• Survivors in stable condition
• Omokri slams ‘de-marketing’ of Nigeria
President Bola Tinubu yesterday sympathised with Anthony Joshua following the accident that claimed lives of two associates. The accident occurred near the Sinoma area, close to the Sagamu axis of the expressway in Ogun, leaving the boxing champion with minor injuries.
Joshua and three other passengers were travelling from Lagos to Sagamu when the sport utility vehicle (SUV) conveying them collided with a stationary truck.
In a statement posted on his X handle, Tinubu described the incident as an immense tragedy, casting a shadow over the yuletide.“I sympathise with you and your family as you bear the emotional weight of this unfortunate incident. As a sportsman, you have always shown courage, discipline and unwavering love for our country. These are qualities that have made you a source of national pride.
“I pray for strength, wisdom, and grace for you during this painful period. May God grant you a speedy recovery and repose to the souls of the departed,” the President wrote.
Joshua and the other survivor were immediately evacuated to a specialised facility in Lagos. Doctors have reportedly conducted clinical assessments and have confirmed that both patients are stable and do not require any emergency interventions.Joshua has since been relating well with his family.
Meanwhile, in a statement via X yesterday, Reno Omokri said headlines from as far as India and Australia had quoted Nigerian X users, claiming that first responders failed to assist Joshua and portraying the scene as emblematic of a “failed state.”
He tweeted: “Instead of de-marketing Nigeria, why don’t you and I wait for the full details of what occurred to our beloved boxing champion before making dramatic and damaging statements whose veracity we cannot be sure of?
“You were not at the scene of the accident. You are relying on videos you see online. You don’t know the full details. But your first instincts are to attack Nigeria and paint the worst possible picture to the outside world, and now headlines from as far away as India and Australia are quoting Nigerian X users and lampooning Nigeria and saying that no first responders came to Mr Joshua’s rescue and that the whole scene was emblematic of a failed state.”
Omokri said witnesses at the scene immediately began assisting Joshua within the first two minutes, before professional first responders arrived.
According to Omokri, before an ambulance could arrive, Joshua was already close to a hospital, all within minutes, not an hour as widely reported online.
“Please be patriotic and wait for an official statement before hastily crucifying Nigeria,” he said, urging the public not to repeat past mistakes in misrepresenting emergency response operations.
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