Tunde Onakoya, a Guinness World Record holder, has addressed the allegations that he is a ‘sell-out’ for taking photos with the president of Nigeria, Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
On Tuesday, June 10, Onakoya came under fire for featuring in a photo with President Tinubu. The chess master shared the photos on his official social media platforms, infuriating netizens and Nigerians in the process.
Several hours after he was dragged online, the Chess In Slum founder published a lengthy thread on his X account.
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In the opening part of his statement, Onakoya mentioned that he does not affiliate with any particular political party, and he is only interested in building values. Also, he mentioned that he didn’t receive any awards from Tinubu during his recent visit.
Read his statement below:
“I’ll say a few things…
1. The anger, the hate, the love, the applause, the criticism, all of it is valid and I embrace it.
2. I am a world record holder which means I have attained something no one else in the world has ever done. I was recently honored and awarded by the city of New York.
To be honored and received by the President and the highest office in my own country for this reason is not a crime. (It is not even a national honor by the way).
I have declined many awards.”
‘Hold The Government Accountable’
In an additional thread, Tunde Onakoya urged Nigerians to continue to hold their leaders and the government accountable.
He wrote,
“And please, continue to hold the government accountable(Past, present, and future). If it means me getting some smoke as well, that’s okay.
I will do what I must to stand in the gap.
But don’t just tell lies or try to smear this important work through a single lens of politics. It is so much more complex and the nuances cannot be properly explained on Twitter.
We just got back from New York with 5 kids and are taking some more to Budapest for another event. The world is finally paying attention to the Nigerian child not because of the sad tales of poverty or pity but because they have shown intellectual capacity.
This is good news from Nigeria. Lying to discredit me doesn’t help the situation.
In the end, if you want to change the world, someone has to pay for it. We must raise capital at scale. It’s the only way to move the needle.”
Tunde Onakoya is a Nigerian chess player and coach who holds the Guinness World Record for the longest marathon chess game. As the founder and convenor of Chess in Slums Africa, he has organised several interventions for children across slums in Lagos state, including Majidun, Makoko, and recently, Oshodi.
