O’tega Ogra, a senior adviser to Tinubu, defends a viral video showing the president of South Africa “ignoring” Tinubu

Online controversy has been caused by a social media video that purports to show South African President Cyril Ramaphosa ignoring President Bola Tinubu of Nigeria during Ramaphosa’s inauguration. After sharing the video on X (previously Twitter), social activist Aisha Yesufu said Tinubu was “disgraced” once more, while another user thought the Nigerian president appeared “lost.”CONTINUE FULL READING>>>>>

In the video, Tinubu is seen sitting in the second row beside Tanzanian President Samia Hassan and other officials, while Ramaphosa, who was sworn in for a second term, greets dignitaries seated in the front row.

Ramaphosa did not immediately extend handshakes to everyone in that back row. However, separate footage from the South African presidency shows Ramaphosa subsequently moving to the second row to interact with the heads of state and government, telling Tinubu “it’s so good to have you here” and promising they would “talk later”.

According to TheCable News, Tinubu’s senior digital communications aide, O’tega Ogra, explained that the front row was reserved for South African royalty, and that Ramaphosa was not expected to greet everyone at that specific moment, which is why he abruptly stopped and returned to his seat when called by the emcee. Ogra accused Yesufu of demonstrating “crass ignorance” and “hatred” towards Nigeria in her portrayal of the incident.CONTINUE FULL READING>>>>>