[size=14pt]National Shame! Nigerian envoy in public fight …@ a party in Namibia [/size]
Sunday, September 28, 2008

THE Nigerian High Commissioner to Namibia, His Excellency Ambassador Prince Adegboyega Christopher Ariyo, shocked guests when he initiated a fistfight at a high profile gala dinner, attended by Namibian and Nigerian dignitaries for busines networking.



The fight at the gala dinner-turned-boxing-match, erupted when Ambassador Ariyo physically booted fellow Nigerian citizen and Windhoek resident, Debo Ogunbiyi, from the Safari Hotel and Conference Centre last Wednesday, claiming that he was not invited.

Efforts by Ogunbiyi to explain to the Ambassador that co-organiser of the event, the Association of Nigerians in Namibia, had invited him to the function, proved fruitless. Seething with anger, the Ambassador, allegedly grabbed Ogunbiyi pushed him to the floor and pinned him down whilst pummelling him.

Stunned guests including officials from the Namibian Ministries of Finance, Information and Technolgy and Education, and their Nigerian counterparts including some Nigerian State governors, watched in disbelief as Embassy Staff rushed to pull their Ambassador off Ogunbiyi.

Despite being overpowered by the combined efforts of His Excellency, Prince Ariyo and the Embassy Staff, Ogunbiyi managed to throw a few punches in the air before fleeing the scene.

Ambassador Ariyo confirmed that he kicked Ogunbiyi, whom he recognised as a Nigerian citizen at the event, claiming that he had been in the wrong place.

“I had important people including Ambassadors at the event, and I could not keep him. This was an event organised by the High Commission and I made provisions for only 80 people, and he was not invited,” he said.

An official of the Association of Nigerians in Namibia, who witnessed the incident, confirmed that Ogunbiyi was invited.

“For the first time, I hate being a Nigerian – and for the Ambassador and Embassy Staff to physically remove me from the event – shame on them,” Ogunbiyi fumed.

Ogunbiyi said he attended the event not for fun but rather to network and check on opportunities available.

“What’s wrong with a Nigerian attending an event organised using Nigerian taxpayer’s money. Is my Embassy, an institution that’s supposed to protect me, now telling me that I cannot meet with my fellow citizens?”

The following Thursday when Ogunbiyi went to the Windhoek Police Station to report the case, he said that the police turned him away, claiming that the Ambassador enjoys diplomatic immunity and therefore cannot be prosecuted.

According to Sunday Sun findings, this is not the first time Ambassador Ariyo had caused public embarrassment for his country. In an earlier Informante expose, he was reported as one of the ‘dozing diplomats and politicians’ during President Hifikepunye Pohamba’s important and legislated State of the Nation address to Parliament.

Before going to press there were several attempts by the victim, Ogunbiyi, and officials of the Association of Nigerians in Nambibia to gag the story. They claimed that an urgent meeting with the Ambassador was held where “the matter has been solved.”

http://odili.net/news/source/2008/sep/28/509.html

Roflmao . Did they hire a retired boxer as an ambassador? Naija and their drama sha. The guy wey crash the party sef tire meoo.

The've succeeded in giving the likes of Mpele, Nuzo and kobojunkie a cause to rejoice and praise the lord.

LOL! Do I have to say more.

no u dnt have to fool!! if it was in south africa i bet u someone will be shot, just like they shot ur recent and only regga star

so dnt say more

deepzone and bily u people are boring me with so much unnecessary thread. pls look to see it there is need before displaying ur inherited stupidity

Any Pics? I'ld love to see these 'event' on cam!

Any Pics? I'ld love to see these 'event' on cam!

DeepZone:

Roflmao . Did they hire a retired boxer as an ambassador? Naija and their drama sha. The guy wey crash the party sef tire meoo.

The've succeeded in giving the likes of Mpele, Nuzo and kobojunkie a cause to rejoice and praise the lord.

This Ijesha woman sef , your life is full of sentiments.

Does saying the truth about the rotten nigerian situation and finding ways to solve it translate to hatred for nigeria?
Its not too late for hypocrites and blind patriots to wake up!

so? whats d big deal in that?

so? whats d big deal in that?

What's the big deal in an envoy fighting in a party?

I think it's time we start giving our envoys psychological exams before sending them out. This is very embarrassing. This guy has aides or even if there were none at the party, why not use th security to take his porapo out? I think he should resign voluntarily or be taken out.

The guy that crashed into the party tire me too. Although he's looking for connections but that move is kind of dangerous in this age and time of terrorism. What is he got shot? Yoruba people and party love sef .

what do you expect from a political appointee who is a thug

what do you expect from a political appointee who is a thug

It's not only him. Thousands of our political appointees are the same. Am not even sure that man went to school because that behaviour is unbecoming of a mature graduate.

that ambassador should be promoted immediately to be the minister of foreign affairs

that ambassador should be promoted immediately to be the minister of foreign affairs

You are not serious.

DeepZone:

You are not serious.

But that is how it works in nigeria.

You will hear a senator say "i delivered 50 constituencies". How did he do it? Simply by fighting in the house of assembly and using thugs to kill off oppositions in his village.
Unfortunately, the next story you will hear is that he has been made the 'governor' of his state for his "doggedness".

Shame on these nigerians!!!

@Deepzone

how can you put up a post like this one and turn around to say this:

DeepZone:

The've succeeded in giving the likes of Mpele, Nuzo and kobojunkie a cause to rejoice and praise the lord.

You help in circulating stuff to make them "praise the Lord" and think it is a bad thing when they do?

Rejoinder
Re: Nigerian Envoy fight at Gala night of Sept 28
By Sun News Publishing
Sunday, October 5, 2008


My attention has been drawn to your story, "Nigerian Envoy Fight at a Gala Dinner" dated 28/9. With all due respect to your paper which I held in high esteem, I should have expected your paper to check the veracity of this very damaging story before you went to the press.

In this era when we are all collectively repositioning Nigeria no envoy worth his salt would be involved in the acts described in your story under referene at a function his Minister of State, the Executive Governor of Plateau State, many host ministers, Ambassadors from many countries, Permanent Secretaries, Director General of Technical Aid Corps of Nigeria, Ambassador Mamman Daura and his officials as well as many professors and lecturers from Nigeria were invited to the dinner by the Envoy.

The fact was that to honour the Minister of State II, Ambassador Bagudu Hirse and the Executive Governor of Plateau State, His Excellency David Jang as well to celebrate the resuscitation of the Nigeria/Namibia Joint Commission which has been dormant since 2000 an arrangement was made for a dinner and some very important people were invited. The last included the peoplementioned above. The Executives of the Association of Nigerians in Namibia (ANINAM), the Nigeria in Diaspora Organisation and those of Nigeria/Namibia Friendship Association were invited.

Mr. David Adetuna who is the Public Relations Officer of ANINAM was invited. He came with two other people to this sit down dinner. This created problems of sitting arrangement for Mr. Ogunbiyi and the other person that also came with him were politely asked to move to another dinning room in the hotel and that the High Commission will pay for their meal. They refused and walked away inspite of my plea. The next thing the Mission heard was the telephone call from a gutter newspaper here called Informante. The story of the Informante was now produced by your paper without checking with me. Mr. Ogunbiyi sent a rebuttal withdrawing his story and deposited same to the police and apologised to me.

Mr. Adetona also withdrew his story. Their letters and the accounts of the event as recorded by my officers who were present are attached for your information and publication in the conspicuous manner you gave to their story. It is sad that while all efforts are being deployed to implement the Citizen Diplomacy of the present administration by my Mission, the reward one is getting is slander and character assassination by some Nigerians who are possibly not happy with the positive improvement in Nigeria/Namibia relation since I resumed my watch here in Windhoek. I have since my arrival launched the Nigerian chapter of Nigeria in Diaspora Organisation (NIDO) in Namibia as well as Nigeria/Namibia Friendship Association and have assisted the Aasociation of Nigeria in Namibia with funds to bring them together. The Mission has good working relations with the Nigerian community and in fact many of them have written to commend us. Please see the attached.

Like I have assured the Elders of the Nigerian community here who came pleading on behalf of these people and asking for my forgiveness, these gentlemen will continue to receive all assistance and protection from my Mission because they are Nigerians, the most important resource of our country. Indeed Mr. Adetona has been invited to the forthcoming October 1, Independence celebration.
I should however state that I and my staff did not engage anybody in any physical assault. I have not also spoken to any Sun reporter or staff on this story before the publication as was wrongly alleged in your publication. It would be necessary to do the urgent and important thing now by publishing this my letter and the attachment to clear my image in the eye of Nigerians and the government that sent me to Namibia.

I leave all this matter in the hands of the Almighty.

•Ambassador (Prince) Adegboyega Christopher Ariyo,
High Commissioner, Nigeria High Commission, Windhoek, Namibia.
Editor’s note

We have since discovered that our story, ‘Diplomatic Shame’ published in September 28 edition of Sunday Sun was grossly exaggerated. We therefore regret any embarrassment the earlier story may have caused the esteemed Nigerian envoy to Namibia. We meant no harm.


source: http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/national/2008/oct/05/national-05-10-2008-002.htm

lol
Nigerian press,one don't know what to believe again