President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Tuesday briefly missed his footing during a ceremonial march-past organised in his honour at a parade ground in Türkiye, but swiftly recovered as the state visit proceeded without disruption.
Muslim News gathered that the incident occurred while the Nigerian leader was inspecting the guard of honour alongside his host, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, during the official welcome ceremony.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was officially welcomed by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at a ceremony held at the Presidential Complex during his visit to Türkiye.@asovilladigital | @officialABAT | @trpresidency | @RTErdogan pic.twitter.com/aS9FHPWePz
— Presidency Nigeria (@NGRPresident) January 27, 2026
A video of the moment, which has since circulated on social media, showed President Tinubu walking beside President Erdoğan before he momentarily stumbled and fell to the ground.
He was immediately assisted by security operatives and members of the presidential detail and quickly regained his footing.
President Bola Ahmed #Tinubu on Tuesday briefly missed his footing during a ceremonial march-past organised by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in his honour at a parade ground in #Türkiye, but quickly regained his balance as the state visit continued without disruption. pic.twitter.com/HABIjBvdfc
— Muslim News Nigeria (@muslimnews_NG) January 27, 2026
The brief incident did not interrupt the ceremony, which continued as scheduled, with both leaders proceeding to the next segments of the reception.
As of the time of filing this report, no official statement had been issued by the Nigerian presidency on the incident.
However, Sunday Dare, Special Adviser to the President on Public Communications and Orientation, addressed the situation in a post on his verified X (formerly Twitter) handle, assuring the public of the President’s wellbeing.
“President Tinubu in great shape as state visit proceeds smoothly,” Dare wrote, adding that following the stately welcome ceremony in Ankara, the President went on to attend scheduled bilateral meetings with President Erdoğan and other senior government officials from both countries.
PRESIDENT TINUBU IN GREAT SHAPE AS STATE VISIT PROCEEDS SMOOTHLY
President Tinubu after a stately welcome ceremony in Ankara proceeded to scheduled bilateral meetings with President of Turkey and other senior government officials from both countries. @officialABAT pic.twitter.com/CLI9bEF6rO— Sunday Dare,CON (@SundayDareSD) January 27, 2026
President Tinubu’s visit to Türkiye is aimed at strengthening diplomatic, economic and security ties between Nigeria and the Turkish government.
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