Former Aviation Minister Femi Fani-Kayode has announced that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved his appointment as Nigeria’s Ambassador-Designate to South Africa.
Fani-Kayode disclosed this in a statement shared on his X handle on Thursday, explaining that his earlier posting to Germany was reviewed after he formally requested a redeployment.
According to him, he wrote to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressing discomfort with the Germany posting due to personal reasons and requested instead to be assigned to South Africa, a country he said he had never visited but had long admired.
He stated that the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, considered and approved the request before forwarding it to President Tinubu, who gave the final approval.
“It gives me pleasure to announce that Mr. President has graciously approved my posting as Nigeria’s Ambassador-Designate to South Africa,” Fani-Kayode said.
He further explained that after spending much of his life in Europe, he preferred to serve in an African country whose foreign policy outlook, political values, and pan-African vision closely align with his personal convictions.
The former minister also revealed that the redeployment involved a mutual swap arrangement with Senator Sam Enang, who had initially been posted to South Africa but later opted for Germany.
Fani-Kayode dismissed reports claiming that Germany rejected his nomination, describing the allegations as false, malicious, and aimed at tarnishing his image as well as embarrassing the Federal Government.
He maintained that no official rejection was issued by Germany and accused the publication behind the report of spreading fabricated information.
The former minister added that he has instructed his lawyers to begin legal proceedings against those responsible for the report and has also reported the matter to relevant security agencies.
He urged media organisations to verify sensitive information before publication and thanked President Tinubu and the Foreign Affairs Minister for approving his redeployment.
Fani-Kayode said he is looking forward to representing Nigeria in South Africa.
Elijah Adeyemi
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