Germany Rejects Femi Fani-Kayode As Ambassador, See Why

Germany has rejected Femi Fani-Kayode as an ambassador.

Philips News understands that Germany has rejected Femi Fani-Kayode’s ambassadorial posting over rabid ethnic and religious slurs.

This newspaper recalls that President Bola Tinubu approved the posting of the former minister to a Central European country as an ambassador-designate on March 6, 2026; however, a report filed by Peoples Gazette revealed that the German government rejected Fani-Kayode’s posting to the country on March 13, 2026.

According to the report, the German government said it rejected Fani-Kayode’s nomination due to his “erratic behaviour, controversial past statements, particularly his divisive ethnocentric, tribalistic, and religious fundamentalist comments in Nigeria”, which the European country said was “destabilising”.

The report quoted a senior administration official as saying that he might be redeployed to South Africa as an ambassador.

Meanwhile, PhilipsNews reports that Fani-Kayode’s rejection by Germany came days after the former minister insulted the United Kingdom’s high commissioner to Nigeria, Richard Montgomery, during an argument at a Ramadan dinner hosted by Senator Bashir Lado, the president’s special adviser on Senate matters, at his Abuja home.

What We Know About Femi Fani-Kayode:

Fani-Kayode, one of the prominent political figures President Tinubu appointed as ambassadors, is infamous for his unsavoury utterances and controversial, sometimes divisive, writings on social media and in newspapers.

The former Aviation Minister verbally insulted a journalist in August 2020 after the reporter questioned the funding for his tour of states across the country at the time.

During a press conference in Calabar, Cross River, Southern Nigeria, Mr Eyo asked the politician, “Who is bankrolling you?”

Displeased, Fani-Kayode responded by calling the journalist “stupid” and his question “insulting”. Following public backlash, Fani-Kayode later apologised for his remarks.

Similarly, Fani-Kayode came under public scrutiny over a child custody dispute with his estranged wife, Precious Chikwendu.

Nigeria’s anti-graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), had also charged the former minister with fraud, money laundering, and forgery over 18 years.

However, between 2024 and 2025, the courts dismissed the EFCC cases, which included alleged fraudulent receipt of N4.9 billion, laundering N200 million, and later N8 billion, and forgery of medical reports, because the prosecution team failed to link Mr Fani-Kayode to the alleged offences.

Meanwhile, as of the time of filing this report, Fani-Kayode has not reacted to his rejection as ambassador-designate by the German government.