John Owan Enoh, the Minister for Sport in Nigeria has released a statement regarding the Victor Osimhen-themed TikToks released by Napoli this week, highlighting his personal desire to investigate the matter due to accusations of discrimination.
Osimhen was the subject of two viral videos released by the club’s official social media channels this week, one of which mocked his penalty miss against Bologna, the second of which compared him to a coconut.
Last season’s top scorer was left outraged by the videos, but, despite the fact that he could have taken legal action against the club, he has recently decided along with his agent Roberto Calenda not to do so.
Owan Enoh shared his thoughts on the matter on Friday via a press release, in which he vowed to protect Nigerian athletes from “unfair mockery and discrimination.”
The statement read: “My office is working hard to reach Osimhen firsthand and understand what the problems are and to establish the facts clearly. I am also in contact with the Minister of Foreign Affairs and with the Nigerian Ambassador to Italy.
“We are using diplomatic channels to explore the issue with Italy. We are committed to ensuring that our sportspeople are given the respect they deserve and that they are not exposed to injustice, discrimination and unfair mockery that could be detrimental to their careers.”
Napoli have released their own statement on the issue, although the club received criticism for failing to properly apologise to Osimhen.
As the arguments continue, Napoli are back in league action on Saturday, when they will face Lecce, with whom the Partenopei are currently level on points.