Aidoghie Paulinus, Abuja
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has dismissed a video which purportedly showed the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, being chased out of a meeting in Vienna, Austria.
The spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ferdinand Nwonye, in a statement issued in Abuja, said the incident captured in the video took place three years ago.
Nwonye added that the video was an outcome of a very pleasant and informative interactive session whereby at the end of the parley, a group of no more than five individuals complained vociferously that it had not been given the opportunity to speak.
“The attention of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been drawn to an old video circulating on social media, purporting to show disruption of a meeting the Honourable Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, was holding with some members of the Nigerian community in the Embassy of Nigeria in Vienna, Austria.
“The ministry wishes to unequivocally inform that the incident captured in the video took place three years ago. The facts are that at the end of a very pleasant and informative interactive session, a group of no more than five individuals complained vociferously that they had not been given the opportunity to speak.
“The minister in his magnanimity prevailed on the organizers to allow a representative of the group to speak, and the fellow when given the floor, unfortunately proceeded to make incoherent declarations against the unity of Nigeria. The Honourable Minister in his response condemned the glorification of conflict and admonished them that they were too young to appreciate the traumatic horrors of violent conflict as witnessed during the Nigerian Civil War,” Nwonye said.
Nwonye added that one of the young men however took exemption to the minister’s peaceful disposition and was getting more agitated and vocal.
He said it was at that point that point that the minister was ushered out of the meeting room as the meeting had already ended.
“The ministry condemns the circulation of the old video by mischief makers and calls on the public to disregard the video in it’s entirety,” Nwonye further said.
