Femi Fani-Kayode has been reassigned as Nigeria’s ambassador-designate to South Africa after asking to be redeployed from an earlier posting to Germany, President Bola Tinubu approved the swap, the envoy-designate said Thursday.
On March 6 Mr. Tinubu approved the posting of over 60 ambassadors. Two days after that initial announcement, Fani-Kayode said, he submitted a formal request to then-Foreign Minister Yusuf Tuggar to be moved — and the president agreed.
"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," Fani-Kayode said, explaining why he wanted the change.
Fani-Kayode described the process in detail: "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." Ita Enang, originally posted to South Africa, will now serve as Germany’s ambassador-designate in Fani-Kayode’s stead.
The reassignment comes after a messy public stretch: about a week after the March 6 postings, reports surfaced alleging Germany had rejected Fani-Kayode’s nomination. He has repeatedly denied that account. "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.
Fani-Kayode said he has taken steps beyond public statements: petitions have been submitted to relevant security agencies against the online platform and individuals involved in the publication, and he has instructed his lawyers to initiate a civil defamation suit.
Shehu Sani, a lawmaker and commentator, gave a terse confirmation of the swap and its motive: "I know that Chief Fani-Kayode asked to change his posting from Germany to South Africa. His reason for that is just personal." That line reinforces the envoy-designate’s insistence that the move was voluntary rather than forced by a foreign capital.
After the initial postings, Fani-Kayode also linked the dispute to a leaked agreement the Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent to South Africa on March 13 — a document he suggested contributed to the unfolding controversy. The ministry’s transmission and the subsequent media cycle widened scrutiny of the ambassadorial round and of Nigeria’s diplomatic messaging.
The swap will be watched at home and by Nigerians abroad as tensions over diplomatic ties with South Africa have become a recurrent domestic topic; those strains are reflected in recent coverage and government actions, including moves related to ties with Pretoria and the welfare of Nigerians there (Adams Oshiomhole-backed House seeks suspension of South Africa ties), registration and evacuation planning (Nigerians In South Africa: 130 Registered for Evacuation as Diplomatic Tensions Rise), and a recall of diplomatic officials amid xenophobic incidents (Nigeria News: Abuja summons South African acting high commissioner over xenophobic attacks).
Tension in this episode comes from two irreconcilable public threads: the media reports that Germany rejected the nomination and Fani-Kayode’s repeated denials and legal pushback. The redeployment ends the immediate question of where he will serve, but it does not eliminate the unanswered issue of who published the original report and why — a question now the subject of official petitions and the civil suit he has initiated.
For now, Fani-Kayode’s public posture is clear: the move to South Africa was his decision, formally approved by the president after a request relayed by Yusuf Tuggar, and he says he will press legal and security channels to hold the publishers of the report to account.
