
“I will be eternally grateful to Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for this favourable consideration.”
Following the reshuffle, Ita Enang, who had initially been posted to South Africa, will now serve as Nigeria’s ambassador-designate to Germany.
President Tinubu had earlier approved the appointment of more than 60 ambassadors on March 6, including Fani-Kayode.
However, reports later emerged claiming that Germany rejected his nomination over alleged concerns about his past remarks and public conduct.
The former minister has now dismissed those reports as false.
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“I take this opportunity to once again confirm that this was my choice and that Germany NEVER formally rejected me, which was a fake report that was published in an irresponsible online magazine that thrives on sensationslism, lies and blackmail,” he said.
“Their story was not only irresponsible and insulting but was also a total and complete fabrication based on hearsay, beer parlour talk and cheap gossip and designed to embarass my goodself, the Federal Government and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.”
He further criticised the reasons reportedly given for the alleged rejection.
“Worse still they listed a number of clearly outlandish and absurd reasons for this purported and fake ‘rejection’ which they patched together and concocted reflecting the malevolent condition of their perverse imagination,” he added.
Fani-Kayode also alleged that the reports surfaced after diplomatic correspondence regarding his South Africa posting was leaked to the media.
He said he has instructed his lawyers to institute a civil defamation case against the publication involved.