The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye, as well as the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, have drawn attention to an old video footage being generated on social media of the violent destruction of the Nigerian Embassy in Senegal during a protest.
This was sequel to the latest video footage circulating on the social media showing the destruction of the Nigerian Embassy in Dakar by a group of hoodlums protesting against the manner in which the death of a Nigerian, Kingsley Irogbulam, was handled by the Embassy.
In separate press statements, Enikanolaiye and Dabiri-Erewa noted that the incident took place on March 4, 2013 and it is not a recent development.
The Ministry recalled that at the time it happened, the matter was resolved to the satisfaction of all sides.
It said appropriate steps were taken by the Embassy to address the grievances of the Nigerian community, including arrangements for a decent burial of the deceased Nigerian.
The Ministry stated in the statement that additional steps were also taken to beef up the security of the Embassy as well as restoring the confidence of the Nigerian community in its work and personnel.
Dabiri-Erewa in a statement by her Special Assistant on Media, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, corroborated the facts and advised Nigerians at home and in the Diaspora to avoid misleading information about Nigeria and its interests anywhere in the world.
Dabiri-Erewa stated in the statement that the House of Representatives intervened in the matter in March 2013 when she was the Chairperson of the committee on Diaspora.
“Any discerning person who goggles the video will see the date clearly in March 2013,” she said, adding: “It is therefore surprising that this old video footage suddenly went viral in the social media, purporting to show the destruction of the Nigerian Embassy three years after the incident occurred and the matter resolved.”
Available information at the supervising Ministry of Foreign Affairs is that the Embassy is in good shape and continues to discharge its duties and obligations to Nigerians in Senegal.
Both statements further advised members of the public to be more discerning of information being circulated on social media by carrying out checks before jumping into conclusions, warning also against gullibility to incorrect and destructive information.
News Nigerians told to beware of old video on Nigerian embassy in Senegal...
