Sir Alan Sugar under fire over 'Nigeria insult' on The Apprentice
He is used to handing out the criticism. But today Lord Sugar was on the receiving end as Nigeria's High Commissioner in London accused him of insulting millions of his countrymen.
In a statement, His Excellency Dr Dalhatu Sarki Tafida accused the Apprentice boss of making “demeaning” and “spurious” comments about the African country on his hit BBC show The Apprentice.
His Excellency accuses the peer of smearing Nigeria's reputation with an “unprovoked” and “damaging” attack based on his sordid dealings with one individual.
It comes after Lord Sugar suggested that Nigerians could not be trusted over financial promises.
During the opening episode of The Apprentice, the peer asked contestant Stuart Baggs why he should not be “fired” from the show.
Mr Baggs said: “If you give me one hundred grand a year, I will deliver to you 10 times that and if I don't — take it all back. A money back guarantee, I'm that confident”...
Lord Sugar replied: “I had an offer like that from Nigeria once and funnily enough it didn't transpire.”
The peer gave no explanation as to whether his comment was based on a real event or a stereotyped view about Nigerians.
The BBC, which is often sensitive to such pejorative remarks, allowed the pre-recorded clip to be broadcast.
Today a statement issued on Dr Tafida's behalf said: “Lord Sugar's remark on Nigeria is preposterous and spurious for a number of reasons.
"It was an unprovoked, damaging remark on a sovereign and independent state of over 150 million people, based on his alleged sordid and isolated deal with a Nigerian individual. It is indeed demeaning and unfortunate.”
Nigeria has developed a reputation, however, as a base for “mass marketing” rackets in which organised criminals seek to cheat victims of their money by offering prizes or other incentives, which subsequently fail to materialise, in return for cash payments.
A report this year by the International Mass Marketing Fraud Working Group warned that the country continued “to serve as a base of operations for a wide range of mass-marketing activity.”
The 2001 census said there were nearly 90,000 Nigerian-born people living in the UK — just under 69,000 in London — and both numbers are believed to have increased significantly since.
The Hackney businessman versus the High Commissioner..
Lord Sugar started in business selling electrical goods from a van after leaving school at 16, and is now worth about £730 million. He founded Amstrad, the electrical goods firm, which he sold in 2007, and was chairman of Tottenham Hotspur for several years. The Hackney-born entrepreneur was knighted for services to business in 2000 and was last year appointed Gordon Brown's Enterprise Champion and elevated to the Lords. He also supports charities including Great Ormond Street Hospital and Jewish Care.
His Excellency Dr Dalhutu Sarki Tafida was appointed Nigeria's High Commissioner in London in 2008 after a career in medicine which included studying in Newcastle, Liverpool and the US. He was appointed chief physician to the Nigerian president between 1980 and 1983 and later served as minister of health between 1993 and 1995. He was a member of the Nigerian senate between 2003 and 2007, including a period as the Senate majority leader. He is married with nine children and his interests include playing Scrabble and table tennis.
