The First Lady of Nigeria has seemingly taken aim at Meghan Markle’s choice of clothing following her and Prince Harry’s recent trip to the country.
The couple, who visited in their capacity as private citizens, spent three days in Nigeria celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games. The event is a biennial sporting competition for wounded, injured, and sick veterans that Harry helped found alongside Sir Keith Mills.
In her speech, First Lady Senator Oluremi Tinubu, 63, emphasized the importance of preserving the country’s culture from a young age instead of idolizing foreign trends.
“We are not having the Met Gala.”
She continued, “The message here is that we have to salvage our children. We see the way they dress. They keep forgetting that Nigeria, we are beautiful. You can see what they showcase on the stage. I said, ‘We are fashionable; we see what is going on.’
“We are not having the Met Gala. And everyone, the nakedness, is just everywhere, and the men are well-clothed. So we have to do something. Tell them we don’t accept nakedness in our culture. That is not beautiful. It’s not beautiful at all.
“And they’re all beautiful girls, but they should be confident in who they are.
“They do not want to mimic and try to emulate film stars from America. They don’t know where they come from.
“Why did Meghan come here looking for Africa? That is something we have to take home with us. We know who we are. Don’t lose who you are.”
Some people believed the mention of “nakedness” was a reference to Meghan Markle’s outfits in Nigeria, particularly a halter-style dress with a V-neck and a separate black-and-white dress with cut-out details below the chest and a front slit, both designed by Johanna Ortiz.
Some experts suggest she could have shown “more modesty” in a country where just over half of the population are Muslim.
One fashion expert noted that Markle “bared too much skin” and would likely have dressed more conservatively had the trip been organized by Buckingham Palace.
The Duke and Duchess now reside in California with their children, Princess Lilibet and Prince Archie.