'I don't know about any dual citizenship' - Fashola replies journalist who asked about Tinubu's Guinean citizenship

Babatunde Raji Fashola, Minister for Works and Housing has come to the defense of his principal following the emergence of his Guinean diplomatic passport.

The biometric page of the passport that went viral on social media over the weekend was shared by independent journalist David Hundeyin on his Twitter feed on Saturday night.

The passport which carried the image of the president-elect was issued in October 2015 expiring five years later in October 2020.

Tinubu, whose whereabouts remained unclear since he secretly traveled to Europe around March 20, was nominated by the APC at its convention on June 8, 2022, and went on to be declared the winner of the presidential election that was held on February 25, 2023.

Speaking in an interview on Channels TV on Sunday, April 17, Fashola who was the Chief of Staff to Tinubu at the time he was governor of Lagos State between 1999 and 2007 opined that the constitution of Nigeria allows citizens to be dual citizens.

He said: "I know he carries a Nigerian passport, but I don't know about any dual citizenship. I know he resided abroad when he went into exile. And I don't know if they gave him dual citizenship but what does that have to do with the results of the election? The Constitution allows you to have dual citizenship."

The passport is reported to have been issued to Tinubu while his ally Alpha Conde was Guinean president. Mr Tinubu had publicly claimed credit for helping Mr Conde secure reelection in October 2015. The Guinean leader was ousted in a military coup in 2021.

Why the report of his dual citizenship has gone viral, it has been met with a strident silence from his surrogates.

Dele Alake, Festus Keyamo and Bayo Onanuga, who are usually quick to defend their principal with strong-worded statements, have been oddly quiet, avoiding the matter. Multiple efforts to get comments from Messrs Keyamo and Onanuga fell through on Sunday, reports Peoples Gazette.

Q: Does Tinubu have dual citizenship?

Minister of Works and Housing Babatunde Fashola speaks:#CTVTweets#SundayPolitics pic.twitter.com/vMm2v8pYLN

— Channels Television (@channelstv) April 16, 2023