Following the publishing of a recorded video broadcast on the social media platform X by a popular fake news merchant, David Hundeyin alleging that the Nigerian government had sent a military jet to Ghana to forcefully render him back to Nigeria, it has emerged that the Ghana Refugee Board on 1st October, 2023 wrote a letter to Hundeyin, who is on self-exile in Ghana dispelling such claims.
On 21st September 2023, Mr. Hundeyin took to his X handle (formerly twitter) and posted a video recording where he claimed that the federal government was putting pressure on the Ghanaian government to revoke his refugee status and extradite him to Nigeria for leaning what he described as ‘confidential information about President Bola Tinubu’s personal life and plans by ECOWAS to invade the Republic of Niger.
The Ghana Refugee Board in the October 1 letter it wrote to Hundeyin and signed by its Chairperson Kenneth Attafuah quashed the false claims of a secret extradition plans stating that Hundeyin’s fears of being extradited lacks any form of truth and are unfounded.
The Ghana Refugee Board then firmly rebuked the controversial fake news journalist for making unproven allegations and apparently defamatory statements against the sitting President of Nigeria from Ghanaian soil stating that such statements have strong political ramifications and national security potential implications and could engender needless diplomatic row between Nigeria and Ghana.
The Refugee Board then sternly warned Hundeyin and charged him to desist from such conduct. The GRB Chairperson further made it clear to Mr. Hundeyin that although the board has no intention of withdrawing or cancelling his refugee travel document (CTD), he must obey and respect the laws of Ghana and observe the provisions of Rights and Obligations of Asylum Seekers, which includes the obligation not to engage in any political activities within Ghana and/or in his country of origin (Nigeria) whether at the local or national level, including voting.
Also, in the light of an earlier incident on July 20, 2023 where the self-acclaimed journalist was detained by the Zimbabwean immigration authority as he tried to enter Harare before being deported from Zimbabwe, the GRB Chairperson in the October 1, 2023 letter to Mr. Hundeyin explained to him that his possession of a CTD does not remove the right of any country to grant or deny him entry into its territory as the decision to accept or reject his entry into any country is the prerogative of the prospective host country.
The clarification by the Ghana Refugee Board became necessary because from the Zimbabwean incident, it was clear Hundeyin assumed that the refugee travel document issued to him by GRB allows him to travel to any country he chooses to without applying for an entry visa. Such was the delusion of Hundeyin about his self-importance. He felt he has now become a global citizen with free and unrestricted right of passage to any country of his choice.
It appears Mr. Hundeyin is not ready to come back to reality and accept the fact that nobody is pursuing him. He has done everything possible to get the attention of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and may be get the security agencies to go after him, which will boost his plan of portraying himself as a persecuted journalist fleeing oppression from a regime and therefore easily secure asylum status in a developed Western country, with the US being his primary target.
It is not surprising that Mr. Hundeyin is not content with being just a hustler and an agent for hire ready to serve the disenchanted interests of political losers such as Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and Mr. Peter Obi who have electoral scores to settle with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu who was their opponent in the 2023 presidential election. He wants to position himself as the pre-eminent critic of president Bola Tinubu.
Unfortunately for Hundeyin, all his moves have been falling like a pack of cards, the recent one being his funny attempt to get FBI to release documents they may have on 1993 civil forfeiture case involving President Tinubu, which a US Court has trashed. At this rate, Hundeyin may force Ghana Refugee Board to withdraw his refugee status due to his brazen violation of the terms of his refugee status. Eventually, Hundeyin may become a wanderer who is always running away from his shadows. He will certainly need a psychological and psychiatric help at one stage.