Turkish officials shocked that Tinubu’s stumble made headlines in Nigeria – Abike Dabiri

The Chairman of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM), Abike Dabiri-Erewa, said Turkish officials dismissed the furore in Nigeria over President Bola Tinubu’s stumble during his official visit to the country as “silly”

Mrs Dabiri-Erewa stated this Wednesday while reacting to a post on X by a user, Oguntoye Opeyemi, also known as Equityoyo, who criticised the level of attention Nigerian media gave to the incident.

“Exactly. On ground here in Ankara, their officials were shocked to learn that it was an issue in Nigerian media/blogs,” she wrote.

“Not a single Turkish TV station reported the President’s accidental slip because it’s a non-issue. But Naija TV and national newspapers,” he wrote.

President Tinubu had briefly stumbled on Tuesday during a ceremonial march-past organised in his honour at the parade ground in Ankara.

The moment occurred as he stepped forward to join the guard of honour, briefly drawing attention before the event proceeded without interruption.

Footage of the incident, first shared by Turkish digital outlet Nefes Gazetesi and later circulated on X, showed Tinubu walking beside Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan before momentarily losing his balance.

He was swiftly supported by security personnel.

Tinubu’s visit, his first official trip to Türkiye, is focused on deepening diplomatic ties and boosting collaboration in areas such as defence, trade, investment, energy, media and scientific research.