The South African presidency has criticised Nigeria’s High Commissioner to South Africa, Femi Fani-Kayode, over his reaction to the omission of his speech from a livestream of a diplomatic ceremony attended by President Cyril Ramaphosa.
The spokesperson for the South African President, Vincent Magwenya, accused Fani-Kayode of misrepresenting Ramaphosa’s involvement in the matter.
Fani-Kayode had alleged that the South African presidency deliberately excluded his introduction and speech from the livestream of a ceremony where 15 ambassadors presented their letters of credence to Ramaphosa on Friday.
The Nigerian envoy claimed that while the presentations and speeches of 14 other ambassadors were broadcast, Nigeria’s segment was omitted.
He also said he raised the issue with Ramaphosa, who directed relevant officials to address his complaint.
However, Magwenya rejected the account, insisting that the South African President did not intervene on Fani-Kayode’s behalf or interfere with the operations of the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC).
According to him, Ramaphosa merely directed the Nigerian envoy to Sophie Mokoena, the SABC’s acting political and foreign editor, whom he described as the appropriate person to handle the complaint.
Magwenya further alleged that Fani-Kayode declined to speak with Mokoena, who could have clarified the misunderstanding.
He maintained that the President had no legal or political authority to interfere with the operations or editorial decisions of the public broadcaster.
Describing the Nigerian envoy’s reaction as excessive, Magwenya said, “Frankly, your approach in this regard on a minor operational issue which you misunderstood was grossly inappropriate.”
He urged Fani-Kayode to engage with the SABC and build a professional relationship with the South African media as he begins his diplomatic assignment.
The exchange followed Fani-Kayode’s public complaint about the livestream incident, which has generated reactions over the diplomatic relationship between both countries.
Hours after the Nigerian envoy raised the allegation, the South African presidency uploaded a separate video featuring his speech on its YouTube channel.
