Kemi Badenoch, leader of di United Kingdom Conservative Party, claim sey she no fit pass her right of Nigerian citizenship give her children sake of her gender.
Badenoch make di on Sunday for interview with CNN Fareed Zakaria, as she dey try tok di difference between di immigration policies of Nigeria and Britain.
As she dey try prove her point, she claim sey e dey easy for Nigerians to get British citizenship than for foreigners to become Nigerian.
“E nearly dey impossible, for example, to get Nigerian citizenship. I get that citizenship sake of my parents, I no fit give am to my children because I be woman,” na so she tok.
“Yet plenti Nigerians dey come UK stay for relatively free period of time, get British citizenship. We no suppose dey do like mumu.”
Di claim wey Badenoch make cause plenty reactions from Nigerians, as dem dey criticise her sake of weda truth dey wetin she tok.
Nigerian Yoruba parents born Olukemi Adegoke for UK. Dem later cari her go Nigeria, where she spend much of her childhood before she go back UK at age 16.
Before she return to di UK, she bin do her basic education for private school inside Lagos, Nigeria, without need for student visa sake of sey she be Nigerian citizen.
Student visa (R7A) na type of visa wey dem dey give international students wey dey study for Nigeria. Nigerian citizens no be international students and dem no require student visa to study for di kontri.
She later married Hamish Badenoch, one Scottish banker, come collect im surname, become Kemi Badenoch.
Di couple get three children.
WETIN WE CHECK
CableCheck compare di claim wey Badenoch make wit di Nigerian Constitution.
According to section 25(1)(c) of di 1999 Constitution, pesin wey dem born outside Nigeria na citizen of Nigeria if any of dia parents na Nigerian citizen.
Dis mean sey only one Nigerian parent dey okay to become citizenship by birth. For Badenoch case, her children na automatic Nigerian citizens.
Citizenship by birth for Nigeria na wen pesin automatically become Nigerian citizenship immediately dem born am, sake of di citizenship status of one of dia parents or grandparents, instead of di place wey dem born am.
Di status dey grant di holder all di rights of citizenship, including di right to enter Nigeria freely and enjoy constitutional protections.
Nigerian law dey also allow pesin get two citizenship, but with specific conditions.
Section 28(1) tok sey person wey be Nigerian citizen by birth fit get anoda kontri citizenship without losing dia Nigerian citizenship.
However, pesin wey no be Nigerian citizen by birth but through registration or naturalisation must abandon dia Nigerian citizenship if dem collect anoda kontri citizenship.
In addition, di law no tok sey privileges of citizenship by birth dey entitled to one gender.
Gender dey become important only for cases wey involve foreign spouses.
Section 26(2)(a) of di Nigerian Constitution tok sey, “any woman wey dey married to or marry citizen of Nigeria before” fit become citizen too.
Foreign men wey marry Nigerian women no dey automatically eligible for citizenship by registration under dis law; dem fit qualify by naturalisation, wey get stricter requirements.
Therefore, e go dey difficult for Badenoch’s Scottish husband to automatically collect citizenship. Howeva, di tin no affect dia children, wey get Nigerian mama and Nigerian grandparents.
ASHLEIGH PLUMPTRE: CASE OF MIXED HERITAGE AND CITIZENSHIP
Ashleigh Plumptre, 27, na professional British-Nigerian footballer.
Plumptre dey play as centre-back for Al-Ittihad, one Saudi Premier League club, and di Super Falcons, di Nigerian women national team.
Tim Plumptre, her papa, na Nigerian from Lagos, while her mama na English woman.
Ahead of di 2022 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON), Plumptre decide to represent Nigeria, her paternal heritage, instead of England wey she bin dey play for before.
For interview dis month, Tim tok sey im consciously raise im dota wit understanding of her heritage as im bin dey carry her go visit Harry Dotun Plumptre, her grandpapa, and many of her extended Nigerian family as possible.
Plumptre dey among di 24 Nigerian players wey dey currently compete for di 2025 WAFCON.
FINAL TOK
Badenoch claim wey tok sey she not fit pass her Nigerian citizenship give her children no correct. E for dey correct if she don revoke her citizenship.
