Prince Harry and Meghan Markle‘s three-day trip to Nigeria was controversial even before they landed in the country – partly because it was an unofficial royal visit due to the fact that they are no longer working members of the royal family.
However, their brief trip to the West African nation has now faced even more criticism, as it has reportedly left the nation “feeling betrayed” by its government.
Prince Harry And Meghan Markle's Nigeria Trip Reportedly Left Its People Feeling 'Betrayed' By Their Government
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were reportedly invited to Nigeria by its military, partly to talk about the possibility of the nation hosting the Invictus Games in the future. But their visit wasn't well-received by everyone, as the country's secretary general of the National Youth Alliance, Tonye Inoriebo, claimed their visit made the public feel betrayed by the government as Nigeria is faced with socio-economic challenges.
"In Nigeria, we feel disappointed, abandoned and betrayed," Inoriebo said in a candid interview with TalkTV, adding: "We feel that the government is not challenged. They only used the media for publicity, but they are abandoning the crucial challenges of Nigeria. As I'm talking to you now, a lot of Nigerians went to bed last night hungry. These people are starving."
Prince Harry And Meghan Markle Slammed For Behaving Like 'They're In Hollywood'
TalkTV host Alex Phillips seemed to side with Inoriebo, and criticized Prince Harry and Meghan's juxtaposition after behaving like "they're in Hollywood" in a country facing severe economic and humanitarian problems.
Inoriebo agreed, and went on to say that although the Nigerian people don't necessarily have a problem with the royal couple, they do have a problem with the Nigerian government who "misplay priorities."
"We cannot go on like this, we cannot continue to allow our government to put up nice, fancy shows for the international community," he continued. "We are hungry, we are starving and people lose their jobs every day," he added.
