The diaspora of Nigerian athletes must be treated with respect, according to the minister of foreign affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar.
The Minister made the statement in response to the widely shared TitTok videos from Napoli ridiculing Osimhen for missing a penalty kick in the club’s Serie A match against Bologna last week.
Tuggar, however, asserted that the issue is covered by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ 4Ds Strategy, sometimes referred to as the Tinubu Doctrine, which mainstreams democracy, development, diaspora, and demography as part of its external goals..
Alkasim Abdulkadir, the minister’s special assistant on media and communications strategy, said the diaspora component of the strategy views the life and dignity of every Nigerian living abroad as sacred and deserving of respect and dignity in accordance with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
“When we go about our duties, we should always remember Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.
“They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.
“By the foregoing, Napoli did not act in the spirit of brotherhood by the mocking of her star player Victor Osimhen who was instrumental to the team winning the Serie A Championship last season,” the statement read in parts.
The minister said that the Nigerian government will continue to keep an eye on events not just in Naples but all over the world regarding how its athletes and other nationals are handled, and it would not hesitate to correct any wrongdoings.
Despite the criticism, Napoli has resisted offering Victor Osimnhen an apology.
In a club statement, the club said if Victor perceived any offence towards him, this was not what the club intended.’
The club said: said: ‘Calcio Napoli, wishing to avoid any exploitation of the issue, point out that we never wanted to offend or mock Victor Osimhen, who is a treasure of this club.’
The club also mentioned how they had rejected several transfer offers for the forward during the summer window.
‘As proof of that, during the summer training retreat, the Club firmly rebuffed every offer that was received for the striker’s transfer abroad.
‘Social media, in particular, TikTok, has always used an expressive form of language with a light heart and creativity, without wanting to, as in the case with Osimhen as the protagonist, have any intention of insult or derision.
‘In any case, if Victor perceived any offence towards him, this was not what the club intended.’
